Her Graceful War Song by Summer's Blaze

During the negotiations at Fangridge Mountain earlier in the day, Oliver's stance was exceptionally resolute.

Before the talks began, both Timothy and Louis had urged him not to mention the Hell Monarch in front of Victor. However, Oliver believed that since they had once served under the prince, they would undoubtedly favor him. So, he agreed to keep quiet while plotting his own strategy.

In previous negotiations, Oliver had been bargaining persistently. He had offered gold, food, and textiles in exchange for Septimus. Each time, Victor had rejected the terms, leading to a deadlock in the negotiations.

This time, Oliver had truly lost patience. He had already made significant concessions for Septimus' sake. He had increased his offer from 5,000 gold coins to 10,000 gold coins, 400,000 pounds of grain, and 2,000 bolts of silk.

If Sandoria still refused, it would be due to sheer greed.

Giving them Simonton City, which had been recaptured by the Hell Monarch, was out of the question. If it were lost again, it would be a severe blow to Oliver.

At the start of this round of negotiations, Oliver had again raised the grain offer, this time to 660,000 pounds.

However, Victor still rejected it.

Fuming, Oliver slammed his hand on the table. "I see that you're not sincere about this at all. I've made the greatest concessions, yet you demand even more. This is utterly unreasonable. If this is how it's going to be, then the negotiations are over."

"Are you certain you want to end the

in good faith, then we have nothing more

and Louis'

said not

translation-Victor understood

he's here? Why isn't he negotiating

about to respond when Louis interjected, "The Hell Monarch issued the order, but was unable to come in person. He recently got married and can't leave the capital at this time." Louis spoke in Sandorian, so no translation was needed.

at him with suspicion. "The Hell Monarch is here,

meet you, Marshal Crow. The war between our two kingdoms has ended, and we in Starhaven have a saying: 'You don't know someone until you've fought them His Highness has great respect for you,

his request for help was delayed. This was due to the fact that the dying king had been gravely ill then, and Hector's call for aid was buried under paperwork. As a result, his forces were defeated, and the enemy retook the Southern Frontier. Victor had never interacted with Hector personally, having taken the

a warning glance at

he was

spoke both languages.

interpreter throughout the

he hadn't had much contact with Louis. So, he relayed Louis' words to