the era of calamities-Chapter 88: the duchy of Araceae

Threads of spider silk, each as thick as tree trunks, braided together in a complicated tangle to form a gigantic sphere that, from a distance, could be mistaken for a floating island.

This "thing" was none other than the duchy of "Araceae," which had just split away from the Kingdom of the Pests.

Inside that globe, tens of thousands of arachnid-like creatures (spiders, scorpions, mites...) busied themselves spinning webs to mark out their territories within that vast structure.

Each of those creatures obeyed a social hierarchy: the workers were submissive and grouped under the command of a baron; different baronies answered to a count; the counties remained beneath a marquisate and, at the top of the duchy’s ladder, sat the duchess

" Exa d’Aranae " .

The duchess lodged at the very heart of the duchy, for every strand that made up that immense web converged on her.

Her appearance was not, in itself, different from that of the other arachnids present: eight legs, a small head, and a body that looked like two pale pink spheres joined together.

None of the calamities present were in their true forms; to a human they would have appeared as two peas in a pod, aside from minor differences in size and color.

Around the duchess three other calamities stood: two bowed deeply and another stared her straight in the eye, as if his rank did not permit him to bow.

"I grant you the floor."

The duchess’s voice sounded, and the two marquises who had bowed rose and spoke in turn.

"My lord, we are at the border of the human continent."

"Say the word and we will give you these lands."

The duchess’s gaze rested for a moment on the two marquises, then turned to the sole calamity who refused to bow.

"Son, what do you have to say?" asked the duchess.

The third calamity, who revealed himself to be her son, remained calm a moment before speaking.

"We are here to prove our glory. It is time our faction be first in line for succession. For that, one victory is not enough: lands would not sate my ravenous appetite."

His voice carried a solemn note, as if each word were a sentence , an arrogance reserved for those who have the power to impose their will on any being.

The two marquises quivered with excitement at the speech.

"Your Highness, you are worthy of the throne."

"Your Highness, you will lead us to the top of the world."

They showered the prince with pledges of allegiance until the duchess interrupted them.

"Enough."

They fell silent at once and she continued.

"My son, your voracity is boundless, as befits a king. Yet you still lack prudence. If our kingdom has, until now, not eradicated humans, it is for a reason."

The prince did not seem to agree; he retorted in a scornful tone.

"Mother, you have far too much regard for those damned humans. You and your generation put them on a pedestal, and it sickens me."

The duchess did not take his tone as disrespect; her twelve eyes probed her son as she questioned him.

"What do you know of humans?"

Her son did not look away.

"Nothing. I have never taken interest in those who are supposed to crawl under my feet.

What I know of them is this: if a lowly count could, on his own, go into the human continent, humiliate them, steal their treasures and, in doing so, rise to the rank of marquis, then what could I of a lineage as old as time not accomplish?

Mother, I do not need your counsel. As royalty, my wisdom and authority are things beyond your reach."

Exa did not appear offended by her son’s words; she recognized them and was proud.

However, she had lived longer, seen more, and even if humans were unfamiliar to her, she would not allow herself to underestimate them.

"Your virtues are admirable, my son. We will therefore send a count: he will take care of those humans, humiliate them, and open to us the gates of victory."

The two marquises looked shaken; they did not understand where the duchess was heading.

("Leaving the honor to a mere count would be unthinkable " ) they both thought, without daring to say it to Exa.

The prince, meanwhile, did not hide his feelings.

"I will go. I will make a feast of them, and I will rise as no one else has in our history."

The duchess did not want her son to be the one to make the first move, for what she sought by sending a count first was to probe the humans before she and their forces set foot on that continent themselves.

Nevertheless, so as not to bruise her son’s will, she answered diplomatically.

"A lowly count was able, on his own, to enter the human continent, humiliate them, seize their treasures and, in the process, rise to the rank of marquis.

These deeds, now told across the kingdom, cite only one example."

The duchess did not finish the sentence, but the prince’s face hardened as he spoke the name he cursed.

"Marquis Mephisto."

His mother offered a discreet smile, from an arachnid’s point of view.

"If Count Mephisto, a count of humble origins whose lineage goes back only a few generations, could accomplish such exploits, how much more will one of our counts do? We will send a count and he will do more; his deeds will be told throughout the realm, and Marquis Mephisto will no longer haunt your nights."

The prince, though understanding, seemed a little annoyed.

"Why not me? I would do it ten, no a hundred times over."

For a moment his voice lost that natural arrogance and slid toward the caprices of a child. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

"Despite your rank, you remain a prince; it is normal that this task not be a feat for you. Prepare yourself: your path is already traced. You will be king, you will annihilate every human in this world and raise the Kingdom of the Pests above the others such is written in the future."

The prince returned to his natural arrogance and yielded.

"Very well, do as you say."

Later, a count was chosen to be the first to begin the invasion, with the reward besides being elevated to marquis of the lands he would conquer.

---

Thus, at dawn, after several days of waiting, the first calamities made themselves visible.

Ronel, on watch at that hour, was the first to see them through binoculars and warned everyone over walkie-talkie using an encrypted message.

Sirius had suggested this, remembering the case of Mephisto, and had supposed that if a calamity were able to intercept radio waves and listen to their conversation, it would still be incapable of understanding the meaning. For, although the phones used by Ronel and Sirius were secure, the candidates’ walkie-talkies were not, and Sirius had also thought that using a language rather... ambiguous would have the effect of distracting the candidates’ minds and maybe even motivating them.

"My underwear is soaked, you kept me waiting a long time; it’s time you took responsibility."

Sirius, at the other end of the line, understood immediately that the calamities were closing in.

"Okay, I’m putting on the condom, and here we go."