The Innkeeper

Lex chuckled. At the slightest sign of things going askew, Misha did not shy from directly stating Lex’s background, dropping the charade. Not only did such behavior match her earlier confidence, when she directly challenged him to an arm wrestling match, but it also made a lot of sense. After all, Lex had never known Heavenly Immortals to be weak willed or easily frightened.

“Don’t sell yourself short,” said Lex. “It’s not the Midnight Inn that’s engaging in a realm-wide war against the Henali.”

There was a momentary silence between the two where an invisible tension built between them. Yet the tension dissolved just as quickly as it appeared when Misha took a sigh of relief and relaxed.

It wasn’t like she could do anything to Lex anyway – not without getting an official permit to fight him. Of course, if she was suicidal, she could try attacking him without it, but Lex didn’t fear her at all. The only thing that slightly concerned him was if the Nas could tell what he was doing.

If he placed one of the rook pieces on the board while Lex was in the middle of a fight, it would truly be quite inconvenient.

“I’m glad that’s over and done with. Acting demure is really not my strong suit,” Misha said as she grabbed a drink and took a big gulp.

“Why were you acting demure to begin with? Such an obvious change in behavior from earlier on is a dead giveaway. Speaking of which, I have to ask, did you know who I was when you asked me to arm wrestle you?”

“Orders,” she said with a shrug. “According to our resident psychologist for the human race, human males are more likely to be attracted to a weaker female in need of assistance or rescuing.”

“That’s sexist, and I’m pretty sure speciesist as well,” said Lex. “I know plenty of incredibly powerful women who are plenty attractive. Those are some bizarre orders though.”

Continue your adventure at My Virtual Library Empire

Through masterful control of his thoughts, Lex prevented himself from immediately thinking of Zuri – or at least the appearance she took when they first met.

Misha shrugged.

“Can’t do anything about it. And to answer your second question, no I did not know you or about the Midnight Inn at the time of our wrestling match. As a diplomat, I spend all my time in other realms, either representing our interest or seeking new allies. I hardly ever know anything about what’s going on in the Origin realm save for what I need to know for my missions. Considering that I’m not really native to the Origin realm, it doesn’t really bother me.”

“And representing the interests of a terrorist organization doesn’t bother you either?” Lex asked very casually, his voice devoid of any accusations though his words certainly implied it.

“Hey, first of all, believe it or not, it’s the Henali who are the aggressors, not the Fuegan,” Misha said, holding up a finger, though her tone and demeanor did not seem like she was agitated by the accusation. “I don’t know if you are fully aware of the history of the conflict, but I can enlighten you about it. If you don’t trust my word, I can even point you towards any number of neutral sources from whom you can verify my claims.

“Secondly, and much more importantly, a girls gotta eat. I’ve been stuck at the beginning of the Heavenly Immortal realm for a very long time, and without sufficient resources, whether it be in the form of teachers who can guide me on my path or actual treasures that can help me overcome my various shortcomings, it’ll be billions of years before I make any progress. “The Fuegan might not be the wealthiest out there, but they pay surprisingly well for a non-combat role and the benefits aren’t bad either. The universe isn’t an easy place to survive in, alright. Don’t judge me until you try surviving on your own for a while.”

“You’re right, I don’t know the history behind the conflict. But still, doesn’t it bother you that you’re helping perpetrate war?”

“Avoiding conflict is basically impossible,” she said with a shrug. “There’s more than one war going on in the universe, and this ain’t even close to the worst one. It’s not an excuse, just the reality of the situation. Besides, like I said, it’s the Henali who are the aggressors here. I’m helping natives try to reclaim their realm.

“The Origin realms location was discovered approximately 4 billion years ago, and was discovered to be an especially resource abundant realm. The timeline also put it on the path to being potentially one of the last, if not the last realm that will mature. That made it highly valuable.

“There was a bidding war over who would get the rights to colonise the Origin realm, as well as an actual war, with the Henali eventually claiming full custody of the realm, acknowledged universe wide. Then they came barging in, completely destroying the preestablished order of the Origin realm, and taking full control.

“The Fuegan, much like the Artica race, were the former strongest race of the Origin realm, but were brought near to the point of extinction during that process. It was only through a greater familiarity and understanding of the realm that they were able to survive. Many other races and powers within the Origin realm did not make it, including many of the original Deities of the realm.

“Fortunately, not everyone in the universe recognized the Henali’s claim to the Origin realm, and supported the Fuegan, allowing them to survive and fight back for what is rightfully theirs.”

“Yeah, that’s why they nurtured a bunch of Jorlam in their own realm. For protection,” Lex said sarcastically. “I don’t know why you’re telling me all of this. As much as I understand that colonization is a cruel and evil thing, the scale of this fight is really far beyond me. Not to mention, I’m no arbiter of justice. I can’t proclaim that the Fuegans current atrocities are completely valid because the Henali did something just as bad long ago.”