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Book 1: Chapter 98: Royal Audience and Heavy

"Sir?" the guild receptionist Charles questioned in confusion as he looked up from his hand to Guildmaster Gilbert.

Sat atop the SS-rankers palm was a golden seal. Specifically, it was the provisional guildmaster\'s seal. Not only was this item rarely seen but it was even less common for it to actually be given to someone.

It took a very certain set of circumstances for a guildmaster to see it fit to bequeath this item to one of their employees.

"If I do anything stupid in the new few weeks, Charles, or if, Primals forbid, I get assassinated or even killed openly in cold blood, you\'re in charge of the guild here. If any of that happens, you\'re to recall all Milindonian branches\' employees and adventurers here and then activate the runic protective enchantments, okay?"

Charles wore a troubled look. "Sir... Are you planning something in regards to Lone? I know he was like a son to you, but help is on the way. You made sure of that yourself, did you not? We need only wait. This is a bit... extreme."

Gilbert smiled wryly. "The king finally agreed to meet me today to discuss the boy\'s imprisonment. I have a stinking suspicion that he won\'t give a damn about what I have to say. This is just in case I lose my temper and that fool, Ralph, does the same. It never hurts to be overprepared, now does it?"

Charles frowned but he ultimately nodded. "Though reluctantly, I will accept this responsibility, Guildmaster."

"Haha, attaboy, Charles. Wish me luck in my meeting, would you?" the White Dragonkin requested with a sheepish grin.

"Ha-ah... Good luck, Guildmaster Gilbert. Please don\'t ruin the future of the guild here. As much as a promotion is tempting to me, I\'d rather keep my current position if the better paying one comes with a swift end at the hand of some very upset nobles," Charles sighed.

"Haha, I\'ll try, my boy, I\'ll try," Gilbert laughed.

"Guildmaster Gilbert Elksworth, His Majesty will see you now," a servant of the castle said.

Gilbert furrowed his brows. \'He dares to accept my request to talk yet he still makes me wait for 2-full-hours in this cramped room before seeing me? Is that the tone you wish to set for this meeting, Ralph? Really?\'

He stood up and stroked his goatee. "Lead the way."

"Very well," the servant accented before bowing lightly then he led Gilbert out of the room.

It took them over 10-minutes of walking before they had reached the throne room, so far away was the unused waiting room Gilbert had been left in.

\'... I remember when I first set foot in this hall... How odd. I recall how tense I felt when I was showing Ralph the offer from the guild so we could establish here... Why does this room seem so much less impressive than it did a century ago?\' Gilbert wondered as he approached the foot of the steps that led to the grand golden throne of Milindo.

He got down on one knee and said, "Guildmaster Gilbert Elskworth of the Ranton branch of The Adventurer\'s Guild and the leader of all guildhalls in Milindo greets His Royal Majesty, Ralph of house Heidron, King of Milindo."

"Manners? From you? One who raises feral animals that strike out violently at our child and our hero? The mentor and guide of a cold-blooded murderer? How amusing," King Heidron remarked in sarcasm.

Gilbert slowly stood. "I see. Straight to business, is it? Very well. Your Majesty, you know perfectly well that the adventurer Lone Immortus has done no wrong. Your imprisonment of him is unjust and goes against the treaty both you and I signed so many years ago."

The surrounding ministers whispered as they mocked Gilbert for his lack of respect and for his arrogant words.

"He crippled our son. The rules of the tournament were clear, Dragonkin," the king coldly stated as he stared down from his raised throne.

"Dragonkin? Is this the game we are playing?" Gilbert asked only to met with silence. "Fine. Human, is your spawn capable of being healed with magic?"

King Ralph very much so did not like Gilbert\'s tone nor words. Not one bit. "That is irrelevant. If you have come here only to petition for the fox\'s release, know that it is a foolish and pointless endeavour. Our kingdom\'s laws are not so easily bent or broken."

"Except when you or your nobles are the ones doing the bending and breaking," Gilbert replied harshly. "The crown prince can be healed! He was not permanently injured. Granted, restoring limbs is no easy feat but you still possess the original ones. It is merely a matter of money."

\'I wonder if what Lone said and did yesterday is affecting me? I would never be so defiant before. Ah, but that is why this situation has come about... What a time to learn that being proactive is better than being reactive, even if at the risk of my own well-being...\' Gilbert lamented.

"I acknowledge that Lone was in the wrong. He even stole the crown prince\'s sword. I assume you\'ve recovered it since but regardless, the guild will compensate you for the damages. We will even pay for the crown prince\'s healing." Gilbert wished he didn\'t have to do even this much, but he was a sensible man.

"However! The hero was killed as a byproduct of his own making! He antagonised Lone to the point where he lost control of his emotions. It would take an incompetent man in your position to not know that when a beastkin awakens they have a chance to lose their sense of self for a differing amount of time depending on the strength of the awakening!" He would not let Lone fall for something that he wasn\'t responsible for.

King Ralph chuckled. "We know not if you have a skill of the persuasive nature, but that was a very moving speech. Sadly, our mind has been made up. The fox will remain our prisoner until we see fit to release him. It is true that we cannot kill him, however. After all, we do not wish for our Milindo to cease existing."

Gilbert resisted the urge to punch something or someone very hard. "Allow me to see him once every day. 5-minutes is all I ask."

"No. You may see him, yes. Once, and only once. He is a prisoner, not a friendly neighbour you can visit as you see fit." The king waved his wrist to call over a royal guard. "Lead the dragonkin here to the prisoner. 5-minutes, no more, no less."

