"Yes elder."

"Certainly it is a strange one."

After moving outside for the first time in well over a hundred years, the elders completely golden eyes lit up as she sensed mana in all mana in the environment, but when looking at the outsider she saw no mana that was the lifeblood of all living things she knew of. Looking at the outsider without the use of mana she saw a large demonkin man with a single eye and arm, sitting in the square middle of the open plaza of her village meditating in some strange manner while he attracted the attention of the young people of her home. Walking up to him she felt the outsider becoming more aware of her as he seemingly examined every detail of her being.

"Outsider."

Addressing the outsider with a single word, he didn't even open his eye as he answered back.

"Strange mana filled creature."

"Dax! You can't speak that way to an elder!"

"Ka ka ka! It's fine it's fine. Leave us."

"Bu-"

"Did they start training border guards to be deaf after I left the capital?"

Posing a rhetorical question as she effortlessly seized control of every speck of mana in the small plaza, the elder looked at Eva with cold eyes.

"N-no they don't, excuse me."

Leaving with those words, Eva hurriedly retreated out of the elders sphere of influence so she could breathe once more.

"Now that the fly is gone we can talk."

Sitting down half a meter from Dax the elder put on a smile as she looked at the outsider with courriorsity.

"I didn't tell you to sit, I'm not done meditating."

"What kind of creature does not carry mana in its body and still knows the proper way to center oneself like a first cla.s.s mana user?"

"I have no idea but will you leave me alone if I try and tell you?"

Getting slightly annoyed that someone continuously tried to start a conversation with him as he tried to meditate in peace Dax opened his eye and looked at the so called elder with a hint of irritation on his face. The elder was a bit shorter than the average elven woman, and Dax estimated her standing height to be about 1,5 meters, with deeply red hair that was at least twice that length put up in a lazy manner. Her large eyes were completely golden in colour, with no way of differentiating between her iris' and the rest of her eyes. A small and fine nose was situated between her golden eyes and above a mouth that formed a mysterious smile with thin lips. Her skin was no indication of her age, as her almost unhealthy pale skin was completely without any damage or other signs of aging, and she could be mistaken for a 30 year old woman easily. In response to Dax's sarcastic remark her longer than average thin ears twitched slightly before she put on a bewitching smile and started laughing.

"Ka ka ka! It is you, outsider. I am merely impressed by your technique, nothing else.. But on to the main questions: Who are you and why are you here?"

Feeling the temperature drop about 10 degrees when the elder asked that question, Dax felt several spells had been prepared to reap his life if he answered in an unsatisfactory manner.

"My name is Dax, I am a qiton. And I'm here to prevent more antimatter containment cells from blowing up."

Under the attentive gaze of the elder Dax told the honest truth, as he didn't have any reason to lie at that point in time.

"... You don't seem to be lying."

"That's because I'm not."

"... Interesting. I will allow you to stay here.. But tell me one more thing."

"What?"

"Do you 'qitons' care for drinking?"

With a large smile like a child that just found a new friend the elder asked a question Dax hadn't expected, that he also answered truthfully with a smile on his face.

"Like you wouldn't believe."

"Then follow me~"

With a childish smile the elder skipped along as she hummed happily, making Dax display a troubled face.

"She knows I'm a prisoner, right?"

Following after the elder Dax made it about a meter before he was blocked by one of the elven soldiers that had originally captured him.

"What the h.e.l.l do you think you're doing?"

"Following the elder for a drink?"

"Like h.e.l.l you are, sit the f.u.c.k down outsider."

Seeing Dax being stopped the elder lost her warm smile as she addressed the soldier.

"It's fine."

"But elder-"

"Are you daft? I said it is fine."

"O-okay."

Feeling the air tighten around his neck like a garrote the elven soldier swallowed hard as the colour drained from his face. Making their way to the elders house without no more interruptions Dax was lead into a room covered with blankets and pillows where the elder laid down in one of the beds after she had fetched two crystal gla.s.ses and a bottle of some sort of golden high proof alcohol.

"Now. What do you look for in alcohol outsider?"

"Strong, deep and layered flavor."

"And smoke or any other flavor?"

"If I wanted to taste smoke I would smoke, otherwise I am okay with whatever."

"I see.. Then not this one."

Tossing the bottle away she was holding like discarding some trash Dax expected the bottle to shatter and stain the floor, but unexpectedly it started floating harmlessly in the air before it was placed on a shelf and another clear gla.s.s bottle with an amber gold liquid floated over to the elders hand.

"Let's start with this one and she were the night takes us, now please tell me about yourself outsider."

