My dear readers ...I had never once thought that the day would come upon us in this story ...but it has happened.
We have reached an interlude.
My old enemy ... for years we have struggled in vain and have lost many- Okay , I think I've drawn this joke out long enough already.
XD
But about this chapter , we will finally be able to get into an OC that I have planned to insert for a long while. And I think with over 10 chapters , its about damn time we introduced him in this interlude. This one was a long time coming I tell you.
Big thanks to Qinlongfei for beta reading this chapter and providing important feedback and critic.
Now ...before we start the chapter , I actually wanted to do this in the last chapter but it slipped my mind , I would like to say a few words about a fellow Malty writer that has sadly discontinued all of theirs . Yes , I am referring to SmutWithPlot who has since left us some time ago.
I ask for a moment of silence for our fallen Malty writer.
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
Okay , moment's over, let's get this chapter started !
Interlude 1 : Brothers in Arms
Many years before he was considered a lord of any kind , he was actually but a simple soldier in the Melromarc army. No one of any importance really.
When it was over and the dust had finally settled ...he had risen to the rank of general in the army and a close retainer to the Wise Sage King himself.
Most men would be happy about their promotion to another rank , but that was never once the case for Loknar. Because he knew how many others ahead of him had died to the Siltvelt animals. It was hardly because of his qualifications or even connections to the King that got him the rank.
Loknar closed his eyes as he enjoyed the silence of the carriage , but his years at war had kept him trained enough to stop from dozing off to sleep. Not like he could even if he wanted to with how the pit of anxiety had been building in his stomach.
He had been dispatched to assist in the reinforcement and management of the garrison stationed in the northern part of Melromarc , which took him quite some time to even get to and caused him to be away from the capital when he heard it...
That King Aultcray had summoned the Legendary Heroes.
Not just one or even two ... but ALL of them.
When he had first heard it , he initially was in disbelief over it. He could not believe that his King and old friend would be foolish enough to summon all of the Legendary Heroes while her Majesty was still at the international meeting with the other world leaders to discuss the summoning of said heroes .
And yet... as the stories started to grow in size and number ... he could not longer deny that it was truth.
Which was why as soon as his mission was settled, he got back in his carriage and immediately head back to the capital which unfortunately took over a week and that was only because he had demanded that they ride through the night, with him even serving as the driver for a few nights because he was desperate to get back to the capital and was hoping to the Chief God above that he wasn't too late to help contain the situation.
" My lord , we are almost at the capital " The driver called out to him.
" Good ..." Loknar nodded as he looked out the window to see the capital start to come into view. His home still looked at beautiful as ever ... and yet the sense of dread in his heart remained.
The passing through the gate was relatively straightforward , with the guards on station almost immediately recognizing his carriage and opening the gate for him to enter.
By carriage it should only take them but a few minutes or more to reach the castle and then he will have to talk to his old friend . Loknar crossed his arms as he looked out the window , trying his hardest to avoid the gazes that some of the people gave his carriage as he passed. Many of them looked afraid of what was to come , others looked somber about their fate ... and some almost looked invigorated for what's to come.
Loknar can't say he fully agrees with any of them , but he can understand their reasoning at least. Not everybody has a legion of guards or knights or an underground bunker to hide in whenever a wave starts kicking up. Or even a Legendary Weapon to defend themselves or their families with.
But he knows that even that may not even be enough sometimes...
" Lord Loknar has returned from his mission ! Open the gate ! "
He pushes his thoughts down as he hears the gate guards to the castle grounds announce very loudly. He hadn't even noticed they had already arrived , too caught up in his thoughts like usual. He feels the carriage come to a stop in the area that had been designated for the parked carriages of the castle for the knights to use or in the case of an invasion for the royal family to flee.
He doesn't bother to wait for the driver to open the door for him, life as a pampered lord and general hasn't rendered him so pathetic he can't even open a door by himself.
He sees that the knights captain had already assembled his men to greet him.
" My Lord ... I trust your mission was a success ? " The captain and his fellow knights bow to him. To greet their lords return.
Loknar nods in respect as well " Yes captain it was , now where is the King ? I must speak to him urgently"
" I believe his Majesty is in his personal study , last I heard "
" Thank you captain , that will be all ..." Loknar waves his hand and the knights quickly disperse to go about their duties. They certainly have better things to do than greet their lord when he comes back like obedient puppies.
