Chapter 551: Chapter 550: Reason
"Master... your humble servant apologizes."
At that moment, a man standing more than two meters ahead of the dozen others kneeling behind him spoke with fear and regret in his voice.
They were currently underground in a dark chamber, facing the being seated in the shadows before them.
"How long did I give you?"
A drawn-out voice echoed through the room, causing both the leading man and the others to feel their hearts skip a beat.
They all knew the creature before them.
It was the most dangerous being in the Mortal Realm.
A member of that race.
They knew they could be killed in an instant.
Nervously, they gulped.
"...A... a year," the leading man answered.
The instant the words left his mouth, cracks spread throughout the room as everyone trembled.
"One year..."
"And the Mortal Realm is still not conquered."
"What a joke."
"You lot are nothing but a waste."
His voice rose with every word.
"Or..."
"Do you want an invasion?" he asked.
"N-No, my Lord!"
"Please, just give us more time."
"At most, in six months, the Mortal Realm will be ours," the leading man pleaded.
"Ours?" the being asked.
"Y-Yours, my Lord... yours," the leader quickly corrected himself, breaking into a cold sweat.
"You mortals can accomplish nothing..."
"But so be it."
"You have the privilege of six months."
"If the Mortal Realm has not been conquered after six months..."
"The invasion will begin."
The being declared.
"Thank you, my Lord."
The leading man bowed deeply, and the others hurriedly echoed his words.
Then they stood and left, allowing the room to return to silence.
"Pathetic."
"If not for this injury, I would have personally come out."
"How long do they think the seal at the entrance will hold?"
"Pathetic fools."
The being in the darkness muttered.
---
Once outside, the group gathered together.
The leading man took a deep breath, his aged face carrying a melancholy filled with emotions he couldn’t put into words.
"Gather everyone."
"The plan must be accelerated," the man ordered.
"Yes, Your Highness."
The group responded before hurried footsteps echoed through the underground passage as they rushed away.
*******
Elsewhere.....
"You’ll find Kiro outside on the balcony."
"Just head straight out."
Seeing Keith emerge, Devon spoke directly.
Keith paused and looked at him.
How did Devon know about this?
In the end, Keith couldn’t bring himself to ask.
He simply nodded and walked away.
Some things were better left unsaid.
Keith continued forward.
A few moments later, he reached the exit leading to the balcony.
The instant he saw it, his body twisted with emotions he couldn’t explain.
Fresh air drifted in through the opening as warm sunlight poured inside.
Keith’s footsteps slowed.
Then...
He stepped onto the balcony.
The moment he did, a refreshing breeze washed over him.
It felt as though every pore in his body had opened.
Even the bandages wrapped around him seemed nonexistent.
Before him stretched a vast expanse of land.
In the distance stood countless buildings.
People laughed as they walked through the streets.
Merchants moved from place to place.
Guards patrolled the kingdom.
At that moment, Keith was several floors above the ground, as the castle had been built upon an elevated plateau.
He felt strangely drawn to the sight before him.
He kept walking...
Only stopping when he reached the edge of the balcony.
His gaze remained fixed on the world below as tears slowly rolled down his face.
The clear blue sky filled his vision.
The blazing sunlight bathed the kingdom beneath him.
When was the last time he had seen the sky?
The sun?
Or even experienced this kind of freedom?
Yet as he looked upon it all...
He cried.
Not because he had missed it.
But because the feeling reminded him of the happy days he had shared with his parents.
"You doing okay?"
Suddenly, Keith heard a voice.
He wiped his eyes and looked to his left.
There, sitting casually on the edge of the balcony, was a humanoid figure with Grey skin.
It was Kiro.
The only opponent who had survived Keith’s attacks.
Now, it seemed he had become even stronger.
After all, he had appeared beside Keith without Keith noticing.
"I... I’m fine."
"You’re Kiro?" Keith asked, clearing his throat.
"Yeah."
"My name is Kiro."
"Well, I’m glad you finally woke up after sleeping for weeks."
Kiro said as he continued gazing over the kingdom, watching merchants come and go, people chatting, and trades taking place throughout the streets.
"Weeks?"
"What?"
"Why?"
Keith asked in shock.
Kiro kept his eyes fixed on the kingdom as he began to explain..
"You overdrawn your ability. It was a miracle you survived. Really, if you do that again, you will die. So unless it is truly a life-and-death situation, don’t ever..."
Kiro looked at Keith.
"...do it again."
Kiro spoke slowly as Keith frowned.
He had expected the consequences to be severe after losing his sense of reason, but he hadn’t expected that he had nearly died.
Kiro sighed.
"This is horrible news for you. After all, our new job is full of life-and-death situations."
"I’ll be fine," Keith replied.
Kiro nodded.
"I hope so," he muttered.
"The wo... I mean, Master said you would explain what this ’job’ really is."
"And why do we need to be her personal bodyguards? Isn’t that old guard we saw enough? After all, he’s stronger than us."
Keith voiced his doubts.
Seeing Keith quickly correct himself, Kiro smirked slightly before answering.
"Yeah, you’re right. That old guard is stronger than both of us."
"But then again..."
"The one we’re serving is a princess."
"And at a time like this..."
Kiro paused.
"Tell me."
"What do you see down there?"
"Compare their lives to the lives we had before."
Trying to explain, Kiro gestured toward the kingdom below.
Keith looked down once more.
Children were playing.
People chatted happily.
Merchants sold goods from their stalls.
Strong auras could be felt from the guards patrolling the streets.
Everything seemed peaceful.
"Peace," Keith answered.
Kiro nodded.
"That’s right."
"They have peace."
"To us, they’re living the best lives imaginable."
"After all, we slaves had to fight every single day just to survive."
"But beneath all those smiles..."
"They carry pain."
"Burdens they struggle with every day."
"They, too, wish they had been born into noble families."
"But nobles have worries of their own."
"And the nobles wish they had been born into royalty."
"And royalty has its own worries," Keith said.
"Exactly."
Kiro smiled.
"Exactly."
"To the outside world, the current King of the Ynvashi Kingdom is strong and healthy."
"But within the palace..."
"He’s as good as dead."
"The battle for the throne has already begun."
"The princesses have all begun making their moves, competing against one another while trying to gather powerful allies."
"They’ll use any method necessary."
"Resources."
"Promises of future rewards."
"Or even getting rid of someone."
"Even if that someone is their own sibling."
Kiro looked at Keith.
"So..."
"Do you understand now why Devon alone isn’t enough?"
Keith lowered his head, pondering Kiro’s words.
Everything Kiro said made sense.
Yet one question still remained.
"Why us?" Keith asked.
Kiro chuckled.
"Well..."
"Because we’re slaves."
"That means we’re far less likely to be spies planted by their enemies."
"And the life we’ll live here is far better than being arena dogs."
"Only a fool wouldn’t give everything to protect the Princess."
"After all..."
"If she dies..."
"We lose this life too."
Keith silently absorbed everything.
This was an entirely different world from the one he knew.
So...
The King was as good as dead?
Even those standing at the very top still had weaknesses.
No...
Wait.
Perhaps the King was simply an ordinary mortal.
That had to be it.
Just as Keith’s thoughts continued to spiral...
A sudden sense of dread rose within him.
Alarms rang through both Keith’s and Kiro’s minds.
The two instantly became alert as they carefully observed their surroundings.
A murderous intent spread through the air.
Its target...
Was this very balcony.
And the only passage beyond it led directly to the Princess.
Which meant...
This was most likely...
"An assassin..."
Kiro muttered.
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