Whispers of a Dead Empire

Chapter 65

Hello! Sorry for the late upload. Took a vacation from work, and was busy adding to the backlog. If you are enjoying the novel, please rate it! If you aren't let me know why so I can fix it. Enjoy

"We can open up trade. The only thing that it would cost you is increased resources and some gold. Other than that, it's up to you," I told him with a shrug. It's not like I really needed money. I could create it out of thin air. I figured it would be a good show of faith and hopefully remind him in the future that he shouldn't treat me like shit. So I would forgive it this time.

His eyes lit up as he worked through something. "That sounds reasonable. I will manage all trade deals at your behest, and I'll send some profits your way. Would you like to make another contract on the matter?"

"Yeah. I'll have it written up. It will be presented to you tomorrow, along with your first shipment." The gears in my head turned as I thought about what I could make. The best part is that I would still be a neutral figure. I have no desire to join whatever quarrels exist outside of this world. So this would be the best way to do it. I would only interact with the outside world through him.

"Thank you so much, Empress." He seemed much happier than last time, like I lifted an enormous weight from his chest with that idea.

"You are welcome. Anyway, I'm afraid I must cut this meeting short. I have things I need to do." I took the contract and brought it over to me. While I'm still coming out strong, I should probably end the meeting. Lest I get dragged into something that I didn't like or lose my advantage so far.

Redrick looked a bit stunned at my sudden dismissal. "So soon? I know that some of my companions did wish to speak to you."

Oh, I really didn't want to get dragged into anything else. I just wanted to relax and upgrade my class. "I will get with them at a later date. Tell them to drop by later, and talk to Kharon about setting up an appointment with me."

He shared a glance with Gunther before he shifted his head back to me. "I understand. We thank you for the time that you have given us."

I waved my hand dismissively as I stood up and grabbed the contract. "Anyway, I will take this with me. I'll have a copy made of this, and it will be delivered to you first thing. Moving forward, Kharon will be my intermediary, so please forward any questions that you may have to him."

Redrick strummed his fingers across the table and looked like he wanted to say more, but he stopped himself. "Thank you, Empress; hopefully, we meet again."

"Perhaps, stay safe Redrick, Gunther, you as well." I gave them a curt nod and gestured for Alessia to follow me. The quicker that I got out of here, the better. I was happy and excited that I got to speak to humans for the first time in a while, but yet, it felt so different. In a way, it felt like it fell flat against what I was expecting. They regarded me as if I wasn't like them. Like I was some kind of monster. I sighed and left the cabin with Alessia in tow. I wasn't as bothered with her as before since I had come to terms with what had happened. She walked silently behind me as we made our way down the path and out of the sight of the others before I teleported back to my office space.

Once I had appeared in there, I stumbled over to the chair and sat down. The stress left my body, and I closed my eyes. Dealing with them was stressful. The amount of acting that I had to do was insane, and it gave me a headache to boot. This sucked. I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling as I tried to de-stress a bit, but there was a feeling that kept me distracted. The feeling of someone's eyes boring into me.

I shifted my head slightly and met Alessia's burning gold orbs. "Yes?"

"Are you mad at me?" She asked as she tilted her head and crossed her arms. There she was again with that kicked puppy look on her face.

"No, I'm not mad at you," I told her as I sat up straight and looked at the papers on my desk.

"Do you promise?" I paused, taken aback. It amazes me how much a person like her could change personalities. One moment, she could be the coldest person I have ever met, and then the next, she could be unsure of herself.

"Yes, Alessia, I promise I'm not angry with you." I motioned for the chair I made for her and turned my attention back to my menu. I was inquisitive about the stuff that I unlocked.

I read down the list, and I felt my jaw drop as I read the options. Not a single skill below uncommon appeared, and definitively not one that included mana. Wow, I need to take a second and carefully pick which one I want. But to do so, I had to balance all the pros and cons of each one. Starting with the first option, the Martial Soul. While the system didn't really detail the specifics of the class, I understood the general gist of the description. It was a class focused on sitting on the front lines and fighting.

As much as I enjoyed the idea of the class, since it would give me DPS and tank abilities, I didn't want to risk it. Fighting up front seemed like it put a lot of risk on me, and I would much rather not do something that would get me killed if I could help it. Primarily since everyone here is relying on me. I dismissed the idea and checked the second one with that thought in mind. The Soul Monk looked like it was a hell of a lot of fun. I mean, who didn't want to be a monk and fuck shit up. Plus, it lets me use my soul skills more freely and doesn't require me to stay in battle for extended periods.

I kept that one in mind as I moved further down the list. This next one was the Asterian Weapons Master. This was odd to see as a class, considering that Asteria was unique. But that would explain the unique modifier next to it. Let's see, it was essentially a conglomeration of all the proficiencies that I knew and used, so it wasn't a terrible option by any stretch, and it was a hybrid class to boot. So I would consider that one next.

As I read over storm monk, it looked like it would be a good time, but I dismissed it. I couldn't justify not having any sort of defense, especially after watching the adventurers fight. It would be too big of a risk for me. I could slip up, and it would spell my doom. Which was sad, but I had to place my well-being above all else. Now onto the last option!

Dragon of Asteria, eh? It looks like a really excellent class, and it would pair well with my soul skills, which I am ashamed to say I haven't leveled recently. The best part of it is that it would offer me a pure hybrid class, which is what I am into, anyway. I bit my lip as I read over everything carefully. More than anything, I was torn between the Soul Monk and the Dragon class. I wouldn't hurt too badly if I skipped the weapons master one since I would keep those proficiencies. But at the end of the day, I didn't need it. They were there more for backup than anything.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the soul monk would not be the path that I take. The reason is that I feel like it would limit me, and that wouldn't be something that I wanted. So with my mind made up I selected Dragon of Asteria.

I felt my body grow stronger as the class change took effect. It felt much like when I upgraded my ki core, but it was much more potent this time than before. I could feel a laugh build up in my chest before it exploded outwards as the feeling became all the more intoxicating. Oh, I was going to have fun with this.