NOVEL NEXT Chapter 80: What Must be Done, Must Be Done
Chapter 80
What Must be Done, Must Be Done
While the confrontation had begun in the Audience Chamber, Martell was looking for the kitchen. Normally, slaves like him would not even be worth feeding. For someone like him, though, with his cute looks and innocent gaze he had trained, leeching food from people was simple.
Following his nose, he arrived at a large and very busy kitchen. Servants in colorful outfits came in and out beating offerings of local delicacies. Mostly seafood and game meats.
He peeked in and was quickly spotted by a giant of a man wearing white shirt and apron. “whatcha doin’ here, boy? Scoot off! This is no place for ya!”
“Please, sir. I just smelled a very nice smell and couldn’t help but be lured here.”
“Pah! Of course it smells good! I haven’t been a cook for years for nuthin’!”
“Can you let me stay here for a bit? Just to warm up? It’s very cold outside,” he said with an upturned gaze. The Cook had never seen such round and glassy eyes in his life. The burly and round nosed cook the noticed the collar on his neck.
“Hrrgh. Fine then, just this once. Sit at the corner there. Don’t move or I’ll kick you out.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll be good.”
“Right. Brienne! Get some baked potatoes and bacon and give it to this little slave ‘ere! No one in this kitchen is gonna go hungry. Not on my watch,” the Cook projected his voice and called out. “That also goes for youse lot! Drink enough so’s you dun’ faint from the heat! I dun’ wanna bodies lyin’ around on the ground and disturbing the flow!!”
“Yes, sir! Mr. Grover, sir!” The servants and other cooks shouted without looking away from the place they were in charge of.
“Brienne!” the man called again.
“R – right away, sir!” A plain looking maidservant with a small limp came over with a plate of baked potato, still piping hot. She had her sleeves rolled and small pieces of dried potato peels were stuck on her apron.
“Thank you, miss,” The boy answered, tucking in with gusto. The hot potato was just the thing to warm up in the cold weather.
“If you’re finished with the potato, get the onions and bake ‘em like I showed you.”
“Y-yes. Mr. Grover. On it,” she replied meekly. She immediately ran over to the oven.
“Walk fast! Don’t run! How many times do I need to tell you? Haah, what am I gonna do with you, you foolish gal. At this age already and still can’t follow a simple instruction.”
“S - sorry, Mr. Grover,” the maidservant said with bitter smile before she slapped her own cheeks twice. “Ooh, get it together, Brienne.”
“Brienne!”
“R- right. Onions!”
“You…are…together?” Serin asked in disbelief. Her face a mix of confusion and disgust. In Calendia, it was not unknown for women in boarding schools or within a convent to have certain inclinations for the same sex because of the lack of knowledge of the opposite sex. But for them it was nothing but the frivolity of youth and not something permanent.
“Yes, we are,” Illumca answered.
However, to someone with her upbringing, it was something beyond her understanding. How could they be so proud of it! Then again, dark elves had always been a race that valued beauty above gender and race. It might not be so far-fetched.
“Oh yes,” the girl replied with a laugh.
“B – but, that is disgusting! And wrong! I know you are desperate, but to pair with another woman!”
“Are you speaking ill of my partner, girl?” Illumca said, deciding to follow through with Connie’s answer. “Then again I suppose I have to thank you. If you did not take the Prince I would not have met her."
"Exactly. Our meeting was truly fated. You know, it happened some weeks ago. I was in trouble due to a certain quest with false information,” she put emphasis on the last sentence.
Lady Serin’s face showed no sign of disturbance. And so she continued.
“Due to that blunder, I was captured by a group of bandits and was about to be sacrificed to a giant Crimson Firesnake when she appeared. Using her magic, she made short work of the bandits. She slashed this way and that and killed the bandits with her swift moves. It was a gruesome but awe-inspiring sight I tell you. I will omit how we worked together to kill the Crimson Firesnake. But long story short, that moment was when our eyes met and chose to stay together.”
The overly dramatic and absolutely blatant lie made Illumca want to burst out laughing inside despite her completely calm and cold expression on the outside.
