Gehrman finished talking to them about the clash he had with the King of Swords. It was fun seeing their reactions, but also quite sobering.
Ki Song never talked about Anvil unless she was disparaging his name. She had mentioned he was formidable, but the actual way he managed it was frightening.
He was far more adaptable than he first seemed. The swords were each incredibly deadly in their own right, and their magnitude was frightening.
Though Gehrman had destroyed over ten thousand of his swords that day, Ki Song suspected he had even more in reserve that he did not use, and he would have smithed even more over the past 2 years.
His master of Runic Sorcery was truly what was frightening. It was something he honed in the 4th Nightmare, according to Ki Song. He always had an affinity, but now he seemed to be a genuine master of the old practice, not inferior to the practitioners of the Dream Realm who first inherited the Sorcery from the Daemon of Hope.
Worse was that Ki Song did not have mastery in a Sorcery. They knew of two, Runic and Shaping.
Shaping was something that Gehrman was unfamiliar with, and it was indeed incredibly rare. It involved invoking the True Names of concepts. It was much harder than it seemed at first glance, as remembering those names was impossible for practically everyone. Speaking it was even harder, as it put a great burden on the one who used the words.
As far as they knew, Shaping was something that no one from the War Realm had managed to master. It was only because some encountered such Sorcerers in their Nightmares that it was known about.
Ki Song also mentioned a third type that even those ancients did not understand. It was rumored that the people who worshiped the Daemon of Fate were able to perform their own Sorcery, but how it worked was unknown.
Dimly, Gehrman noted that this was what Sunny was able to do. His creation and augmentation of Memories was due to what he called "Weaving", and even when looking in the echoes of dimensions, keeping track of the patterns and technique of the Sorcery was nigh impossible.
Gehrman didn't feel bad about not mentioning this, as it would be of no use to Ki Song.
She did not have the affinity for any of the Sorceries.
So, there was only one option: she had to expand her Domain into something that could overpower Anvil handedly.
Then, they all received a bit of a lesson on how Domains worked.
There was a uniqueness to all of them, a Supreme ability allowed the Sovereign to manifest themselves within the Domain physically.
It was confusing since, at its core, Domains were a manifestation of the Sovereign. However, it was an invisible thing, only the Supreme Ability allowed for tangible properties to be included.
In some rare cases, that ability was not an additional feature of the Domain, but the sole function of expanding it.
The Dreamspawn had a Domain like this. However she neglected to speak anything more on the matter.
In her case, the gathering of more and more corpses was just something to fortify personal strength, not her Domain. It was the physical consequence of her Aspect, not her Domain.
This was all well and good, but for Ki Song to defeat Anvil in a one on one fight, she would need a greater Domain far more than greater corpses.
"Citadels and Saints. Both Vale and I had a tacit agreement to limit the number of Saints born in order to mitigate the number of Category 3 Gates, but that is all out the window. Any notable Vassals or heirs will be given all the resources necessary to Transcend. Meanwhile, we need to find more Citadels to conquer."
Seishan nodded.
"Indeed, the children of our Vassals have almost all come of age. With their Legacy Relics and training from their parents who already underwent the trial, they all have a good shot at passing the 3rd Nightmare. Though it is less consequential, most of the Blood Sisters have also finished preparations to take on the 2nd Nightmare. Having more Masters will be beneficial in the larger war."
Silent Stalker, who had been (fittingly) totally quiet throughout the entire meeting, suddenly spoke.
"It will be good for fighting Valor forces, but only we have the ability to conquer Citadels at this point. Anything that was easy to hold onto or gain has already been taken. At this point, the best way to drastically fortify mothers' domains is by taking other Citadels."
Revel suddenly sighed and took a seat on the floor.
It was a rather uncouth display, but everyone here knew that the first sister was actually a rather brash and lazy person. So this display wasn't completely strange, even if it was during a war council.
With her legs crossed, a dark look came over her face.
"It comes back to the House of Night. The Night Garden alone would be a massive boost in power. It is a Great Citadel, after all. So it's only natural that having it under your Domain would offer a massive edge. It would also allow us to take the other Citadels in the Storm Sea."
"Would that be enough to put you in a comfortable spot, mother?" Seishan asked.
Ki Song spent a moment considering it. She was not, and in fact had not this whole time, used her power to manipulate her corpse to show any sort of emotion. It was a bit eerie.
It was also a bit concerning for Gehrman.
"Perhpas, but more would be better. Naturally, the both of us will gain new Citadels during the war. We will attempt to steal each other's Citadels and also take the lands in the bones of God Grave. That is the land directly between us, and it is where we will fight."
Gehrman frowned, the nature of the war was of no surprise. Instead it was the fact that even all the Citadels of the Storm Sea and the Night Garden itself was not enough.
He already had an idea on where Ki Song could get more Citadels. However, what she said had another implication.
"Then making the House of Night submit is a must," Gehrman said.
For some reason, the sisters gave each other some awkward glances, worrying Gehrman even further.