He walks through the grand doors and into the castle itself. Already thinking about what he was going to have to talk to his old friend about or more to the point what he is inevitably going to ask about. To say that he was shocked upon hearing news that his King had summoned all of the Cardinal Heroes would be a massive understatement. Much like saying the entire world being shocked that Melromarc's sudden summoning of the Heroes would be an understatement. He thinks their reaction would be much closer to all out pandemonium.
He briefly wonders how their Queen is doing at Cal Mira , no doubt she is trying to keep all the major nations of the world from declaring all-out war on Melromarc for the Cardinal Heroes. Some part of his mind worries that not even she would be able to keep that from happening...
He pushes that worry down , he has to focus on what he can do right now. That's all he can do . Try and minimize the damage the best he can.
He passes by the usual servants , maids and knights who all bow their heads in respect to him. But he knows that they bow to him as a lord , not as a general of glorious Melromarc.
He never really did get used to the stuffy life of a lord , attending parties , sitting through court processions and the like . It was never his preferred style of life and he doesn't think he ever got used to it . And to his best knowledge neither did Aultcray .
He knows his old friend well enough to know he would have much preferred to live the simple life of the common man , not like a King . He would have lived a happy life in a nice little village with his wife and daughter , watching the little girl grow up into a fine young woman and eventually set off to forge her own destiny in the world.
But he knows that such a dream will never come true. He sympathizes with his old friend , despite not knowing the pain of losing a child and a wife and even a sister on top of it ... he can't even imagine the pain he must feel from that.
He wonders if it was for that reason he summoned the Cardinal Heroes. Purely to spite the Siltvelt dogs and his 'brother' in Faubley.
" Ah , I see you have returned from your trip Loknar ..." A familiar voice calls out to him from behind and he turns to see the Royal Spymaster , Lord Noches standing before him. Dressed in the finest noble clothing that suit his status " Was your mission successful? "
" Indeed it was " Loknar nodded " As a matter of fact , I was on my way to inform the King of my return"
" No reason we can't talk on the way there " Noches says as he walks beside him.
" Agreed , so how have you been my old friend ? " Loknar smiles a little.
" Oh same old , same old ... discounting the fact that our King summoned all of the Cardinal Heroes and almost gave me a bloody heartache on the morning of , I've been doing great " Noches sarcasm never fails to amuse him.
" Yes ... I've heard about that ..." Loknar coughs into his hand to get back on track " Is it true then ? "
" Saw them with my own eyes , holding the Legendary Weapons themselves..." Noches nods his head solemnly at the very tense situation before them " It seems that our King has created quite the conundrum for us wouldn't you say ? "
" It would appear so ..." Loknar crosses his arms " I trust you did not sit idly by as our King summoned said heroes did you ? "
" I was not aware of our King's plan to summon the heroes in the first place, it seems to me that he kept his plans on a need to know basis " Noches shrugs " Even the Pope was unaware of our King's plan ..."
Even Biscas didn't know about it ?
" Strange ... out of everyone , I thought he would have at least informed his longtime friend about it " Loknar muses " I assumed he used some of his own mages to perform the ritual ? "
" He did . But it seems he did so without Biscas's knowledge ... " Noches explained " I assume it was the more fanatical side of the Three Heroes Church that he went to for help. Only they would do something like this ..."
Of course they would.
The two walked in silence for a time , before Noches spoke up again " ... Did you hear about the Shield Hero's trial yet ? "
" His trial ? " Loknar raised an eyebrow at this.
" ... He was accused of rape and brought to trial " Noches said calmly but his voice had an edge to it " And by my best guess ... it was our King that had set him up to be accused of such a heinous crime "
Aultcray did what ?!
Loknar's eyes widened but he did not express this verbally. H e had been to war and court enough times to know how to keep his cool.
" That is a serious accusation Noches ... what evidence do you have to even know such a thing ? " Loknar eyed the Spymaster skeptically.
" Because he sent his own daughter to be the Shield Hero's companion ... and the would be victim of said rape crime " Noches explains somberly " And yes , I saw the girl with my own eyes as she joined the Shield's party . There's no denying it "
He sent Princess Malty do it ?
" It's the perfect cover story. The Shield Hero raped his companion , who conveniently turned out to be the First Princess of Melromarc " Noches talks about the narrative of the situation as if he's telling a story " With her status , nobody would dare to dispute her claim and the Shield Hero would be branded an outcast of the heroes and be made a pariah in the country "
" Is Aultcray so blinded by his rage and sorrow that he can't see clearly ? " Loknar couldn't help but think aloud.
