Greed God chapter 121

February 24th 2016 Gemworld 6:00 PM EDT

Despite  looking like a slightly evil porn star, Mordiel was actually really  fucking good at negotiating terms. I'd expected someone as naturally  powerful as her to be kind of shitty at it, considering the absolute  dominion nobles held over this world, but on second thought, it made  some sense. The noble houses were not allies, at least not all of them,  and kept each other in check, keeping even the higher level nobility  sharp and ready for political maneuvers. Not to mention Mordiel had been  in a shadow war with her sister for years and honed herself that way.

Graciel  was, based on the info I'd gathered. Beloved. Amaya slightly less so,  since she was only recently returned to the kingdom from who knew where  (I knew where, it was earth, hence the pendant), but the Princess  herself was considered the next best thing to a goddess in this kingdom,  and Mordiel had needed to be incredibly subtle to stand against the  beloved monarch without turning her own people against her. Having  learned to negotiate from my father as I was growing up, I considered  myself more than a match for most people, but Mordiel was on another  level in terms of sneakiness and double talk.

Eros and  Psyche, to my surprise, turned out to be the thing that made the  difference. Mordiel's desires weren't overtly sexual, but they were DEEP  and I was able to get subtle hints to what she wanted from negotiations  by paying close attention to my ability. Know your enemy and know  youreself, and you would be the victor of a hundred battles. With  insight into her priorities I barely managed to come out on top of the  negotiations. It took hours to set everything up, but we finally  hammered out a contract.

The terms of the deal (which was  written on some kind of magic paper with magical Amethyst ink weirdly  enough) spelled out the rights and responsibilities of both parties for  the duration of the deal. First, I would supply Amethyst with a quarry  of G ranked Amethyst stones, until such a time as the quarries under the  control of my village ran dry. I'd worded this part VERY carefully,  since I couldn't sign a magic contract saying I HAD a quarry, just that I  could supply one, which was true.

The second of the terms  binding me was that I wasn't allowed to sell those Amethysts to anyone  else, nor could I supply less than the agreed upon amount each month so  long as the quarries continued to produce. Technically this meant I  could break the deal at any time, because I could just get rid of the  quarries, but I had no reason to do so because this was all to my  benefit. Once again I structured the wording in a way that benefited me  without tipping my hand, something much easier to do when you had  abilities that shouldn't theoretically be possible.

Someone  else may have questioned the desire for an exclusive trade contract,  given that Amethyst were the ones who benefited most from the stones,  but those people would be idiots. The stones were a massive asset to the  Amethyst kingdom, and were bound to upset the balance of power in the  region. They weren't exactly mega powerful, but the quantity I'd  promised would raise the floor on their production capabilities back to a  place it hadn't been at for literal decades. Any other kingdom would  sell their first born heir to prevent Amethyst from regaining the  dominance they once had in Gemworld, even the ones supposedly friendly  to them.

In return for the supplies, I'd negotiated a few  things for myself too. I'd needed to do so to come across as what I  wanted to project myself as. Mordiel needed to see me as a cocky young  lord with an eye for her niece and enough ambition to compromise in the  short term. I gave zero fucks about the crystals I would be giving them,  but if that became obvious I would lose my leverage by virtue of the  fact that the character I was playing WOULD care. I couldn't give her a  reason to question what she thought she would see, so I had to haggle  like a motherfucker.

The first concession was, of course, a  meeting with Amaya. Mordiel didn't seem pleased that I was so  interested in her niece, but that was more because it was potential  power for Amaya and hence Graciel. Some subtle reminders that her office  was the one who dealt with this kind of thing, and that bringing in  this windfall would reflect exclusively on her since everyone knew this  was supposed to be a punishment assignment (not that anyone would say  that to her face) made it clear to her that my benefit was her benefit.

This  was the tactic anyone in my position would take, so she expected it,  and since she wanted to believe it convincing her was almost laughably  easy. The whole thing was just a salve to her paranoia to make her feel  like she'd done her due diligence. Aside from that though, I needed some  kind of trade good to exchange for, because I had to come across as an  ambitious young lord. But I didn't NEED anything. So I went with the old  standard and just asked to be paid in gold. Pure currency was always  useful, and I could bring that shit back to earth with me too.

It  made me come off a bit greedy and short sighted, but I didn't need  anything they could give me, and money was the closest thing to valuable  I could find. It STILL didn't count towards my GP, but I had ways of  producing points now, so that wasn't really relevant. Once we hammered  all that out, I'd been informed that while I WOULD get my meeting with  Amaya, I would also be meeting the Princess herself in her capacity as  leader to discuss the protection from Emerald I was interested in.

