After witnessing Victor's superfluous entrance and the long delay he caused, Ragnar's temper began to boil.
His strong fist clenched so hard that the teacup in his hand was crushed, drawing the attention of the entire meeting room towards him.
It's important to note that even though Ragnar Stenmark was known for being one of the top people who are easy to get along with within the Hightower high council, he was still the Stenmark clan patriarch and the descendant of the Viking warrior.
He was also the most powerful rune magic user, and at his core, he was a warrior who took no nonsense from anyone, even from the Grand Councilor of the Hightower.
In contrast, Who is Victor?
A small king in a powerless country and a Master Rank mage who had gained his rank through countless magical means and sacrificing countless normal people to forcefully upgrade his power.
In comparison to Ragnar, Victor's power and status were insignificant.
As the attention of the room shifted towards Ragnar, Victor spoke up with a sneer on his face.
"Who is this uncouth barbaric looking old man? Who brought him here?" He asked, attempting to assert his authority.
Despite Ragnar's fine attire and expensive suit, Victor was unfazed. The sight of the bear-like, muscular old man crushing a teacup in his hand had ruined his entrance, and he couldn't allow it.
In Victor's eyes, there was no one in the Tessia kingdom more important than him, as he was both a king and a Master Rank Mage. The thought of anyone else challenging his authority was unfathomable to him.
Victor's eyes fall on Klaus, who is trying to stifle his laughter.
"Was it you who brought this old man here, Klause? Even though your abilities are good, but Your lack of respect for me is getting out of line." His tone is threatening as he addresses Klause, whom he dislikes and knows to have no respect for him.
If others within his circle possessed even half of Klause's abilities, he would have already disposed of Klause.
Then, He recalls hearing about Klause's girlfriend, Grace, and her seductive figure, and briefly considers having a night or two with her.
However, Victor is aware that Klause is much stronger than him, having earned his Master Rank Mage status through his own skills and hard work, unlike Victor, who had resorted to sacrificing countless lives to forcibly upgrade his power. He does not want to provoke Klaus into a confrontation.
Klause chuckled for a moment before regaining his composure and speaking in a respectful tone.
"Please forgive me, Your Majesty. Allow me to introduce him," said Klause, gesturing respectfully towards Ragnar, who was struggling to contain his anger.
"This is the Patriarch of the Stenmark clan, and the High Councilor of the Hightower, Ragnar Stenmark. And if he doesn't have the right to be here, then I'm afraid that none of us in this meeting room doesn't have the right to be here either."
Klause paused for a moment before quickly adding, as if he had just remembered something.
"Except for you, Your Majesty, of course. After all, you are the King of this country." Klause bowed deeply, his voice laced with sarcasm, feigning respect and fear towards the King.
Victor's anger simmered, Klause's sarcasm had not gone unnoticed. But he quickly shifted his focus to Ragnar, who was clearly seething with anger. Victor knew he had to diffuse the situation before things got out of hand.
"Lord Stenmark, I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused you. Please allow me to make it up to you after this meeting. I can arrange for some of the most beautiful and desirable women in the country to entertain you. Celebrities, even. You name it, and I'll make it happen," Victor said with a forced smile.
However, Ragnar's response caught him off guard.
"Do I look like a good-for-nothing who wastes his life enjoying women's embrace like you?" he growled.
Victor was at a loss for words. He had never been in a situation like this before and didn't know how to respond. Usually, he would just send someone else to apologize for him.
But he couldn't do that this time. Ragnar was too powerful, and one wrong move could ruin him.
As he tried to come up with a response, Victor couldn't help but wonder why someone as influential as Ragnar was even here.
If he had known, he would have been more prepared and not relied solely on his usual methods to appease people.
As Victor struggled to come up with a response, Klause saw an opportunity to take control of the situation. He walked towards Ragnar and bowed deeply in a professional manner.