" Maybe , maybe not ... but take some comfort in the fact that Princess didn't go through with it " Noches said seriously.
" She didn't ? "
" No ... as a matter of fact she actually stood up for him back in the trial " Noches nods his head " Aultcray was forced to declare him innocent . And he was free to go about his business with Princess Malty by his side "
" ...Could it be possible that he discovered Princess Malty's true identity ? And forged a deal with her ? " Loknar doesn't like pushing the notion that his friend's daughter would be so cutthroat as to betray him for her own gain . But its a possibility that must be explored.
" Unlikely... I doubt the Shield even realizes his prestige on the world stage and to those Siltvelt animals " Noches refutes the idea instantly " And I trust Princess Malty has enough sense to keep him from going over to Siltvelt "
That's one thing we don't need to worry about I suppose...
" What do your spies at Cal Mira tell you ? How is our Queen holding up ? " Loknar shifts his attention to the other side of the royal family.
" Pardon my language ... but its a complete shitshow " Noches doesn't even try to sugarcoat the absolutely disaster the situation they are in " The world leaders are currently admonishing Melromarc for going behind everybody's back and summoning the heroes. Our Queen is doing her best to try and keep the peace but so far ..."
Loknar got the message , he already predicted that things would be bad at the international conference.
" Has there been any talk of war yet ? "
" None that my spies have informed me of , but I imagine that its on the table " Noches admitted honestly " The warhawks from Siltvelt will surely be pushing for a war with Melromarc in order to retrieve their god ..." Noches rolls his eyes at the Siltvelt animals and Loknar shares the sentiment.
" And what of the current status of the Heroes here in Melromarc ?"
" Nothing special really. All of them have just been focused on getting stronger for the wave and unlocking new forms for their weapons . The usual " Noches answers simply at that question.
Okay , so at least we're safe from the upcoming wave at least.
Loknar saw that he was quickly approaching the King's personal study and he stopped with Noches just a few feet away.
" Try not to be too hard on the old man , will ya..." Noches said as he patted Loknar on the shoulder before walking away.
Loknar took a deep breath before he walked up to the study door , giving a nod to the two knights on duty.
" I'm here to see his Majesty , if you will allow me" Loknar said politely.
" Of course my lord , head right in " The knight stepped aside and Loknar walked right in.
The personal study of the King was just as grand and lavish as the Queen's own study. With a few minor differences of course.
Aultcray sitting behind his desk , looking at some documents " I thought I told the knights that I didn't want to be disturbed ? "
" Is that any way to greet an old friend ? " Loknar smirked a little as Aultcray looked up.
" Loknar ! Come in , come in ! Its good to see you old friend ..." Aultcray stood up from his desk and walked toward to give him a pat on the shoulder " How have you been ? I trust your mission was a success ? "
" Yes , it was , I was able to resolve the matter quite quickly as a matter fact " Loknar shrugged.
" Well , what do you need ? Would you like some tea ? " Aultcray rarely got a chance to act normally , which was honestly preferable over the usual use of titles or the like.
" That's quite alright Aultcray ..." Loknar knew he didn't have time to dance around the issue , so he might as well get right into it " As a matter of fact ... I actually wished to talk to you about an important matter "
" Oh ? And what is it ? "
" ...The summoning of the Cardinal Heroes for one..."
And just like that , the room was swept into silence . Aultcray friendly face didn't turn to one of anger or shock ... but silent regret.
After a moment , Aultcray smiled a little " Was wondering when you were going to hear about that "
" Yes ... you gave everybody quite a shock pulling off a stunt like that ..." Loknar spoke carefully. He did not wish to speak to his King or friend as if he were a child that needed to be told off or scolded for doing something wrong. But he needed answers.
" I can certainly see that ..." Aultcray walked to stand by the window and looked down into the city below . His old friend let out a sigh " I know you probably have a whole slew of questions ... so just let me have it at this point. And don't bother with formalities , I think we're long past that point"
Well then , I don't have to feel too guilty about this then.
" Very well then , let us speak bluntly... What the hell were you thinking Aultcray ? "Loknar doesn't bother with the formalities anymore. Aultcray had given him permission to speak freely and he was going to abuse the hell out of it " Summoning the Legendary Heroes while the Queen is still away discussing with the other world leaders is not just illegal its also idiotic ! "
" I suppose I deserve that ..." Aultcray nods his head , not even trying to refute or get angry at Loknar's blatant insult. Which if he said in a court setting, he no doubts would be thrown in the dungeon for technically treason against the crown. But he knows his friend well enough that he wouldn't do that.