As the sun slowly set Eva returned to the village carrying a deer stag on her back. After talking with the villagers she had learned some of her men had offended the elder, so Eva brought it upon herself to at least try and appease the elder. Leaving the kill to some of the villagers Eva entered the elders home and was immediately struck with the smell of strong alcohol as she picked up faint sounds of laughter.

"- So then I told my commander that I could either kill him or the hostiles to help with my boredom and after that I never had problems with deployment times."

"Ka ka ka! That is indeed a way to do it! Still I was sure you just killed him to take his place, but that is also a way to solve the issue!"

Walking over dozens of empty gla.s.s bottles that had been dumped in the hallway Eva finally made her way to the elders room where her and Dax laid on different sides of the largest main bed and drank liquor as multiple full bottles floated around in the air around them. Quickly finding a somewhat empty plot and buried her face into the carpet before speaking up.

"Elder."

"What?"

"I have brought food to the village to help appease your anger."

"Is that so? Thank you child, you may leave."

"Understood."

Watching Eva leave with her figurative tail between her legs, the elders smile dimmed.

"I understand why you left the capital."

"Being treated as a living G.o.d anywhere I go is troublesome. That is why I stay all the way out here."

"Yeah I can imagine that…"

Sipping at his gla.s.s of hard liquor Dax put on a knowing expression as he remembered all the times he had been treated specially because of his status as commander of the 125th.

"Are you daft? How could you know anything about elven society outsider?"

"Then please enlighten the ignorant and useless me, master."

Mimicking the other elvers respect for her in a slightly playful manner Dax bowed down before the elder in an extremely graceful manner without spilling a drop of his filled gla.s.s.

"My my~ What can this clueless disciple offer in compensation for this priceless knowledge?"

Playing along with Dax's act the elder acted like a n.o.ble as she covered her mouth with her free hand and spoke in a haughty manner as she wiggled her foot in front of Dax's face.

"Then how about this kind of compensation my lady?"

Seeing a meal presented before him, the drunk Dax with no ICI a.s.sistance sized the moment, downed his drink and grabbed the elders foot.

"W-w-w-what are you doing!?"

"Partaking in the meal offered in front of me as compensation for my masters graceful teaching?"

Still not braking the play Dax pulled the blus.h.i.+ng elder gently towards him by the leg as he wore a large smile.

"Okay okay! I yield you brute, I'll tell you if you tell me about your society!"

klicking his tunge silently Dax let go of the elders foot as he fetched another bottle floating around them in the air before removing the cap, smelling the contents and pouring himself a gla.s.s and waited for the elder to start.

"..."

"..."

"I'm listening."

"Sure you are brute, but you're the one sharing first."

"Bu-"

"As punishment for your earlier yest."

"I can a.s.sure you that it wasn't a yest, but never mind that.. The Galactic Empire's power is separated into 3 parts, there is the legislative or 'ruling' power that makes draws up bills and regulations while deciding how the Empire taxes are redistributed, then there is the executive or 'acting' power that decides how to implement regulations and enforces the Empires decisions and finally the judicial power that makes sure laws are followed and punishes personal and corporate non compliance."

"That sounds complicated.."

Being introduced to the modern democratic 3 part power structure, the tipsy elder was only confused at the needless complexity.

"Oh it gets even more so trust me. The legislative power is comprised of 3 parts, one is directly chosen by the Empires citizens to represent their interests, one is a board of subject experts that are voted in in part by the first and in part by field experts, and the last part is AANRI or artificial administrative national regulatory intelligence that contains the sum of all Empire knowledge and is constantly fed data on the realm collected by a self chosen board of administers."

Barely able to keep up the elder sat up straight and put down her gla.s.s as she listened attentively along to Dax's lecture.

"AANRI? Is that like a golem or something? Why is that one needed?"

"How large are the elven territories?"

"About a 7th of this continent with about a million and a half elvers, why?"

"The Galactic Empire spans about a local supercl.u.s.ter and is home to about half a million different intelligent races with a bit over a few trillion souls in total. Even the elected senate contains 100.003 seats so AANRI is necessary to regulate activity. The system is also great because all 3 can propose legislation and just need to have approval from either the expert council or the senate, and vise versa."

"a few trillion souls.."

Stunned briefly by the overwhelmingly large number the elder took a few seconds to come to terms with it, or she would have if Dax hadn't poked her on the nose.

"Your turn~"

"Hya! Okay, you brute."

Continuing their talks and drinking long into the night Dax and the elder both felt they had finally found themselves a reliable drinking partner as the sun slowly started rising.