At the same time as King Redis and his family appeared in the castle of the Cirlus Kingdom, Fornius came to the temple where the main gods of the 'god domain' organization gathered. But this time, he came with his real body there without using a statue medium to represent himself.
"It's not usually that you come to this place in person with your real body, Fornius." The white statue greeted him as Fornius entered the temple hall.
"It's just the two of us in this place. Why should I talk to you using a statue, Aghares? You better show yourself right away and don't just talk using statues." Fornius stomped his foot on the floor. A round table and chairs suddenly appeared in the center of the temple hall. Fornius sat down and looked at the white statue's reaction.
"Didn't I tell you not to call us by our real names when we are inside this temple?" Aghares warned Fornius in a hoarse voice.
"What are you thinking? Can you stop pretending like we don't know each other? After all, I am your old friend, right?" Fornius grinned and lifted his feet onto the table.
Not after Fornius said that the light in the white statue disappeared, and a white-haired middle-aged man appeared from behind Fornius.
"Haa…at least you respect the rules that were made in this temple before. Besides, how long will you act so impolite in this temple? Quickly put your feet down!" Aghares sat on the chair opposite Fornius.
"Alright… alright… then, I'll just tell you the reason I came to this place." Fornius lowered his legs, and his face became serious.
"Say." Aghares was also curious about the purpose of Fornius coming to the temple with his real body.
"My research site in the Demon Kingdom's territory has been destroyed. The one who did it was the King of the Demon Kingdom. although I haven't killed him yet, I marked him before taking care of other important matters." Fornius explained it casually, like it wasn't his problem at all.
"What have you said? Won't all our efforts be in vain if you lose the place and object of research there?" Aghares frowned upon hearing Fornius' explanation.
"Haa… I can't say anything about that. I was on another business and didn't know that the people from the Demon Kingdom already knew about the research site. Coincidentally, they came at a time when the magical beasts were in a weak state after research." Fornius answered helplessly.
"Then, why did you release the King of the Demon Kingdom and only give him a mark? Is there anything more important than that? I don't think this is your style at all." Aghares wondered why Fornius didn't kill King Redis right away if he had met him. Because Aghares knew Fornius very well, he is a true vengeful and will never give up his target of revenge.
"That's because I received news that the God beast Leviathan that I developed in research all this time died easily at the hands of an unknown person." Fornius answered Aghares' question thoughtfully. This was the main issue that he wanted to discuss with Aghares.
"What!? Does anyone else have that kind of power? Does that person have gray hair?" Aghares had already investigated Ziel. Currently, the information he knew about Ziel was that the person who continually thwarted their plans had gray hair. Apart from that, he didn't know anything else.
"No. According to Oillet, that person has black hair." Fornius quickly refuted Aghares' conjecture.
"Hmm… that's not the person I'm currently investigating. Why did strong people suddenly appear one after another on the Clorius continent? Looks like I'll have to tell Miss Azalia about this matter." Aghares didn't associate the black-haired person with Ziel at all. He thought the person who defeated Leviathan was someone else.
"Miss Azalia? How is she now? I haven't seen her in a long time." Fornius raised his eyebrows when he heard Azalia's name mentioned by Aghares. Fornius had a hint of fear in his eyes upon hearing that name.
"Miss is fine. She's just a little bored with this world." Aghares didn't answer his question, but Fornius knew right away what he meant.
"I understand how she feels. Please convey my regards to her later. I must leave immediately because Oillet is waiting for me on the island alone." Fornius stood up and was about to leave the temple. But he was stopped by Aghares' words.
"Are you still thinking about it until now? You know not that her mother died not because of your fault but because of an accident during research. You don't have to bear the burden of responsibility for things you didn't do." Aghares reminds Fornius of his past stories.
"The accident happened because of my actions. So her mother died too because of me. How do I feel about her mother, you know? So you don't have to talk about this again in front of me. I already know what I should and shouldn't do. No one can interfere with my decision, even if that person is you or Miss Azalia." Fornius unleashed all his strength and made the entire temple tremble. It wasn't long before the temple calmed down again, and Fornius had left the place.
"Haa… people who are stuck with the past." Aghares shook his head, feeling sorry for Fornius. Then he stood up and disappeared from the temple hall.
***
Back when the people from the academy were enjoying their dinner, the hall suddenly fell silent after hearing the screams of King Raghnall. They looked at the table where King Raghnall sat with Merlick.
"Since I already knew about the matter, you'd rather talk less to me and just say your purpose for coming here!" King Raghnall wanted to kick King Redis out of his royal castle immediately because he always caused trouble every time he came there.
