Soon Damon found himself back in the city of Abegnog. He was accompanied by five of his red guards who were armed with two Uzis each which were concealed under their overcoats. They were also armed with a dagger and a katana. Damon had always liked katanas so he had them made for his personal guard. It was an aesthetics kind of thing. The guards that accompanied him were the flame eater, sergeant Harriiet, captain Johan and corporals Mick, Barnes and Jin.
They all wore black shirts, trousers and boots with a red overcoat bearing Damon's the insignia of a skull on the breast and the back. They also wore a red berret on their heads.
Damon was dressed in a black pinstripe three piece suit and a coat like something out of the 1920s. He himself was armed with two Beretta m9 pistols, a dagger and his half hand tungsten sword which he did not wear but was kept in a box which was carried at all times by one of the red guards.
Soon they arrived at the Duke's castle and Damon went into the great hall to greet the Duke. No much pleasantries were exchanged between them till during dinner.
" I must say Lord Damon, it was unexpected of you to suddenly attack and conquer Ronalla . You keep surprising me " Duke Abegnog said.
Damon then took a deep breath before replying " I did nothing special your grace, lord Ronalla just overplayed his hand and suffered the consequences of his actions ".
" Consequences you say..., so when you plan to start selling the ores from your mines." Duke Abegnog asked .
Damon then replied," I don't plan on selling any ores your grace " suddenly the temperature of the room fell by a few degrees.
" You are refusing to sell your ores, what angle are you trying to play here " Abegnog asked trying as hard as possible not to pounce on Damon.
" You misunderstand your grace, I meant that what I would be selling are the ingots of the metals not the ore." Damon replied,cutting the tension in the room.
" In that case we would discuss the trade with the Prince Tiberius when we arrive the central region."
The meal then continued uneventfully till they were ready to retire for the night.
By the beginning of the next week, Duke Abegnog, Damon and their entourage made their way to the central region, which was the capital of the empire , especially the city of Elysium where the imperial castle and the imperial academy were both located .
After almost a month of traveling, Damon and the Duke made their way through the gates of Elysium. Even without modern architecture the city could be said to be very lively and beautiful. It could be said that it was built for the very purpose of showcasing the power of the imperial family.
The imperial academy provided education for the families of nobles , especially magic education. This was a way of tricking their young minds into believing that they owed the imperial family. It was also a way for the imperial family to keep the other nobles in check, avoiding outright rebellion.
Every nobles child was guaranteed a spot in the academy but the same couldn't be said for commoners.
These commoners were those who had rare talents and those who had shown great promise . One would think that this would earn them the respect of their peers and teachers at the academy, but it was far from the truth.
They were used as glorified slaves and punching bags to boost the egos of the young masters and mistresses.
Any commoner who showed even a little chance of being better than any noble child was instantly suppressed and bullied into submission, thereby reinforcing their subservient nature.
Damon already had plans to capitalize on this tragic flaw.
Their convoy maneuvered through the crowded streets till they arrived through the gates of a large manor with beautiful gardens. This was one of Prince Tiberius many properties and he was allowing Damon and the Duke to stay there at the moment.
They made their selves comfortable in their respective rooms before they had dinner and retired for the night.
By midday the next day, Tiberius arrived at the manor for the finalization of trade agreements.
" Congratulations on conquering Ronalla Lord Damon" Tiberius said when they had all sat down.
Damon replied by bowing his head to the Prince.
Tiberius then continued," my father's health is deteriorating at a very alarming rate and the healers have given him at least two years to live and my three brothers has started making preparations to seize over the throne after the emperors death.
I need you to provide I and my allies steel and other metals to produce weapons that would aid in the future war effort."
" I would be providing metal ingots at five percent less than the market price, but you would have to cover transportation." Damon replied abruptly.
"Ten percent and we have a deal" Duke Abegnog countered .
" Seven percent is my last prize,your grace.
You know that it's impossible to get this price anywhere."Damon replied.
After so much consideration, the price was accepted and the deal was sealed.
"Next on the agenda, Lord Damon I would like for you to be wed to my last daughter to join our houses together and to strengthen our alliance."
Damon looked back at the Duke with a blank expression before replying,"I humbly decline your proposal ".
By now Duke Abegnog had observed that the young man sitting in front of him didn't make rash decisions .
" So what is your counter proposal Lord Damon".
"I propose that you give me a period of five years, within that period I would try to grow myself to meet up with a certain standard because even as a Lord , I am quite poor so I might not be able to provide a stable environment for your lovely daughter." Damon replied .
Damon had no intention of ever getting married to the Duke's daughter, he only needed time to build his power, so as to be able to start his conquest.