"Hmm…How about we talk this through somewhere a little more private shall we?"
"Everything I say to you from now on will be confidential…"
"Don't worry, I'll shrink myself down to the appropriate size so it won't be a problem..."
"Also I ask that one of your subordinates of my choosing will be witness to our conversation and agreement, as well as record all the details."
The Emperor nodded and signaled for me and his closest retainers to follow him I shrunk my size down to 2 meters so that I could fit into the doorway of the Castle entrance.
I still towered over everyone else in the building except for the Emperor as he was only a few inches shorter than me.
As we approached, there were Royal Knights that were clad in some kind of mythril white armor which held the empire's symbol of 2 golden lions on the sleeves and backs of their armor took attention as they stood in wait.
It seems they all had weapons of their choice some of them had longswords , katanas , maces or daggers and some even had axes, or long-range weapons like Bows and all different kinds of magic artillery that lined each window of the castles interior.
As we walked down the hall I still seen knights that were lined up in the interior of the castle dressed in their full battle-ready armor. I figured they must be High-Ranking Royal Knights at the Emperor's command and maybe some of his closest aid.
One group of Knights that were standing in the middle section of the hall were letting their thoughts be known out loud.
It was just loud enough for those around to hear then the situation then made everyone in the room become tense, well everyone besides Chaos that is.
"Is-is that a filthy Dragonborn? It's fucking disgusting, ha-ha-ha-haha!"
"I've never seen one like this… It carries so many draconic features and what's with the color of his scales?"
" In all my years of living I've never seen them before!' I guess he must be some kind of defect fa-fa-fa!" *Smirk*
"Why is he so nonchalant in front of Emperor William-sama? Why is he tolerating this blatant disrespect?!
"He's making it seem like they know each other or something…"
"In any case this scum needs to be humbled!",A lady in the group said.
"Ugh, no-no that's definitely impossible… I know that Emperor William-sama wouldn't be acquainted with such a lowly creature!"
"Yeah no way! He must be a slave of The Empire."a boy who looked to be in his teens said with a look of disgust on his face."
Another girl with blonde hair spoke up, "I have a bad feeling about this though guys..."
"Oi oi oi! What the hell are you talking about?"
"If it wasn't apparent before or If you haven't noticed , this dragon doesn't seem like your average Dragonborn and I've seen he has a very mysterious aura around him almost divine-like."
One man with a tall and built physique finally spoke up just sensing from his refined aura and demeanor he could be one of the captains of The Araezia Royal Knights.
He had on dark-red paladin armor sporting a long black cape which looked like it may have been enchanted with some kind of rune or enchantment magic
He then said, "Listen! Right now none of that matters we'll all await our orders from Emperor William-Sama so everyone needs to be quiet and pay close attention to detail."
Most were still staring at me wide-eyed just full of confusion and astonishment some clicked their tongues to show that they were displeased with his response and some even had clenched fists at their sides as if the site they were seeing brought them great anger and discomfort.
'Kufufu! Seems that they are most likely wondering why their Emperor would let a being such as myself into the Royal Castle like this…'
'Let's be real I don't exactly look like the kind of guy you would let your guard down around, and it seems that humans really do discriminate against dragon born. Im guessing since I requested an audience with the Emperor it probably infuriates them, the looks they have on their faces says it all!'
'Hmm, that reminds me I need one of the adventurers to help guide me to a place where I can find valuable resources and start looking for powerful subordinates of my own!'
The Inside of the castle walls were enormous, they were lined with illustrious paintings,ancient relics and prized artifacts I could tell were fairly rare, but what laid just beyond that were two spiraling stairways on each side leading to the throne room.
There were tremendous braziers hanging from each of the twelve granite columns light up the entire throne hall and shroud it in a dark orange radiance and countless gems on the domed ceiling dance in the flickering light while carved images and sculptures look down upon the obsidian floor of this extravagant hall.
