Ranboo and Tubbo quickly climbed the steps of the town hall, and crossed the vast space of the throne room. Upon said throne sat Quackity, mayor of Las Nevadas, lounging away yet another boring day. He was surprised, to say the least, when his nation's rivals entered the room. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the President of Snowchester," the mayor greeted, his tone ice cold. "What are you doing on my land, Tubbo?"

The goat hybrid shrank in on himself, anxious over the sudden confrontation. "I- Uhm-"

Ranboo slid in front of Tubbo, and instantly took charge of the situation. "Mayor Quackity, I come to you today on official business separate from Snowchester. I do not come in the name of politics; I come in peace."

The mayor narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Now, how can I honestly believe that, Ranboo? You're the president's platonic husband- everything you do is political!" Quackity sprang up from his mighty throne, fuming with rage. "How can you speak of peace when you're infringing on my land? That cookie shop is a military outpost and you know it. Why don't you just admit it so we can go to war?!"

"Wait!"

Tubbo ran forward, his arms flying up to grab the mayor's attention. "Hold on! As President of Snowchester, I can assure you that we come in peace. And as a show of good faith, I will destroy The Cookie Shop. Is that- Does that sound good?"

Ranboo's jaw dropped. The Cookie Shop was Tubbo's pride and joy, his dream after years of war and hardship. To throw that away over a political dispute was madness. Why would he suddenly give up on his vision? But when he met Tubbo's eyes, noting the soft gaze and kind surrender, Ranboo knew the reason behind the goat's decision: giving up The Cookie Shop was for him, to help him save the server. The enderman couldn't be more thankful.

The mayor hummed as he considered the idea. "Alright," the ruler decided, collapsing back onto his throne. "I'm listening."

Ranboo cleared his throat, drawing the attention back to him. He cast a grateful glance at his soulmate, and continued: "We have sources that can confirm the existance of an underground railroad system in Las Nevadas. We respectfully request that you abandon the project."

"No, I don't think I will," Quackity responded. "Those tunnels took months to mine. Why put all that hard work to waste?"

"Well, it's a breach of power on the server," Ranboo weakly argued. "You can go anywhere you want in minutes, and that's...unfair."

"Oh, save it, Ranboo. We both know that's not true," the mayor replied. "I'm taking travel and making it more efficient. I'm well within my rights as a businessman and a leader."

A sudden epiphany rang through Ranboo's mind. Maybe he didn't need to convince Quackity to shut down the tunnels. Maybe he could just...redirect its purpose instead. "You're absolutely right, Mayor Quackity. My mistake," Ranboo said with a bow. "Perhaps I can offer a way for both our nations to benefit from the tunnels."

Quackity raised an eyebrow. "You want to invest in my railroad?"

The enderman nodded. "In a way, yes. I do. Snowchester will offer labor and resources , if you allow us to use the tunnels free of charge."

"Free of charge?"

"Why, yes, Mayor Quackity," Ranboo purred. "Aren't you going to charge a fee to ride your railroad? It would be like a subway station- a diamond per ride."

A sinister smirk formed on Quackity's lips. "Yes...I could, couldn't I?"

"Indeed. And if you opened it to the rest of the server- well, Las Nevadas would surely benefit from the tunnels."

The mayor paused. "Let me get this straight: you're proposing that Las Nevadas and Snowchester work to build a server-wide railroad system."

Ranboo nodded. "And Snowchester would take fifty percent of the profits."

Quackity's features smoothed over into a neutral, businesslike expression. "Not so fast, Ranboo," he warned. "The tunnels are already mined. Las Nevadas has done most of the work, and it should be reflected in our contract."

"We'll take thirty!" Tubbo shouted.

A certain glint danced in the mayor's eyes; he was satisified by the deal. "Done."

Ranboo and Tubbo cheered, giving each other high-fives and a few pats on the back. They'd done it! They'd ended the feud with Las Nevadas!

As the two continued to celenrate, Quackity began to descend from his throne. "If you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I'd like to leave and oversee our joint venture's progress."

But just as Quackity passed the two hybris, Ranboo reached out to grab the mayor's wrist. "Quackity, wait!"

The mayor turned back to face the humanoid, raising his eyebrow in a silent question. "Mayor Quackity, you may want to reconsider checking on the tunnels."

"And why is that?"

"Because there are currently mountains of TNT under every building in Las Nevadas."

The mayor jerked back in shock, wrenching free from the enderman's grasp. "What do you mean 'TNT'?!" he asked, his voice filled with rage. "That brat was only supposed to leave it under-" Quackity's face suddenly dawned with understanding, reaching the same conclusion that Ranboo had: Wilbur had betrayed him.

Ranboo knew the mayor had been working with the Brit, having seen them together in the tunnels. Wilbur had likely been using the underground railroad to spread the explosives across the server, with Ranboo taking care of the dirty work. Based on Quackity's last outburst, Ranboo could assume that the mayor knew about the hoards of TNT, but he hadn't anticpated them to be in Las Nevadas. It was yet another power grab on Wilbur's part: blow up every enemy on the server and start the world fresh. He probably would have succeeded too...

Quackity shook himself out of his daze, clearing his throat as he came back to reality. "Yes, well, I'll take care of it. Thank you, Ranboo. You've been very helpful." The politician gave his ally a firm handshake, and rushed out the building, fully intending to right Wilbur's wrongs.

Ranboo and Tubbo stood at the top of the town hall's steps, watching as the mayor disappeared into the bustling city. "What was that about?" the goat hybrid asked.

All the enderman could do was smile. "Don't worry about it," he said. "Come on. Let's meet up with the other hunters."

Yayyy Snowchester and Las Nevadas are at peace!! What could Ranboo be planning next??

Vote to make sure nothing goes wrong!!

Also we are now officially over 50,000 words!! AHHHHH SO EXCITINGGGG!!!! XDDD

As always, thank you so much for the reads and support!! Ily more than the Beloveds love Snowchester. <333

[Image Credits] "Explosives used for the demolition" (Cropped Slightly) by MONUSCO Photos (https://www.flickr.com/photos/monusco/22557405560)