Weapon seller in the world of magic

Still, he was the Emperor.

He could not openly take sides.

Not here.

Not like this.

So he shifted the topic.

"Kiara," he said calmly, his tone smooth but deliberate, "there is another matter we need to discuss."

A pause.

"It concerns the Kunyu bandits."

Kiara had been waiting for that.

She did not even let him finish.

"Your Majesty," she said, her voice steady, "I have already explained this to them, and I will repeat it to you."

Her gaze remained calm, but her words were precise.

"I have no personal relationship with those bandits. I handed that boy to them because I believed they would be interested."

A faint pause.

"And perhaps that left a good impression."

Her lips curved slightly.

"Which is why they placed a large order."

She leaned back slightly.

"There is nothing more to it."

The Archbishop of the Church of Thanatos leaned forward slightly, his expression tightening as he spoke.

"That order is exactly the problem."

His voice carried weight.

Authority.

"The Kunyu bandits are enemies of the Empire. Supplying them with weapons is no different from opposing the throne itself."

His gaze hardened as he added, "And if those weapons are used against the people of Western Phoenix… You will be responsible for every death."

Kiara turned her head slowly.

Her eyes locked onto him.

Cold.

Sharp.

"I am not a blacksmith," she said.

Her voice dropped slightly, gaining an edge that cut through the room.

"I am a seller."

Each word came clearly.

Deliberately.

"My job is simple."

"Take money."

"Sell weapons."

She leaned forward slightly, her gaze unwavering.

"Your Majesty, in my store, everyone is equal."

"Noble or commoner."

"Man or woman."

"Human or beast."

"Friend or enemy."

A pause.

"I do not discriminate."

Her eyes narrowed faintly. "So take your ideals somewhere else."

Before the Archbishop could respond, the Emperor spoke. "And if I say the same?"

The room froze.

His voice had changed.

Sharpened.

"If I order you, as the Emperor, not to sell weapons to the Kunyu bandits…"

He leaned forward slightly. "Will you still stand by that principle?"

Everson's eyes lit up.

Finally.

Finally, something.

He looked at the Emperor with renewed hope, thinking that at last, the scales were shifting.

"She has pushed too far," he thought. "Now she will be put in her place."

But Kiara did not react.

Not outwardly.

Inside, however, something stirred.

Her gaze shifted to Alexander Phoenix.

For a fraction of a second, something darker flickered beneath her calm exterior.

Hatred.

Buried deep.

Hidden well.

Then it disappeared.

"Since the age of man," she began slowly, her tone calm but carrying quiet weight, "there has been one rule that never changed."

Her fingers tapped lightly against the table.

"An Emperor holds absolute authority over their land."

Her gaze remained steady.

"And any subject who refuses… has only two choices."

A pause.

"They either leave."

"Or they rebel."

The words settled heavily.

No one interrupted.

Kiara leaned back slightly.

"If you force me," she continued, "I will choose one of those options."

Her eyes remained locked on him.

"If you show no hostility…"

"I will leave peacefully."

Another pause.

"And if you do…"

She did not finish.

She did not need to.

The meaning was clear.

Alexander Phoenix studied her silently.

There was no anger in his expression.

No offense taken.

Only thought.

Careful.

Measured thought.

"Clear," he said finally. "You have made your position clear."

Everson felt something sink inside him.

A quiet dread.

A realization forming. "This… is not going how I expected."

Meanwhile, the Emperor straightened slightly.

"Then listen carefully," he said.

"I will not waste words."

His gaze sharpened.

"Delay their order by six to eight weeks."

A pause.

"Name your price."

The room shifted again.

This time, differently.

Everson's face fell.

The last fragment of hope he held onto shattered quietly.

"So that's it…"

He looked down briefly.

"He chose her."

But the Emperor did not even look at him.

His entire focus remained on Kiara.

This was not about House Drake anymore.

This was about something far more dangerous.

The weapons.

The potential.

The future.

He had seen it.

Tested it.

Understood it.

And now—

He could not afford to ignore it.

Kiara, meanwhile, had already understood his intentions.

"Delay," she thought.

"So he wants time to eliminate them."

A faint smile almost formed.

"He thinks those weapons will change everything. If only he knew…"

Her thoughts moved quickly.

Opportunity.

Leverage.

And Advantage.

She looked at him.

