Lord of Annihilation

"Well then, let's end our meeting here. It's been a pleasure doing business with all of you."

"The pleasure is all ours, Miss Olivia. Thank you for giving our company the opportunity to work with you. We assure you that you will not be disappointed with our speeds and efficiency."

"Indeed, thank you for choosing our mercenary group. Although we, Dark Stars, are a newly established group, we shall do our utmost best to meet your demands."

"I shall look forward to it then," Olivia politely replied with a smile and shook hands with all the people at the meeting table.

The motley crowd of people belonging to the mercenary and shipping companies, with whom Olivia had signed a contract, rose from their seats, thanked the host, and quickly rushed out of the room to report to their respective companies.

The joy on their faces and the sharp glint of opportunism in their eyes were plain to see.

A newly ascended race was akin to a freshly arrived golden goose. Not only would they become new consumers and thereby expanding the economic field of the Universe, but it also means the arrival of new technology and unique products.

Depending on the race or species, this unique product would differ. 

Some races were blessed with superior strength, turning them into natural laborers. Others were blessed with great reserves of valued resources.

Mankind, of course, had the gift of intelligence and creativity. 

Their advances in science were matched by almost no other race, including the Mechanical ones. They offered a wide variety of products, most of which would fundamentally uplift the level of one's civilization. 

Having said all that, it became evident that anyone with a functioning mind would see the potential of such a race. And indeed, such was the case.

Olivia, with the assistance of Ka'lor'ah, spent the last few hours sorting to numerous shipping companies, trading hubs, mercenary organizations to set up a proper system of logistics. It was a lot of effort, but the benefits were even greater. This would also remove the need to set up their own channels of trade and instead relying on already prominent ones.

Having a proper system of logistics and a variety of established channels to trade would increase the proliferation of Mankind's goods, increasing their wealth and generating value. 

This would also help Mankind properly assimilate with the greater Universe, rising from a newcomer to a properly established race.

In fact, Olivia had already made plans to do this, before she had left on her training journey. What she had done now was simply an extension of that, fast-tracking the rate of development and widening the area of influence. 

All in all, the time required for Mankind to assimilate into the Universe and exercise some extent of influence over it had reduced from the previous dozens of years to simply three or four years. Of course, this was provided that supply was able to meet the demand. (But then again, automated factories are a thing.)

Why was it important in the big picture?

Well, the total 'Cause' of Mankind would grow much larger at a much faster pace. Also, the more Mankind's products (let's call it 'influence') affect and alters the lives of the other races, the 'Causality' of those races also gets added to Mankind's total.

This would have a direct effect on the Great Plan and would not only increase the chances of success but also reduce the risks and time required for execution. 

Right now, Lucius and Ka'lor'ah were akin to ants. If their secret was to be prematurely discovered by the Lords, they would be crushed with little to no hopes of resisting. 

However, if they manage to steal enough of the Universe's Cause and link it to their own, then even the Lords will not be able to act as wantonly as they want to and will have to exercise caution. 

The first phase of saving Mankind, the second phase of interfering with the Grand Alcana Empire's royal succession, were all aimed at achieving this exact goal. Of course, the sooner they manage to do it, the better.

Returning to the story…

After properly dealing with all of the representatives within the meeting room, Olivia let out a long sigh of relief and collapsed onto her chair. 

'That was so exhausting...' she thought to herself, relaxing her body. 

Closing her eyes, Olivia was in the process of sinking into the comfort of her chair, when she suddenly felt a hand touching her forehead. Opening her eyes, she found Ka'lor'ah looked at her.

"You did exceedingly well, Lil' Ollie! This teacher of yours is very proud of you," said Ka'lor'ah in praise.

A beautiful but tired smile broke out on Olivia's face, as she replied, "It was all thanks to my wonderful teacher's instructions."

Nodding her head, Ka'lor'ah appreciatively replied, "Good. That's the correct answer." She then raised her chin and narcissistically declared.

"I'm the bestest and most amazing teacher in existence! Hahaha!"

Olivia exaggeratedly clapped her hands in response. She then wore a sheepish smile on her face and slyly asked, "So…"

"So?" questioned Ka'lor'ah.

"When will I get my reward, Teacher?" asked Olivia.

"Reward? What do you want a reward for?"

