Chapter 47: Flipping Impressions
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty. Please let me explain the matter." Lancell said with a bow.
The king looked over and saw the collapsed crown prince. His eyes widened, as it then shifted into rage. He looked Lancell. "I do not know who you are, but I hope your explanation satisfies me." He then raised a hand. "Capture them."
"Noo!!!" A feminine voice suddenly screamed in protest.
Lancell and the king looked towards the owner. It was Aria. She was speeding to their direction, as she waved her hand to get attention. Why was she so late?
She stopped in from of the two of them, and then spoke as she faced the king. "They're my friends. I won't let you imprison them."
The king raised a brow, then anger filled his expression as he spoke. "I see... I see... So it was these mongrels who tricked you... no wonder..."
The word 'mongrel' seemed to have irked Arthur. "The heck was tha—" she yelled but was stopped mid-way.
"Shut up, Arthur." Lancell suddenly cut her off with a hostile tone.
Arthur seemed to get his intentions as she grit her teeth and turned away.
Aria then spoke. "Anyway, I can't let you take them."
The king broke from his daze when he heard Aria, and asked. "And why is that?" anger was visible in his tone.
"There has to be a reason why she did it!" she explained. The crowd then turned to Arthur.
"What? He pissed me off, and we duelled." She stated. And she couldn't have explained it worse.
The king fumed. "Knights! Take these blasted plebeians into prison! I want them captured and questioned!!"
The knights around suddenly drew their swords as mana circulated in their bodies. Lancell saw this, and warned. "Although we have no qualms about being questioned, we will not take kindly to being restricted." His expression shifted to a cold glare. "I will have you know. Your Majesty." He added.
The king's face twitched from the blatant threat, but he spoke. "You have no choice on the matter."
Aria seemed to have something to say, but the knights had already rushed to apprehend Lancell and Arthur. However, the moment they closed in...
Lancell vanished from his spot.
"H-Huh?" one of the knight let out a confused sound. And as for those who went after Arthur...
BOOM!!
Dust flew as a booming sound resounded, and the knights were suddenly blown back farther from their original position.
"Didn't I warn you?" Lancell's voice entered everyone's ears. Everyone turned their head towards the direction of the source—behind the king.
Cold sweat poured out from the king's forehead as he felt cold steel touching his neck. Lancell had suddenly appeared behind him, and with a sword pointed to his neck.
"We hate being restricted." Lancell added. His tone no longer being polite.
The entirety of the duelling grounds went silent as the nearby critters had fled from Lancell's bloodlust. The knights suddenly felt powerless, and the king seemed to realize his mistake. Proven by his pale face and the barely discernible shiver.
"Wh-Who are you?" the king asked with fear and wariness. His previous dignity gone to winds.
Lancell opened his mouth to answer, but it was Aria who spoke first. "He's my friend!"
Lancell "..."
Arthur "..."
The knights "..."
The king "..."
The entire venue went silent again, until Lancell heaved a sigh. "In any case, we don't want unnecessary trouble. Besides," he then dematerialized Arkenvalle. "what happened here was a duel. Meaning that it was done in mutual consent."
The king continued silence, but he considered Lancell's words. Perhaps it was because of his strength, or maybe he didn't hurt him or make demands, but Lancell was an equal to his eyes now. He at least feared for his own life.
"V-Very well. However, there is something we need to discuss first." The king said.
Lancell nodded. "Yeah. My thoughts exactly." He agreed.
And so, they changed locations.
◇◇◇
In the king's study, Lancell was accompanied by Arthur, and the king was with his guard. The king sat on his chair and offered them a seat, which the guard took out from who-knows-where, as even Lancell hadn't noticed.
"Hm?" Lancell hummed in confusion. "Where did these come from?"
The king smiled at his confusion with a tinge of pride. "It's his magic. Storage. It allows him to store things in a different dimension."
"Oh? He's a Voidwalker?" Arthur interjected.
The king's brows raised in surprise. "You know about them?"
"More or less."
"I see." The king then sighed. "Anyway, it's about your ridiculous request through Aria."
Lancell inwardly tensed. "Is it that hard?" he asked. "If it's too much, then you can forget it. We don't want to push anyone."
The king shook his head. "It's not that it's too much. It's just that," he pondered for a while. "we do not have any gain in it."
And there it was. The one Lancell was waiting for. Lancell smiled and proved him wrong. "Of course, it won't be free." He stated. "We will give information."
"About what?"
"Well, to make things easier..." Lancell turned to the wall to his right. "You can come out now. I won't fall for that a second time."
The king seemed confused, but then, the wall suddenly opened.
"You got me! As expected of Lancell!" a cheerful voice spoke, and from inside, Aria came out.
The king was aghast at the sight. Perhaps he wasn't aware of the passage by the wall, which would mean Aria built it herself.
"What a bad hobby. I don't like it." Lancell commented.
"Weell~, I don't have anything better to do, so..." she trailed, but Lancell continued in her stead.
"You dug holes everywhere?"
"Yup!" She admitted.
The king finally snapped out of his daze, as he shot Aria a questioning look. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Emergency escape routes!" Aria excused.
The king palm his forehead, but he recovered quite quickly. He was Aria's father, after all. He must be used to her eccentricities.
The king then faced Lancell, and asked. "In any case, can you tell me what information you are willing to offer?"
And another serious talk began.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone