Having examined Adam's black eyes, Igrid felt his legs tremble with fear, and his body scread to run. It was as if he had gazed into a bottomless pit from which countless bloodthirsty monsters lurked, hidden in the darkness behind him. However, Igrid snapped out of his stupor when Adam nodded, closing his eyes briefly before reopening them. The beastman leader no longer felt the sa fear as a minute ago. It was as if it had been a dream, although the shivers running through his entire body proved it had been a reality.
"Go on... I've heard from my subordinates that you ca to the city gates and arrogantly demanded that I lead you here and then apologize for killing your brothers... do you think those words are still relevant, or do you share the sa opinion as you do now?" A teasing smile appeared on Adam's face as he exerted more pressure on Igrid, causing him to grit his teeth and use all his strength to resist. However, when he realized that the pressure was increasing with each passing second, he made the most rational decision at the mont – to apologize.
"I-I'm sorry! Please forgive for this!" he cried out, his voice desperate and hoarse. All his strength had left him, and in the next mont, his body, which had beco twenty tis heavier, broke a chair as he fell to the floor. Imdiately after that, there was a crunch, and a loud cry of agony escaped the beastman's mouth: "AAAAAAAH!"
The sight was horrifying. Fluid oozed from all of his orifices (except one), and the despair on his face and the pain he displayed could make even those who had experienced countless wars tremble in fear and hide in a corner, not wanting to incur the wrath of a man with such abilities. Speaking of those who had survived wars, Igrid's subordinates were trembling like leaves on an autumn day. Fear was the only emotion visible in their eyes, and their pitiful appearance was complented by their drooped ears and bristled fur on their tails.
Either way, Igrid's tornt didn't last long. Adam waved his hand, and soon the pressure disappeared, and doctors approached the beastman to provide first aid. The man trembled and looked at Adam with fear, having forgotten all orders from his leader, and the only desire that grew in him was to escape far and long, not wanting to even et the gaze of the monster in human form, which Adam had appeared to be, with his black eyes seemingly possessing a powerful force of attraction.
"Ah..." Igrid croaked, wincing in pain, feeling his body tremble with pain as dozens of bones in his body had been turned to dust.
Thanks to the doctors who had already started providing first aid, Igrid was able to relax a bit, although he couldn't afford to let his guard down. Now that he had co to his senses, he couldn't help but curse his leader for not bothering to ntion soone as powerful as Mayor Adam, whose character and personality were worse than demons, in his view.
After that, negotiations began. Igrid represented the beastn, while Elara spoke for the city of Sedyon, and the man only cast respectful and clean glances at her, his previous lust having disappeared. Adam refrained from participating in the discussion as he saw no point in intervening. He trusted Elara, who possessed outstanding negotiation skills, although surprisingly, they were not needed. The beastn themselves agreed and even accepted a contract that stated:
1. The Wolf tribe beastn must return all stolen provisions and goods.
2. The Wolf tribe beastn must pay full compensation, including for the killing of Sedyon city's residents. Those who participated in the raids must be handed over to Sedyon along with their families.
3. The Wolf tribe beastn must buy goods within Sedyon City at a price 90% higher than the market rate.
4. The Wolf tribe beastn must pay tribute for cooperation – 500 Platinum Dragon Stones monthly.
5. Sedyon City must not attack the Wolf tribe without cause.
...
...
...
And if you thought these were absurd demands, you would be correct, as they indeed were. However, in the state of the beastn from the Wolf tribe, who had no chance of resisting, each of them could only reluctantly agree to the contract. When Igrid used his fingerprint as a signature, he thought, "Anyway, it's just a piece of paper for humans. For us beastn, human papers are like nothing..."
However, suddenly his cunning thoughts were interrupted by a bright glow from the paper he had just signed, along with his subordinates. He couldn't find anything unusual around him. For so unknown reason, Igrid felt a shiver run through his entire body but couldn't understand the cause. At the sa ti, Adam smirked slyly, his smile hidden as he pressed his face against the top of Elara's head, inhaling the scent of her hair.
"Caught you," he thought gleefully, barely restraining the urge to burst into laughter. His eyes sparkled with cunning and sadism. "Thought I didn't know your thoughts? Most likely, they planned to cause chaos in the city under the guise of negotiations and then quietly leave. They would have ignored the agreent, denying its existence and value to them."
