The lighting inside the castle was low. Following Helen, they made their way through the main entrance and slipped inside one of the many doors adjoining the central hall. The only source of light through the corridor were the torches that were hung on either side of the path. Soon they found themselves at the end of the corridor which led into a single room.
"They are all waiting inside."
Helen gave a deep bow and left.
Sirius opened the wooden door and entered the room. It was a square room that was not large by any means but it was enough to fit around 15 people inside it. There were 4 people waiting for him inside, other than him and Luna. It was empty besides the one wooden table situated in the middle of the room around which the four people were sitting. On the table stood a lantern which was responsible for lighting up the entire room and two empty chairs were present near it. The faces of those four people could not be seen clearly and as a result their faces or expressions weren't easy to make out. Their enormous shadows that were cast onto the wall gave the room a menacing feel. There was one small window at the top of the wall facing westwards through which the moonlight filtered in.
"Ah! Hero Sirius. We have been waiting for you.", said King Edward who was sitting at the far end of the table.
Suddenly a man who was sitting at the front of the table interjected, "You don't have to go hide around the city just to fuck, ya know?"
With a sarcastic smile Sirius replied, "Sorry, Axel. We would have come back sooner if we knew you missed us so much."
The only people present in this small meeting were the King of Ceartus- Edward Rector, his wife and Queen of Ceartus- Victoria Rector, their Chief advisor- Adam Snowville and the head of the army, Axel Griffin.
An irritated look appeared on Axel's face but before he could retort, Sirius turned to the king and continued- "You could have sent a word if it was urgent, your highness."
"It is alright, Hero Sirius. We didn't discuss anything vital yet. Have a seat, you two." said the queen who sat beside the king.
"Yes, your majesty."
Sirius and Luna take the two available seats at the end of the table and after they settle down, the King clears his throat and starts speaking.
"It seems that their hero has been summoned. It's time. Finally we can set our plan into motion. I assume that all the necessary arrangements have been made, Axel?"
With a self-assured smile, Axel replied- "Yes milord. We are ready."
"Great job. The time has finally come, my brethren. We have waited a long time for this and we now stand a chance to emerge victorious. We have to act as soon as possible and eliminate the Hero of Liberia before he gets accustomed to his powers."
King turns to Sirius and asks- "Sirius, my dear friend, are you ready?"
Dear friend…?
Sirius deliberates over the plan for a moment and replies- "This plan can eliminate the hero if it all goes well. However, if things go south, then we could just as easily have an enraged hero to defeat. One that is hellbent on killing us all. Are you sure we should not find an alternative?"
The man who was silent up until now, Adam Snowville said in a detached voice- "It's a risk which we have to take. Right now, the hero must be overwhelmed by the sudden changes to his world. His mana control and trait mastery will be at its worst. This is the time to strike and strike hard."
Displeased with the answer, Axel continued- "If their hero goes into a delirium and is hellbent on killing us, then it makes our job even easier."
From the faint lighting that shone on his face, what can only be thought of as a devious smile slowly grew wider on his face.
"It's easier to get angry monsters to do what you want them to do. They become predictable, just like cornered prey. It's one of the sweetest feelings in the world."
Things were moving way faster than Sirius had first anticipated. He was aware of the plan that was being discussed but he had no idea about just how prepared Axel was for this situation.
Doubt.
Was asking him to make his way to 'Magus' a mistake?
Ignoring Axel, Sirius gave a slight nod to Snowville.
"Hmm. It does make sense, Mr. Snowville. Let's do it then."
The king clapped his hands together. In a jubilant tone he said- "Splendid. The moment we find an opportunity, we should be able to put HIM to use. Axel, Sirius and Luna, you will only get a moment's worth of time to strike. Make it count."
The king raised his right hand up above his head and tightly clenched his fist. With a determined look in his eyes, he brought his fist down onto the table with fearsome velocity.
THUD!
"Together we will kill their hero for sure!"
---
(Liberia - Royal court)
Fed up with talking about Sirius, King Augustus said- "Anyways. Enough about that wretched hero of theirs. Let's take things one at a time, shall we? You shall begin training starting tomorrow. So please, rest well. We need you in your best condition come morning."
"I will try my best to not disappoint you!"
"That is the spirit. Please remember that you can always ask us for anything that you want. So, go back to your room now and sleep easy!"
"Thank you for your kindness! I hope that all of you have a good night's sleep as well."
From behind Arwin, Iris said- "Shall we make our way back to your room, Lord hero?"
Ah, my Iris. Your voice never gets old.
"Yes! Let's go."
"Right this way, Lord Hero."
Iris bowed her head to everyone that were present in that hall and Arwin did the same after watching her do it. They exited the room and the door closed behind them.
Iris led the way as they walked through the same hallway using which they entered the Royal Court. After a brief moment, Iris was the first to break the silence.
"How do you feel, my Hero?"
"It was nerve-wracking! I was very scared in the beginning, but I felt more at ease as time went on and we got to know each other properly! The king is a good man! Same with the Queen and the others, of course!"
After a brief pause, Iris replied- "Hmm. They truly are kind people. I'm sure you will get along well with everyone."
"Yeah! Hope so!"
They eventually reached his room.
Iris turned to Arwin and said, "Here we are, My hero. I shall come pick you up first thing in the morning. Rest well."
"Yeah. You seem tired too. You need to rest as much as me, you know? Sleep tight!"
As if she wasn't expecting it, she contemplated it for a moment. A smile that was different from the one she was wearing could be seen surfacing across her face.
"Sweet dreams, my hero."
"Yeah! Let's meet in the morning then."
"Indeed."
Arwin enters the room and heads straight to bed. He noticed that a change of clothes was kept at the edge of the bed, so he changed into them. The clothes were cream colored and made of the thinnest material. They felt so light on the skin that one would instantly think that they weren't wearing anything at all.
As he tries to sleep, thoughts of all kinds surface in his mind. He thinks to himself about everything that happened today. From being ready to end his life altogether and even jumping off of that building, to then suddenly being transported to Liberia. Him meeting MM and his words of advice. Then he remembered about MM asking him to meet him in some place called 'MAGUS'.
It seems like that will have to wait. There are just so many things occurring so suddenly that I don't have any time to think and plan. I will try to think for a way to get there once I learn more things about this world!
Him meeting Iris and how beautiful she was. How sweet her voice was and how plump her lips-
Then the meeting with the king, queen and the others in the King's court. How nervous he felt and then how he felt the urge to do something with his life for the first time in a matter of minutes. How he felt like rebelling against his uselessness.
They all seem like good people. I wonder if MM had a bad experience with them? His warnings didn't seem necessary. Perhaps he just wanted me to be careful...
Anyways. There are many things that I have to do tomorrow. They were talking about some classes and traits or whatever. I won't have to take any tests, would I? Gah!!
I hope I don't embarrass myself in front of Iris..
A creepy smile came over his face.
"I'm glad that I got sucked into this world…"