“Tell her she can come to me if she is having too much trouble. I come from another world, I am quite open-minded when it comes to things like that.”
“Y-Y-You!!”
Darian stuttered, unable to put together a word for a moment because of how angry he was.
Humiliation.
Absolute Humiliation.
His face, now red in rage, turned towards his guards and,
“WHAT ARE YOU STANDING THERE FOR!?
ATTACK H- Aaaagghhhh!!”
Before he could give commands, Kael pulled his arm and he screamed in pain.
“Shut it.”
Kael threatened.
His piercing blue eyes stared at the guards and,
“Stay back.”
He ordered.
His words were calm, but the guards’ bodies shook, and they stumbled back. It wasn’t for the sake of their ‘young master,’ but because they felt intimidated by the man in front of them.
Kael then extended his hand towards the old man and,
“The stone.”
He ordered.
With trembling hands, the old man passed the ‘stone’ to him. Kael stored it inside his Sanctuary, took out a gold coin, and tossed it towards the old man.
“Take it.”
The old man widened his eyes in disbelief as he desperately jumped at the coin.
By now, the commotion had attracted quite a lot of attention, and Darian, who noticed that, laughed out loud.
“Hahaha!
Y-You!
You have no clue what you have done, do you!?
I am the Young Master of Mistvale City, the youngest son of the City Lord!
Now that so many people have seen what you did, what do you think will happen once Father hears the word of it!?
I am telling you!
Let me go, and I’ll make sure your death will be…”
Darian continued to rant. Kael, however, ignored the Young Master’s ramblings as his mind started racing.
These ‘ramblings’ weren’t exactly something he could ignore. It would have been fine if this one was the son of some random noble, but… if he was indeed the son of the City Lord, then Kael was in trouble.
‘It just had to be the highest authority here.
Just my luck.’
Kael sighed inwardly.
“Sarah.”
He called out.
“Prepare your things. We are leaving.”
“Huh?”
Hearing his words, Sarah and the other women frowned in confusion.
Going back?
Why?
“If what he is saying is true, then staying here is too risky. We cannot fight an entire city on our ow-“
Kael, sensing their confusion, started explaining but,
“Lord Kael…”
Before he could even complete, Aria called out with a strange expression on her face.
“What are you talking about?”
She questioned, acting as if Kael was missing something obvious.
“This is the Drakthar Kingdom. No one here would dare to make things difficult for you.
A mere son of the City Lord? Even if the City Lord himself were here, he would bow his head and apologize for this fool’s mistake.”
She spoke.
A City Lord?
What value did he have in front of the Hero who even the King respects?
There was no need for them to leave, actually, this was the perfect time to sit and watch the drama.
It was also the reason Aria, who stood behind Kael, was tempting Darian with provocative smiles.
Yes…
She… might have been the reason why the poor man acted in such a manner all along.
“You have no reason to leave.”
Aria spoke, not wanting Kael to change his plans because of her.
Kael would have believed her words if… he hadn’t seen what he did see.
He knew the entire Kingdom wasn’t his ally. His enemies were hidden, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they were hidden here.
It was a perfect opportunity to get rid of him by accident.
He needed to get away.
“No, we are leav-“
However, before Kael could complete his words,
“SCREEEEECCCHHHH!!!”
A loud screech was heard.
The people turned their heads towards the sky and saw a giant blue magic beast flying in their direction.
“The City Lord’s here!”
Someone shouted.
How could the people not recognize the Bond the City Lord cherished?
Kael’s expression changed.
It was too late.
He prepared himself for whatever was about to happen while his mind raced, trying to find a way out, even Igni was prepared to come out at any moment.
Thud
The majestic beast landed on the road, and quickly, a man wearing a silk robe descended on the ground. Kael saw the man’s features and his face turned solemn.
‘Igni, be prepared.’
he spoke.
The man was an older version of Darian.
He was indeed that man’s father.
And as if to confirm that,
“Hahahaha!”
Darian laughed out.
“You! You are done for!
I told you to listen to me, but you didn’t! Now you will pay for your mistakes!”
The man then glanced at his father and,
“Father! Look! I just wanted to buy what the people of our city were selling to help their business when suddenly, this man appeared in front of me and assaul-“
Before Darian could even complete his words, the City Lord walked towards Kael and,
“Hero Kael.”
He greeted, and then, with an apologetic smile on his face, he slightly bowed his head.