Igrid had just signed a special contract that no one could violate. This contract had been created in ancient tis, and there were only a hundred of them in the whole world, with Amarantha holding twenty. Only beings who had reached the highest levels (SS- and SS and above) could possess them, making it a challenging task to break them. Adam had no intention of letting them go without emptying their pockets or cutting off their hands. Each of their previous attacks had made him angrier and angrier, and now it was ti for revenge.
"I wonder what the reaction of their leader will be..." he thought as he watched the beastn leave the hall, accompanied by Vyran and other Amarantha's subordinates.
***
Igrid swore loudly as they moved away from the walls of Sedyon City by five kiloters. Rage was written all over his face, and he crushed stones with his hands. However, he quickly lost his enthusiasm when his wounds started to hurt, and he had to stop. Taking a deep breath, he began to calm down.
"Boss, what should we do? I feel uneasy..." one of the beastn murmured, furrowing his brow and expressing his concern.
"What? We need to go back! We have to report this to the leader, but... I feel like heads will roll," he shuddered, realizing the consequences of his actions. "I hope she won't be angry..."
The beastn exchanged glances and sighed, feeling a strong headache wash over them, as if the mory of their leader was the main cause of it.
***
The morning of the next day. The citizens of Sedyon City woke up and began their daily routines. So went straight to work, while others set aside ti for their daily newspapers. In the rather expensive district of Sedyon, where traders and wealthy people mostly resided, things were bustling. Newspaper carriers delivered papers right to the doorsteps, and the wealthier folks gave them tips, for which the carriers were very grateful. Vardan, a successful rchant, picked up the morning newspaper and left a tip of 5 Silver Dragon Stones for the carrier. He returned to his living room and sat on the couch.
"All right, let's see what's new," he muttered, cracking his neck and opening the newspaper.
The newspaper was called "World Today" and covered almost all major events happening in the world. The first pages introduced today's topics, followed by numbering, allowing readers to select the topics of interest. And there, Vardan, as usual, examined the topics and suddenly widened his eyes, disbelief written all over his face.
"War?! Demons?!"
On page 5, it read: "War with demons. Avalonia and Chaos Empire, the fear of Varasima vassal kingdom residents." Vardan, overwheld by such abrupt news, imdiately began to read the article avidly, even forgetting to sip the expensive tea his wife had prepared, and she sat beside him, anxiously waiting for him to finish reading.
After five minutes, a deep sigh filled with various emotions echoed in the room. Vardan, rubbing his brows, sighed again, feeling exhaustion overwhelming him. However, after a while, he regained his composure and began to explain everything to his wife, who was worried by his reaction.
"Dear, trouble is coming. Demons are advancing toward Varasima, and Avalonia's soldiers are resisting with all their might, along with the hero Leonid and another hero, Arnold. Hope for a bright future is illusory, but just in case, I will pray to the Goddess of Light to protect our family."
"Oh my God... those demons again! Can't they just sit still?" his wife protested.
Vardan didn't reply and fell silent, feeling anxiety gnawing at him.
This scene played out among all the readers who saw the article. For them, it was a cause for panic, but the fact that Sedyon was far from the demonic army made them breathe a sigh of relief. However, smarter people imdiately realized that if the demons managed to break through the border defenses, even Sedyon would be in danger, which was certainly a cause for concern.
***
After listening to the report in Elizabeth's office, Adam narrowed his eyes, feeling sothing strange about this situation. Firstly, there was the question of why the demons had attacked. According to Amarantha's words, Veronica preferred to study magic and other mysteries and did not want to pay attention to the war. However, now that quiet panther had suddenly beco so aggressive that it even horrified Elizabeth.
"Sothing's not right..." Adam muttered, cracking his neck and turning his head towards Elizabeth, eting her beautiful blue eyes. "Your Majesty... this slls fishy. I'm sure there's sothing too suspicious about this, but I can't say for sure. However, my sense of danger is tingling."
Adam expressed his concerns to her, honestly describing his view of the situation. In this matter, he would like to discuss it with soone else, as his thoughts had not led to an effective result, which was frustrating him.
To be continued...
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