Chapter 34: Arthur: I Have a Daughter Now

Chapter 34: Arthur: I Have a Daughter Now

Airael has a daughter; it’s not exactly a secret among the Elven Race.

Shadow learned this tidbit with just a little inquiry within the Elven Race after meeting Airael.

As for the “divine child” nonsense, Shadow didn’t buy it.

The elves might be oblivious to what their Your Majesty was up to on the continent, but Shadow sure wasn’t!

Besides, the timing also lined up.

So, Shadow was one hundred percent certain that Airael’s daughter was indeed the child of her and Arthur.

Arthur stared at Shadow, taking a while to process before asking, “Shadow, that child is mine and Airael’s, right?”

It sounded like a question, but it came out more like a statement of truth.

He couldn’t afford to be uncertain about it.

That would be terrifying!

“By the timeline, it is indeed your child, Master.” Shadow replied, observing Arthur’s anxious demeanor.

Of course, he wouldn’t admit that he was just indulging in a little mischief.

“It’s my child! I can’t believe I have a daughter now!”

Arthur was initially ecstatic, but a wave of sadness washed over him suddenly.

Even though he had his very own child, he had never met her.

He hadn’t even known of her existence before now.

A sliver of resentment toward Airael flickered in Arthur’s heart.

After all, the child’s birth was a big deal, and he had been left in the dark!

What a heartless woman!

After quite some time, Arthur regained his composure and, with a glimmer of expectation in his eyes, asked Shadow, “Have you seen the child?”

“No.”

Shadow shook his head.

Arthur felt a pang of disappointment.

But he didn’t blame Shadow.

His mind started to fabricate images of what his child might look like.

He pondered and decided it would be best if the child took after Airael.

After all, she is a girl.

And Airael’s appearance was of the world’s top caliber.

Watching Arthur lost in his daydreams, Shadow continued to wait.

A while later, Arthur cleared his throat to break the awkward silence and said, “Shadow, your abilities have truly not let me down. Thank you! Without you, I’d still be in the dark about all this.”

“Master, while I’ve revealed so much, I still hope you will act according to what Queen Airael has advised. Otherwise, even if you’ve obtained her body, you still won’t win her heart; right now, her heart belongs to the Elven Race.”

After hearing Shadow’s suggestion, Arthur chuckled, “I understand everything you’ve said. I know what to do, and as I just told you, I’m going to take Airael back!”

Hearing this, Shadow felt reassured, “As long as the Master understands.”

“All right, Shadow, you’ve worked hard on this journey to the Elven Race. Take a few days to rest. There will likely be many more tasks for you afterward.”

“Of course!”

With that, Arthur and Shadow’s conversation for the day came to a close.

Now aware of certain facts, Arthur’s mindset also began to shift.

He clearly understood.

For himself, and for Airael, he must persist on the path he has chosen.

He was now filled with renewed determination.

…

A year flew by in the blink of an eye.

Over the past year, the relationship between humans and elves has improved significantly, thanks to the envoy team sent by Airael.

Especially with the increased frequency of trade between both parties.

Under Airael’s guidance, the Elven Race primarily sourced various raw materials, bringing them back to process into magical weapon components.

Humans mainly sought out the “luxury goods” from the Elven Race.

Although the influx of Elven “luxury goods” into human markets has grown, their prices haven’t dropped much.

Compared to the vast human market, the quantity of those “luxury goods” was still too small, and the demand was rising. What once sufficed for a noblewoman now seemed insufficient—she had to flaunt a whole set or risk not being able to face her peers! Thus, the supply was nowhere near meeting the demand.

This was all part of Airael’s cunning plan.

Though her coffers were filling with gold, she still needed to maintain a balance between expenses and income.

Furthermore, exporting luxuries created a perception among humans.

The Elven Race was seemingly obsessed with these items to cover up the existence of their military factories.

Internally, because much of the raw material acquisition had turned external, the Elven Race underwent significant changes over the year.

Those responsible for gathering raw materials were now being shifted to factories.

As a result, the Elven Race’s production capacity had increased significantly.

However, this enhanced productivity came with a massive outflow of gold.

Even though Airael ramped up the export of luxury goods, the sheer volume wasn’t enough to balance the massive deficit.

To Airael, it was all worth it.

After all, these were merely upfront costs; the more she invested, the more she would reap later.

Of course, there was a chance it could all go belly-up.

But Airael would do her best to prevent that.

In her office, Airael was processing a military expenditure document.

Due to the increase in production capacity, newly manufactured weapons could be produced much faster. However, the challenge remained in how to digest these weapons; leaving them to linger in storage would lead to spoilage, and maintenance would require substantial gold.

Since they had to be utilized, Airael certainly wouldn’t let these new, powerful weapons flood the civilian market for someone with ill intentions to snag and decode.

That left only her army to absorb them.

This meant military expenses would skyrocket.

Though for her, it felt about as simple as transferring from one hand to the other, considering she was the one behind the military factories; still, the visible military budget would indeed see a real increase.

Such a situation might raise alarms for some.

Even though it was unavoidable, Airael hesitated at that moment.

Signing the documents would significantly strengthen the army.

But some consequences were likely unavoidable.

Not signing meant those weapons, once produced, couldn’t just sit in a warehouse to collect dust.

After a long and agonizing deliberation, Airael eventually decided to sign the documents.

What’s unavoidable is unavoidable, right?

Now with these new weapons, Airael felt confident she could defeat them.

She just had to avoid a bloody showdown; that would be disastrous for the Elven Race.