City of Desire [Kingdom Building]

Proofread by Thomas F

Alina Lindgren

“Mistress, you barely slept. You should take some rest,” said Croft as he brought me tea.

“I will, after grandfather comes out,” I replied and took the tea, filled with mist. Usually, I don’t consume mist-made items unless it is a special occasion, but now I want something to take this tiredness away.

I had been in the tavern since yesterday—since it began!

I had slept, but not for long. I had been too focused on observing the changes happening in the tavern.

The fusion had only lasted for a few hours, but it was taking time for both of the cores to merge completely.

I would have been able to sense it more clearly. If I had my access, but my grandfather took it away. He took away all our access.

I drank the tea, and it made me feel good, before closing my eyes once more.

I felt the tavern; in a single day, a massive change had occurred in it. It’s not hard for me, as I grew up here; I’m familiar with every change.

I could feel the new changes, from subtle aspects to a broader emotional scale.

It had made the tavern more powerful. It was nearly twice as powerful as before, but it also changed in another way that I dislike.

Vanis’s Tavern is always lively; that is its aspect; one would feel it the moment they stepped inside.

They would feel the noise, the rush, and the casual and unrefined environment of it. While the clientele had become refined

Compared to that, Mariha’s Inn was a silent place with murmurs and an unsettling environment, which made one unconsciously remain alert.

Now, both had merged, creating a weird environment. That makes people of both persuasions feel they do not belong here.

Vanis Tavern and Mariha’s Inn were never a good match, but desperation had brought them together.

I had feared the merge wouldn’t work, but it did.

Now, the question is, why did we take this risk? The chances seemed great for success, based on what I was feeling, but only Grandfather could confirm it, and he hadn’t walked out the door yet.

Everybody is waiting; their future and fate are tied to it.

I was focused on the feeling when I heard something. I opened my eyes and turned. A group of people had arrived; upon seeing them, I immediately stood up and bowed in greeting.

“Lord Thorn,” I greeted the Lord of Inam and nodded at Lord Valtir, his son, and the middle-aged man standing beside him.

He is Cedan Baelir, son of Mariha Baelir. His mother is Nezhar; she will come here now that her legacy and Vanis Tavern have merged.

“It feels good, powerful. Far from as powerful as Silver’s, but as powerful as Bennick’s,” said Lord Thorn, pleased. I couldn’t help but laugh at that.

Earlier, it was one of the weakest Grade III legacies in the empire, but it is now in the middle.

He is happy, and so is his son, and the middle-aged man.

“Has Lord Vanis come out?” he asked. “No,” I replied. The man nodded and sat down. He had been here till late last night before leaving.

The legacy is as important to him as it is to us. Even more than us.

All of the legacy’s essence goes to him. He shares some with imperials, but Grandfather had said he keeps at least 60%-70% to himself.

It is a massive amount for the lord, but he needs it, especially in these times.

Tabes is getting closer, and other nobles have their eyes on Inam.

The city isn’t weak, nor the lord; it has a very powerful force, ready to deal with any danger that comes at it, but things will change if the legacy were to disappear.

“I hope we will succeed. We need to succeed; there is no other option without it,” said Valtir, and sighed.

We tried other options. I had visited many legacies with him. Asking them to make the Tavern their pawn, but all of them had declined.

I hate to admit it, but Vanis Tavern didn’t have anything they wanted.

It is an average legacy. Even Mariha’s Tavern is a better legacy than it. It possesses a unique legacy skill that few legacies below the throne possess.

The skill is quiet too. I hope it will not disappear with the merge. The chances of that happening are small, but it could happen.

We were waiting in silence when Croft walked toward us with a wooden box in his hand.

“This has come from Velvet Garden,” he informed and placed a box in front of us. I was surprised, and we looked at each other, our expressions filled with questions.

“He seemed to know what was happening,” said Veltir with a frown while Lord Thorn and I smiled.

Yesterday, a minute after the process began, he had sent his wishes. We didn’t inform anyone; we were secretive about it, but given his timing, it’s clear he had sensed it.

He shouldn’t have. Grade III legacies aren’t powerful enough for that, but Velvet Garden is no common Grade III legacy.