“What a gripping tale!” Serin clapped her hands together, before calmly continuing. “But a Lady should not lie even if it was out of grief, Lady Cornelia. Their words should be golden and true. It is fine for you to speak the truth. Especially when we speak before Her Eminence,” she bowed slightly to Allenca. “If you would forgive my rudeness.”
“Theeere…is nothing to forgive…” she answered, now understanding the character of the person before her. “But…I dooon’t think this is…aaappropriate,” Allenca said, feeling quite fed up with this attempt at besmirching the name of her savior, shameless as she was.
“I understand. This after all…is not a good thing to say in an auspicious event.”
By faking an understanding approach, Serin wanted to put the fact that she was captured by the Bandit forward. After all, for a Noble Lady to be caught by Bandits alone would be scandalous enough that her name would be ruined forever. Serin laughed inside. Killing a Crimson Firesnake? Even if it was a Hero, killing such a dangerous monster alone would need a full party. Let alone a single Dark Elf.
Murmurs of jeers and ridicule could be heard from the guests around them. The Prince grimaced. He disliked the boorish girl before him. But he did not hate her to the point of wanting to hear about her being humiliated by Bandits.
“Are you accusing us…of lying?” Illumca stepped forward, eyes staring holes at the hateful thing before her.
“Then show us the proof!” the hateful girl said.
“Yes! Show us proof!” A Noble who wished to curry favor with the young lady of the Gladstone House goaded. But he was abruptly silenced via a polite nudge and a stern look by Henrietta, who was standing next to him. The poor thing did not know how to intervene now that it had gone so badly.
Connie could not help but laugh at Serin’s insistence. She was not even trying to hide her intent. “Proof? I did not lie, and therefore have no reason to refuse. Haha, I suppose a little sideshow would be nice.”
Connie showed her Item Ring and held it aloft before her.
“Whaaat…are you going to…do?” Allenca asked.
“Proof.”
And then she dropped Fasina’s fang from the Item Ring, letting it fall with a satisfying and very audible THUD. Acrid smell from the still existing venom within the fang wafted, overpowering the delicious aroma of the feast.
The appearance of the gruesome item made all the eavesdropping bystanders nearby reeled back. Some of the more delicate ladies even fainted. Serin became weak on the knees and grabbed on to her husband-to-be, refusing to fall.
Looking at the pitiful appearance of his fiancée, Mikael barked angrily at the grinning ex-fiancee of his. “How could you take out such an ugly thing in such an important event?!”
“Didn’t she want to know the truth?” Connie asked in retort.
“That’s right. My Connie would not lie,” Illumca said emotionlessly. “There you are. Proof.”
Connie crouched and lifted the fang, bouncing it lightly on one hand. “Would you like to hold it? Careful, there is still venom on it.”
Serin shrieked when Connie playfully offered the fang to her.
“I think…that’s enough, don’t you think?” A voice called out. It was a very grating voice. Illumca’s eyebrows scrunched up upon seeing the speaker.
Ah, there he is. The old lion comes to bail the cub out of danger.
“Your Eminence. Ladies.”
Even Allenca knew who this unpleasant person was.
Connie greeted her according to the etiquette. “Good Evening, Duke Gladstone. I hope you are well.”
“Please forgive my daughter for disturbing you,” he said with a pleasant smile. You know how it is, young love. It is very fiery and sometimes foolish and brash. But don’t you think showing such a thing went a bit too far?”
“Is that so?” Connie smiled in response. “She desired proof. And out of the kindness of my heart, I provided just that. If it seems a bit too rough, forgive me. The Hunter’s life must be rubbing off on me.”
The man frowned and appeared to want to say something but ended up deciding against it.
“Father…” the girl said pleadingly. Her eyes stared daggers at Connie and Illumca. If only looks could kill.
“It seems that my daughter needs some rest. Will you help me, Prince?”
"S-sure."
"Forgive me if I may, Duke Gladstone," Connie said suddenly. "You look tired. Maybe you should also take a rest? Seeing as you are getting on with the years."