" And attempting to frame the Shield for rape ... have you lost your blasted mind Aultcray ? " Loknar took a step forward to his King " If the dogs from Siltvelt catch wind of Melromarc openly mistreating their god-king , rape accusation with evidence be damned , they would declare war on us ! "
Loknar took a deep breath as he took another step forward to his friend who has given no visible reaction to any of this.
" Just ...what happened to you Aultcray ? You're not acting like the Wise Sage I fought alongside with during the Great War ..." Loknar let out a sigh " What's going on with you ? "
Aultcray didn't speak right away , but more like he was contemplating what he was going on. As if he had been anticipating for what he was going to say for this exact moment.
After a minute or two , Aultcray finally moved to sit back down in his chair " Take a seat Loknar " Aultcray gestured to the seat opposite of him. Loknar merely followed what he said , facing his old friend.
Aultcray put his hands together in contemplation " ...Do you remember back in the war ... when we first met ? "
" Yeah ... I was just a regular captain back then , worked my way up from the bottom as a common foot soldier " Loknar reminisced his experience back in the army.
" And you met me ... and you straight up said to my face that I was not what you were expecting for a Seven Star Hero ? " Aultcray remembered that story with a smile.
" Not my proudest moment , I admit ..." Loknar shrugged awkwardly
" No , don't apologize. That's how I knew right then and there , that you were the right person to be my right hand man for beating the Siltvelt cunts out of Melromarc " Aultcray stopped him and continued " You weren't afraid to tell me to my face my mistakes or your honest thoughts or how big of an idiot I could be ... and that's why I respected you even back then "
" Glad to know that I'm still keeping up old habits " Loknar said with a smirk.
" Yes , that's something that I feel every leader needs . Somebody who can tell them to their face their mistakes and how big of an idiot they are acting. Only fools surround themselves with yes-men and overly glorified whores to suck off their ego " Aultcray says with mild distaste.
The King went to grab a nearby bottle of wine that he always keeps in his personal study for situations like these and poured both of them a drink.
" Well then , I would hate not to live up to my expectations..." Loknar said as he took a drink from Aultcray " So I'll just ask , why did you summon the Legendary Heroes ..."
Aultcray took a sip of his own drink " Before I answer that ... I would like for you to answer me something too ... who you would say is the biggest threat to Melromarc at large ? "
Loknar didn't even have to think long or hard on that question " Siltvelt of course . Those damn animals still hold plenty of grudges against us after the war and we sent them scurrying back to their lands with their tails tucked between their legs "
" A half answer but a correct one nonetheless " Aultcray shrugs , seemingly satisfied with the answer " But you are forgetting another contender ...Faubley "
" Your pig brother's country ? " Loknar crosses his arms skeptically " What reason would he have for challenging Melromarc ? "
" My brother has always been ambitious ..." Aultcray practically spits out the name 'brother' with distaste and disgust " He had already turned Shieltfreedeen into his personal puppet country ... who's to say he will not try to do the same to Melromarc ? "
" Impossible. He has no claim to the Throne here " Loknar refuted.
" Perhaps ... but who's to say he will not simply wait until Melromarc and Siltvelt bloody each other up to come invading after all is said and done ? "
That... certainly sounds like a possibility.
" But how can you be sure war would even break out between Melromarc and Siltvelt ? " Loknar argues.
" Please Loknar , we both know that there never really was any 'peace' between Siltvelt and Melromarc. The fighting just stopped , but there was never any real peace " Aultcray says a little cold " This was nothing more than just a brief period where both sides had been so diminished from the fighting that the only logical decision would be to withdraw and rebuild their forces " Aultcray looks seriously at him " And now ... decades later , their forces have been rebuilt enough to fight against Melromarc once more "
" And to make matters worse ... the Wave of Catastrophe provides the perfect opportunity for this , while our military is too busy fighting back against the waves , they would be able to quickly crush our men and march their sons of whores into our lands once again " Aultcray ends his explanation.
Lokar considered his friend's words ...he did have a point. The Sitvelt dogs did indeed have a standing army stationed right at the border of Fort Wolf's Mouth , if they attempted to take it during a wave ...