“I am the City Lord of Mistvale City, Sylas Mistwood, and I apologize for my son’s foolish actions.
Clearly, I have pampered him too much since he was my youngest. I have failed as a parent.”
“W-What…?”
Darian couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“Father! He was the one who attacked me! He even said all those thin-“
Suddenly, five white magic circles appeared around the City Lord’s hand, and Darian lost his voice.
It was as if he had turned mute, and he seemed to have no realization of it since he still continued to move his mouth, just that no voice came out of it.
“Again, I apologize from the bottom of my heart, Hero Kael. I hope you won’t let this incident get to you.”
Sylas bowed his head even further, and the people who had gathered here stared at the situation, their surprise evident on their faces.
“Did the City Lord just call him… Hero…?”
“The Hero…? The one who is summoned in the Royal Capital?”
“He… is the Hero…?”
“Then… isn’t the youngest…
Done for…?”
Someone spoke, and suddenly, Darian, who realized what was happening, widened his eyes in horror.
Only now did he realize why his father was acting like this!
This man was THE Hero!
No wonder the three women behind him were constantly grinning at him with that condescending look on their faces, they knew what was going to happen from the very beginning!
Darian turned towards the three women, and just as he expected, the three of them were all grinning at him, especially the silver-haired one, she even dared to wink at him!
‘That bit-‘
Darian wanted to curse, right now, however, he had to calm down.
After all, he knew they were in the position of Absolute Power, he couldn’t go against them and antagonize them any further.
‘What the hell…?’
Darian, however, wasn’t the only one who was surprised, Kael was the same.
While he did know his status as the Hero was important, to think even a City Lord of a Major City would bow his head in front of him like this…
As if understanding his confusion, Aria walked towards him and explained with a wide grin on her face,
“Don’t be too surprised, Hero Kael.
You are a man chosen by Lord Feraos himself, a man who is supposed to protect all of Nerathis. Your status, especially here in the Drakthar Kingdom, is no lower than the King’s.”
Aria then glanced at Darian with a disdainful look on her face and,
“You have no reason to be intimidated by a fool who doesn’t know his place.”
Kael raised his eyebrow at those words.
To think she would speak in such a manner, right in front of this man’s father to boot. But what surprised him even more was…
“That is correct, Hero Kael.
Please do not foil your arrangements because of my foolish son’s mistakes.”
The City Lord nodded, glaring at his son.
And Kael finally realized it.
Sure, there might be enemies inside the Drakthar Kingdom, but…
There was a reason why those enemies were hidden in the shadows. Even if their influence was strong, it wasn’t strong enough to appear in the light.
Even if Kael was surrounded by enemies, as long as he remained in the light, the enemies hidden in the darkness would not approach him.
Even if the enemies were here in Mistvale City, as long as everyone knew that the Hero was in this city, they would never dare to harm him.
And as if confirming his thoughts, the City Lord called out,
“Hero Kael…
Now that your identity is revealed, things might become troublesome for you, so why don’t you spend the night in the City Manor instead? It would also give me a chance to make up for my son’s mistake.”
He offered, and Kael understood the underlying meaning.
The City Lord was trying to protect him from anyone who might have malicious intentions. After all, the City Lord wouldn’t be able to deal with the consequences if something happened to the Hero in his city.
Kael’s eyes shined in realization. He had finally started understanding a bit of politics.
“Then I will trouble you.”
Kael nodded. He had no other choice in the matter anyway.
“T-Thank you! I will make it so you and your allies have the most comfortable stay possible!”
Sylas’s face brightened up, but then suddenly, as if he recalled something, an awkward look appeared on his face as he scratched the back of his head.
“Also…
Could you leave my son now…?”
Yes, Kael was still restraining Darian and had placed his foot on top of him.
“Ah, right.”
When Kael realized what he was doing, he quickly stepped away. The dude was so weak that he didn’t even realize he was still restraining him. It just felt too natural.
‘A natural stepping stone.’
Kael commented in his head, nodding his head with a satisfied look on his face.
‘Fuck, I am still in public.’
He quickly shook his head as he coughed and then turned towards Sylas,
“My bad.”
He apologized.
“No worries, my son deserved it.
I will make sure he gets punished for his actions.”
“Well, I am just glad he has a caring father like you.”
Kael replied, completely forgetting everything he said to this man’s wife before.