“I’m surprised Your Majesty wanted to join me on this one,” Manling Victor said, guiding his master to a valley near Murmurin. “I thought you considered ruling minion work.”

“The vile Furibon has returned, Friend Victor,” Vainqueur reminded his trusty sidekick. “My empire is no longer safe. We must remain vigilant, and prepare for the dark times ahead.”

There was still one of those conmanlings to deal with, but with Furibon’s escape, Vainqueur had decided to put his revenge on hold. The dark lich, whose imprisonment had only made crueler and bitter, would doubtlessly take revenge for his shameful defeat.

And the Emperor would be ready to defend his hoard once again. “While I trusted you to Do the Thing, I shall now take a personal interest in managing my Empire and build its defenses against invaders. I shall also order the minions build me an arena.”

“An arena?”

“A great, shining arena where my subjects can shower me with gold every week!”

The dragon and his lackey oversaw the valley, or rather, the crater created by the Iron Eagle when Vainqueur threw it there. The dwarves had taken over the area and turned it into an open scrapyard, scavenging the ship’s remains while building forges and workshops nearby. They had also created strange metallic constructs that the dragon couldn’t identify.

More surprising, his eccentric guests had started rebuilding the Eagle itself, pulling back its wings and polishing its cannons.

Marbré, the dwarf’s leader, waited for them next to it alongside two bodyguards. “Emperor Vainqueur, Grand Vizier Victor!” he saluted them, as they landed on his side. “Welcome! You come back to us triumphant!”

“Hi, Marbré,” Victor replied on both his and his master’s behalf.

“First, let me congratulate you on exporting the revolution across borders,” the dwarf said, Vainqueur puffing his chest. “Twice, you have killed an elf imperialist, and crushed a fairy-sponsored counter-revolution.”

“Yes, yes, you are too kind,” Vainqueur replied. “But now is not the time for praise. Now is the time for action! We are at war!”

“Have you given a look to the golem’s head?” Manling Victor asked, annoying his master by underestimating the threat of Furibon in favor of that tin can.

Manling Victor had insisted that they bring back the golem for the dwarves to oversee, but carrying it and the looting bag had proven too tiresome for Vainqueur. The dragon had settled on taking the head and some gears, before dumping the rest in the ocean.

“It is one of the most fascinating pieces of technology I have seen yet,” the dwarf replied. “I recognize the fomor Mag Mell’s handiwork, but the core mechanisms look similar to those of the Eagle. Our engineers have only barely begun studying that machine, and it will take us weeks to disassemble it.”

“Clearly, the fairies elaborated this entire operation to free the vile Furibon from his seal,” Vainqueur said. “We must prepare ourselves for his return, and this means strengthening our military.”

“Your Majesty, I believe these events are unconnected—”

“Manling Victor, you are my adviser, but I won all the wars,” Vainqueur cut him off. “Do you not see the great conspiracy trying to take me down? How it all fits?”

“Your enemies are the enemies of the Averagist Revolution, and you can count on us to support you.” Marbré nodded, the dwarf seeing the bigger picture. “We will lend you our strength and expertise.”

“Then show me.”

The dwarf ambassador waved a hand at the Iron Eagle. “As you can see, we have analyzed this elf weapon, and in two weeks, it will work again. It shall, without a doubt, become the backbone of your country’s military, and allow you to cross the ocean to export the revolution across the world.”

Vainqueur remembered something. “Minion, the vile Furibon, who is evil and must be destroyed again, said his phylactery was hidden on another continent. If sealing could not keep him imprisoned, we have to find his soul, and destroy him for good.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, but there are eight continents since Atlantis is still a thing on Outremonde. Do you really intend to explore all of them?”

“I will spare no effort to see the lich destroyed,” Vainqueur ordered with a firm nod. “I want this machine painted gold and staffed with minions. It shall no longer be called the Iron Eagle, but the Piggy Bank.”

His piggy bank.

“Your Majesty, I do not want to be the one to say it, but…” Manling Victor struggled to find his words, while the dwarves remained stone-faced. “The name is not… not very good.”

“I am a dragon,” Vainqueur replied. “It shall be known as the Piggy Bank.”

Friend Victor let out a strange sound. “Why not Flying Gold?”

“That sounds too imperialistic,” Marbré contested.

“See?” Vainqueur replied. “Manling Victor, leave the names to me and focus on our class progression. Doubtlessly, our enemy has learned his lesson, and the tricks we used to put him down shall not work again. I expect you to research further ways to increase our strength.”

Speaking of classes… while Marbré gave them a tour of the weapon forges, Vainqueur let his minion handle the discussions for a moment to check on his new features.

Congratulations! Due to meeting entry requirements through your [Crested] Perk and [Gladiator] levels, you can convert some of your levels into promoted Classes! Stats will not be affected, but Perks will.

You can combine [Gladiator] with [Emperor] into [Augustus], or [Gladiator] and [Witch Hunter] into [Godhand].

[Augustus]: a glamorous emperor ruling through fabulous charm, bread, and circus. Specialties: Unarmed, All Melee Weapons, and Leadership. Major growths in Strength, Skill, Charisma, and Luck. Perks affected: Noblesse Oblige.

[Godhand]: A melee-fighter empowering his fists with magical effects to take down mages. Specialties: Unarmed, Anti-magic, Status Ailments, and Self-Buffs. Major growths in Strength, Skill, Vitality, and Agility. Perks affected: Witch Burning, Hunter’s Resolve, Exorcism.