(A/N: Sorry bout the lack of a chapter yesterday. I updated twice, but I had no idea that they both went into the premium pile till just today. Hope you enjoy the chapter)
Elias walked through the hallway of the church as he made his way toward the room of the holy king, Arthur. Elias didn't know why Arthur suddenly wanted to see him now and Elias couldn't help but wonder if he had been found out.
Did Arthur notice those two devils that came near the church earlier? The devils weren't even bothering to hide their presence so Elias wouldn't be surprised if Arthur actually noticed them. Elias knew that Givalich already sensed them and she was able to easily tell that they were devils, but that is only because Givalich knows what a devil's magic signature feels like. Arthur has never seen a devil before. Devils haven't been in Aradite for hundreds of years and so it is impossible for Arthur to know what their magic signature feels like!
Elias tried his best to keep a calm look on his face. He didn't know what Arthur was going to say, but Elias would make sure that it doesn't affect his plans at all. He is already too close for Arthur to mess things up for him now.
Elias didn't know if he could defeat Arthur in a one-on-one battle. Arthur and Elias were both Epic-class and so it is difficult for them to know which of them is stronger. But at least Elias was sure that Arthur would not start a fight inside the church. If the two of them started fighting inside the church then the amount of collateral damage will be unimaginable! Arthur loves this church too much to fight inside here and destroy everything.
Once Elias got to the door of the room where Arthur always stays, he didn't waste any time and he opened the door and entered. There were no guards in front of the room so Elias didn't bother with announcing himself. As he entered the room, he saw Arthur kneeling in front of the statue of their patron goddess again and Elias wondered what the hell this boy was always praying about.
Arthur was always praying whenever they meet and Elias could only imagine the sort of sins a person must have for them to need this much prayer. Or maybe the problem is that he is afraid of the sins he could commit and so he prays to the goddess for guidance all the time? Elias didn't understand Arthur and he knew that Arthur didn't understand him either, and the two of them were happy to remain that way.
Elias stayed silent as he waited for Arthur to finish with his prayer. It took only a few minutes before Arthur stood up from the stool he was kneeling on and he turned around to greet Elias with a smile.
"Elias, it's been too long,"
Elias remembered that they saw each other only three days ago, but he didn't bother to say anything as he nodded. He just wanted to get this done with.
Arthur smiled wider at Elias' silence and he moved towards the other side of the room and waved Elias forward to join him as he pulled out a chair from under a table.
"Come, come. I don't think I've had an opportunity to drink with you yet. You've been in my church for a long time and we still act like strangers. That is no good,"
Elias was hesitant for a moment before he finally started to follow behind Arthur. He kept his guard up and he made sure his senses were sharp so he wouldn't be surprised by anything that happens. If Arthur decided to attack now, Elias would be ready.
"Are you even old enough to drink?"
This was the first thing that came out of Elias' mouth once he took a seat at one end of the table inside the room and Arthur couldn't help but laugh. He didn't remember the last time someone asked him something like that. People are usually too afraid of his power to even talk about his age!
"If I'm old enough to kill, then I believe I am old enough to drink. That is something my master once said to me and I've lived by it ever since. The Lord does not care for our age, so long as our faith is strong, he shall still bless us,"
Elias nodded his head as he pretended to agree. Elias wasn't surprised that Arthur would change a simple answer into a sermon. Elias watched Arthur as Arthur poured out some wine into two glasses and handed one to Elias. Elias accepted the glass and he rose his glass in a toast. Arthur immediately threw his drink back and swallowed everything at once, but Elias first took a small sip.
Once Elias was sure there were no side effects on his body from the wine, he finally threw his glass back as well and drank the rest of it. He could never be too careful in this church since he doesn't still know if he can trust them. Arthur didn't say anything about what Elias did as he just spoke up.
"It seems we are approaching the climax of your stay in this church. When do you intend to leave for Volcanica?
