Lord: Starting from a Goblin Nest

”Ha! Are we supposed to thank you for your candor?” Aive glared unhappily at the Elf beside her. She had seated herself between Ron and Jilannis to keep Ron at a safe distance. ”Ron, if you’re going to use this woman, I suggest you tie her up or put her under house arrest. Best to keep her from plaguing our territory.”

”Aive, that’s pointless.” Ron began to reason with the Half-Elf, only to find that Jilannis had spoken in perfect unison with him.

Ron felt a little awkward, but Jilannis fell silent and gestured for him to continue.

”Look, if she were hostile, she would’ve acted long ago. Delusional Land may be remote, but its name is well-known. If she wanted to attack, she could have done so anywhere.”

”That’s no reason to just bring her here! This is letting the wolf into the fold!” Aive shot back. ”She’s the Chief Grand Mage of the Hailan Evil Empire! Think of how many people she’s killed!”

”Then, can you name six?” Jilannis glanced coolly at the Half-Elf. ”If I’m as wicked as you claim, that shouldn’t be too difficult, now should it?”

”Uh, the former master of the Grip of the Vast Wave, the one connected to Sera!”

”I took him down with me. Fine, that’s one,” Jilannis nodded. ”Who else?”

”And...” Aive wracked her brain, trying to recall the stories her mother, Liya, had told her. ”And...”

”The Nicksank Village Massacre! The Hekelan Trade Team Tragedy! Valkyrie—” Deciding to go all in, Aive rattled off every Hailan Empire atrocity she could think of, only to realize Jilannis was reciting them in perfect sync with her! ”Why are you copying me?!”

”I’m not. I just predicted you’d pin all the blame on me,” Jilannis shrugged. ”I’m just a Mage. Galanord is a commoner’s surname. If not for my own efforts, I could have very well ended up a slave in the fighting pits.”

”I am a scholar, and not some Necromancer like Henry Robertson. Where would I find the time to run around committing atrocities? My one and only attempt at creating a weapon of war was shot down by those noble masters. Other than that Beastman, I’ve only personally killed one person—the former Lord of Carolina.”

”I’m interested in combat, but I have no appetite for killing. In fact, dealing with that Beastman was an order from the royal family. If the Eldest Princess hadn’t insisted on seeing a demonstration of my power and loyalty, I never would have made a move. The great Majestic Empire can’t even put down a slave revolt? Did it really need the Chief Mage to intervene?”

”Of course, I’ll admit that some of the researchers under me are warmongers. But what does that have to do with me? Do you think they wouldn’t be serving the Empire if I weren’t there?”

”So you can all relax. I’m no butcher. And if you, Ron, agree to be my volunteer, I can be even more... restrained.”

”...You’re that fixated on me?”

”Of course. Why else would I have followed you?” Jilannis nodded matter-of-factly. ”Surely you understand the feeling of hitting a bottleneck in your research? Now imagine being stuck at that bottleneck for two or three hundred years for all sorts of reasons!”

”Oh, right, you wouldn’t understand. Human lifespans aren’t nearly that long...”

Although Jilannis did her best to distance herself from the Hailan Empire’s evil deeds, Ron still suspected she was hiding something. However, if she was willing to join them, the benefits would be immense—both for managing the territory of Delusional Land and for confronting the dangers within the region itself. A powerful, erudite Mage who was also skilled in close combat would be their ultimate ace in the hole.

’She couldn’t even manage to revive the Hailan Empire while in a slave-state like Carolina. How much trouble could she possibly stir up in Delusional Land? On the whole, the pros definitely outweigh the cons!’

”Very well. I’m more than willing to cooperate with a scholar like you,” Ron said, downing the rest of the wine in his cup. ”But since this is a partnership, I have conditions of my own.”

”Name them.”

”First, you cannot bring your old ways into my domain. Turning back the clock to a feudal society is as far as I’m willing to go; slavery is simply too backwards.”

”Do you have a large number of Elves there?”

”Only a few.”

”Then spare me the trouble,” Jilannis rolled her eyes. ”Inciting other races by telling them they’re superior? I’d rather rot along with the Hailan Empire!”

”Good, so you agree. Second, Delusional Land is full of dangerous entities. You are not to provoke them for any reason without my permission. If we inadvertently disturb one of them, you must stand with us.”

”Acceptable. I’d even like to add a condition of my own: if the situation becomes unsalvageable, I will be obligated to get you out safely. How does that sound?”

”To protect your ’experiment,’ I assume,” Aive muttered, rolling her eyes. Jilannis, however, didn’t care in the slightest and was even happy to admit it.

”Lastly...” Ron glanced at the *Weaving Introduction* beside the Grand Mage. ”Regarding the future advancement of myself and my fellow Casters... can you offer some assistance?”

”Teaching? Of course. I’ve served as a teaching assistant at several academies, and later became a professor and honorary chancellor at Hailan Academy.” Jilannis had no objection to Ron’s request. ”Oh, by the way, you’re without a Spellbook now, aren’t you? Do you have a replacement?”

”I do. A stack of scratch paper in my room’s drawer,” Ron said with a grimace. ”If you already have a Spellbook, could you lend me the *Weaving Introduction* for the time being? It’s pretty restrictive for a Caster to be without their proper tools.”

”Of course. I have no use for it right now anyway, so you can just have it. Consider it a small gift.” Jilannis beckoned, and the *Weaving Introduction* flew to her hand. The Spellbook seemed extremely reluctant to leave its master, but Jilannis showed no sentiment, slapping her palm down on its cover.

’It’s only been a little while, and you already dare to disobey me? Go!’

’This human bears the mark of some Deity. If I can just uncover the slightest clue from him...’ The moment she slapped the book, Jilannis’s eyes darkened for a split second.

This exchange was solely between Jilannis and the *Weaving Introduction*; no one else could perceive it.

’You’ll just have to put up with it for a while. A human’s life is like the blink of an eye to me. He’ll likely not even live to see the end in Delusional Land, to say nothing of you waiting for him to die of old age. It won’t be too late for you to return to me then!’