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Chapter 22:

Arthur\'s Point of View

Reed Farmstead

There wasn\'t much else to do with Rennal, so I tucked her in and left so she could get some rest. Wanted to give her some privacy, I headed downstairs to the living room where I talked with Augustus. Sitting down on the couch after removing Defiance, I got comfy and fell asleep by myself.

It was nice until someone kicked my leg, and I woke up with a start. "Arthur!" Cassidy said in a raised tone in front of me.

Snapping my head forward, I looked up at her. "What!?"

She frowned at my less than pleased response. "Ya doin okay? You\'ve been sleepin for a while now."

Rubbing my eyes, I replied. "A few hours isn\'t exactly a full night\'s rest, Cassidy."

"Arthur," She began as she quirked a brow at me. "You\'ve been asleep since yesterday evenin."

"And I\'m still tired as fuck. Great start to the day." I said in a bitter tone and looked up at her with my one eye. ???You know when you wake up and just know it\'s going to be a shitty day?" I asked her.

"Uh..."

Standing up, I put my hands on my back and pushed to stretch. "It\'s gonna be one of those days. I can just feel it!" Putting Defiance on my back, I sighed. "Well, I\'m up. What did you need?"

My freckle faced host looked away from me. "Ah just wanted ta make sure ya were doin okay." Groaning at that, I moved through the house. "Ah\'m sorry, but Ah was gettin concerned and needed ta ask ya some questions!" She followed after me.

Augustus was in the kitchen. "Thank god you\'re here, Grandpa Reed. Your granddaughter woke me up, and now I\'m hungry. Too hungry to answer questions of any sort!" I said playfully as I collapsed into one of the dining table\'s chairs. "Please, could you cook me something? Anything!" Putting my arms across the table, I rested my forehead against my elbow and ignored Cassidy.

"Ah sure can, Arthur. After takin care of Lady Rennal Bimarr, it\'s the least we can do." The elderly man answered. "Cookin up grub just so happens ta be a pastime of mine."

Cassidy sat down next to me, and I peeked from my resting position to see her staring at me... Menacingly! "What!?" The redhead inquired at my annoyed look.

"Don\'t you have some chores to do or something?" My question made her frown.

"No!" The redhead said in a raised tone. "Ah know Rennal is up in your room sleeping. What Ah don\'t understand is why."

"She\'s still here?"

Augustus chuckled. "Yep. Still sleepin, just like ya were."

Nodding while resting my head, I replied. "Yeah, I don\'t blame her." Then I opened my eye to look at Cassidy. "You want to know what happened, then you\'re going to have to wait until she wakes up." Then I shrugged. "It\'s not my place to tell you anything. Why didn\'t you kick her awake instead?"

Rolling her eyes, Cassidy wrapped her arm over the chair\'s backrest. "Because Austin told me ya helped her and that she was here for me. Clearly, ya got her ta open up and took care of whatever she needed."

"More or less. Again, ask her, not me." Then I turned to Augustus. "You know Rennal?"

"The Bimarr Family has always looked after us down here in the bottom rung. They\'re good people." Then he looked at me. "Ah must admit, Ah\'m a tad curious about what she\'s doin here as well."

"This isn\'t up for debate. Rennal\'s the one you need to talk to."

"Fine!" Cassidy said in a frustrated tone. "What about the rumor\'s going around about you taking out an entire slave ring?"

Scoffing again, I replied. "Rumors, if you don\'t have any proof."

The door opened, and guess who was standing right fucking there! "I have proof." Elincia said as she let herself in.

"Do you and your sister have nothing to do?" I asked as I sat up and gave her an annoyed look. "And you," Turning to Cassidy, she looked just as surprised. "Do you just let anyone come into your house unannounced?!"

"I was invited," Elincia said as she sat down at the table and looked completely out of place. "We were looking for you."

"I\'ve been asleep here. If something else happened, it wasn\'t me." Was my reply.

Smirking, she sat daintily. "Always so quick to judge why we\'re here. Why is that?"

Holding up two fingers, I spoke. "First, you\'re obviously here for me for something. Second, why\'re you sitting like that? It just looks uncomfortable."

"Arthur! That\'s the Priestess!" Cassidy chastised me.

Augustus chuckled. "The Priestesses are still people." He told his granddaughter. "Always a pleasure ta see ya, Elincia."

She bowed slightly, which surprised me. "And you as well, Augustus. I promise I\'m not here for Cassidy this time."

The old man eyed me. ??So, yer here for our newest house guest?"

"Indeed, I am," Elincia replied and looked at me. "Arthur Pendragon has a deal to honor."