The box had a letter attached to it, written in handwritten words. ‘Best wishes, Remus Silver,’ was written on it.

“Let’s see what he sent,” said Lord Thorn, looking at me.

Click!

I didn’t want to open it, seeing that it was for Grandfather, but since Lord had asked me to, I took the small box in my hand and opened it.

Inside is a single glass vial containing beautiful, pale red water with faint, shimmering crystalline dust.

Above is a note that informs what it is.

“Pardas rose extract,” read Cedan. “It is used to soothe the spirit,” said Valtir. It is a precious extract, highly valuable, and this one is even more so.

“It’s made from the roses in his legacy,” I stated. Making them serious

I have seen those roses myself. They are pretty and very valuable. He is protective of those plants, selling only a small number of them.

He had only started selling earnestly in the past two months, and it was only for the things he wanted.

“It’s such a regret that a legacy as powerful as Velvet Garden is going to be the undead’s,” said Lord Thorn, and sighed. I wanted to sigh as well.

Grandfather has said that the merchant might act to save him. Instead, they pushed him deeper into the danger.

It’s a very good gift. The merge would be straining on Grandfather’s spirit; the rose water helps with the recovery from that.

I closed the box and nearly put it into the vault, but realized my access had been taken away.

It had been the first time. It had been taken away since Grandfather had given it to me. Using it had become instinct to me.

Many times during the day, I had reached for that access that wasn’t there.

Click!

I was in my thoughts when the door finally opened, and my grandfather had appeared.

I turned to him and was surprised to see an unreadable expression on his face. Usually, I have no problem reading Grandfather, but right now, it is completely unreadable.

“Lord Lindgren, congratulations on the successful merger.” Congratulated Lord Thorn.

“Thank you, my lord,” replied Grandfather and sat beside me.

“So?” asked the Lord. Yes, it was a success, but to what degree, only he knows, and now that Grandfather had come out, Lord wants to know.

“The merger had been successful. We have got the aspect, emotion scale, skills, both legacy and master,” he stated, bringing a smile to the face of the lord.

“What about the waning?” asked the lord a moment later. It is the most critical question.

It is the thing that matters the most. The lord and we will forgo every benefit for this.

So, I watched my grandfather’s face for the answer, but it remained unreadable.

“In that, it failed! The period had shrunk instead. We now have only around a month before legacy enters waning,” he replied, and I felt like the earth had collapsed under my feet.

…

City Hall, Greltheaven

“This is very good,” I said as I finished reading a large stack and turned to Carla with somber eyes.

I didn’t like what I just read, but I am glad I found out about it.

She had returned, and she didn’t come empty-handed. She had obtained some necessary intelligence given to her by Kalgha’s ambassador, and it is bad for us, but at least we are now aware of it.

“Lord of Inam had asked me to give this to you,” she said, placing the letter in front of me.

I don’t know much about what happened other than it being a success. I had sent a little something to the old man, for which he thanked me.

I had talked to him yesterday. He didn’t tell me much.

“How is Vanis Tavern?” I asked. She had stayed in the inn for a few hours. Going to the tavern and meeting Ralis Thorn.

“Weird,” she replied, and I looked at her in question.

“The aspects of these two legacies do not suit each other well. They create a grating feeling,” she replied, with her expression becoming painful for a moment.

It didn’t surprise me; the two legacies are entirely different.

There is a reason why legacies are careful when merging or making the subject of the legacy. They look for suitability and compatibility.

I tore open the envelope and took out the letter before reading it. It is short, but it surprised me.

“What did it say?” asked Carla. I didn’t reply. Instead, she was handed the letter. When she read it, a surprise appeared on her face as well.

“It seemed like they didn’t get what they wanted,” she said. However, it’s not what’s surprising.

The surprising thing was that the price he wrote was the amount he was willing to pay for it. He had asked me to find a throne for the Vanis’s legacy before, but he wasn’t willing to pay such a price then as he is now.

“They didn’t,” I replied. Feeling bad, I had hoped for the old man to succeed.

“This time, he is willing to give an artifact to any throne that will take his legacy,” she said, and I smiled.

“It’s a trinket artifact,” I corrected, and she gave me that look. ” An artifact is an artifact!” she replied.

“True,” I accepted with a smile.

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