Raghatnu finished explaining the situation about the other nations. It seemed that the Elder had asked her and Nahtnu to keep a lookout for us without telling the Emperor. Though Raghatnu didn’t really bother with it due to her not believing that I was alive. The others within the Empire didn’t know anything about the issue nor did any of them know that I was alive.

“I guess you’ll have to present yourselves to the Emperor and see what he has to say.” Raghatnu said as she poured herself another mug. Sasha held out her mug to Nahtnu for her sixth cup. Yet, she didn’t look phased in the slightest.

“If we do that then we’ll be taken to Alsenia as prisoners. I’m already banished from that country so I’m pretty sure my second offense will end with my death. With this matter especially I can only think of two ways they’ll put me down. Either they’ll make a show of it or they’ll kill me in secret. Neither of which are easy deaths.” I argued. I didn’t want to die.

“That is true. Though you do understand that if you don’t we will all be killed. We don’t have the means to fight a war, let alone a war with several nations.” Raghatnu replied.

“I know. You were all so good to me so I don’t want to do anything that could cause any problems.”

“Too late for that. You already summoned that hero and she’s trouble enough as an existence. To top it off, she’s downing all of my beer!” Raghatnu said with an annoyed look as Sasha was pouring herself another glass. Where was she putting it?

“I get it but I can’t just hand myself over to be killed. My life isn’t just my own now. If I die then Sasha will too.” I stated.

“I see. Perhaps I can help you in a way so that no one gets hurt?” Raghatnu offered with a nonchalant smile.

“And how do you plan on doing that?” Sasha asked before downing another drink. At that point, I had to try taking the mug from her. Though she did not want to let go of it and I wasn’t strong enough with only one arm to remove it from her hands.

“Nahtnu, go get a small bottle of project nineteen.” Raghatnu said to Nahtnu who nodded and quickly ran off.

“What is that?” I asked curiously.

“It’s a special brew I made a long time ago using some less than reputable ingredients. It’s so potent that a single whiff could incapacitate a grown man. My idea is that you could be taken to meet the Alsenian border patrol and be given over as a prisoner. As soon as you do you can knock out the guards and disappear. With enough witnesses, the Alsenians would have no choice but to leave us alone and you will be free.” Raghatnu suggested before pouring herself another mug of ale. It was almost as if she felt challenged by Sasha. The two were drinking almost in tandem while I had barely had the one mug.

“It sounds like a risky plan but as long I’m there to time our escape then it shouldn’t be an issue.” Sasha said confidently.

“Then it’s settled.” Raghatnu said happily.

“Do I get a say in this?” I asked.

“Nope.” Sasha replied before filling my mug back up as if it was some kind of apology.

“Now to the other matter.” Raghatnu said after a good minute.

“What other matter?” I asked.

“Where the hell did all these Rahbatna come from?” Raghatnu asked with a somewhat confused and pissed-off tone as she gestured at the fifty or so Rahbatna hopping around the room.

“No clue. Did your apprentice leave the door open?” Sasha said before I could explain. Rahgatnu squinted in suspicion before looking over at the open door.

“Damn it! He did. He’s going to get an earful later.” Rahgatnu said angrily before downing another drink. At this point, I was certain that the two of them were having an unannounced drinking competition.

When Nahtnu returned he gave a clear palm-sized bottle to Raghatnu. After that, though she chewed him out for leaving the door open and letting all the Rahbatna in. he tried to explain that it was Sasha who they were following but Rahgatnu wasn’t hearing any of it. I felt kind of bad for him. Sasha, on the other hand, did not. She just sat there drinking with an evil smirk on her face.

“Just take the bottle and go up to the surface. I have no doubt that as soon as they see you people will start crowding you. There’s no chance of you sneaking by so I don’t think you could just disappear even if you wanted to. At least, not until you get to the Alsenian border.” Raghatnu explained before handing me the bottle.

“Thank you. Though why are you helping me with this? You could have just sent us on our way without telling us about the situation and we would have been taken to Alsenia with our fates sealed.” I asked.

“Consider it a thank you for opening up the depths of the labyrinth. Whether you intended to or not, you gave us back the culture which has nearly died out. Other than myself, the Elder, and Liolkasha there isn’t anyone who has studied what remains of our culture and tried passing it down. It’s why I am down here. To preserve the Empire’s nearly lost arts of brewing and distilling that have only been passed down by word of mouth since the collapse” Raghatnu replied.