Elias looked down at the glass as Arthur poured him another drink and he answered that he would be leaving the next day. Elias already has everything that he needs and he just needs to make his way to Volcanica now. If everything goes according to how Elias planned, the demon lord will be dead in a few weeks.
Arthur smiled when he heard this and he threw back another drink and finished it all in one gulp. Elias wondered if it was okay for a child to e drinking so much. Arthur reminded Elias of his dead son, so he was a little worried that Arthur was drinking this much.
But as Arthur brought down his glass, Elias stiffened as he felt some bloodlust leaking out of Arthur. Arthur's blue eyes glared at Elias and Elias immediately glared back.
"You know the only reason I'm allowing you to leave at all is because of the deal we had at the start of all this. I already have what I want and I could simply take the dragon from you and send you away to Volcanica alone. Personally, that doesn't sound like such a bad plan to me...."
Crack!
Elias didn't look like he had any external reaction to what Arthur said because his face was still perfectly relaxed, but Elias' hand was so tense that a small crack traveled across the glass that he was holding and veins popped out from the back of his palm. The glare on Elias' face would have been enough to kill a lesser man! There were already ten high-level spells on the tip of Elias' tongue and he prepared for any action from Arthur!
Elias already expected something like this from the beginning. Elias knew that this deal was not in his favor because the church could betray him once they get Givalich and they won't allow him to take Givalich to go and fight the demon lord. But Elias was not going to allow them to do whatever they wanted. If Arthur wants to take Givalich now then it will be over Elias' dead body! Elias didn't come this far to allow a little boy and his bunch of fucking devotees to stop him. Elias is going to use that fucking dragon whether Arthur likes it or not!
But the bloodlust in the room disappeared just as suddenly as it appeared and Arthur smiled again in that carefree way that Elias hated so much.
"... But that is not such a nice thing to do after all. We made a deal and as a member of the lord's followers, I will make sure to keep my end of the bargain. But of course, I want you to know that I don't trust you. In that case, I will be sending a liaison along with you. Come in..."
Ka-cha!
The door to the room opened and Ria - Elias' ex-wife - walked in with her blindfold attached over her eyes and ears. Elias turned to her with a look of surprise. He didn't expect something like this to happen. Arthur has never even hinted at sending a liaison with him before. Even when he went to get Givalich, the holy king only sent Elias alone! What the hell is this little boy thinking!?
Ria came and stood before the two of them before she bowed her head toward the king. Elias scowled and looked back to Arthur as he asked him what the hell he was trying to do here. Is this some sort of joke?
Arthur took another drink as he shook his head.
"No joke at all, Elias. It's just like I said, I don't trust you one bit, so I believe this is the best way to keep you in line. I will be sending my Rook, Ria along with you. From what I hear, you both have quite a bit of history so she will be the best for the job. Ria will be going to Volcanica with you as my eyes and ears and she will report back any irregularities to me. I hope I don't have to tell you to keep her safe. She was once yours, so I'm sure you'll do that regardless of what I say,"
Shatter!
Elias finally shattered the glass in his hand and his scowl deepened! He didn't even bother looking at Ria as he spoke angrily.
"Are we done here?"
Arthur smiled and nodded.
Arthur knew that this meant that Elias has accepted the condition and he will be taking Ria with him. Arthur excused Elias and Elias stood up and dropped the broken pieces of glass on the table as he walked out of the room. Once he was gone, Arthur turned to Ria and spoke to her.
"Try to make sure he stays in line on Volcanica. If you notice anything is off with him, then take the dragon and return immediately, we cannot risk our crusade for the sake of his hubris. And Ria, I hope you won't go soft on him because of your relationship with him,"
Ria immediately shook her head when she heard Arthur's question. The only reason Arthur sent Ria on this mission was because Ria is the one person that Elias would think twice about killing. Ria is not strong enough to hold Elias back at all but if she puts herself on the line and challenges him, Elias will definitely hesitate to kill her. That was far more than what anyone else in the church could boast. Elias would kill anyone else in this church without even giving it a second thought!
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