The Baddest Villainess Is Back - Chapter 73
“What do you think, Hatan?”
“Your thoughts are my thoughts.”
“I know that. I was asking for the tribal chief’s opinion.”
Late at night, the woman, the Khan, seated at a table inside a large tent, looked at her first husband and the tribal chief.
“It didn’t seem like she was lying.”
“Exactly.”
The Khan leaned on her elbow and put a pipe in her mouth, which Hatan naturally lit.
“She’s bolder than the imperial folks, and she speaks well, too.”
“Our second child talked about her all day. The first one seems to like her too.”
Hatan’s humorous remark made the Khan chuckle lightly and tousle the hair of the man who was twice her size.
“Bold, but dangerous.”
Hatan didn’t disagree.
Indeed, Roxelyn Bellion had been bold today. They couldn’t be certain if what she said was correct, but neither could they outright say it was wrong.
“And yet, she stood so proudly before me.”
She had collapsed not long after leaving the tent, surprising everyone.
It was altitude sickness, common among foreigners coming to Kaluta.
If she had been afflicted with the altitude sickness, she must have felt unwell since last night or this morning, yet she didn’t show any signs of it and boldly faced them, which was admirable.
“Surviving with such a body is a miracle.”
The Khan recalled the report received from Kaluta’s physicians. Even a child in Kaluta would be stronger than her.
“The issue then is whether to open our borders.”
The Khan murmured softly.
“Send the ‘Heavenly Bird.'”
Hatan’s eyes widened slightly.
The Heavenly Bird, named for its ability to travel a thousand miles overnight, lived only in the jungles of Kaluta and was only used in truly urgent summons.
“Tell everyone to come here within three days. It’s been a long time since we held a tribal meeting.”
For the first time, the Khan called for a tribal meeting for an envoy from a foreign land.
“Yes, my Khan.”
Suppressing his surprise, Hatan gently kissed the Khan’s cheek before turning to leave the tent.
The Khan laughed softly at her husband’s endearing behavior.
“Come back after you finish tonight. I’ll be sweet to you for a change.”
“Yes.”
Hatan obediently responded and left the tent, reflecting on the day’s events.
***
“Do you wish to die now? How dare you negotiate with me using my child as leverage?”
The Khan, quickly understanding what Roxelyn was implying, was furious and made no attempt to hide her anger.
Roxelyn grabbed Arma’s wrist as he reached for his sword. Arma flinched, then glanced down.
“…Roxelyn.”
“It’s okay, Your Highness.”
At Roxelyn’s reassurance, Arma let go of his sword handle. Roxelyn then released Arma’s wrist. Arma looked at his heated wrist before returning his gaze to Roxelyn.
‘My head hurts.’
Despite thinking this, Roxelyn calmly faced the Khan without avoiding her gaze.
The Khan’s anger was something even the Kaluta tribe feared.
The murderous gaze was intimidating, and the oppressive and threatening aura was too much for an ordinary person to bear.
“I wasn’t threatening, I was stating a fact.”
“What?”
“Other countries, including the Empire, will continue to advance scientifically. They will keep developing weapons, and someday, weapons far surpassing human strength will be created.”
“That’s nonsense…!”
“I know that the Kaluta are strong. There aren’t many who can beat a Kalutan in hand-to-hand combat.”
Roxelyn cut off the Khan’s speech to state her point.
“But shutting yourself off is not the answer.”
“…”
“Hasn’t history proven this?”
The Khan glared at Roxelyn but said nothing.
“The vast Ulgrang Prairies were once ruled by the ‘Ul Empire,’ which practiced isolationism, but it was defeated in a war centuries ago, and the prairies were fragmented and taken away.”
“…”
“And now, it has become a small country that barely maintains its existence by relying on alliances with other countries, at the edge of the prairies.”
Roxelyn smiled at the Khan.
“Many pointed fingers at the Ul Empire, calling them arrogant…”
The Khan’s lips twitched at Roxelyn’s trailing voice.
“History may not always be right, but those who forget history don’t seem to survive long.”