Chapter 2118: A Holy Proposal

Karl hadn’t even made it out of the room before a large group of Supreme Ranked men in white robes strode into the courtyard.

The customers laughed at his dramatic sigh, and the Clergy smiled, already aware of the previous negotiations failure. But their purpose here was different, and not directly related to the war.

"Branch Leader, we come bearing gifts," Archbishop Rand declared.

"See, now that’s how you make new friends. Please, do come inside, I will have afternoon tea prepared."

The Archbishop chuckled as he followed Karl in to the back room, and settled into a seat across from where he could smell Karl had been sitting. He was a cat type beast kin, and his sense of smell was incredibly sharp.

However, his ceremonial hat hid his ears, so he wasn’t sure if Karl had noticed.

Or if Karl would care either way.

They had been made aware in advance that Karl was not exactly human, though his actual species was unknown. There were truth spells that would reveal his actual form to the caster, but it was considered highly impolite to use them on anyone but criminals, or in highly secure areas, where imposters were a concern.

A group of bunnies came in, along with one young Lycan girl, who was wearing the same black and white staff uniform dress.

"You have an interesting group of people working for you," the Archbishop noted.

"Thank you. We make sure that everyone in the Guild has a purpose in life. This little one has the day off school, and she’s decided to make some extra money working retail. Now, she can’t reach the register, so she’s helping the bunnies bring drinks. She’s definitely capable of filling tea cups."

The Lycan girl nodded.

Her species were stronger than humans from the start, thanks to their bestial bloodlines, and while they were bipedal, and could transform to look almost human, their natural state was that of a magical beast with a wolf’s head, a fully furred body, and long claws on extended fingers.

That was the form that she was using right now, as it was stronger than her human transformation, as well as more stable.

She might not be much taller than the side tables, but she could definitely pour the tea without her hands shaking. That was enough to convince Lala to let her help.

Not when there were strangers, obviously. But these strangers seemed like they weren’t going to be any trouble, and they already knew enough not to sit in Karl’s chair. The bunnies were very good at sensing hostility and bad intentions, neither of which they sensed from this group of clergy.

"Lord Karl, we were hoping that we might be able to enlist your assistance with a small matter that the church is facing," the Archbishop began, then paused and smiled. "Not to convince Lord Eryman to take up leadership, that’s a lost cause.

What we are short on are Holy Element equipment pieces.

Naturally, we have our own craftsmen in the clergy. However, we do not typically field an army, and our armoury is almost entirely ceremonial in nature. Each of our appointed leaders gets a new set customized for them, but that’s about as many as we make, and it takes time to train up a whole new batch of craftsmen.

A trouble that I’m sure you can relate to.

So, once the Legend informed us that you were fully capable of making holy items, we decided in council to come and petition for the Darklight Host to make equipment for us.

Not weapons, the Legend’s announcement made it clear that is not an option.

But armour should still be fine, yes?"

Karl nodded. "It’s not forbidden, and I have sent another shipment of noncombat items to the region with the Blue Elves. If you would like Villa Stones, you can have your subordinates attempt to get them at auction, or purchase them here.

I made a special template for the clergy."

The clerics smiled, and the Archbishop raised a hand to stop them from speaking.

"Once we have finished with our business. If not, we will get wholly sidetracked with the possibility of new toys, and never get our meeting done before the Legend comes to chase us back to work."

That was a bit ironic, given the man himself was currently planning to spend a week judging an arena tournament.

But keeping your subordinates busy while you relaxed was part of the joy of being the boss, right? The craftsmen of the Darklight Host were incredibly busy as well, filling all the orders that the tournament had brought.

"Of course I can help you with some armour pieces. If you’re looking for holy element bonuses on uniform armour, I have many craftsmen who can help with that, and make matching pieces for hundreds of Immortals at a time, which we can finish to the Rare Grade with ease.

If you need Epic Grade items, that will require more time, as the materials involved are more particular, and we might need to source some for a larger order."

The Archbishop nodded. "I had expected that, and I have brought materials for you to work with, out of a dungeon aligned to the church. We have both Holy Silver and Lighstone, which are both light element conductive at the highest levels.

If you have Earth Mages with holy affinity, Lightstone is much more plentiful, as it’s a synthetic product. Mana Stone imbued with Holy magic as it is melted and allowed to reform."

Now that was an interesting idea.

They used Mana Stone for all sorts of things around here, and were always looking for more. But remaking it for particular elements was something that they had never thought of doing.

Its ability to store mana was what made it valuable to them.

"Alright, if you will provide the materials, I can have our Earth Mages turn them into beautifully sculpted chest plates, or full armour sets."

The Archbishop nodded, and one of the others handed Karl a rolled scroll.

"We have the design for our rank and file military armour. It’s quite ornate, but we are told that you have skilled sculptors."

Karl took the scroll and checked it with great satisfaction. This was perfect. He could send the order to the Drodh Branch and have their Sculptors make all the stone armour plates, which would give them a huge boost in their trade skills, while helping push them toward Immortality.