Upon hearing Minos’ response, those men thought that it was now best to report what they had heard from him to Queen Sista and wait for orders.

If she saw no problem continuing with the agreement regarding the Continental Tournament, they would leave Dry City without further delay, with relations intact with that city.

In particular, they judged that Minos had not acted on purpose and that, from his position, his actions even made sense.

Of course, this was not something that someone like Vico would care about. A stupidity that could destroy countless lives on the continent would not be forgiven just because it was not committed with intent.

But for them, this was a sign that Minos had no desire to become their enemy and could still be a minimally reliable ally.

In any case, it was not up to them to decide such a thing, even more so this young prince, who was only third in the succession line.

George then said. “Very well. I will notify my mother and return shortly with an official position.”

“Hmm, I hope it all works out. Our partnership does not involve any life-and-death intimacy, and I have never purposely acted against you.” Minos said, punctuating such a thing not because he desperately needed these people on his side but because he didn’t want to generate more trouble for himself.

Minos knew that from now on, there would be those who would hate him unconditionally on the continent and those who would be on his side. There would be no middle ground, and the relations of his state would be greatly altered in the years ahead.

He trusted that Maximillian would keep his promises and thought his state would be protected at least from Demigods. But if it were possible, he wanted to decrease as much as possible the number of enemies he would have because of these actions of the previous months.

Hence his words to these envoys of Queen Sista. That also shows

his children that a ruler should not always show animosity to potential opponents.

It was worth putting down one’s temper and taking a step back in certain circumstances!

With the departure of those three, Minos and his family continued in the imperial throne hall, chatting while the imperial guards brought the next group to them.

“What do you think will happen?” Abby asked Minos.

“Hard to say. I don’t know Queen Sista, and as much as I haven’t acted to harm her, if this prophecy really exists, then I may have unleashed something problematic for those Western states.” He said.

Sarah then commented. “I think they will stay neutral for the time being. They have a lot to process, and considering the father’s potential, I feel this woman will wait for things to develop further before taking a definitive position.”

“That makes sense,” Ruth remarked, figuring they would have more time before Sista took either a contrary or favorable position.

As Minos agreed by nodding his head, a new group entered the imperial throne hall.

When two women and two men entered, Minos immediately recognized the three nobles he had met in the Veora Kingdom, along with the leader of the guards of that group related to the Goddess of Life.

Before one of the imperial guards even introduced these people with the names he had just received, Minos said. “The people interested in the inheritance of the Goddess of Life, right?”

When they heard that, the four formed serious expressions as one of them exclaimed.

“What? How do you know that?”

Minos laughed and said. “That’s because I found you a few months ago while passing through Veora and directed you here.”

That level 85 man looked seriously at Minos and stepped forward. “You were Edgar, that fat red-headed man?”

“You wore a look like that?” Ruth looked at her husband with a smile on her face.

Minos nodded positively. “That was me. I’m sorry I misled you, but I was doing something dangerous then and needed to keep my movements under the radar as much as possible.”

Minos saw no problem speaking the truth to these people for two reasons. First, Vico and everyone else who mattered already seemed to know what he was doing at the time. And second, these people were not strong enough for him to worry about them standing against him.

So he decided to be honest since this had very little chance of generating negative results for him.

The three noble descendants of the Goddess of Life’s relatives clenched their fists, feeling bad that Minos had manipulated them.

Abby looked at them intently, feeling a subtle sensation familiar to her coming from those three. “You really are descendants of that family, huh?”

“Is it true?” Minos looked at his wife, for he still needed confirmation about that.

“Yes, I can sense their lineage from what I received from the Goddess of Life.” She replied, interested to hear from these people what had happened.

The Goddess of Life had died thinking that her entire bloodline would disappear from this world along with her. Because of this, she hadn’t even left legacies to her family members, only to some lucky person who might find that place that Minos and Abby had entered years ago.

So Abby couldn’t help but feel curious, with the small part of her that had absorbed that woman’s soul fragment making her even more interested.

Those people heard confirmation that one of them had indeed gotten that woman’s inheritance and that Minos’ words had not been false despite his clear manipulation.

That level 85 man looked at Minos and then at Abby before once again looking at Emperor Stuart. “What is your purpose in bringing us here? You heard what we wanted back there, and yet you directed us here? What do you want?”

Minos looked into that man’s eyes and got straight to the point. “Join me. Become part of the Black Plain Empire. At my side, I will make your family rise from the ashes and help you protect yourselves against those who persecute you!”

Those three nobles were surprised to hear such an offer, something none of them expected to hear from a man weaker than them.

But no one else but those visitors was surprised by this, with each imperial guard in the surrounding area used to the invitations Minos made for people to join him.

He had always done such a thing throughout his journey here, so his words were in total agreement with the manners that these people had become accustomed to over the years.

Kendrick and Sarah were not so used to it yet. Still, they both enjoyed seeing how their father spoke to these people, showing confidence and ambition.

“Do you want us in your group?” That level 85 man asked, looking intently into Minos’ eyes.

…