The Innkeeper

"The issue with the third party, the devils supporting the remnants of the ruling families, is the same. The only thing is that I cannot guess what they are after right now. That finally leaves the fourth party, which is us - the unaffiliated humans.

"While theoretically we should be allies with the deities and devils against the A.I. I suspect something sinister is afoot. Based on reports from our scouts, all the \'allied\' forces near us have been slowly yet seemingly inadvertently moving away. I think that they have tacitly consented to our demise, so that there is one less player for them to compete with."

"Alright, so where do you think the decisive attack will come from?" Marlo asked, seemingly still unperturbed. In fact, even the butler did not seem to show any emotions besides annoyance and exhaustion.

"The point of the attack is to take us by surprise and give us no time to prepare so that they can decimate us. I suspect they will send in soldiers directly from orbit, landing behind our defensive lines, or come from the water where our visuals are blocked. Most likely, considering that in the past we have shown effective battle effectiveness in two separate groups, you being one group and me with the army being another, they will attack from three directions simultaneously."

Marlo nodded, and said, "not bad. Your analysis is getting better and better each day."

"Is this really the time to be focused on such a thing?" Rafael asked, feeling emotionally exhausted.

"I think any time is a good opportunity for a father to compliment his son," Marlo said, chuckling to himself.

Rafael… couldn\'t reply. So instead, he just waited for the \'King\' to bestow him with a proper answer.

"You forget, my son, the thing I excel in most is self defense," Marlo finally said, seeing as how Rafael was not in the mood to humor him. "Let me show you a little something I\'ve been working on."

Marlo merely extended his hand forward and used a certain technique. Rafaels\' pupils shrunk as he stared at his father\'s hand in horror and surprise. His stupid father was a maniac!

*****

Lex made his way to the Noel family mansion, which was a lot easier to find than the teleportation formations. After all, the mansion itself seemed to be a tourist attraction of sorts. Apparently, once a month, during a special event, tourists were even allowed to enter certain portions of it.

He expected that the process to gain admittance would be difficult or complex, and he was ready to flaunt the token given to him by the Phillips family if necessary, yet his experience was quite unexpected. The moment he approached the gate, the guards seemed to recognize him and all suddenly stood at attention.

The gates were opened even before he arrived, and an escort astride some kind of beast suddenly appeared, to guide Lex deeper inside. At first he wanted to ask how or why they recognized him, but upon noticing the reverence on the soldiers faces as they watched him pass, he felt too awkward to do so.

Lex was led all the way to the front door, where a tall, well-dressed man seemed to be waiting for him.

"Mr. Lex, it is a pleasure to finally meet you," the man said as he gave a deep bow, before approaching Lex to shake his hand.

Lex did not hesitate to grab the man\'s hand and give him a firm handshake, a pleasant smile on his face. Yet behind his perfectly pleasant appearance, Lex had raised his guard to the maximum. It was not just his instincts that warned him, but that he himself could judge that there was something off about this overly enthusiastic fellow.

"The pleasure is mine. I have never had such a warm welcome somewhere before."

"Then you should come here more often! Had I known you were coming, I would have prepared an even grander welcome!"

The man laughed as he welcomed Lex inside the mansion, as if he was extremely pleased with himself.

"Please, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Marcus, I am Lord Joseph Noel\'s nephew. I look after the mansion and the city while uncle is not here. You may be somewhat surprised at your reception, but uncle sent your information to all the cities in his territory. You\'ll find that you will receive the best possible treatment anywhere you are recognized."

"That… I was not expecting such a thing," said Lex, genuinely surprised.

"Indeed. Uncle has not given any other information, except to treat you with the utmost respect. Although it\'s short notice, as soon as the guards informed me of your arrival, I passed orders for a banquet in your honor. All the dignitaries from across the city will be invited."

"That… that sounds wonderful," said Lex, successfully hiding the deep reluctance he felt upon hearing the news. "But unfortunately I have important business that is very time sensitive. Since you have already recognized me, and since Joseph has been kind enough to pass such instructions, things should be much simpler. I need to use the teleportation formation to Delurian Drip Bog. I can naturally cover the cost of having the formation activated ahead of time."

"Nonsense! If I make you pay, then uncle will disown me! How urgent is your task? I can have the formation readied within the hour."

"As soon as possible would be much appreciated. It\'s not that I don\'t wish to receive your hospitality, but I really cannot wait."

"Well then, please wait a moment while I go and get things ready."

Marcus left Lex in a lavish sitting room while he left to make preparations. Lex did not drop his guard even when he was left alone, nor did he let anything show in his expressions. That was because, after spending some more time with Marcus, Lex had clearly noticed a deep hostility buried in the man\'s heart. Of course, he had done his best to hide it, but with Lex\'s vast experience dealing with people, his sixth sense, his instincts, not to mention his extremely astute pup companion, he could hide nothing from Lex.

Of course, Lex did not care why Marcus felt that hostility, or what his story was. As long as he did not interfere with Lex\'s task in any way, he would be happy enough to leave things be.

His wait was short and uneventful, as Marcus soon returned, taking long and purposeful strides.

"The formation is being prepared. Why don\'t we take a carriage to the terminal, it should be completely ready by the time we arrive."

"Excellent."

Marcus led Lex back to the front of the mansion where a carriage was already waiting for them, and accompanied him as they departed. The entire time, Marcus wore a massive grin, as if he was extremely pleased and enthusiastic to meet Lex. Any normal person would completely be fooled by the act. Even if they suspected something, they would only suspect that the cause of Marcus\' enthusiasm was a desire to please his uncle.

"What\'s that tower for?" Lex asked when the conversation allowed, pointing to the massive structure in the middle of the city.

"That\'s the local Sol bird shrine. Although we, the Noel family, are not able to tame Sol birds in the way the Hum nation does, it is not a problem to establish a relationship. We have a flock of over 20 Sol birds who consider this territory as their home, and visit the shrine every month to be worshiped by the locals. I\'m not sure why they like it so much, but this is quite a common custom in all remote territories."

Lex did not comment as various thoughts ran through Lex\'s mind. He was reminded of the deities, and wondered if the Sol birds counted as such. Why else would they give so much importance to being worshiped?

There was a very easy way to find out the answer. The turtle had adopted a Sol bird back at the Inn. All he needed to do was scan it to learn more. And if that didn\'t work, he could ask the turtle. He could also…

Suddenly Lex froze, as a thought occurred to him. He pretended to rub his eyes while he secretly put on the Fancy Contact lenses. It was time to see if these things were any good.