196 Confrontation
They made their way up to the fifth floor, which had an ample space with tons of tables, yet only one had people in it. The queen of the dark lands.
She was waiting for her food while looking through the window of the restaurant, gazing at the moon and the people who were walking down the streets.
The queen of the dark lands was also a dark elf. Arthur did not know her name, but people usually called her matriarch.
When Arthur reached the fifth floor, the queen glanced at him with apparent surprise. She knew well those who could step on the fifth floor, and it was usually just her.
Who was the mysterious dark elf? This was the question that crossed inside her mind.
“Should I invite him over?” The matriarch thought.
That thought vanished when she saw that Arthur already had someone with him.
“This place is incredible.”
The title of the fanciest restaurant in all dark lands was well-deserved. It had fifth floors with lots of space, neatly arranged tables, candlelights, and enormous windows for an astonishing view.
It was made of a white-type of stone, as beautiful as marble, and resistant too. Arthur sensed the formations around the restaurant, and based on his calculations, it would withstand the attack of a seven circle mage.
Well, considering the matriarch came to that place often, it was bonded to have good security.
“I bet there is even a secret tunnel underneath so that the matriarch can escape if anything happens.”
The owner of the restaurant led Arthur and Deulara to a table somewhat far from where the matriarch was, but it was still within sight.
“You can have this table. It is one of the best. Here, take it,” he said, giving them a food menu.
Arthur disliked the idea of not having the rights to choose his own table. He guessed it was just to prevent them from getting close to the matriarch, as Arthur was a strong mage who might be a threat to her.
A few strong mages hid in the shadows of the fifth floor, invisible to the common eye, acting as protectors of the matriarch. Arthur saw all of them and could only laugh.
“Deulara, what do you think we should eat?”
“Hum, let me see. I think the fried flying snake is wonderful, as well as this special salad. Maybe the stew as well? It has the meat of wild snow boars, quite rare, if you ask me.”
“All right, we will take all of that.”
Money was no problem for Arthur, and the owner of that restaurant also said something about a discount — which was nice.
The matriarch who was a few tables away kept glancing at Arthur and Deulara, which made them somewhat uncomfortable.
“Today is the day we will have a real talk, but first, eat.”
It was the first step of his plan of total dominance of the dark lands. Before going to that restaurant, Arthur would still wait a few days before going to talk with the matriarch, but now destiny reunited them together, and he could not let that opportunity go to waste.
After ten minutes, all the food was ready. It was fast, and that pleased Arthur. The smell was nice as well, and Arthur — being the hungry beast he was — could not wait to destroy that food.
“So good!”
Deulara ate ferociously, which surprised Arthur. It was not every day that she could eat something as good as what they were eating, so she might as well take the opportunity and go all out.
The only people on the fifth floor were them, and the matriarch over there, which meant Deulara did not have to keep appearances, resulting in a frenetic eating.
Well, if she knew lots of mages were watching their every move, then maybe she would not behave like that. Would Arthur share that information with her? Of course not.
He simply sat there, ate his food, and chilled. The mages who were watching them could not understand how relaxed Arthur was. They knew he was a 6 circle mage, which meant he had long sensed all the mages there, yet he act as it was nothing in his eyes.
The fact was that it wasn’t. A 6 circle mage would have no chance of winning against that many mages, but a 9 circle mage with a giant and dragon bloodline? It would be a piece of cake.
When both of them were done with the eating, Arthur said, “let’s go talk with the matriarch.”
“Matriarch? What?” Deulara said. She had been so immerse in her eating that did not realize the highest authority in all the dark lands was right there in front of them.
“Can I sit here?” Arthur said, pointing to a chair which was right in front of the matriarch.
“Sure, why not?”
Arthur sat there and looked properly at the matriarch. She was gorgeous, with soft ebony-hair, and different from the other dark elves who had red eyes. She had blue ones.
The need for a disguise was over. Arthur returned to his normal human appearance, right in front of her. His black hair was now long, as he did not cut it since his first arrival in that world.
“Right, before I forget. If any of the mages that are hiding in here move an inch, I will kill you,” Arthur calmly said.
“I’m Arthur, you?”
“Adrid. Brave of you being a human inside the dark lands.”
“Bravery? No, you got it wrong. It is called strength. I can destroy this wrecked piece of land along with everyone in it if I want to, but that would be lame.”
All the hidden mages moved, but Adrid made a hand signal, making all of them stay in place.
“What do you want coming in here?” Adrid said.
She was not dumb. If the other party finally showed its true appearance inside the dark lands, then it must have an extraordinary strength to protect itself, so making a move wouldn’t be wise.
“Stop the war completely. I know you want to get the Dragon Scale Empire to have a decent piece of land, as this one you have here is utterly trash. But what if I told you there is a central continent where there is land available for you to take? Also, there are dark races there, too.”
Arthur was sure that plan would not work, but he asked her anyway.
“You want us to withdraw from our land? Impossible.”
With a pitiful look, he gazed at Adrid and said, “are you sure you want to challenge me?”
She could not understand why, but a feeling deep down was telling her that whoever was in front of her at that moment was someone she could not mess with.
“I will. What type of leader would I be to give up in front of the enemy?”
Adrid waved her hand, and all the mages that hid in the restaurant attacked in unison. The restaurant had a protective formation, so they did not hold back and attacked with everything they got.