Mordiel  looked like she'd swallowed a lemon when she brought it up, but she  made it clear that anything as important as extending protection across  the border (essentially annexing part of the Emerald kingdom) was a huge  matter, and she couldn't make that decision herself. Trading with me  was fine, but if I wanted to be PART of Amethyst, I'd have to get the  nod from Graciel herself, and that meant she would want to meet me and  decide what kind of person I was. I wasn't opposed to that, though I did  worry how it might affect my chances to woo Amaya.

Which  was how I found myself standing in the entryway to the biggest and most  extravagant building in the city. The royal palace was built inside the  rest of the spires, shorter and much wider to allow the buildings to  hide it from view, but upon seeing it, I immediately knew that it wasn't  like anything I'd ever come across before. The incredibly intricate but  still overwhelmingly powerful building appraised at A rank, the first  building I had seen at that rank, and I could tell from the description  that the security was absolutely top notch. If I had been insane enough  to try attacking the Amethyst court, seeing that would have immediately  dissuaded me of the notion.

The guards, who were both E  rankers like me, allowed me into the building after I showed them the  document Mordiel wrote out for me, and escorted me to the receiving  chamber without any fanfare or delay. When we arrived, I was escorted  into a massive towering chamber, and inside was a whole host of stupidly  powerful Gemworlders. The room was laid out like an opera house, with a  grand stage at one end and a huge open space in front of it occupied by  the seated forms of nobles.

The higher ranked nobles were  in boxes along the walls, elevated positions where they could look down  over the gathered crowd. Against the far wall there was another, higher  platform, positioned so that the people on it were visible despite  being above the rest of the room. A pair of women on radiant thrones,  looking down at everyone in the room, and more specifically for the  moment, me. As we stepped inside, the guards hung back, letting me walk  ahead down the purple aisle carpet leading between the floor seated  nobles.

I walked down the aisle to step up onto a  platform, and when I came to a halt, the platform rose into the air,  bringing me closer to eye level with the Princess and her daughter,  though not reaching their actual height. Princess Graciel waited until I  was stably positioned before addressing me. "Greetings. I have heard  from my sister that you possess access to an Amethyst quarry, and are  willing to provide us with a steady supply, but that one of your  requests was for protection. Before granting such a request I wished to  take your measure myself. Is this acceptable to you?"

I  wondered if Mordiel had shared my interest in her daughter for a  moment, but then I decided she probably had Mordiel's office under  surveillance. If I had a jealous sister plotting my downfall, I knew I  would keep an eye on that bitch. That was just common sense. Still,  since she was Amaya's mother, this could work in my favor if I played it  right. The trick was to be magnanimous about letting her test me but  not be a kiss ass. If I looked like I was sucking up to her mom there  was no way the little princess would be interested.

It  was a fine line to walk, but I enjoyed a challenge. I gave her a placid  smile, deciding to go with arrogant and aloof with just a hint of  sarcastic for my image here. "Of course, it is you majesty's kingdom  after all. Ask me whatever you like, I'm always happy to answer a  question for a potential business partner." I made sure to slip in a  reference to us being peers as I spoke. If she didn't correct me, it  would set the image that I was on her level socially, which would make  interacting without sucking up much more feasible.

I  saw a flash of amusement on her face, but she didn't call me out on it.  "Very well, I suppose the most pressing issue is your bloodline. I'm  afraid I don't recognize the magic you wield, but to become an Earl,  especially at such a young age, your bloodline must be potent. Might I  inquire as to your lineage?" I'd been expecting a haughty and arrogant  demeanor, but when she asked that she sounded polite and earnest,  without any condescension at all despite being so far above me in the  pecking order. Her words clued me in to exactly why, and I realized I  had miscalculated this situation. A lot.

I  was an E ranker at eighteen. Based on the way the magic in this world  worked, I had to have a bloodline to reach that standard, and people  with bloodlines became stronger over time. It was why Amaya was only D  rank despite being the daughter of a B ranked Princess. Since I was  already this strong, it implied that I had a powerful bloodline, which  had to have COME from somewhere. She wasn't negotiating with me, she was  negotiating with the theoretical heir of a potential new force nearly  on the level of one of the dynasties. Hell, everything I had done up to  this point implied I had backing, from the raising of the village to the  gems I casually took out, made it seem like I was some prince in  disguise. I hadn't actually intended that, but I sure as hell wasn't  going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

So,  knowing the situation had changed, I did what I did best. I lied. I  tapped into the Vital Tempest, letting the change to dragonkin flow over  me, and allowed my antlers and a light dusting of scales (not enough to  make me less attractive in front of the princess) to surface on my body  as I swept into a bow. "I am Nicholas, heir to the the dragon  Primordius, Dragon of the Vital Tempest. I bid you greetings." Having  Amethyst backing me up to keep Emerald off my back was great, but if  they wanted to assume I had a secret powerhouse backing me, I was game. I  always loved executing a flawless plan, but I wasn't against stumbling  into some good luck now and then. I just had to make good use of it.