"Having them swear to me is most ideal," Ki Song said. "But as you say, it is a 'must'. So if they do not yield, we will take what we need by force."
Gehrman's brows furrowed.
"The way you talk about that…do you already have a plan in place? Spreading our forces to take on another Great Clan would be incredibly risky. It would be a prime opportunity to attack."
"Which is exactly why we won't be splitting our forces. We will just be sending Mordret."
Gehrman blinked.
Right, he is a Saint now. Still, to take on all of the House of Night…Ki Song wouldn't gamble with something like this. She is actually confident that he can do it.
It was a good idea honestly. He could wear his victims and act as if all was well after he killed them. He would spread like a plague, and nobody would be any the wiser.
Still…
"You want to kill all those Saints? Those are the main reasons why sea travel is even possible in the Waking World?" Gehrman asked with trepidation.
"If it means victory, absolutely." Ki Song's eyes, or rather the corpse's eyes, looked glassy. "I will give them the opportunity to make the right choice. That is the only courtesy I can afford to extend."
Gehrman frowned.
"You're forgetting. You don't have to fight Anvil alone. As you are at the moment, if we fought together we could kill him. I would need to make some personal preparations first, but I'm very confident we can–"
"I will be the one killing Vale. And I will not have you interfere," Ki Song cut him off.
Gehrman's mouth fell open slightly.
"Huh!? What the hell would you do that for? This isn't some "honor" thing is it? Because if it is, I'll be pissed as hell."
For the first time, Ki Song used her Aspect to change the face of the corpse she wore. Her eyes hardened and instantly became crystal clear.
"We are fighting for humanity itself. If the victor is not handedly decided, if I am the queen due to help, and not my own merit, then it will mean nothing. A Domain is based on the power of the people, this is true. However it is also affected by loyalty. If humanity feels that I am an unfit Queen, their allegiance will not be true, and thus the united power that we are fighting this war for will be for naught."
Gehrman's lips pressed firmly together.
He wanted to broach the subject further. That felt dumb as hell. There was logic behind it, but in order to do that, she was willing to slaughter the Great Clan of Night.
This is…not ideal.
Gehrman crossed his arms.
"I would like to come up with an alternative plan of action. One that doesn't require taking out some of humanity's best champions. Give me 2 months. I'll reform my Titan core, and by then I'll have something for you."
The tension in the room was palpable.
Though the sisters of Song could squabble, they had never once questioned their mother. For Ki Song, it was the first time in decades that anyone had pushed back on her plans.
Gehrman couldn't make out how it made her feel, or if she felt anything at all regarding his impudence.
So they waited in unbearable anxiety for a few seconds.
Then, the Queen of Ravenheart spoke.
"I will allow it since your plan to strengthen Eunbin is sound. Gather your strength, but do not expect to sway me."
Disturbingly, something very unnatural happened then.
A creeping chill went down Gehrman's spine as he felt something.
His blood was moving unnaturally.
And he wasn't the one controlling it.
His face paled a little, and he fixed a hard gaze on Ki Song. She met his eyes with the same intensity.
A long, long time ago, he had met Saint Jest as a Master. That was back when Clan Valor had taken it into their mind to take out Gehrman when he was building up the Workshop.
The old Saint had told him something rather sinister.
Gehrman couldn't remember the exact words, but his warning had stayed dormant in his mind.
Ki Song was a monster. In pledging allegiance to her, in receiving her blood, she gained the ability to puppeteer him at her discretion.
Of course, Gehrman had several defenses against this that he did not have active due to being (in what he thought) was a safe space.
Still, this was the heart of her Domain. If she really tried, would he even be able to resist being pulled around like a puppet?
…Probably. Maybe.
Gehrman nodded to her, and wordlessly left the room.
…
"Gehrman," Seishan called out.
He slowed down, turning to her. It took him a moment to realize he was still a bit on edge after that meeting. However, he softened after seeing her face.
There was a complex mix of concern and confusion there.
"Sorry, I got a bit carried away there. I'm a bit stressed is all," he apologized.
Seishan took up stride next to him.
"We all are, no one blames you. My mother…she isn't trying to be…she is feeling it worse than all of us. Don't blame her."
Gehrman was a bit surprised. He always expected Seishan to take the side of her beloved mother. Yet he didn't think that she would apologize on her behalf. After all, an apology was also an admittance of wrongdoing. Which meant that Seishan recognized her mothers deteriorating state.
This was good, but also a bit heartbreaking. The situation must have been exceedingly painful for her.
"I don't," Gehrman said. He wasn't sure if that was a lie.
Seishan nodded all the same. Then, her posture changed into one more casual.
"So, are you running off to do something again?"
Gehrman felt his heart skip a beat as her eyes pierced him. There was something unsaid there, but despite wavering, he did have something to do.
"I need to talk to Mordret, and I also need to go to the New Workshop. I may not be able to help them directly, but talking with them as an envoy of Song would be fine."
Gehrman smiled.
"This is an opportunity for everyone to grow, after all."