Chapter 709 Meeting The Council (1)
While Ashton was eager to meet with the council and get down to business, the Xyrans had to fulfil their protocols. Since most of the board consisted of old and fragile elders, they were highly susceptible to diseases.
Hence, everyone who visits the council has to undergo a series of tests and quarantine before they are allowed to meet the council. At first, Ashton thought it was some trap of the Xyrans, but he relaxed once Astaroth informed him about it being authentic.
That being said, Ashton recommended that they conduct the meeting virtually as it would be quicker and wouldn't put anyone's health in danger.
But his proposition was rejected as it was a matter of alliance, hence quite significant, and such issues had been to be discussed face-to-face.
Ashton wasn't pleased with how things were proceeding as he wanted the meeting to be over quickly so that he could return and begin preparation for himself.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much for him to do than provide his blood samples to the Xyrans and for them to conclude the testing.
While the rule about testing extraterrestrial species wasn't a lie, the council's intention differed. They wanted to check whether Ashton was related to Jo'Han and cross-check Lord Rood's reports.
In the meantime, Ashton and Astaroth were guided to their quarters by Xyran generals, who couldn't help but steal glances at Astaroth, who was considered to be one of the empire's most outstanding generals to have ever lived... despite him being branded as a traitor all those years ago.
As they reached the end of the corridor, Ashton noticed three elegantly dressed female Xyrans waiting for them. The one in the lead held out a tray of moistened and scented towels before them.
While Ashton was sceptical, Astaroth immediately picked up one towel and wiped his face and hands before nodding for Ashton to do the same.
Once they were done, the Xyrans handed the tray to her subordinate and bowed before Astaroth, "Welcome, honoured guests. It is my absolute honour to someone as great as General Astaroth in this life."
"It's a pleasure to be here," Astaroth smiled. "Apologies if I'm mistaken, but it feels like I have seen you somewhere before?"
"I go by the name Raphaela..."
"Oh my god," Astaroth smiled before patting her head. "I can't believe it's you!"
As the two of them smiled, Ashton felt out of the loop. But it didn't take long for Ashton to come up with a potential connection between the two. Astaroth's soulblade was called Raphael, so could it be that the lady had something to do with that?
A minute later, Astaroth noticed Ashton's expression and quickly made introductions, and as Ashton had suspected, Raphaela was indeed related to Raphael but not in a way he could even imagine.
"Raphaela here," Astaroth took a moment to consider his word. "Is Raphael's granddaughter."
"Eh? She's the granddaughter of a sword?" Ashton frowned. "Biology... doesn't exist here or?"
"Why do you think the weapons we possess are called soulblades?" Astaroth mumbled. "Because they have a soul, but despite how advanced any civilisation is, they can't create a soul from scratch.
Instead, the soulblades are said to be forged from the souls of excellent warriors who died but refused to leave their legacy behind."
However, despite Astaroth's explanation, Ashton remained untouched and unaffected.
"I'll tell you more about it later," Astaroth shook his head. "Just keep this in mind: Raphael was alive at some point. She is his granddaughter."
"Got it," Ashton smiled and turned towards Raphaela. "My sincere apologies on behalf of this fool accompanying me. He usually slacks off instead of explaining necessary things to me beforehand."
"Oi! Mind your language here!" Astaroth retorted.
"Oh, shut it. It's not like I lied about something."
Everyone was shocked to see Ashton so blatantly talk weirdly about Astaroth, who was akin to a legend in their eyes. But Raphaela couldn't help but smile upon watching the two banter.
"Oh, where are my manners!" Raphaela exclaimed. "Welcome to Ignara, lord Ashton. I hope you didn't have a tough time acclimating to the weather here?"
"None at all," Ashton politely replied. "Strangely enough, this place feels like home."
"I'm glad to hear that," Raphaela mumbled before opening the door to their chamber. "I know you're here on a mission, and while I'm not the voice of the Xyrans, I hope you succeed.
Earth and Xenithar have been bound to each other by ancient bonds, and I hope we can reconnect to our roots without any troubles in these times."
Ashton was confused by Raphaela's words regarding the ancient bond between the two planets. But before he could ask her to elaborate, she, along with other attendants, left the two of them alone to get comfortable in their suite.
The massive suite had two separate bedrooms. As for the room itself, everything was furnished with unimaginable luxuries. The balcony gave them a view of most, if not the entire city, with bustling crowds in the distance.
From the carpets to the ceiling, everything was elegantly designed, which made Ashton feel like the Xyrans were giving him more importance than they deserved.
The things Ashton saw were extravagant even by the standards of the Orion empire, known to be one of the wealthiest empires in the entire galaxy. But even with all that, Ashton's mind was preoccupied by Raphaela's parting words.
"Do you know what she was on about?" Ashton asked Astaroth once they were alone.
"I have my theories, but other than that... nope," Astaroth shrugged. "Besides, my memory about the past is all messed up, so... I don't think it'd be appropriate for me to comment on things that I have no recollection of."
"Says the fucker who kept interfering in my life for years," Ashton rolled his eyes.
"I hate to break the bubble, but I did what I had to do because of your two points worth of intelligence. Unfortunately, it has gone up now, so there's that."
"...you really have a death wish, don't you?" Ashton replied with a menacing smile.
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