"Well," a confident smile appeared on Olivia's face as she continued, "I did do something pretty awesome. Shouldn't I receive a reward?"

"Hohoho, get a load of this greedy, little vixen. Isn't that brand new sword of yours enough?" asked Ka'lor'ah, chuckling.

"That is that and this is this. My sword has nothing to do with what I just did. I believe I deserve a different reward for my efforts," Olivia 'righteously' declared.

Similarly, Ka'lor'ah 'solemnly' nodded her head, and answered, "There is some truth in what you've said. Very well, what do you want?"

"You're the best, Teacher!" Olivia shamelessly answered and then proceeded to voice her request.

Ka'lor'ah patiently heard her request, as a result of which, a strange expression appeared on her face. 

Looking curiously at Olivia, she said, "Honestly, I did not expect that. I thought it would have something related to Lucius like usual. This request…"

"Is it not possible?" Olivia immediately asked in worry.

"It's not a matter of possibility. It's just that…" A serious expression suddenly appeared on Ka'lor'ah's face as she continued. "Are you sure that this is what you want? I can assure you that it will not be easy."

Straightening her body, Olivia looked her teacher in the eye and unhesitatingly replied, "I'm sure."

"Well, whatever," Ka'lor'ah shrugged her shoulders and casually replied. "You'll be the one suffering, not me."

"Fine, I'll help you with this request. But let me warn you once again, it will not be easy."

A brilliant smile appeared on Olivia's face, as she extended her hands to hug the small-bodied, Faerie-like creature.

"You're the best, Teacher!" she said while hugging Ka'lor'ah close to her chest.

"Oi, oi, oi! Let me go! You're making it hard for me to breathe! Unhand me this instant!"

Of course, her cries fell on deaf ears as Olivia did not let her go so soon.

----------

"Are you finished?" 

Keeping his eyes closed, Lucius asked Olivia while keeping his eyes closed. He was currently city on a chair outside of the meeting room, waiting for the people on the inside to finish.

Lucius neither had the interest nor the patience to sit in and listen to an economic discussion. As such, after confirming that none of the representatives were a threat, he simply waited outside the room.

"Yep!" Olivia cheerfully replied. Her mood seemed fantastic.

"Was the matter resolved to your satisfaction?" continued Lucius.

"Uh-huh, it went way better than my initial expectation. Turns out, these companies would literally kill for the chance at working together with a newly ascended race. Some of their offers were so good that I had trouble believing my eyes," explained Olivia.

"There is often more to one than what meets the eye," warned Lucius.

Nodding her head, Olivia replied, "I know. That's why I turned down those ridiculously good offers and went with more proper ones. There shouldn't be much to worry, since the companies I signed the contracts with, will take care of those troublemakers."

"Did you inform your people in Mankind?"

"Just finished doing so," Olivia pointed at the watch on her wrist and continued. "They were a bit shocked at the sudden proposal, but greatly welcomed it. I also sent over some maps, contacts, and other basic information. Rest assured, I have ensured that no problems will occur in the near future."

Lucius simply nodded his head at her reply. 

"Oh, and also," Olivia suddenly lowered her voice and said, "I sent over some of my subordinates to make some preparations at the Grand Alcana Empire. That way, we will have somewhat have a base to stand on when we get there in two years."

She then looked at Lucius with a guilty expression and continued, "I hope I haven't overstepped my boundaries." She then lowered her head.

Hearing her declaration, Lucius was initially shocked. He then looked towards Ka'lor'ah, who was sitting on Olivia's shoulder. 

Ka'lor'ah, understanding his questions even before he asked them, shook her head and mentally replied, 'Before you ask, I didn't get her to do it. She did the preparations on her own, using her own resources.'

'Setting up a proper base of operations right now will go a long way when we get eventually get there. If we are to wait until we get there, entering the bigger scene will be very difficult, especially given the chaos during that time.'

'You should, in fact, praise her for taking initiative.'

Getting up from his seat, Lucius neared Olivia and raised his hand. He then brought it near her head, and awkwardly patted it.

"You've done well," Lucius stiffly said, before turning around and walking away.

Olivia, who was the recipient of the sudden pat, immediately raised her head and looked at Lucius' retreating figure with shock. A red blush completely covered her face, ears, and neck.

'C-come on. Sudden attacks like that are unfair!' Olivia internally complained, feeling the thumpings of her racing heart.