Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 311: Fox in Tiger Skin

CH311 Fox in Tiger Skin

***

The next day, after the negotiation delegation had settled in, Alex met with them to discuss their strategy for the upcoming talks.

”As per the Earl’s instructions, Young Lord Alex, you’ll be responsible for handling the negotiations with the Kellerman family,” said Head Scribe Esmond Fury as soon as the meeting began. ”Our role will be purely supportive. You can discuss your ideas with me beforehand, and I’ll give my suggestions.

”Once the talks conclude, my team and I will draft and finalise the necessary documents with our counterparts from the Kellerman side so that you and Earl Kellerman can sign and make the agreement binding.”

Earl Drake had made it clear that he wanted Alex to handle this himself. Other than offering advice beforehand, Esmond and his team were ordered to stand down and only observe. The document work afterward was the primary reason the scribes had been included at all.

Alex didn’t object; his father had already impressed the same instructions upon him before departing the Enclave.

”So then, Young Master Alex,” Esmond asked, leaning back slightly. ”What’s your goal for these talks?”

”At the bare minimum,” Alex began calmly, ”our goal is to secure the cession of the Konradi Barony to us, as well as a twenty-year mining right to all mines within their greater northwestern county. The first is reparations for the war; the second is the ransom for their heir, Josiah Kellerman.”

As expected, his declaration drew sharp looks of shock from the scribes—everyone except Esmond, whose seniority and composure kept his face unreadable.

But Alex wasn’t done.

”It would be best if we could get them to cede the entire county,” he added casually. ”Another option would be to lease the county to us for twenty years.”

The scribes stared at him, varying shades of disbelief flickering in their eyes. The genial-looking young master—so different from the usual Fury hotheads—might actually have the most voracious appetite of them all!

He truly intended to swallow an entire county through a negotiation table—something many nobles spent their entire lives fighting for.

There was no way Earl Kellerman would agree to that... right?

All eyes turned to Esmond, who still hadn’t spoken. The middle-aged man with the sharp goatee was deep in thought, his fingers stroking his beard as he considered Alex’s words.

Finally, Esmond spoke. ”It won’t be easy,” he said slowly. ”If the Family Head were the one negotiating, it might be possible—his Legendary presence alone could intimidate anyone into compliance. But with you leading the talks... they won’t hold you in high enough regard to take such a proposal seriously.”

The scribes’ faces twitched at their leader’s blunt words to the family’s most popular young master. They immediately turned to Alex, anxious that he might take offence.

However, Alex didn’t mind in the slightest. Esmond was right, after all.

Instead of anger, Alex smiled — to the scribes’ collective surprise and relief.

”Uncle Esmond,” he said calmly, ”have you ever heard the story of the tiger and the fox?”

Esmond blinked, caught off guard. ”The tiger and the fox?”

Alex nodded. ”One day, a tiger caught a fox and was about to eat it. To save himself, the clever fox said, ’Don’t you dare! I’ve been ordained by the Heavens as the king of all beasts. If you eat me, you’ll be defying Heaven’s Will.’

”The tiger scoffed and demanded proof. So the fox proposed a test: ’Follow me, and you’ll see how the other animals fear me.’

”The tiger agreed. The fox then walked proudly through the forest, the tiger trailing close behind. And sure enough, every animal that saw them fled in terror. Most never even noticed the tiger behind the fox—they simply ran the moment they saw the fox itself.”

Finishing the abridged folktale from his previous life, Alex turned to the scribes. ”Do you know why the animals fled at the sight of the fox, without ever seeing the tiger?”

One of the younger scribes hesitated before answering, ”Because they didn’t realise the fox was just a fox. It was the tiger’s presence that scared them. The fox knew that—and took advantage of it.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a flicker of realisation passed between the scribes.

’Young Master Alex is the fox... the Family Head is the tiger... and the Kellermans are the forest animals.’

They understood. Alex intended to borrow the Earl’s formidable reputation—to wield his father’s presence even in his absence.

What had seemed impossible moments ago now felt achievable. Morale surged throughout the room.

Esmond, observing the shift, turned to Alex. His eyes glimmered as he caught sight of that crafty, almost playful smile. For a brief moment, he could have sworn he saw a fox’s tail flick behind the boy.

’You really are a clever fox, Young Master,’ he mused with quiet amusement.

Alex didn’t know what Esmond was thinking, but he could tell from the scribes’ faces that his little story had worked. Their confidence had returned.

