"The name is Bori," said the Giant, speaking to the Innkeeper in a direct and rough manner. He was neither delicate nor formal, and was not in the habit of acting differently just to please others. It was for that very reason that, usually, he was not assigned diplomatic missions. However, the Humanoid Alliance’s profile of the Innkeeper clearly stated that the Innkeeper was not bothered nor affected by such things.

According to their profile, generally, he only cared about his Inn. Extending beyond that, the only things that affected him were things that could benefit the Inn. If there was something beyond the Inn entirely that could affect him, then maybe it was sincerity - since he was so into hospitality.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bori," said the Innkeeper, not at all bothered by his rough attitude. "You sounded quite rushed in your letter. I hope everything is well."

Bori nodded, and glanced towards Hiran, before turning back towards the Innkeeper.

"I cannot promise you fancy deals to affect your decision - I am here for one thing only. The Dream realm is about to become the newest battlefield. If you allow us to use the tavern to enter, it would help the alliance a lot. You can tell me what you want in exchange - I can try to convince the alliance."

Hiran looked at Bori oddly. That was, by far, one of the worst sales pitches he’d ever heard. Clearly Bori was not a negotiator, nor did he have any experience being one, nor did he want to become one. If he did not even have the authority to make a deal, then what was the point of sending him in the first place? Was someone trying to sabotage this deal?

"Battlefield, you say?" the Innkeeper repeated, though he didn’t actually ask any questions. Instead, he looked towards Hiran to see if what he wanted was similar.

"We desire something similar, Innkeeper," said Hiran. "We wish to use the taverns from across the Henali realms, and enter the Dream realm. I have a preliminary proposal ready for you, but of course if you have something in mind, you can just mention it directly. I have full authority in this matter."

The Innkeeper did not speak immediately, nor did he ask for the proposal. Instead, he thought about what he had learned so far. A battlefield. The Dream realm was descending into chaos, and that meant danger for him, his workers and his guests, not to mention his tavern.

If these two wanted to use the Dream tavern to access the Dream realm, so would the others. If he became involved in this mess, his already feeble attempts at neutrality would be lost.

But, honestly, Lex didn’t care so much about that anymore. Yes, the system would penalise him for failing to meet his standards, but he no longer needed to fear its consequences as much. Heck, Lex had recently even started thinking of speeding up his systems restoration.

Thus, in this situation, he needed to think of what would give him the most benefit, and he needed a plausible excuse to ask for it.

The way he saw it, he had two options: immediate yet short term benefits, or distant but long term benefits. The sheer scale of what a long term cooperation could offer meant that it made more sense to go for that option, but Lex was of a different mind.

Preferring long term profits was only a good idea when one was convinced that one could live long enough to enjoy it. He would rather take some immediate benefits that would improve his strength and capabilities as soon as possible.

"I am not averse to the possibility of cooperation," the Innkeeper finally said, after an unusually long silence. "First, tell me the kind of cooperation you have in mind, and then I’ll tell you what we can do."

Bori nodded, finding this approach reasonable, while Hiran was relieved. The worst case scenario was that the Innkeeper would reject them outright. As long as he was open to negotiations, he felt relieved. The price for this cooperation hardly mattered compared to the sheer value of the treasure within the Dream realm. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

"The Humanoid Alliance will use the taverns to send in its Dao Lords," Bori said. "Depending on how the situation develops, and the demands of the ongoing war, it would be best if the use of the tavern could be allowed for five million years to begin with, with further room for extension in the future.

"In exchange, the Humanoid Alliance will protect all taverns that they use, and provide you with access to two Dao Fields for the duration of the alliance."

Hiran was taken aback by the offer. It wasn’t that the offer was cheap, but rather the Humanoid Alliance was being extremely generous! Two Dao Fields? For five million years or more?

That was mighty generous of them. But then again, the treasure in the Dream realm...

The Innkeeper merely nodded, and then looked towards Hiran.

"The Henali also offer to protect all the taverns we use. At the same time, we will contribute one Dao Protector for you to use as you wish, and a Clear Crystal Mine seed for your realm. In exchange, the Henali wish to use the taverns to facilitate the movement of their Dao Lords. The duration of the stay is negotiable, but we would prefer it if we have access for at least three million years."

The Innkeeper nodded, as if he understood Hiran’s offer as well. In truth, Lex did not know what a Dao Field was, nor had he heard of Dao Protectors or Clear Crystals. He had no doubt they were super valuable if they expected to use the taverns for millions of years, especially to send their Dao Lords.

But he had no intention of accepting their deals regardless of how valuable they were. First off, the moment he discovered that the battlefield involved Dao Lords, he became extremely unwilling to get involved.

Normally, that would be the end of it. However, since he was playing a game of Go against some unknown opponent in the Dream realm, his opponent couldn’t blame him for playing unfairly.

The Innkeeper held up a single finger, attracting the attention of both Dao Lords. What did he mean? That only one of them would get the deal? Or was he only willing to give the taverns for one million years? Maybe he wanted one more item in exchange for the deal.

"Your offers are sincere. Now listen to my offer," he said with a soft smile.