A red rug runs down from the throne and splits to encircle the entire hall while swallow tail banners with ornate tips decorate the walls between each banner hangs a torch, a few of them have been lit and in turn illuminate the portraits of other leaders of the world below them.
Modest, stained glass windows of heavenly mosaics are bordered by draperies colored the same teal as the banners and the curtains have been adorned with embellished borders and burnished corners.
A great red throne of mahogany sits below a grand chandelier and is adjoined by three plain, but comfortable seats his royal majesty's family the throne is covered in simple emblems and fixed on each one of the head of a lion and the thick cushion are a red and these too have been adorned with embellished borders.
Those wishing to witness their royal highness can do so on the plethora of opulent albeit uncomfortable granite benches, all of which are diagonally facing the throne so those of higher standing can instead take seat in the overly luxurious balconies facing the throne.
There seemed to be some sort of council room just beyond the hall leading into the throne room as we were about to enter I glanced behind me to see that some of the Royal Knights were still looking at me with clear disdain in their eyes I smirked a sadistic grin that instantly made them feel fear and feel as if something had squeezed their heart.
Some of the emperor's closest followers and also the adventurer I've asked to record all the details of our conversation will be present once we were inside, i finally started gathering up my thoughts on how I could settle this situation in a way that would keep me free of any unnecessary conflict that might present itself in the future.
The Emperor seemed to be doing the same but I seen that he also had a concerned and uneasy look in his eyes it was made clear that he had been apprehensive about how this conversation was going to go.
'At this very moment he's probably weighing out all possible outcomes and looking for the best strategy to avoid unnecessary conflict or maybe I'm just assuming too much… or he may very well just be too stubborn of a man and ruler that he'll choose violence over any kind of surrender, still in any case I'm prepared for what will happen.'
" I hope you can forgive the open hostility some of my subjects were showing just now…I could also hear what they were saying about you very clearly..."
"I apologize for their trivial blunder and the scene they've made I will make sure to have a word with them, now then.. shall we stop with the useless banter and get down to what's important?"
"All is well and yes I agree lets skip the unnecessary banter…"
"By the way since I've been told of your true lineage and origins I guess it's safe to say you want me to keep it that way as it will also be apart of the deal am I correct?"
"I now know that if your name were to get out and word makes it back to you, it would be all out war and that's really too terrifying a thought to consider at the moment!"
"With the power you hold over us we stand no chance without allied countries so I have no choice but to hear everything you have to say],said the emperor."
"One things for sure you need to show more authority over your subordinates or it will cause you trouble in the future but all is forgiven for now… "
"Everything else you said was true and yes I agree let's stop beating around the bush and talk about how we'll both help each other become prosperous."
"I sincerely hope that you'll indulge on my offer and I'll also tell you the reason I needed your help in the first place."
"The thing is…I haven't been alive very long and I also have no information on this how this world works and functions…"
"So, I'm already at a disadvantage in terms of my own survival and resources I've known from my very existence alone that Deities in this world who've reached godhood exist."
"So you want us to provide you information about this world am I right?"
"Indeed, I'll need you to tell me all that you know about this world , such as how currency works, countries I should keep a close eye on and places that I need to avoid for the time being",I said.
"I'll also need you to locate a place where I can find some powerful subordinates to recruit and also there's one more thing when the day comes when I found my own Kingdom, I will need you to find people that can come to our Nation and teach them different jobs and trades."
"In return if an enemy you can't handle happens to put our agreement in jeopardy I'll make sure to make them pay with their lives, so there you have it you will be under my very own protection until our contract is over and I'll trust that you won't dishonor our agreement you don't seem that foolhardy",I said.
"I understand, that doesn't sound like it will bring us that much trouble, even though we don't have much of a choice do we?
"Well it is what it is…I agree to your terms and I just hope you will hold up your end of the agreement or I'd have no choice but to form an alliance even if it means an all-out war."
"Also one more thing make sure to burn what I'm about to say into your skull."
"I don't know the dark history you humans may have with my kind in this world, but by either war and conquest or peace and negotiations 'it will be me who will usher in the New World'!"