"As you will it, it shall be so, Your Majesty!" the well-armoured knight responded as he stood at attention.

"We are done. Leave our throne room," King Ralph demanded calmly.

"... Very well, but let me give you some advice, Ralph. If you have thoughts of secretly killing him, end such foolish ideas now. High-ranking adventurers far more powerful than I will be coming to take him from Milindo. If he dies by your kingdom\'s hands not only will your be declaring war on The Adventurer\'s Guild, but on all of the beastkin species as well. You underestimate the significance of a 9-traited beastkin, old friend." With that, Gilbert spun on his heels and left the room with the royal guard quickly following suit.

Ralph of house Heidron, King of Milindo, tapped an index finger against the cold metal of his throne\'s armrest. "To think he would speak to us so disrespectfully..."

"Your majesty!" Milindo\'s First Minister called with indignation. "We simply cannot allow such arrogance from what amounts to no more than a clothed beast!"

"What would you have us do?" King Ralph questioned with a sarcastic undertone. "Strength rules all. As much as it behoves us, we must admit we - even as a collective - are nothing but a pebble to an organisation of the guild\'s scale."

Dark and ugly expressions clouded the faces of the gathered ministers and nobles. "We have no choice. We can only hold the fox for as long as possible. At the very least, until we can retrieve our child\'s blade and cure Duke Malik of his... affliction."

"Hold that thought," an amused voice said as the door to the throne room swung open.

Walking in with abundant confidence was an old man wearing nothing more than a simple robe. His hands were lazily held by his side and a toothy grin was spread across his wrinkled face.

The old man clicked his fingers then said, "I have a solution or two for your... problems, haha."

"Uncle Grim," Shana called in concern.

She\'d just returned to her and her uncle\'s room in the guild only to find Grimsley packing up his tools, his clothes and even her things too.

The bearded dwarf ignored her as he continued putting her clothes into a spatial pouch. Where he\'d gotten such a valuable thing, she had no idea.

"Uncle Grim!" Shana yelled this time.

Again, she was ignored. Now she getting irritated. Walking right up to Grimsley Shana grabbed his beard and yanked it. "What are you doing, Uncle Grim?!"

"What am ah doin\'?! What the fook\'re ye doin\', Lassie?! This fookin\' \'urts!" Grimsley yelled as he struggled to remove his niece\'s hand from his facial hair without damaging any of it.

"Oh, now you talk to me!" Shana let go of him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Why on Altros are you acting like we\'re moving out, Uncle Grim?"

Grimsley nursed his beard as he took a seat. "Look, Shana, this place? Milindo? It\'s as volatile as a Fire Dragon\'s soggy anus. \'At lad did right by ye an\' me by killin\' \'at cocksuck\'r of an \'ero, but we cannae stay \'ere. Fae all we ken some indignant cunt could up an\' decide we need tae be dyin\' anaw purely on account of us naw bein\' \'uman."

He leaned back into his chair and sighed. "Ah\'ve decided we\'re returnin\' tae oor mother strong\'old, Krieg Scoold sooner rath\'r than lat\'r."

"What?! No! What about Lone?! He\'s imprisoned! We can\'t just leave when he might be killed at any moment! Not after everything he\'s done for us!" Shana\'s outburst wasn\'t unexpected for Grimsley but it still gnawed at his heart all the same.

"Look, Shana, what the fook can ah dae aboot \'at?" Grimsley asked. "Ah owe the lad more than words can describe, \'ere\'s no denyin\' \'at, aye, but ah\'m just ah D-ranked blacksmith. Would Lone be happy tae ken \'at ah got maself killed tryin\' tae save \'im when chances are Gilbert\'ll do \'at on \'is own? Ah ain\'t nae politician but 9-traited beastkin are special. You should ken \'at."

Shana frowned something fierce. "This kingdom is crazy, uncle, crazy! I wouldn\'t put it past some stupid noble or even the king himself to kill Lone in spite for getting rid of Daisuke! He was... a monster but he was also a political tool. I don\'t want my saviour to be killed for doing what was right!"

"Look, first, the lad wasnae \'imself. Yer still young so ya might nae ken, but beastkin tend tae lose all reason when they awaken. Second, \'e\'s a resourceful lad. If anyone can \'elp \'im escape certain death, it\'s fookin\' \'imself! Third, again, I need tae point out I dinnae \'ave the means tae \'elp even if I wanted tae," Grimsley grumbled.

"You saved me from Daisuke when doing so was certain death if you got caught!" Shana screamed as she started crying. "Lone pulled us out of a burning building, uncle... He even killed a noble to save us when we all got captured... Uncle Grim, he healed your and my lungs from the smoke and even removed my collar..."

With tears streaming down her face Shana stared at Grimsley and begged, "Please... What kind of people would we be if we didn\'t return all of his kindness?"

Grimsley slowly raised one of his hands to cover his face. A long sigh sneaked through the cracks of his fingers before he responded, "The sensible kind, lassie, the sensible kind..."

"Uncl-"

"Ack! I fookin\' get it!" Grimsley snapped. "Yer a smart lassie an\' this is yer fookin\' idea, so think up \'ow ah can \'elp the daft fox would ya?!"

A bright smile clouded Shana\'s stained face as she jumped onto her uncle and hugged him. "Uncle Grim! I love you!"

"Aye, aye, I love ya too, Shana..." A distant look entered the man\'s eyes. "Ye\'r \'eavy..."