" Alright ... but how does this circle back to the summoning all of the heroes ? " Loknar questioned.
" Moves and countermoves my dear friend " Aultcray explained calmly " By depriving our enemies of the chance of getting a Legendary Hero , we can prevent the bastards of Siltvelt from moving in to attack by keeping their god-king in enemy territory. Thus keeping the High Council of Siltvelt from rallying their people for another attack on Melromarc , while keeping their army busy dealing with the Waves without a Legendary Hero . And it keeps my pig brother from enjoying watching his two biggest competitors beat each other senseless before swooping like a vulture to claim the spoils "
" And what makes you think they will not rally their people under the cause of 'saving their god-king' which I imagine can be just as motivating " Loknar took a sip of his drink as he said this.
" Possible but unlikely ... not if we make them think that we have plausible reason to kill their precious 'god-king' " Aultcray says that last part with spite.
And then it suddenly clicked for Loknar.
" That is the real reason you tried to have the Shield framed for rape , wasn't it ? "Loknar fixed his old friend with a smile " And here I thought you just did that out of spite "
" I won't deny that my ... personal hatred for the Shield played a part in it , but that was not the main reason. It was a reason I kept hidden even from my own daughter ..." Aultcray admitted " My real plan was after the trial was over and done with , was to have the Shield captured and kept under wraps to use as a bargaining chip with Siltvelt. With his reputation ruined and him made a pariah among the people , none of the heroes would question or even care about his sudden disappearance "
" Use the Shield as a bargaining chip ...interesting " Loknar considered the idea , the Shield was definitely worth his weight in platinum to the dogs of Siltvelt. Even if he is only a figurehead to control the foolish masses of Siltvelt " And how do you plan to deal with a potential coalition against Melromarc between the other major nations ? "
" I doubt such a thing would happen . Shiltfreeden and Zeltoble don't have the military size to commit to a coalition without leaving their own lands vulnerable to the waves . And Siltvelt would never work with my brother , the two sides would be too busy looking over each others shoulders to make sure the other isn't trying to backstab them to get anything done " Aultcray downs the rest of his drink before continuing " And even in the unlikely hood of that event actually happening ...that's where the 3 Heroes come in "
" Oh ? How so ? " Loknar raised an eyebrow.
Aultcray didn't explain right away , but rather he reached into his royal robes attire and pulled out what looked to be a regular short staff. To the average person , it would seem like the King had just pulled out an ordinary stick ...
But Loknar recognized that purple gem imbued in the tip of the staff.
It was the Seven Star Staff . His friend's weapon.
" They say that a Seven Star Weapon can lay waste to entire armies . They say that a Legendary Weapon can bring down entire kingdoms and empires " Aultcray mused as he switched his weapon to a stronger form " It is honestly quite sad that the Heroes are treated closer to that of limited resources than the would 'heroes of legend' or gods as some people would claim . Even the Shield Demon is the official 'King' of Siltvelt in name only , the High Council are the ones who hold all the real power"
Aultcray eyed his Seven Star Weapon sadly " Even with all the work I've put into strengthening my weapon ... even I doubt my ability to successfully repel our enemies a second time "
Loknar could guess where his friend was going with this " And you believe that we can turn the 3 Heroes into our greatest asset against our enemies ? "
" I know they can be" Aultcray said firmly " I will admit ... that I lost quite a lot of traction during the trial and even later when I tried to insert a spy into the Shield's party . But the important part now is to keep them in Melromarc and to find some way to make them loyal to us "
" Simple enough but I doubt its going to be that easy " Loknar mused out loud " And what of Queen Mirellia and Princess Melty ? "
" They will be safe for now. Cal Mira is neutral ground so I doubt any of the other nations would dare to try to attempt anything there " Aultcray calmly said " And it gives my wife plausible deniability to what has happened here "
" Plausible deniability ? "
" Why do you think I kept so many people out of the loop ? " Aultcray admitted " It is to give everyone but myself plausible deniability and my wife can simply claim that I went behind her back to do this , which in fact is truth "
Loknar looked at his friend in shock , he was already aware of the consequences going into this.
" You know , you may lose your royal title for this Aultcray " Loknar said seriously.
" So be it . The title never truly suited me anyway ... as long as my family is safe , I do not care "
Aultcray you self sacrificing fool. Still blinded by his past ...just not in the way I expected him to be.
Its worse.
