"Cold as usual. Glad to see that you havenât changed. Well... personality wise at least." Khionah narrowed her eyes since she could sense the colossal amount of mana behind her. She knew that this was completely different to the level 100 snow girl she had seen before.
"Well, thatâs true I suppose. But since this is a second meeting, I do believe that weâre on equal ground now." Shiro smiled.
Snapping her finger, nanobots appeared beneath her as she created a throne to sit on. Making sure itâs the same height as the one that Khionah was sitting on, Shiro crossed her legs and smiled.
"So, do you want to state your business first or shall I? Seeing your expression, you seem to have something you want to ask of me." Shiro asked as Khionah chuckled.
"Youâve become more perceptive I see. Well you can ask away first as you are the one to arrange this meeting." Khionah replied.
Nodding her head, Shiro tapped her finger on the armrest and a hologram appeared in front of them, showing the map of Vrishâ Lir and all of the Beast Queenâs territories.
"There are quite a few things I want to ask you but Iâll focus on the main task first. What do you think about a joint operation to take down the Beast Queen? As you can probably guess, she has an overwhelming advantage over everyone else due to the fact that monsters are under her control. She doesnât need to worry about sacrificing important people as lifelines for a zone since any random tier 6 would do. If we donât take care of her now, sheâll become dangerous in the future. Imagine what she can do with a level 1000 monster that might appear in this world." Shiro said as Khionah narrowed her eyes.
"That is true. She has been quite.... Ambitious in her actions. Despite not being an Empress like you, the Dragon Bitch and the Chimera Bitch, her greed is rather big. Other Empressâs are waiting in the background right now and only you three have revealed yourselves. Sheâs taking advantage of this and doing whatever she wants. But knowing you, you should be able to deal with her alone no?" Khionah asked.
She knew that with how much mana Shiro was radiating right now, it was going to be hard to find anyone that could be on par with her. Hell, she was willing to bet that even the Dragon Empress is below her in terms of sheer mana density.
"Perhaps. But if I propose a joint operation it leaves room for future cooperation no?" Shiro smiled as Khionah chuckled.
"You sound as though you want this to be a common occurrence. But you do realise that this is a race for all of us right? Helping you would just be me feeding a beast that I cannot tame. Why risk my neck like this?" Khionah said as Shiro nodded.
"True. However, I have some knowledge in regards to this new age. Depending on what your wish is for the system, I might be able to grant it in its place."
"Thatâs quite the bold claim. Are you sure you have the capabilities to achieve such a task?" Khionah narrowed her eyes.
"Depends on the task but I do have confidence in myself." Shiro smiled.
"All of you Empressâs do. I donât know what kind of information you have but I know that the system would censor it should you try to disclose this to me. Each of you Empressâs know some of the systemâs secrets and us lowly Queenâs are not allowed to know. A little unfair if you ask me."
Hearing this, Shiro paused for a moment since she didnât think other Empressâs would be able to know a little about secrets.
âDoes that mean Syradil and Arnea might know that anyone else winning the new age is futile?â Shiro thought with a frown.
With this knowledge in mind, it would possibly give her new leverages to get them on her side. If they knew that the system refuses to let anyone else win but the Queen of the Garden, then things would be favourable for her.
"Since you know that I cannot tell you, I do hope that you trust me when I say itâs better for you to support me in this rather than face the world with your own faction." Shiro said seriously. She didnât want to kill more Queens than she is forced to since they each had their stories. Each of them have a dream they want to achieve and most of the time itâs to do with their own loved ones. All of them are just victims of the system.
"Are you saying you want me as your subordinate?" Khionah asked as her voice turned cold. Even if she knew that Shiro had more information than her, she wasnât about to become her subordinate. Her pride wouldnât allow it.
"No. I meant having you as someone on equal footing. An alliance where I help you and you help me. I already have Misu, the Undead Queen on my side and Iâm giving the same offer to you." Shiro shook her head as Khionah thought about it for a moment before shaking her head.
"I will need more time to think about this. However, it does not mean Iâm unwilling to cooperate. Remember when we met before, I had wanted you to help me with a task in the future? Why donât you help me with that task now and Iâll help you." Khionah offered.
"Perhaps but like you said, I can deal with the Beast Queen alone with the manpower I have now. The only reason I offered you this was to form an alliance. It does not mean I am willing to expend my resources on you when I can do this task alone. Though, if it is a small task, I might consider it." Shiro shook her head since it was an unfavourable trade for her.
"Well this will benefit you in the long run since weâll be eliminating one of the Empressâs. I want your help in killing the Empress of Shadows." Khionah offered as Shiro narrowed her eyes.
"And what do you mean by this will benefit me? What if I want her on my side?"
"I doubt youâll want to do that. The Empress of Shadows is not a ânormalâ Empress. Sheâs one that has already Fallen. A fallen Empress. Once her desires have been attained, sheâll lose her sanity and become a monster that would stop at nothing until this world is destroyed. Do you really want something like that to be on your side?" Khionah asked as Shiro thought about it for a moment.
She was right, if the Empress has already fallen then that severely cuts off her chances of recruiting her. Remembering the fact that Fallen cannot be saved, Shiro couldnât help but sigh and feel pity for them.
If possible, sheâll want her to attain her revenge first, slay whoever put her in this state then kill her afterwards. At least then, sheâll be able to pass on with the knowledge that her revenge was achieved.
"Sure, I can help you with that. But that will have to wait considering the fact that I need to help Misu first." Shiro smiled as Khionah nodded.
"Thatâs fine, Iâm still looking for her whereabouts myself. Anything I can use to contact you when the need arises?"
Snapping her fingers, Shiro created a phone and threw it towards Khionah.
"This phone will allow you to contact me whenever you want. I do hope that I donât need to tell you how to work a phone." Shiro smiled.
"Of course not. When will you be attacking the Beast Queen?" Khionah asked.
"Tomorrow. Iâll call you when the time comes. I donât believe there is anything else to talk about so Iâll be taking my leave now."
Leaving the zone, Shiro led everyone back to the city.
"Mum, what are you thinking about?" Attie asked since he could tell that she was concerned about something.
"Just thinking about the Fallen Empress. Iâm wondering what could push her over the edge and fall. I know that I was close when the watchman appeared but that was a unique situation. That and also Iâm just thinking if thereâs a way to help them or not. I know that so far it is deemed impossible but there are no absolutes. Just very unlikely. Perhaps there might be something we can do to help. I donât know but thatâs just more questions for the system once my skill comes off cooldown." Shiro smiled as Attie nodded his head.
Meanwhile...
"Saphi." Khionah called out as Saphi walked over.
"What is it your highness?"
"How do I use this thing? I know that this is what most people use now but isnât it just easier to use familiars? But since this is the only way I can contact her I suppose I should learn." Khionah asked as she pointed towards the phone.
"I believe you just tap the screen, your highness. You see that icon over there? That is where your contacts are and right now the only one there is Miss Shiro. Tapping it would let you call her." Saphi replied.
Khionah is not good with technology.