Nobody ever needs a guide to find the palace of an Emperor. 'Follow the wealth and you'll find the man in charge.' Momonga thought, and tried to remember which one of his friends had said that. 'Was it Touch Me? Or Punito Moe? Or Ulbert? Or someone else?'
It didn't really matter, it was just a half remembered remark that seemed to flow readily to mind when he considered how to find the palace without looking foolish by asking for directions.
Strictly speaking, Momonga supposed he could have simply used his magic to fly and find it that way, but somehow that felt like 'cheating'.
Since coming to this new world, relying on his luck and simply making decisions on the fly had worked out pretty well, and more importantly, there was simply no need to rush.
Unlike his old world, this one you could walk around outside, the air was clean, the sun was bright, the streets weren't crowded or littered with dead orphans or any other unfortunates. Simply put, this world, monsters and all, was a paradise that it pleased Momonga to walk through.
And as it happened, finding the palace proved to be as easy as following the indications of wealth. If he saw wealthy people riding horses in a given direction, he followed them, and before long the spires of the palace came into view over a low hill.
Before he knew it, he was at the base of the palace steps. They were forty-one in number, and at a glance appeared to be carved out of one solid block of stone. This seemed to be a feature of the palace construction, with large individual blocks placed together to form individually carved segments, as if each piece had been cut from a massive stone and then fitted together against the rest. It suggested significant skill with construction and organization to keep everything standardized to the degree that it was, with nobody doing something different from the others.
Momonga made a mental note of that, but other than the sizable construction, the palace was not anything 'exceptional'. It didn't glitter with diamonds or jewels and the guards were well enough armored and equipped, though he felt no magic items from them, and he was allowed to walk into the palace itself with nothing more than a once over for his trouble.
The stone floor was brown rather than the gray of the streets, but after he passed through the first set of doors he found a wide carpet and many portraits along the wall which in turn led to another door, and in front of this one, an old man waited. Stooped over and with a long, flowing beard, his face was a mass of wrinkles, though he was dressed richly, what caught Momonga's eye was that he was wearing enchanted garments.
The old man seemed to catch this appraisal, "I see, you are not just a judge, you have some experience with magic, don't you, young man?"
Momonga subconsciously tapped the ring on his hand that suppressed the aura of his magic. And to his surprise, the old man caught the gesture. "An enchanted ring? How interesting?" He stroked his beard and held one hand behind his back. "What does it do?"
He could feel the suspicion from the old man, and as he came closer, Momonga played for time, "Shouldn't we introduce ourselves before asking about things like that?"
The old man cackled, "Oh ho! Forgive this old man's rudeness, the truth is, I have no head for names and I'll forget yours soon enough, I have an eye for only one thing in this world, and that is magic. Tell me the nature of that ring, and I will remember it till I die. Tell me your name, and I will forget it before we even reach the throne room. But if you insist, I am Fluder Paradyne."
"Momonga. I was invited here to meet the Emperor." Momonga said and gave a little half bow toward the old man.
"I see. Yes, you're the one I'm to meet, evidently you made quite an impression on him, not many refuse to rush to meet the emperor in person." Fluder chortled a little, "It threw him for quite a loop, and it was enough to make this old man laugh, that's why I chose to come escort you myself, and why you were allowed to enter unchallenged. However-" The old man paused and raised one finger, "some security must still be observed. If you have magic items, I must inspect them first, we can't have the emperor's security being lax now, can we?"
"I see." Momonga frowned a little bit, "May I leave them on as you inspect them?"
The old man shook his head. "I can let you leave your cloak on, but rings and other objects capable of holding attack magic must be inspected closer."
"Can we do this in a side room then?" Momonga asked, and the old man cocked his head a little.
'Is he serious? What has he to hide? Surely he doesn't intend to attack me…? No, he'd be mad to attack the one to subdue a death knight.' Fluder reasoned, and after Momonga did not elaborate, Fluder nodded.
"Yes, if you wish. Follow me, we'll stop in a side room before visiting the emperor. But I promise you, if there is hostility afoot, it will not go as you hope." Fluder promised with a confident chuckle that was answered in kind.
"There is no hostility, Fluder, but this will not be what you expect either." Momonga promised, and with that riddle in his head, Fluder led the way through the great oaken door and into a side room not twenty paces beyond. It was a wide open waiting area filled with chairs of luxurious make, deep red velvet cushions and stylistically carved dark wooden frames, with carts ready to serve amenities… but it was empty of people.
At least until they entered, and Fluder closed the door behind them both. [Appraise Magic] [Appraise Magic Item] [Appraise Magic Skill] Fluder cast the three spells in rapid succession and a glow of blue appeared around Momonga's body as all his items were identified for their magical properties.
Fluder gasped at once, while the man seemed to have no talent for magic, he did have extraordinary items that were beyond legendary quality… even if their precise function was uncertain. He did his best to recover from his sudden gasp, "Start with the ring, please hand it over."
Momonga put his fingers over the ring and said, "I am going to remove it, but you must promise you will not scream."
Fluder blinked a few times. "Scream?"
"Your word." Momonga demanded, his hand did not move to slide the ring off.
"Fine. I swear not to scream." Fluder answered, his hands twitched as he ached to touch the ring.
"You gave your word." Momonga reminded him, and then slid the ring off.
Fluder's jaw dropped open, the promise was needless, he was unable to scream, unable to move, the column of magic that seemed to emanate from the 'judge' was like a column of light that acted as a pillar holding up the very sky.
Fluder felt his old knees grow truly weak for the first time in his life, and when he fell to them, he felt no pain. There was only magic, only the very god of magic before him. "No wonder you are the wise judge… for a god stands before me. I pledge myself, my soul, my everything to you… if only you will teach me what you know… I would sacrifice anything for the chance to learn from you…"
Momonga slipped his ring back on and said in a gently patient voice, "I don't need sacrifices. That's rather grim." He flashed a charming smile down at the old man, "But if you are interested in learning magic, I suppose you could visit the library in my home. There might be many books there of interest to you."
"I-I would be forever grateful… I don't know what to say…" Fluder gasped as his heart nearly exploded in his chest while it filled up with loyalty for the god which stood before him.
"Just keep my…skill, private for now. I will reveal it to your emperor in due time." Momonga asked, and the kneeling Fluder bowed his head.
"As you command, my Lord!" He all but squealed, his body shaking as if he'd stepped naked into a blizzard.
"Now, as soon as you compose yourself… let us go meet your Emperor." Momonga said, and holding a generous hand out to Fluder, he helped his unwitting, self-professed disciple, to rise back up to his feet again.
'Hmm, it's funny, he's so dramatic about it all… he reminds me very much of Whitebrim.' It was a pleasant thought that warmed Momonga's heart when they reached the towering double doors which led in to the throne room of the Emperor.