" But that ... brings me to my next question Aultcray " Loknar didn't want to reopen this old wound but he had to do this " What of Princess Malty ? "
Aultcray didn't immediately react to his question , but his facial expression told it all.
He didn't look angry or disappointed or even sad at his daughter's betrayal.
But rather ... it looked like a culmination of those emotions were directed at himself.
" My daughter's ...betrayal of the plan to frame the Shield was not something I expected..." Aultcray sounded disappointed in himself as he said that " But it was something I should have seen coming ... its my own fault honestly "
" Aultcray you can't-"
" But I can ...Loknar ... " Aultcray refuted quickly " I've always known that my daughter had been ... broken by what happened a long time ago ... but I was too foolish wallowing in my self pity to see it or help her through it ... though I'm not even sure I would be of any help to the situation itself " Aultcray let out a rueful chuckle " Maybe this is just her way of finally paying me back for what I did ..."
Loknar looks at his friend sympathetically.
" So ...what happens now ? With Malty and the Shield ? "
" Not sure . But I know my daughter has enough sense to keep that damn Shield under her thumb for now" Aultcray nod his head " But after that , I'll need to come up with some way to keep the Shield under wraps without getting my daughter caught in the process"
" You're treading a dangerous line here Aultcray ... you know that "
" Most definitely " Aultcray said amusingly as he got up " But Loknar ... when the time comes and things go bad , get yourself out at least okay ? " Aultcray put a hand on his shoulder.
" Don't talk like that Aultcray " Loknar said seriously.
" Just ... promise me alright ? "
Loknar looked at his friend before sighing .
" I will ..."
" Thank you , now if you will excuse me ..." Aultcray made a move for the door .
" Where are you going ? " Loknar asked.
" Just going to visit the daughter of our old friend " Aultcray answered simply.
" Who ? "
" Seatto "
He watched as his King and friend left the room .
He saw that his friend was on the death march style warpath ... and he knew he couldn't do anything to stop him.
Aultcray POV
Even after so many years of living at the castle , one thing Aultcray could never really get used to was how big the castle actually was. If one watches from a distance , it wouldn't do the castle justice for how large it actually is from the inside and how many sections and accomodations it has.
But ... even he has to admit that having such a large castle and many rooms has its uses.
One of them was having its own private hospital that is staffed by some of the best physicians and healers in Melromarc. It was typically used by the royal family in the case one of them has a serious emergency and there was no time to wait for a doctor to be summoned all the way to the castle. Not really a wasteful expenditure and it does indeed have its uses.
Like say , having a close family friend taken care for with no one else's knowledge.
Aultcray entered the hospital and the staff stationed there readily bowed to him in slight surprise. Despite the fact that the hospital itself was rarely used nowadays , Mirellia had insisted on keeping it ready and stationed with staff at all times in the case of an emergency. He couldn't disagree with his wife's need to prepare for any unfortunate events that might occur to his family.
Thank the Chief God though , that the most he's ever had to worry about was the birth of his two baby girls and the occasional flu or cold here and there.
Aultcray refocuses his mind as he is approached by one of the doctors. He didn't even need to ask for the doctor to give him a status report. He had already visited this doctor more than once.
" Your Majesty , Miss Seatto's recovery has been going quite well. Despite her injuries , she will make a full recovery "
" Excellent ... is she awake right now? " Aultcray asked.
" Yes , my liege , I will leave you to it " The doctor got the message, bowed and walked away.
Aultcray took a deep breath before he walked over to one of the hospital beds and its patient . Even the beds themselves were made of the finest and most comfortable materials the kingdom had to offer , but he doubts that means much to someone like Eclair . Who has always been more knight than she ever was noblewoman.
The young woman with strawberry blonde hair turned to him and looked at him with those blue eyes of hers.
She was a spitting image of her father ... which made what he was about to do even harder.
" Your Majesty ! I uh ..." Eclair was clearly taken off guard by this , stuck somewhere between attempting to bow or come up with a greeting of some kind.
" No need for formalities Eclair , you're not on duty right now " Aultcray held up a hand to stop her" Call me whatever you wish "
" Very well then , Uncle Aultcray " Eclair managed a small smile " ... You have my deepest gratitude for what you have done for me "
" It is of no consequence , I doubt my wife would want the daughter of my old friend to perish ..."
Aultcray had known Uther Seatto since the war between Melromarc and Siltvelt. He had been known as the Merciful General , despite the fact he had every right to mow down those animals for what they had done to Melromarc's land ...