“Oh? I am very healthy, Little Lady. You shouldn't worry about me. Excuse us, Your Eminence,” The man bowed deeply, this time not bothering to follow proper decorum as a show of contempt. Allenca responded with a wan smile.
Seemed that this was a man who knew when to back down, even against someone younger. A dangerous man. Or is it that he thought of her as all bark and no bite? Also, he looked healthy enough. Is the poison not working?
After that little episode, all the young men braved themselves to come over to the cold dark elf and the beautiful Maiden. Intending to introduce themselves in an attempt to have their favors. It was unavoidable, seeing as the two was extremely beautiful young women.
Allenca did not refuse the eager people, but Akula reacted with her Intimidation Skill, causing them to back down. She disliked people crowding near her, especially the ones with such apparent intentions of courting her.
“Connie,” a towering figure came to her, wearing the same traditional wear that she had on yesterday. But this time, the coat was tightly buttoned up, making the Centaur appear more modest.
“I wanted to help, but then you threw out that large fang. Very impressive.”
“Akula! I did not see you anywhere!"
“Well…I was standing behind a pillar. My companion said that I scared the ladies."
"That's a bit harsh. Anyway, did you come with the people of Al-Khemiya?”
"Err...no. I came with the Ezenu I chose to serve. The Hero of Vorzenny.”
“Is that so? Congratulations!! Have you told Kim yet?”
“No. I haven’t,” she said slowly. “Yuuji said that I should keep my distance with the other Heroes. He’s the Hero of Vorzenny.”
At this, Connie raised an eyebrow. “Well, if you are sure.”
“Connie, who’s this?” Illumca asked, sidling to her side while throwing a cold look at the men. Some of them did not get deterred by her coldness and was in fact, even more attracted to her. That was not her concern, however. The new Centaur was.
“Illumca, this is Akula. The Centaur I told you about. She is a very strong warrior. This is my companion, Illumca.”
“I’m Illumca. Connie’s partner and lover,” she said firmly.
“May Hurgul grant you great happiness,” the Centaur said while offering her arm.
“You should grasp her elbow with your left arm,” Connie whispered.
“Don’t worry, I’ve learned my lessons. I won’t grasp too tight.”
After the quick introduction, Connie was invited to join the small group of women who were chatting amongst themselves. They were the Hero of Vorzenny’s companion and there were 3 of them. One was a tall woman with black eyes and black hair that reached her waist who had been sipping her wine silently. Another, who was eating a large grilled squid was an orange-haired young girl that was more interested in the food than the party. The last was a cheerful girl with an impressive cowlick jutting out from her golden hair.
They were all different, but a similar theme was that they were all fair-skinned and beautiful in their own way.
“Hi, I’m Leida. The one with a stern face is our teacher, Kamiya, and this little sunshine here is Siene.”
“Where is Yuuji?”
“I think he’s wandering around again. He does that often,” the cheerful girl said. “He should be back soon, I’m sure you’ll like him. He is a very nice person. Isn’t that right, Teacher?”
The beautiful woman suddenly hunched over and quickly covered her mouth with a handkerchief and coughed a few times. Dry, hacking coughs that made even the people looking feel the pain. After she finished coughing, she quickly stored the handkerchief, but Connie managed to catch a glimpse of blood on it.
“Hmm,” Connie stepped forward and gave the black-haired woman a cursory glance. The woman became guarded and drew back, her hand reaching for her belt. She frowned upon finding nothing.
“W-what are you doing?!” Kamiya asked.
Connie moved her right hand towards the woman’s face then said. “You look sick. Maybe I can help.”
“…I don’t know what you are doing but go ahead,” she said flatly. “I’ve been having this sicknes for a few years now. No healers had found out what it is.”
“She is a Healer, you know. She helped the Hero of Al-Khemiya when she was having trouble breathing,” Akula said encouragingly.
“Yellow color on the white of the eyes. Damaged, unhealthy nails with signs of yellow coloration,” Connie murmured. Then she pressed hard around the stomach and the liver, sending a wisp of Yin Energy inside. Just enough to feel what was wrong with her. Oh, that’s not a healthy liver.
She then said, “You are heavy drinker, aren’t you? Have you been experiencing hair loss lately?”
