Chapter 411

Baldur’s Gate had been lost for several months, and no one had suffered through those months more than Grand Duke Ravengard.

The creatures of the Underdark had already begun establishing themselves on the surface. The longer this dragged on, the harder it would be to retake the city. And once the tens of thousands of surface-dwellers they had captured were dead, there would be even less value or meaning in reclaiming it.

But tens of thousands of Underdark creatures were now gathered in Baldur’s Gate and the surrounding region, led by the drow, duergar, and kuo-toa. Through underground passages, they remained connected to the Underdark, giving them routes both in and out.

The three factions might be fighting fiercely among themselves right now, but the moment humans tried to drive them out, they would immediately join forces.

The drow were exceptionally gifted and had no shortage of elite fighters.

The duergar possessed psionic abilities and excelled at tunneling.

The kuo-toa controlled the River Chionthar, its shallows, and the river mouth, and were equally at home on land and in water.

Given the strength and accumulated resources of these three major races, even Waterdeep or the Silver Marches would have to mobilize virtually everything they had to take Baldur’s Gate, with no telling how severe their casualties would be.

That was also why the Lords’ Alliance had provided Grand Duke Ravengard with only limited financial support.

There was little hope of success. Giving him more would simply be throwing money away.

Waterdeep was busy suppressing the unrest in the dungeon beneath Mount Waterdeep. Neverwinter was trapped in endless internal strife. The Silver Marches were too far away to help and still had to remain vigilant against disturbances from the Spine of the World and the Kingdom of Many-Arrows…

The disasters, both natural and man-made, caused by the disruption of the Weave had spread far and wide. Baldur’s Gate was hardly the only place affected.

If this had been the only disaster, the Lords’ Alliance would have sent troops long ago and driven the Underdark creatures back below. No one liked being humiliated like this.

But Baldur’s Gate was now a complete mess, and no one wanted to touch it.

If Grand Duke Ravengard had any other option at all, he never would have given away ownership of the city.

Anser remained silent for a long time after hearing him out.

He was a Paladin, born in Baldur’s Gate. He had once been chased all over the place by Underdark creatures, and he had a particular fondness for meddling in other people’s affairs. On the surface, he really did seem like the ideal partner.

And in reality, that was true as well.

Who else but him spent every day thinking about those Underdark creatures… and how to kill them!

“I genuinely want to help you. I’ve infiltrated Baldur’s Gate several times before, killed hundreds of Underdark creatures, and tried to sow discord between them.” Anser’s expression was sincere.

Although his previous hunting operations had been carried out in secret, they were tactical actions. Morally speaking, he was entirely in the right, so there was nothing he couldn’t admit to.

A faint smile appeared on Grand Duke Ravengard’s face. He knew Anser had more to say, but even this attitude gave him a warmth he had not felt in a very long time.

When a man fell on hard times, even the weather seemed to turn against him. Cold words came with cold winds, and every sunless day was an ordeal.

“But…” Anser spread his hands. “The Holrewen Federation was only recently founded. We have no accumulated resources or foundations to draw on, and a population of just a few tens of thousands can’t support much of an army.”

“And ultimately, there’s only so much one person can do. Even if I hardened my heart and smashed Baldur’s Gate into ruins, I probably still couldn’t drive them out.”

“I understand, but you don’t.” The Grand Duke stroked his beard, amusement in his eyes. “We’re not talking about retaking Baldur’s Gate now. Not tomorrow or the day after, not this month, and perhaps not even this year.”

Anser understood immediately.

He was betting on Anser’s future.

At the rate Anser was growing, how powerful might he become by next year?

No one could predict it, just as no one could predict what the situation would look like next year.

“We both know that this battle will require an enormous investment of resources, and many people will have to die. You and I are neither family nor old friends, so I can’t use emotion or morality to pressure you into this.” The Grand Duke pulled a stack of documents from his Bag of Holding and placed them in front of Anser.

“This is the cooperation agreement I’ve drafted. If we can reach an agreement, I’m willing to give you personally everything I have, including 1.1 million gold pieces, an Artifact, and… a secret codex of ascension originating from the Netherese Empire.”

Anser’s breath caught.

For once, he was genuinely taken aback.

He raised his head, and their eyes met. Then the Grand Duke closed his eyes and sank back against the sofa, as though those few sentences had drained all the strength from his spine.

The room fell silent, leaving only the slow breathing of the two men.

Anser took a deep breath and carefully went through the cooperation agreement, inwardly marveling at the Grand Duke’s decisiveness.

The man hadn’t revealed his bargaining chips one at a time. He had put everything he owned on the table at once, blowing straight through Anser’s psychological bottom line.

Anser was no saint. If the Grand Duke had put on airs and tried to get his help for free, Anser definitely would have left him hanging for a while—until Baldur’s Gate truly became “unclaimed territory.”

And if it was unclaimed territory, then whoever took it owned it.

After all, no matter how shameless someone was, they couldn’t very well bargain with something that didn’t belong to them, could they?

‘An irresistible temptation.’

With the other man’s sincerity laid out so plainly, Anser found it difficult to refuse.

Excluding his magic items, 1.1 million gold pieces alone were worth considerably more than all his current assets combined.

And the Artifact went without saying. It was a magic item of the highest tier, the ultimate dream of every Professional.

What surprised him most, however, was the secret codex of ascension originating from the Netherese Empire. He was extremely curious about what it contained.

Given how highly Grand Duke Ravengard valued it, there was no way it merely recorded obscure secrets about the gods with no practical application.

Unfortunately, the proposal revealed nothing whatsoever about either the Artifact or the contents of the secret codex of ascension.

There was a price for every reward, and Grand Duke Ravengard had demands of his own.

Both he and Martin were to become federal councilors, enjoying the same powers as the other councilors, while retaining their ducal titles and noble privileges.

Once Baldur’s Gate was retaken, he would serve as its first governor, personally overseeing the city’s reconstruction and recovery.

Anser considered both demands reasonable. The man wasn’t even asking for autonomy.

‘That was too easy.’

He had expected a fierce, drawn-out round of bargaining and negotiations.

But thinking about it carefully, ever since he had become a Sorcerer, every negotiation he had taken part in had gone remarkably smoothly. There had been virtually none of the supposed verbal sparring and back-and-forth.

“The terms you’re offering are far too generous, Grand Duke. I really can’t refuse.” Anser closed the documents and sighed softly.

From this point onward, the responsibility for retaking Baldur’s Gate would fall on his shoulders.

Everyone would be watching his every move to see whether he could make good on his promise.

“For you, this must be a difficult choice as well, isn’t it?” The Grand Duke sat upright and looked solemnly at Anser.

“Not really.” Anser chuckled. “Baldur’s Gate is a city I’ll take back sooner or later.”

“Then it seems I’ve gotten the short end of the deal.” The Grand Duke burst out laughing, looking much more relaxed instead.

“What about the Lords’ Alliance? How are you going to explain this to them?” Anser asked.

Baldur’s Gate was one of the core members of the Lords’ Alliance, and under its rules, it could not simply leave at will.

“What exactly do I need to explain to them?” Grand Duke Ravengard gave two distinctly undignified sneers.

House Ravengard had sacrificed far too much for the Alliance. He himself had personally led troops into battle more than once or twice, his hands stained with the blood of countless Northlander pirates and orcs.

And what had he gotten in return?

He had swallowed his pride and gone from one person to another begging for help, only to receive one miserly handout after another.

They hadn’t even sent him a single reinforcement.