He was one of Aultcray's closest friends and confidant during the war. Despite their differing views regarding demi's.
And then the First Wave struck ... and Avery was killed in it.
" Uncle Aultcray , my father ..." Eclair looked sad " He didn't make it did he ? "
" No ..." Aultcray shook his head " We recovered his body , some time after we found you ..."
" I ... see ..."
" I'm sorry Eclair ..." Aultcray put a hand on her shoulder in comfort.
" Its alright ... I already anticipated he was gone , otherwise he would be here too wouldn't he ? " Eclair said sadly.
" ...He lived as he died . With honor and standing his ground for what he believed in " Even if Aultcray never fully agreed with them either.
" Thank you ...uncle ..." Eclair tried to recenter herself " What of the rest of Port Harp ? "
Aultcray hated this . He hated being the one to break the news to his dead friend's daughter and yet he knew she would accept nothing but the truth.
" ... The platoons stationed there have been wiped , excluding you ..." Aultcray said somberly " And it would seem like the manhunters killed all the adults and only took the teenage and child demi-humans "
" O-Only the children ? " Eclair said in shock " But why would they ..."
" Easier to sell in a hurry I suppose ..." Aultcray mused " They were already gone by the time we got there "
Eclair was silent . As if contemplating what to do next ...
" So ... what happens now ? "
" Well ... you're the sole heir to the Seatto House , so that makes you the Lady Seatto now I suppose "Aultcray explained " After you've sufficiently recovered , I can have you restored to your former title- "
" We both know that's a meaningless title uncle Aultcray ..." Eclair interrupted " The land of Port Harp has been decimated ... one of the largest trading ports in the south , and that was only because of the Hirata family. Without them ... I doubt I can rebuild Port Harp by myself ..."
" ...So what do you intend to do then ? "
Eclair was silent , not really sure what to say.
Aultcray let out a sigh " I'll give you some time to think about it ... but just know that you have my full support "
She didn't respond but he knew she got the message.
He got up and walked away , thinking about his next move.
He wasn't going to tell Eclair the full story ... about how his wife had named Uther the Regent instead of him.
And how she most likely knew what that would mean for every person who had a grudge against Avery.
Eclair didn't need to lose two people she idolized in a single day.
I'll admit that interludes are never my favorite thing to do , since it takes away from the main action that was happening in the previous main story. But I'll be honest when I say that I'm kinda happy with this one.
Now for the beef of this chapter ...I really wanted to punctuate the big differences between my version of Aultcray and Qin's version. Where in Qin's his version of Aultcray is ... something I will not openly say for the sake of spoiler reasons and because I think you can all figure out yourselves or when he shows you.
But my version is something like the opposite of his , where he's not a bumbling moron like he is in canon and is in fact WAY smarter than he looks and does still have the mind of a veteran battle hardened strategist.
And no , I do not believe the LN or rather WN's retcon where he suddenly became this ultra intelligent and badass strategist AFTER Queen Safespace died was actually planned . And was in fact just the author realized they done fucked up when they killed off their precious pet husbando's biggest plot device/tool and needed to replace her with someone else.
In here , at least I show that Aultcray isn't an idiot and is in fact prepared for what's come. But that's for another time I suppose.
Adding Loknar in was something of a suggestion of Qinlongfei , where he suggested giving Aultcray a kind of sidekick/good friend to help keep him from going full grimdark.
That's all I have to say , now let's answer some reviews shall we ?
To XBOY40:
The world does in fact have goblins but they don't act anything like Goblin Slayer's version of them.
To Guest :
To say that Slayer is being unreasonable to Naofumi is fair ... but from his perspective it isn't so simple.
His hatred does have some justification to it and like Aultcray , that hatred blinds him to the point where he hates on people like Naofumi.
And trust me when I say , that if it came down to it , he would whoop Naofumi's ass if Malty didn't have his back.
XD
To ...Second Guest :
Like Qin already explained in his review , Goblin Slayer's hatred is utterly insane and is borderline obsession with the genocide of an entire race. And you realize very quickly how crazy his views actually are when you apply it to literally ANY other race that isn't all made by the author to be irredeemable rapist/torturers.
Hence why I had him keep him his whole sad sap backstory but just changed the perpetrators to demi-humans and had his hatred directed towards demi-humans who aren't completely evil rapist to fully justify his actions.
I think that's all I wanted to say people and I will see you all in the next one.
Angel Out.