"I apologize for our lack of consideration, Lord Stenmark. It is my responsibility that I forgot to notify our king of your arrival. We promise that it will not happen again. Besides, the meeting is already three hours late. I suggest we proceed with the meeting while enjoying our lunch. I will do my best to make it as enjoyable as possible for you, Lord Stenmark."
Klause's words quickly appeased the powerful mage, and Ragnar let out a knowing smile.
He recognized that if someone as organized and professional as Klause had wanted to notify the king of his arrival, he would have done so and would have never forgotten.
Ragnar realized that Klause was using his appearance to teach the king a lesson in professionalism.
He decided to play along, so as not to implicate Klause too much. After all, he wasn't sure what the unforgiving king might do to Klause once he returned.
"Humph! Just this once! You better remember it Klause!"
Ragnar huffed in apparent anger at Klause, playing his part to make the king understand that Klause had taken the blame for him.
The king appeared convinced by Ragnar's act, unaware of the High Councilor's true intentions.
While Ragnar prided himself on his honor and integrity, he also understood the importance of political maneuvering in his position as Patriarch of his clan and member of the Hightower Council.
Despite his distaste for deceit, he recognized that sometimes it was necessary to achieve his goals and protect his people without bloodshed. And so, he can't help but need to learn a thing or two about political acting.
"Thank you for your understanding, Lord Stenmark," Klause said, grateful for Ragnar's cooperation. He returned to his seat and began preparing for the presentation.
Klause instructed his subordinates to inform the kitchen to prepare an array of gourmet dishes to entertain Ragnar.
After 15 minutes of preparation, he made some adjustments to the sequence and data to make it easier for Ragnar to understand and enjoy.
As the first dish arrived in the room, waiters dressed in formal vests entered carrying the gourmet food, for meeting attendees, and especially for Ragnar.
Despite still pretending to be angry, Ragnar's face relaxed after tasting the food, enjoying the delicacies provided.
After resolving the problem between Ragnar and Victor, the presentation began.
"Gentlemen, first I want to introduce you to Magitek and his background," Klause began as he changed the slide, revealing a photo of Daniel, but from ten years prior when he was in his early twenties.
"His full name is Daniel Blake. He was originally an orphan and was adopted into the Blake family due to his exceptional intelligence and advanced learning capabilities. In other words, he is a bonafide genius," Klause explained as he displayed a photo of Daniel studying robotic engineering during his university days, with various awards and accolades visible on the display behind him.
"At the age of 10, he created his first A.I. At 12, he developed a robot that was more advanced than most robotic research institutes in the kingdom. And at 14, he graduated early from university and developed a new fully automated production line for heavy industry, increasing production speed by three times the usual rate," Klause continued.
Montgomery was intrigued and interjected with a question.
"Wait, you said he was originally an orphan. Do we know where he came from? Were his parents deceased or did someone abandon him at the orphanage?"
Klause looked at Montgomery, his face showing a hint of perplexity.
"That is the crux of the problem, Mr. Montgomery. We simply don't know," He answered.
Edmon Willow interjected. "Wait, did our Mr. Perfect and Professionalism just admit he doesn't know? I think the sun might rise from the west tomorrow," jokingly teasing Klause for his mistake.
Klause didn't defend himself but instead let out a relaxed smile.
"Mr. Willow, I assure you that the reason we don't have this information is not due to any unprofessionalism on our part in gathering intelligence. Rather, there were special circumstances."
"What happened, Klause?" Ragnar asked, intrigued by the events that had transpired.
Klause nodded in gratitude at Ragnar's support before changing the slide. A picture of a burnt-down ruin that had been destroyed for a long time appeared on the screen.
"This is the orphanage I was referring to. About 25 years ago, it was burned down by an unknown group. No one survived the fire, including the owner of the orphanage who was in Italy and was also murdered. No one from that orphanage, whether children or staff, survived. We tried to dig up records and related information, but we found that they had all been deleted from our database by level 9 personnel," Klause explained.