“H-how did you know that?”
“Oh, I have my ways,” Connie laughed, glancing at the amount of glasses near her. “The good news is, if you stop drinking and start eating healthier, you’ll feel much better.”
“Not drinking?! I’d rather die!” She complained
“And you will, if you don’t stop drinking,” she warned her. “And I don’t think a High Potion can heal a liver.”
“Can you do something?” Leida asked. “If you know what’s wrong with her, then you must know how to heal her.”
“Maybe. Tell you what, I don’t have my stuff with me, but maybe you can visit me tomorrow in the Inn I am staying in. Akula know where it is.”
As they were chatting, a trumpet was sounded, and all attention turned towards the Throne at the top of the steps at the Northern end of the Audience Chamber. The announcer took a deep breath and then projected his booming voice towards the guests.
“Presenting! His Majesty, The King of Calendia! The 13th King of Calendia! Vanquisher of the Demon of the Lake of Sorrow! King Gerard of Calendia!! And Her Majesty, the Queen of Calendia! Queen Margarethe!!”
The King came into the Audience Chamber that had been turned into a ballroom in a gallant uniform, with his Queen walking elegantly beside him. Some of the older Nobles and Knights noticed that it was the same uniform that he had worn once in the battlefield.
But their surprise did not stop there, for behind the couple they saw the ominous old Advisor to the King. This man had never joined any of the festivities they held, quite enjoying sitting behind the curtain of the Palace politics. Beside him was the Hero of Calendia, a serious look on his face.
The Announcer turned his head and quickly continued, unsure of why the two were coming in with the Royal Family. “The Royal Advisor! Lord Arlond Moredi! And the Hero of Calendia! Sakagami Akira!!”
Many speculations and murmurs of wonderment quickly came about, especially those of the lower Nobles. Some of the others, however, was quite calm. Especially those within Duke Gladstone’s or the Knights’ inner circle. The latter’s Acting Commander being strangely missing from the Ball, to many of the hopeful young ladies’ disappointment.
The King and Queen walked down the steps from the throne to join the guests, followed by the other two.
The crowd of people surrounding Allenca parted open and The King and Queen walked towards her. Much to the confusion of everyone in the room. Especially to the Announcer, who was not paid well enough to handle this many breaches in protocol.
But to the King, this was the least he could do. A gesture of apology and respect for this young girl who just came of age. The girl who bore the weight of a whole Faith.
For what he was about to unveil would render the miracle she created today…a mere side note in the book of history.
After finishing his little meal, Martell contented himself with listening to the gossips and conversations between the servants and the cooks in-between the flurry of orders and curses. A testament to the ability of Mr. Grover’s management.
One of the cooks were frying up an egg when he saw the pans starting to move.
“Mr. Grover!”
“Alright! Everyone listen! Stop what yer doin’ and hold on to yer stations!”
Without any further question, everyone there moved all the pans that were on the fire and covered all the pots with boiling soups in them.
“What’s going on?”
“Hold on to that seat!”
The pans began to gradually bang against each other harder and the stone floors rumbled, knocking Martell off his small seat. The rumbling only lasted for about a minute before settling down. Upon which time everyone resumed working.
“W – what was that?”
“I dunno. It’s been going on quite a bit, that. The rumblin’ and the quakin’,” the cook grimaced. “Just around the castle. Also, you can’t hear it right outside but sometimes we hear this noise from down below. Sort of like water flowing. And then the walls became very hot for a while.”
“Really? Isn’t it just because we are in the kitchen?”
The Cook shook his head. “No, it’s not that. I’ve been working ‘ere since I was a boy wet behind the ears. I know when things aren’t right.”
Martell placed his keen ear to the floor, and indeed he heard a strange sound coming from underground.
“Hey, what are ya doin’? The floor’s dirty!”
The boy ignored the scolding and focused his Yang Energy to his ear, giving him the ability to listen to the noise below far more clearly.
Indeed, he heard something underground.
Like water rushing into the river, gurgling and bubbling with great force. But more than that, he heard something else. A deep and powerful sound that made his heart sank.
As if some great beast was awakening.