Inheritor Of Magic: The Magi King

The procession was guarded by uniformed security officers down the corridor, all in their formal best, with their shoes highly polished, and their equipment was gleaming.

That made Arthur breathe a sigh of relief. The witches were a species that he had no experience with, and whenever you were in unfamiliar territory, any common custom that you could find was one less social misstep that you could make.

Both of their cultures had the same customs for honour guards, even if the guards themselves were different. He was a Wrath Demon, so their honour guards were normally much more impressive, though they were still polished to a high shine for a formal event like this.

It was Wolfe's reaction that caught the attention of the Coven Council, and the advisor from the Noxus Family, who chose to speak first.

"Patriarch, might I ask, has something amused you about being home after so long?" The man asked, subtly informing Wolfe that he was a member of the Noxus Family.

"The honour guard. You see, Arthur here is from the Wrath Kingdom, and they use a species of giant winged Demons ten metres tall for honour guards, but they still make sure that they're immaculately dressed and shining. I've even seen them use massage oil to get their skin to gleam like polished metal." Wolfe informed him quietly, but loud enough that those nearby would hear him.

"I am somewhat surprised that you didn't adopt that custom for your own." Reiko informed Wolfe with a questioning look.

A lot had changed since they had met last, and there was no telling what sorts of things Wolfe might have gone through or experienced while he was away. She had heard all sorts of rumours, from him taking a Succubus as a lover to being trapped in the Demon Realms, to the rumours that he had become a Saint.

That last one turned out to be true, so it was possible that the rumours going around the city might have a bit more merit than she had given them credit for.

Wolfe smirked back at her. "You know, Coven Leader Reiko here has ten husbands, chosen for their good breeding and looks. Perhaps we should teach her staff the art of oiling up a man's body for display?"

Reiko snorted with laughter as they walked, startling the other Coven Council members.

"You haven't changed a bit, have you? You know, some of their mothers are still upset with that little prank that you played during the coronation ceremony." She replied.

"Oh? I thought you would like it." Wolfe asked.

"I do, and thank you very much. But their mothers have some concerns."

Arthur was clearly lost on the inside joke, so Cassie quietly filled him in.

"They had to break her Pentacle bond to Wolfe to make her Coven Leader, so he used the backlash from the spell breaking to put the ten noblemen who were chosen as her consorts under a Slave Bond."

Arthur was so shocked that he actually stopped walking.

"Oh, my. I had heard that Witches were relatively uptight, but perhaps we should have brought along an Incubus for the meeting." The Guardian commented in shock.

"No, thank you." Reiko replied with as much dignity as she could muster, while the Council members laughed and gave her suggestive looks.

They had just assumed that it was something that was done with her will and cooperation, despite her protests that none of that was her fault. But although the men were their grandchildren, or other relatives of that generation, it was still amusing to see them so lovingly fawning over the Coven Leader.

They all got settled in a sitting room, while the security officers brought in the boxes of gifts that Wolfe and the others had sent. It was a good thing that they hadn't gone overboard because all the boxes were being brought into this room and lined up along the walls, either for security or as a show of gratitude, that they were too precious to be immediately set aside for business matters.

"Where do we start? Perhaps the Gormana Guardian, was that your title? Would like to present his offer." One of the Council members suggested, before being shot a glare by Reiko for speaking out of turn.

There were clearly still some issues here, but it looked like Reiko had enough control to keep the others in line.

Arthur smiled at the witches. "What I am after is really quite simple. The people of Gormana have been doing business with the rural villages of Morgana Coven Territory for most of a year now, and for the last six months it has been my job to oversee the safety of the nation.

That includes their food security and the other resources that they need, which we have been trading for at the standard regulated rates, as proscribed by the treaties of Jericho and Bronx."

He paused for a second and then elaborated.

"The treaties of Jericho and Bronx are the trade treaties between the Demon Realms and Faerie, where we set the fair rate for almost all common trade goods so that there was no exploitation between the two sides. Demonic Favours and Fae Gifts can be troublesome when they get involved in the haggling process, so it was necessary.

Using those standardized rates, we have been able to establish values for the human technologies, based on the relative value of the known items, and that has been the basis of our trade with the west.

We were the ones who set up the cellular towers through most of the swamps, and the phone network has remained reliable with a few changes to adapt to the increase in mana.

What we would like is to include the Morgana Fortress City in the trade agreements that we have made individually with the villages."

Reiko and the others had already been aware of the reason, but having it spoken out loud really highlighted the fact that they no longer controlled the nation. The villages were acting independently without making any sort of considerations for the Fortress City itself, which used to control the entire peninsula.

Reiko cleared her throat. "We have discussed this matter between us at some length, and we are prepared to negotiate a functional trade agreement with Forest Grove and her allies. If Gormana is an allied nation of Forest Grove, we are willing to make a deal."