"Three conditions," she said, her voice steady and controlled.

"First…"

"The Imperial Palace will officially recognize firearms as weapons for the masses."

Her eyes did not waver.

"Equal to traditional weapons."

A slight pause.

"Second…"

"The Ministry of Revenue will not interfere with the Second Prince's purchases from my store."

Her tone sharpened slightly.

"No obstruction."

Another pause.

"Third…"

"I want the empty land in front of my store."

She leaned forward slightly.

"I will pay for it."

Her gaze remained calm.

"I need space to test advanced weapons."

A faint pause.

"I cannot do that inside the store. And traveling to the Kunyu mountains every time…"

She shook her head slightly.

"It's inconvenient."

Silence followed.

Then—

Kiara finished. "Agree to these."

"And I will not sell them a single weapon for eight weeks."

Alexander Phoenix did not answer immediately after hearing Kiara's conditions, and that silence itself stretched across the room like a drawn bowstring, tense and humming with unspoken calculations. His fingers rested lightly on the armrest, but the stillness was deceptive, because behind his calm expression, his thoughts were moving rapidly, weighing advantages against risks, short-term gains against long-term consequences.

From the outside, it looked simple.

Three conditions.

None of them impossible.

Yet, the deeper he looked, the more he understood that this was not a simple exchange but a quiet restructuring of power within the Empire itself.

"Firearms as weapons of the masses…"

His gaze lowered slightly.

"That alone will shake the balance."

If firearms were officially recognized, then control would shift away from traditional clans who relied on legacy weapons and trained warriors. Commoners, soldiers, even merchants could rise in strength with enough gold, and that meant influence would slowly drift away from old noble structures.

"And she wants land…"

His eyes flickered faintly.

"A testing ground."

Which meant development.

Expansion.

Future weapons.

For a brief moment, he regretted sending Kaelan Phoenix away.

The third prince would have caught these implications faster, sharper, and perhaps even suggested a countermeasure that could preserve the throne's advantage.

But now…

There was only him.

He exhaled slowly.

Then nodded.

"Consider it done."

For a fraction of a second, something shifted in Kiara's eyes, a quiet flicker of satisfaction that she did not allow to bloom fully, keeping her expression steady as if this outcome had always been expected.

But before that moment could settle—

"There is a small problem."

Kiara's gaze sharpened slightly.

She did not speak.

She waited.

Alexander leaned forward just a little, his tone measured but firm.

"If I create a firearms division within the Imperial Army," he began, "then we cannot afford inconsistency in supply."

His fingers tapped lightly, once, against the table.

"Unlike swords or spears, your weapons depend entirely on your source."

A pause.

"You receive them from your manufacturer. Then you sell them."

His eyes lifted.

"That delay… is unacceptable for an army."

Kiara listened without interruption.

She even nodded once.

"Yes, your concern is logical."

Her tone was calm, almost agreeable, but the moment she continued, that calm twisted into something sharper.

"But that is not my problem."

Several people in the room stiffened.

Everson Drake's eyes narrowed.

The Archbishop's lips pressed together.

Kiara leaned slightly forward, her fingers resting loosely on the table.

"If supply is your concern, then convince your son."

Her gaze did not move from Alexander.

"The Second Prince is the one who wants firearms. If he believes they are not suitable…"

A faint pause.

"Then stop using them."

The bluntness landed heavily.

Even the air seemed to tighten.

A few of the nobles exchanged brief glances, their thoughts almost identical.

"She is pushing too far."

"She is provoking him."

"She is daring the Emperor to respond."

Yet Alexander did not react with anger.

Not even a flicker.

He had already understood her.

Arguing from authority would not work.

Threats would not work.

This was not someone who feared losing status.

So he changed his approach.

"Alright."

He leaned back slightly.

"Your weapons. Your rules."

His tone softened, almost conceding.

"There is nothing we can do about that."

For a moment, it sounded like defeat.

But only for a moment.

"Let us talk about something else."

His eyes sharpened again. "Something from your side."

Kiara raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Which is?"

Alexander did not answer immediately.

Instead, he watched her, as if making sure she would not dodge this one.

Then he spoke.

"I granted you eighty acres of land for a smithy."

His voice grew slightly firmer.

"You promised three attack helicopters. You said five years."

Another pause.

"So far…"

His gaze locked onto hers, "There is no progress."