Esmond and four of the scribes would accompany him into the negotiation hall. If any of them showed even the faintest doubt, the Kellermans would sense weakness—and the entire negotiation would collapse before it even began.

Rather than simply explaining his plan, Alex decided to perform it — in true scribe fashion. He spun a seemingly simple tale, the sort of story that carried a hidden message that the scribes loved to spend their time deciphering.

As expected, the scribes instantly grasped the meaning behind the fox-and-tiger story. They filled in the blanks on their own, each mentally constructing what they believed to be Alex’s grand strategy.

And just like that, they convinced themselves that success was inevitable. Not a single flicker of doubt remained on their faces.

In their minds, regardless of what form the talks took, the Kellermans were walking away from that negotiation table missing at least a kilogram of flesh.

’Sigh... being a sagely leader isn’t easy,’ Alex mused inwardly, wiping imaginary sweat from his brow.

”Young Master Alex,” one of the scribes asked curiously, ”what’s the name of that story? Where did you find it?”

”I came up with it,” Alex replied shamelessly, without even blinking. ”Let’s call it ’A Fox in Tiger Skin’. That’ll be our codename for this negotiation.”

”A Fox in Tiger Skin...” the scribes echoed in unison, as though reciting a sacred phrase. Their eyes glimmered with fervent admiration.

”Brilliant!” one of them exclaimed.

Esmond cleared his throat pointedly, drawing Alex’s attention back to him. ”Relying on the Family Head’s prestige to pressure the Kellermans is a clever strategy,” he admitted, stroking his goatee. ”But negotiation and leverage are all about balance. Push too softly, and you gain little. Push too hard, and you might lose everything.”

”Balance, Young Master Alex,” he finished gravely. ”Balance is key.”

”I’m aware, Uncle Esmond,” Alex said with a faint smile.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

A sudden knock interrupted the meeting.

One of the scribes stood and went to open the door, revealing an Enclave guard standing smartly at attention.

”I bring an urgent message for Young Master Alex,” the guard announced.

The scribe turned to Alex, who sat calmly at the centre of the room. Alex gave a simple nod, granting permission.

The guard stepped inside, bowed, and said, ”Young Master Alex, I have a message from Captain Guiness.”

He hesitated, glancing briefly at the other men in the room — silently asking if he should speak in private.

”It’s fine,” Alex said evenly, resting his chin on his hand. ”Let’s hear it.”

”Yes, Young Master,” the guard reported briskly. ”Captain Guiness instructed me to inform you that a convoy from the Kellerman Earldom has arrived. Onboard the carriages is Earl Jorg Kellerman himself!”

A ripple ran through the Fury family members and agents in the room.

”Thank you for your hard work,” Alex said with an easy smile.

”I’ll take my leave now.” The guard bowed again before quickly exiting to return to his post.

As the door closed, a heavy silence settled over the room — a silence thick with thought and disbelief.

Earl Jorg Kellerman came himself?!

That stubborn, prideful old goat actually made the trip?

The scribes exchanged uneasy glances while Esmond’s brow furrowed deeply.

By all logic, Earl Kellerman should have stayed far away from this meeting. After his family’s humiliating defeat, and after having provoked the Mad Earl himself, no one expected the man to show his face — not before the Fury family. It was widely assumed he’d send a proxy with clear bottom lines, leaving both sides to feel each other out.

But the news shattered that assumption entirely.

Earl Kellerman’s personal attendance changed everything.

At least, for everyone except Alex.

Alex had already suspected this outcome. He knew Kellerman had faced the Mad Earl once and survived only because of the intervention of a Royal. The experience would have burned itself into the man’s pride — and that same pride wouldn’t let him cower behind envoys.

He had to come himself.

Not to negotiate from strength, but to preserve the last fragments of his vane dignity.

’He wants to prove that even after being crushed, he still has the courage to stand,’ Alex thought. ’Typical of an old lion on his last legs.’

In truth, Alex had been hoping for exactly this.

After all, his ’fox wearing tiger skin’ plan would work best against someone who had already looked into the eyes of the tiger — and lived to remember the terror.

For a brief moment, Alex’s hands trembled.

In his past life, negotiations weren’t his arena. He was the technical expert — the one explaining systems and logic to the company’s shot callers and/or clients, never the one closing deals or playing political chess.

But now? This was his table. His test.

A true frontier in this new world.

He exhaled slowly, a grin spreading across his face.

’Well then... let the dance begin.’

***