"Oh yeah?" I asked with an amused snort. "And which deal is that?"

"I do believe you agreed to honor my sister\'s deal if we allowed you to deal with the slavers in Helmsforth."

Sitting up fully now, I quirked a brow at that. "So, let me get this straight, you want to Knight me because I dealt with a bunch of Slavers?"

A knowing smile came to her face. "No. We\'re using your desire to kill Slavers to make you our Knight. The offer was there because you already combated, not only me but a sizeable group of Ghouls as well." Then she gestured to Cassidy and Augustus. "Among other things."

"While I am interested in killing any Slavers there are, there is something that\'s been bothering me." Then I gave a lazy wave towards the Priestess. "I will ask you since your sister wasn\'t too forthcoming, and you\'re the one present. Why\'re you two so adamant about me joining your little nation? As a Knight, no less."

As if finally realizing what we were talking about, a pan fell into the sink, and the old man turned to face me faster than I ever thought he could. "A Knight?!" Grandpa Reed repeated in surprise. "Ah\'ll be grass under a cow\'s utters!" Hearing that, I immediately turned to the old man, who looked surprised as he stared at me. "We ain\'t never had a Knight before!"

My head whipped to Cassidy, who was blushing, and I looked back to Augustus. "Wait. What did you just say?"

Grandpa Reed grabbed some food and put it on the table. "Yer gonna be a Knight! We ain\'t never had one before! Not in our lifetime!"

While that was interesting, I gestured for him to go back a little further. "No, before that. Cow\'s utters?"

Waving my question away, he laughed and looked at Elincia. "Ya won\'t be disappointed with this one, let me tell ya! He\'s been real handy around here!"

"Are we going to ignore what he just said?" I asked the group.

"Ah don\'t know what yer talkin about." Cassidy said and looked to the Priestess. "Though, Ah must admit, Ah\'m a tad curious myself. Why did yer sister and ya decide ta try an make him a Knight? Last one was a few hundred years ago Ah believe?" She said in an unsure and questioning manner.

Elincia smirked as he eyes moved to me. "It was actually a little over two thousand years ago."

Again, flabbergasted, I looked to the Priestess in question. "You were around over two thousand years ago?"

Amused, Elincia leaned forward playfully. "Don\'t I look it?" She asked.

Leaning forward in response, I replied. "You look way older."

Cassidy slammed my arm for that as Elincia pulled back with a large smile. "Arthur!"

"I\'m going to enjoy having you around, Arthur Pendragon!" The Priestess said joyfully. "Not many would dare say such a thing to my sister or I."

"Probably cause it aint the polite thing ta say." Grandpa Reed said with a disappointed look directed at me.

"Hey, it\'s a compliment! I\'m saying she looks very mature for her age!" I defended.

"Thank you!" Elincia took the backhanded compliments in stride. "Now, onto why we are so interested in you." Gesturing to me, she explained. "There is a prophecy that very-"

Immediately, my head rolled back, and I groaned out loud to show how stupid I already thought this conversation was. "Oh my god, I\'m sorry I asked! Please tell me there isn\'t some stupid prophecy about me!"

Elincia gave me a bemused smile. "And you mock my age. How old are you to act in such a manner?"

I shrugged with my head still back. "I don\'t know." Was my response.

"Ya don\'t know?" Cassidy repeated slowly. "What do ya mean ya don\'t know?!" She asked, annoyed.

"I don\'t know! Let\'s leave it at that!" Was my irritated reply.

To be honest, that black hole did something to me. While I was in the void, time passed as if eons flew by in the blink of an eye. Time warped around me, and I felt as if I was there forever. Like I had entered eternity and could not escape. Yet, once I was flung into this world, it was the exact opposite. The time was still with me, and mind numbing, but it seemed so long ago. Even though it was barely a few days ago.

Rubbing my face, I brought my head back up and looked to the Priestess. "Okay. Prophecy. Go." Pointing to her got the others present to shake their heads.

"There is a prophecy that tells of a hero," She began, and I scoffed at the word hero, but she continued as if uninterrupted. "That will arrive in armor never before seen. Wielding powers that even magic would struggle to imitate." Elincia began to get into it as she stood and began swinging an imaginary sword. "He carries a sword into battle unlike any other, that is made out a material never before seen by the likes of mortals!"

"Really?" I asked back, unimpressed.

Pointing at my wrapping, she smirked. "It also says a man wielding the name \'Dragon\' will hide eyes, unlike anything this world has ever seen." Elincia said and reached for my wrapping, which made me grab her hand. "Will you let me see your right eye?"

"No." Was my immediate reply.

