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Claude couldn't help but chuckle when he read the latest update on the Empire.
They trusted Lysithea's false information about the Alliance's internal situation. Perhaps not fully, knowing her family's history with them, but enough. Gods, if this was how stupid they were after "cleaning up," he hated to think of how many times they must have fucked up from believing obvious lies over the past thousand years.
"Stop grinning like that, Claude," came a chiding voice. "You're pissing me off."
He looked up from the document and raised an eyebrow.
"Aw, come on, am I not allowed to be pleased about how well our little gambit is progressing?"
"Getting smug prematurely is vulture behavior."
Ouch. Not that the term "vulture" hit personally for him like half-breed or mongrel or coward did, but Lysithea calling someone Adrestian was a strong insult in her book.
"No worries," Claude said, raising both palms in front of him. "I'm not about to get complacent. What do you think of poisoning Airmid next? You know, to destroy crops at Gronder."
A frown that bordered on a snarl.
"And destroy southern Leicester's harvests, too? However much damage this does to them, it'll be worse for us."
"No, we'll be fine," he replied. "We can filter our water supply. It's easy if you know what you're dealing with."
"They'll get suspicious if we both use the same water source but only one side has problems," Lysithea pointed out.
"We can have crop failures just along the very southern borders, then. The grain imports from Almyra should be able to make up for that much."
Yet another skeptical look.
"I assume you're getting help from the same prince you mentioned last time," she stated.
"Yep. Poor guy's desperate enough for the throne to seek allies in Fódlan."
It wasn't a lie.
Between the irritation, Lysithea's eyes betrayed a hint of deeper worries.
"I'd at least like to know what he'll demand from us in return for the help."
Just your hand in marriage, Claude thought.
"I don't think he has anything solid in mind yet," he replied. "Which means there's room for persuasion."
That didn't seem to satisfy her.
"This is a matter of survival for Ordelia," Lysithea hissed, a threat. "If it proves more advantageous to support the Empire and sabotage you instead, I will."
"But you won't."
Because you love me.
Her silence said enough.