“Well thank you.” I said with a bow of my head before standing up. Sasha stood up as well and the two of us headed for the door.

Walking back up through the third and second floor we were greeted by several people just as Raghatnu said. Many of them were people I barely knew. Yet they were saying how thankful they were that I survived. Some of them were curious about Sasha but that was to be expected. It wasn’t until Emperor Nekhasha showed up to see if it was true that I was alive that I became worried. After seeing that I was alive and that I had Sasha with me he took me to his chambers to talk.

“So I can assume that the lower levels are now accessible?” Nekhasha asked with a pained expression.

“Yes. I removed all of the runic traps from each level as we passed through.” I replied.

“Well, I have to give you my thanks for that. Now we can finally access the library and learn about our past.” Nekhasha said with a sigh of relief.

“We heard that you needed to hand us over to Alsenia to keep yourselves safe.” I said.

“Who told you that?” Nekhasha asked.

“Raghatnu told us. The Elder asked them to keep an eye out for us.” I explained.

“I see. Please don’t take offense to this. I don’t wish to hand you over to those bastards but if we don’t then we will be wiped out completely. As the Emperor, I have a duty to protect the people.” Nekhasha said as if he was truly sorry.

“Don’t worry, we understand. Though raghatnu gave us a way to make sure that no one died.” I replied.

“And what might that be?” Emperor Nekhasha asked with a somewhat worried look.

“Don’t worry about it. It would be best if you didn’t know. Though please don’t think that us being taken to our death is your fault. You are a good and caring Emperor. Had the Empire still been one of the most powerful nations on the continent then I would gladly swear my loyalty to you. Even so, I thank you for all that you’ve done for me.” I said with a thankful attitude that Nekhasha couldn’t help but feel grateful for.

“I understand and thank you for accepting this.” Nekhasha said as he got to his knees and bowed to both me and Sasha.

“You don’t need to bow. It was my own fault that this happened. “I said. Nekhasha reluctantly stood up from his position and patted me on the shoulder with a look of admiration.

He then led us both to the surface before having us go on Marcus’ boat and be taken into the swamp. Marcus barely said anything as we slowly passed through the swamp. As we passed through I couldn’t help but notice the spots where I lost the two men that were with me when I was first dropped off here. Marcus pushed by all that before coming to a spot close to the Alsenian border.

“We’ll walk from here.” Marcus said.

“So you were an Alsenian spy this whole time?’ I asked.

Yes, but I respect Emperor Nekhasha to the point that I would reject Alsenia and serve him if given the chance. However, the world isn’t that simple. For now, I will do as Alsenia asks in order to protect the remnants of the Empire.” Marcus said.

“I understand. You have no choice in the matter.” I replied.

“Thank you for understanding.” Marcus said as we stepped foot on the soft and wet mud of the swamp.

Marcus led us through the swamp until we came upon the same fence that I saw when I was first dropped off in this land. The guards standing near an oil lamp saw us and instantly led us along the fence until we came to the entrance. The same sergeant that sent me out into the swamp gave us a surprised look when he saw us walking up to the gate.

“What in the hell are you doing here? I thought I sent you out into the swamp to die a month ago!” the sergeant yelled as he approached us.

“I survived, went to the lowest levels of the Empires Labyrinth, and summoned a legendary hero.” I replied proudly.

“Are you telling me that this woman is a legendary hero?” the sergeant asked with a confused look.

“Well, yes. I wouldn’t piss her off if I were you.” I answered.

“... Alright then. Good work Marcus. We’ll be receiving some supplies for you soon so come back in a week and we’ll give it to you.” the Sergeant said after taking a good look at Sasha.

“Of course.” Marcus said before walking out of the gate and back to his boat.

The Sergeant moved us to a carriage that was much nicer than the one I was in before. Unlike the falling apart jail cell of a carriage I was brought her in, this one was like a noble’s carriage with padded seats and all. Sasha wasn’t the least bit interested in it but I absolutely fell in love with the oil-stained wood and stained glass windows. Even the seats were comfortable enough to sleep on. It was so much nicer than any carriage I would ever hope to ride in. though I was pretty sure that between Sasha and I’s packs we could buy this carriage thirty times over.