"Since we are all here, let us begin!" A bold, charismatic voice echoed through the dark space lit by the glow of four golden thrones.
Thrones that represented the four regional emperors...
Seth’s eyes sparked with curiosity as he took in the features of the speaker...
Dressed in regal gold dragon‑embroidered garb, a crystalline crown sitting upon his topknot, and the entrancing crimson gaze with jade‑like texture of skin...
Seth knew instinctively, this was Qin Shi Huang, the legendary Unifier!
His gaze turned to his left to examine another emperor, and this time Seth couldn’t discern much from his facial figure as the emperor was clad in heavy gold armor.
With a brilliant red cape flowing like a stream of blood cascading down his back, a brilliant blue gaze glowed from beneath the emperor’s visor.
And at that very instant, Seth could tell, this was definitely the Hero King Gilgamesh.
Then Seth’s gaze shifted, finally laying his sight on the last emperor. His heart shook and his pupils constricted.
Not from the sight of the physical visage of the emperor — no, it was from the raw glow of Providence behind him.
A Providence that wafted not of nobility and stability like Qin Shi Huang’s, nor of might and strength like Gilgamesh’s.
No, this poured the overwhelming sense of wealth, luxury, and abundance... the King of Heavenly Wealth.
Now Seth instinctively knew why that title was so...
Dressed in finely woven Persian silks, paired with gold brocades, skin emanating a dark bronze luster, eyes carrying orbs of piercing emerald, and his hair woven with all manner of jewels and gold beads.
This emperor needed no crown — the dense halo sitting inches above his head was more than enough...
"I see old friends are doing well..." A soft, soothing voice rang as Emperor Mansa Musa spoke, his tone bringing calm to the heart.
The blue orbs beneath Gilgamesh’s visor flashed brighter as a bold, coarse voice reverberated. "We are not here for a get‑together, so let’s cut to the chase!"
Mansa Musa chuckled leisurely while both Cain and Ying Zheng nodded.
Cain spoke next, fiddling with his finger. "My side is already prepared for the main threats to my region, which are the Bloodbornes, the Rock Gnomes, and the Mere Men. All other races are not worth our attention."
"Oh? You forgot to add the crimson dragons. Those vile, unruly beasts have a grudge with the Pendragon bloodline, if I recall correctly." Mansa Musa probed in a teasing voice.
To which Cain just scoffed coldly in reply, "As I said, all other races are not worth mentioning!"
The eyes of the other emperors flashed, instantly understanding the meaning behind Cain’s words.
It seemed dragon‑slaying means had been put in place.
Cain looked up, meeting Mansa Musa’s gaze. "Instead of worrying about another’s problem, shouldn’t you be more bothered about the Avians? They should be causing trouble already by now, no?"
A mysterious spark flashed behind Mansa Musa’s gaze before dispersing. "The Avians are the least of our worries. It’s the Dune Wraiths and the Blight Bornes I fear the most."
Cain nodded in understanding. The Dust Wraiths and the Blight Bornes — even he himself wouldn’t want to face these races.
Each responsible for the natural disasters of both drought and plagues, boasting abilities that could bring wreckage to the population of the human race.
Both were disaster‑level threats that couldn’t be dealt with through sheer force alone.
"The Aqrabu and the Ifrits have been posing a problem over the month, and now with the world fully upgraded, the stronger breeds will soon walk the lands..." Gilgamesh proclaimed.
Then all eyes shifted to Ying Zheng...
And the emperor let out a sigh. "The Geldians, the Immortal Men, the Flood Dragons, and the Mermaids are all problems. There are more, but I estimate my special division armies could deal with the rest. These three remain the core problem."
While the emperor spoke, Seth — standing still and silently at Cain’s side — slowly understood what this meeting was for...
It seemed all parties were here to share resources and possibly forces that could help each other.
This was unity at its finest, but what he still couldn’t comprehend was how this exchange would take place.
War awaited no one. It could begin at any moment — heck, it could have already started. So what chance or time would they use to share resources?
Though all continents had merged, and didn’t have vast bodies of corruption‑zone‑ridden waters serving as insurmountable barriers for transportation, there were still terrain deserts, corruption zones, and countless more scapes that separated regions.
Not to add that this wasn’t your normal war. There was no designated scape. Humans weren’t the ones on the offensive.
So the battle would come to them. They would be attacked from myriad fronts, simultaneously by other races. In short, long‑scale movement couldn’t be possible.
Culling his curiosity, Seth silently observed and listened as all four emperors spoke. Sharing strategies, plans, and advice — the air was more harmonious than Seth expected.
Plus, with how President Cain had initially reacted on reading those messages, Seth had expected more clashes or conflicts.
But the four seemed relatively calm. Aside from the occasional jabs, the conversation was focused.
As minutes passed, a sentence from Mansa Musa finally caught Seth’s attention.
Addressing Cain, the Hero King spoke, "Since you have means to handle dragons on your end, I would like to trade for a means against the Mere Men."
Cain nodded. "Makes sense. The Avians reign over the sky like dragons, but you have to be aware their body mass isn’t the same, so our means might not be as efficient."
Cain’s argument was sound, and Mansa Musa had to ponder for a few more seconds while Ying Zheng chimed in, "I have frozen warriors bred and trained in the lands of cold, so I bet they’ll do well against the Mere Men. I’ll trade for a means to deal with the dragons on our side."
Cain smiled. "You have a deal!"