The negotiations - I

"To think you would agree to bid under my conditions."

A cunning smirk formed on his lips as he observed the woman standing in front of him. As soon as he heard that she was not against following his conditions, he had all the nobles leave the royal court.

The audience she had requested with him had turned into a private one. Though the nobles weren't really in favour of it, they had no choice but to obey the emperor's orders.

"I don't think avoiding this talk would do any good for both of us..."

"Sadly, I can't deny that statement... Emissary Aliana."

The smirk Kamran had displayed on his lips twitched and froze with awkwardness. Despite Aliana acting just as he wanted, she was the one taking the lead of the conversation and not him. An uncertain uneasiness started swirling within his heart.

The only fact that made him feel a sense of relief was the pair of bracelets on both of her hands. An orange gem was fixed to each one of those bracelets. As if she were clueless, Aliana had no expression on her face.

That just intensified the feeling of uneasiness Kamran had been having since earlier. Did she not understand what she had just agreed to follow?

The bracelets on her wrists were nothing but a magic tool used to subdue criminals. Mana restriction shackles: an item that would restrict the usage of magic by the person on whom it is placed.

"So? Why did you want to have an audience with me?"

Kamran's stiffening, hostile gaze fixed on Aliana as he sat on his throne. He couldn't understand the motive behind Aliana's actions. The very person who seemed to him to be just some insignificant emissary.

Upon hearing those words, a subtle grin played on Aliana's lips. Even though her mana had been rendered ineffective, there were more cards hidden up her sleeves.

Snap

The slight snap of her fingers moving under her robe made Kamran flinch. Then his eyes widened at the sight of the orb Aliana just pulled out. His gaze stuck on Aliana with utter hostility, and Kamran spoke.

"I see... So that's how it is..."

It might've come off as Kamran being quite an easygoing person, but that wasn't the case. He sharply understood what exactly others were trying to do.

"Say your price."

And right now, Kamran could even firmly deduce the outcome of their conversation. No, this wasn't a conversation, but a negotiation. Kamran had grown wary of Aliana's plan.

She wasn't just blindly doing whatever. That fact became clear to Kamran when she snapped her fingers a moment ago. It was for a brief moment, but Kamran definitely felt the flow of magic near her.

It didn't make any sense. How could a person, under the restriction of those shackles, use mana? There was only one theory Kamran could come up with: Aliana was holding onto some relic that opposed mana restriction shackles.

Regular tools would never be able to do something like that. The use of some relic, on the other hand, would explain a lot about her being able to use mana in that situation.

Although Kamran was careful and cunning, he never assumed things would turn out that way. At the moment, Aliana had the royal treasure, the Heart of Sands, in her hands.

Had she been unable to use magic, Kamran would've straight away called for his guards and snatched away the orb. It was unfortunate for him that Aliana had magic to defend herself.

The most crucial thing in that situation was that Kamran had no clue as to how strong she actually was. That was what made Kamran want to stay put for a while.

"I want what you have in abundance."

Aliana had already played all the cards right at the moment. If she had tried to do it in some other way, let alone by negotiating, she wouldn't have gotten a thing out of it.

Since Heart of Sands actually manipulated weather, Aliana had no specific use for it. Even the reason she stole it was partly to procure some gold.

"What?"

"It's give and take. Give me the gold, and take this thing you treasure so much."

That offer might've sounded ridiculous to anyone else, but Kamran could see the pros and cons of the deal. If he refused it, there would be more losses. Since the orb was what helped the desert dwellers sustain their livelihoods, he needed to get it no matter what.

Without it, the people who lived there would've been unable to survive in those harsh climatic conditions. Kamran lightly nodded his head in understanding.

"How much of it do you need?"

"About..."

Aliana smiled innocently while holding her right palm all open up and making an 'O' shape with her left hand. Kamran's face had visible confusion on it.

Just that much? That wasn't even worth the actual value of the treasure. His face grimaced at the thought of there being a hidden agenda behind her actions, and then he spoke in a confused tone.

"Just 50 gold bars?"

During such negotiations, gold bars were used instead of coins. That's what made Kamran assume that it was about gold bars. But is it now?

"Gold bars? What are you on about?"

"What?"

"I'm asking for fifty percent of the gold you possess."

-----------------

Throughout the past few years, Kamran managed to gather so much wealth that he could easily purchase a nation with a low income. Most of what he had managed to earn was in the form of gold items.

The coins and bars were the most common ones, yet they both together would make up only one-fourth of the total amount. Three-fourths of it was in the form of idols, accessories, jewellery, and so on.

And this was only the gold-related stuff being mentioned. There was a long list of items Kamran owned.

If we consider all the other treasures of silver, bronze, gemstones, and similar precious materials, then the gold wasn't even one-fifth of his total wealth. That's why...

"Think about it carefully."

Kamran glared at Aliana for a while when he heard her words. As if stealing the national treasure wasn't enough, she was shamelessly demanding his wealth.

Despite that, there were no major losses Kamran would suffer. Honestly speaking, those minor amounts he was about to lose wouldn't even be compared to what he could earn later on.

"You aren't going to lose much either way."

Aliana was right on the mark. Kamran calmly sorted out his thoughts for a few minutes. Whatever Aliana said made a lot of sense.

Losing the relic would become a huge problem for him. And wealth? He could just earn more later. If he has the relic in his hands, that is.

Then again, an odd thought came across his mind. What if Aliana was bluffing all along? What if he was being tricked? A tensed frown formed on his eyebrows as he began to speak.

"And what would you do if I refused your offer and had you arrested?"

Pfft-

Suddenly, soft laughter escaped Aliana's mouth. With a cold look in her eyes, as if a predator were studying its prey, she glanced at Kamran.

Kamran couldn't understand it at all. Why that reaction out of nowhere? Did he say something weird to her? She was on his land, and that was a reasonable outcome.

She slowly covered her lips for a split second. The smile vanished as a serious expression played on her face.

Kamran was thinking that he was getting a read-over of Aliana, but he was wrong. Let reading aside, he wasn't able to guess what she was about to do.

Aliana simply switched glances between the orb in her hand and Kamran before speaking up. A smirk rose on her lips as she spoke.

"Do you really think I would let this thing be if you did that?"

The mana surrounding her whole body swirled while baring its fangs at the Heart of Sands. Kamran could sense that mana attempt to pull something rather absurd.

His eyes, terrified at the thought of what might happen if he continued like that, wavered momentarily. He stood up straight, sweat covering his whole face.

"Wait! I agree to the deal! Anything but harming the relic!"

He had no idea how Aliana managed to pull that off, but that unusual flow of mana was definitely the one Kamran's ancestors asked to avoid in their old, recorded tabloids.

Aliana simply smiled while witnessing Kamran's expected reaction. Then she froze her mana in their boots and looked down at the orb.

"Now we are speaking."