Tension seemed to rise in the room, and I saw the faintest aura start to slowly creep over Elincia\'s hands. This made me squeeze her hand harder. A mischievous smile came to her lips, and I readied to counter whatever the Priestess might throw at me. However, Augustus stopped both of us by smacking our hands with a metal ladle that was covered in some manner of sauce.

Yanking my hand back, Grandpa Reed spoke. "Enough of that in this house!" He commanded, and even Elincia saw down instantly.

Licking the sauce from my hand, I saw Elincia performed some spell to remove it as she eyed me. "Apologies, Augustus." I said. "I never meant to offend you. You\'ve been most generous to me in my time of need."

"Well, ya helped us outta a tight spot as well, but ya need ta mind yer manners." Then he pointed the ladle at Elincia. "Same goes for you, Priestess. Ya should\'ve respected Arthur\'s privacy."

All this time, Cassidy was looking at her grandfather like he\'d gone mad, and I wasn\'t convinced he wasn\'t. "My apologies, Augustus. My curiosity got the better of me." Elincia repented, and Grandpa Reed sat down with a firm nod. "However, I must admit, your skills with cooking utensils are as legendary as Cassidy claimed."

Turning to the redhead, whose cheeks now matched her hair, she looked away in embarrassment once again. "Well, Ah had ta get good with ma grandkids always tryin ta sneak food when Ah wasn\'t lookin!"

"It shows. You are truly a master of your craft." The Priestess praised the old man.

"Darn right." Was Grandpa Reed\'s reply. "Now, Ah know Ah cooked a little too much, but Ah figured Arthur might like some company while he eats. Help yourselves and dig in!"

We dished ourselves up some grub, as Cassidy would say, and started to eat. It was odd. Eating with a Priestess in some rundown farmhouse, in a tiny kitchen, made me wonder if I was still asleep and dreaming all of this. I was not.

Covering her mouth with her fingers, Elincia finished her bite before speaking. "Now, before we were interrupted, I would like to speak with you about this deal further if you don\'t mind." The Priestess told me.

Glancing to her, I continued eating and ignored her. "Arthur, ya can\'t ignore the Priestess!" Cassidy said annoyed.

"I\'m in the middle of eating, Cassidy! It\'d be rude to ignore your Grandpa\'s cooking!"

As if waiting to enter the room, Austin arrived with Rennal in tow, and I can honestly say I forgot both were here. "Something smells delicious!" Rennal said as Austin quickly pulled up a chair next to me. "May I?" She asked and gestured to the table with a small bow towards Elincia.

Cassidy stood quick and held out a chair for the Noble Elf Lady. "Of course!"

Sitting down, I saw Rennal caress Cassidy\'s arm as she sat down, and I quirked a brow at this but said nothing. Even though I really wanted to comment on Cassidy\'s goofy smile, I refrained. Austin and Rennal got some food and started eating. Rennal ate in a similarly refined fashion matching the Priestess, while Austin ate like a champion. He was like a little garbage disposal. Nothing was safe.

This got me to chuckle slightly as Rennal spoke up. "What were all of you discussing before we joined you?" She asked in a much softer tone than from when she was in pain due to her previous injuries.

I took note that she was wearing different clothes from her ripped ones. These matched Cassidy\'s usual attire, but no one said anything about it. I\'m guessing Austin grabbed them for her. It was that, or Rennal knew where Cassidy\'s stuff was. Either way, I didn\'t care too much, but it was amusing seeing a refined Elf in worn down clothing that was way too big for her.

Elincia gestured to me. "My sister and I would like to make Arthur Pendragon our Knight."

"What-" Rennal dropped her cup in shock, and it shattered on the floor after bouncing off the table. "I\'m sorry," She said, blinking in shock. "I must\'ve misheard you." The Elf stated. "For I swear I heard you say Arthur is going to be our first Lestranian Knight in thousands of years."

"Ya heard correctly!" Grandpa Reed said joyfully and pointed at me. "The Priestesses say he\'s part of some prophecy!"

"Oh... I see..." Rennal said softly before falling out of her chair, and Cassidy dove to catch her.

The entire room turned and looked at me. "What? I had nothing to do with that!"

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We hit our goal!!! Woot woot! 712 Power Stones was the highest I saw which means two extra chapters! This is the second bonus chapter! Hope you all enjoy and thanks for the love directed towards the story!

The new goal for this week is to hit 700 Power Stones again for another extra chapter! If we hit 750, I will release and additional bonus chapter for hitting that goal as well! We know we can hit 700, but can we hit 750? Let\'s find out! Hope you guys are still looking forward to the coming chapters! Another one will be released tomorrow like normal! Are you excited?