"Didn't expect to see you here today, Saint of The Holy Valkyrie"
Arthur spoke with an amused smile on his face, and Lakyus could not help but blush in embarrassment. It still felt a bit odd having someone address her like that.
"Y-yes I had to report some things to the princess today"
She responded with a stutter whilst trying not to look at him. The two of them were walking side by side on their way towards the Princess's chambers since the king had informed Lakyus to bring Arthur there.
"You didn't bring your team with you?"
He asked and stole a glance at her as she seemed to be doing her best to hide the embarrassment she felt. She was a well-respected Adamantite adventurer with a good reputation, but beneath all that she was basically a weeb, he found the contrast between herself and the image she projects to be cute.
"they usually stay in the guild when I come here, most because they don't like all the etiquette stuff they have to pay attention to"
"makes sense, your sword isn't with you either wouldn't it be terrible if someone else grabs hold of it?"
"that won't happen because my team knows not handle it with my permission"
She stated, this time without a shred of embarrassment, of course this was an already planned excuse because she expected him to ask that question.
"Is that so, I suppose your team would understand the dangers such a weapon held If handled recklessly"
He informed in a sudden serious tone that caused Lakyus to want to shrivel up and let the earth swallow her. She had to change the topic of conversation and let this conversation about her fantasies die. Seeing her Cringe in embarrassment forced Arthur to stifle his laughter and struggle to maintain a serious facade.
"I-indeed… uh hey, what about the story you were telling me about last time? You never finished it"
"which one, I don't remember"
"the one about the walls and stuff"
"nah that story is boring. Let's talk about serious stuff like how you resist Kilineiram's control"
"no , that's boring too, you're story was far more interesting. Come on Please"
She pleaded, seeing the look of desperation on her face. Arthur could not help but sigh. The cringe doesn't kill you,it only makes you wish you were dead. He supposed that she had enough, so he relented.
"Okay, okay, fine, where did we leave off last time?"
He asked, the both of them had only met a handle full of times since their initial encounter In E-Rantel, this was their third Meeting this month and when they had met after the E-Rantel incident Lakyus had gotten curious and asked him to share some stories of his home land, she asked as sort Of an Ice breaker and that's how he ended up telling here a few Short stories and some abridged versions of anime he Had seen.
"you Stopped When Eren was eaten by the bearded giant"
"Oh right, let's get back to that then"
And so while the two walked towards their destination, Arthur told her the story of AOT, one of his personal favourites, sure the ending was lacklustre but he thought it was a fine ending overall, people were just Mad because Eren wasn't the edgelord they wanted
…..
"Renner, my daughter, please understand this is for your benefit"
The king pleaded with the princess, after having told her about the marriage and its purpose, he had hoped she would agree or at the very least see the merits and think about it, yet that did not happen. Renner out rightly refused.
"How would that be for my benefit, Father?"
She asked, with an ever-present smile on her face, For the most part, she was annoyed. She was aware this entire thing about marriage was simply an attempt to put a proper leash on Arthur and prevent other nobles from trying to bribe Arthur, however that meant she would have to give up command over Arthur to someone else and she will never do that.
"Please understand my daughter politics is a man's game and it can get very dangerous. It's not unthinkable for nobles to kill people they perceive as obstacles, this way, at least you'll be protected behind the name of a Marquis."
The King explained, for the most part It was true that politics could get very dangerous, since Arthur was Renner's knight and his value has been established, that means there will be more than a few who seek him to be their vassal however if he remains Loyal Renner, its not impossible for someone to put an assassination order on the princess making it unnecessary for Arthur to be Loya to a dead Princess.
One of the major reasons why there has yet to be a coup by the nobles is because of Gazeff, who acts as a deterrent, without Arthur the nobles would devise a plan to get rid of Gazeff, however with Arthur that means the playing field would be equal.
"I understand father however, I am already in Contact with the Aindra Family and already have their backing, I also have the approval of a majority of the commoners, thanks to my attempt at trying to abolish Slavery and Arthur Has more than enough power to protect me from any assassination attempts as such I do not actually need to marry anyone, why would I trade the little politic power I have just for the sake of safety?"
She detailed, obviously some things she said were lies, Arthur was only her knight in an unofficial way this meant that she was simply a place holder for when the kingdom official recognizes him as a knight, then he could pledge his sword to whoever he wished. This was why other nobles could possibly bribe him to their side; it's the same reason why Gazeff was left alone by the nobles.
"Renner my daughter, I ask you Of this not as a king but as father concerned for your safety, I know what lengths nobles would go to in order to attain power and murder is not above their methods"
He pleaded, fully aware of himself. He knew well that he had hardly been a father to his children and had prioritised his kingly duties above all else.
Renner's face remained the same. She was unmoved by his words. In fact, she held in her laughter, and she was unaware that the King and her father were different people. Although she did appreciate his attempt at emotional manipulation.
"I'm afraid my mind remains unchanged father"
"What can you even do with such political power?"
"Well for the most part, I had simply wanted to live my life free from this stifling life and powerlessness. However, I do have something in mind."
"And what would that be?"
"Well…"
*knock knock*
Renner could not finish her sentence; she was immediately interrupted by a knock on the door, causing her to have to answer and allowing the ones who knocked to enter. As the two entered, Lakyus quickly whispered in Arthur's ear, causing him to nod, this caused Renner to crease her brows as she saw their exchange. She didn't like it.
"Your Majesty, I have brought Sir Arthur just as you requested"
Lakyus, informed as she bowed, Arthur, of course, did the same before walking to stand behind Renner and gave a nod to Gazeff as the two of them exchanged brief eye contact.
"Ah sir Arthur, I hope my Summons did not interrupt anything important"
"Of course not your highness"
Arthur responded, his training was going nowhere, and he was somewhat stuck. He figured he would need in-battle experience in order to properly be able to use a domain expansion.
"good I wanted to talk to you about a matter concerning your meeting with my son Barbro"
…..
A/N: you know I kind of wanted to skim past this and get to the more action parts of the story I felt it was necessary to add the scenes with Renner and her father, give a glimpse of how they usually interact and how their relationship is like. So please tell me your thoughts on that, how do you feel about it?
Thank yall for the support, I appreciate it and I am greatful for it. Thank you .