"It gets better because I don't have to talk to you much. I will say my purpose of coming to this castle of yours. I want to ask for your protection until the people from the Demon Kingdom come to pick me up from this kingdom." King Redis removed the smile on his face and put on his usual arrogant face.
Initially, King Redis had intended to return to the Demon Kingdom. But, after thinking about it, he decided to stay in the Cirlus Kingdom. The reason was that Fornius could have come to him while he and his family were on their way back to the Demon Kingdom. If Fornius had come to him when he had returned to his kingdom and the battle had taken place, the damage and casualties in their kingdom would probably have been more significant than in the Cirlus Kingdom. Therefore, King Redis decided to delay his return.
"Hmm... did I hear it right? I was kind enough not to ask for compensation for the damage caused by your fight with that person, and now you are asking for protection in my kingdom? Not to mention that the person chasing you could come back at any time. Do you want to involve my kingdom in your troubles? Do you think I'm stupid?" King Raghnall quickly understood the true purpose of King Redis just by hearing his words earlier.
"Of course, I didn't ask for it for free. What if I give you a quarter of the Demon Kingdom's sea territory?" King Redis said something king Raghnall never thought possible.
"What!?" King Raghnall was startled and stood up from his chair. Merlick and the people from the academy felt the same way.
A quarter of the sea area of the Demon Kingdom is vast. The sea resources in the Demon Kingdom are even better than in the Cirlus Kingdom. Not to mention the islands that fall within that area. The Cirlus Kingdom's sea area was directly adjacent to the Demon Kingdom's sea, so it was easy to take it over if King Redis gave away a quarter of his sea area. The Cirlus Kingdom could gain tremendous profits if it could obtain it. But King Raghnall didn't immediately agree to King Redis' request with just such an offer.
"Are you kidding me? Do you think I don't know how dangerous the man hunting you is? If that person goes on a rampage on this island, won't my people be the victims? I won't sacrifice my people for just a quarter of the Demon Kingdom's sea area!" King Raghnall tried to make it look like he was rejecting King Redis. But in reality, he was making a bargain with him. King Redis narrowed his eyes, knowing what King Raghnall's words meant.
"King Raghnall, please don't be so greedy. A quarter of the Demon Kingdom's sea area is already huge. You will vomit if you eat more than your stomach can hold." King Redis smiled stiffly and tried to persuade him. But King Raghnall just kept quiet and didn't respond.
"Okay! I'll give you half of the Demon Kingdom's sea area! No more than that! But in exchange, you must allow me to stay in this castle until the situation is completely safe and the people from the Demon Kingdom come to pick us up!" King Redis gritted his teeth. He was forced to raise his bid for their safety.
"Hmm… I reluctantly agree to your request. If it wasn't for the fact that our kingdom's sea areas bordered each other, I might have turned it down." King Raghnall seemed forced to accept the offer. King Redis' face twitched upon hearing his words.
"Then can you take us to our room? I want to rest soon because I'm tired from all the things that happened today." King Redis wanted to leave the hall immediately because he was sick of seeing King Raghnall's face.
"I understand. Soldier! Please escort King Redis and his family to the VIP guest room!" King Raghnall smiled and called out to one of the soldiers in the hall. The soldier led King Redis and his family out of the hall to the room for the royal guests.
"Raghnall, is it okay if you protect them? Aren't they being chased by a mighty person? I'm afraid that if that person gets angry, then this kingdom will suffer the consequences." Merlick gave his opinion on King Raghnall's decision.
"You don't have to worry. I didn't protect them but just hid them. As long as that person can't find King Redis here, then it will be fine, and half of the Demon Kingdom's sea area will belong to the Cirlus Kingdom." King Raghnall smiled broadly and looked confident in his decision. Merlick could only shake his head and say no further. He doesn't want to interfere with the internal affairs of the Cirlus Kingdom. King Raghnall did not know that king Redis had received a mark from Fornius, and his decision would bring disaster to the Cirlus Kingdom.
Princess Cordelia and the teachers also overheard King Redis and King Raghnall's conversation at another table in the hall. They were also shocked to hear that King Redis had promised King Raghnall half of his kingdom sea territory.
"Is it alright if King Redis accepts the request, Princess Cordelia?" Flavio asked Princess Cordelia, who was sitting right across from him.
"It was my father's decision as a King. I don't have any right to oppose it. After all, I know my father. He will not take decisions carelessly. I'm sure he's thought about it, and it's all for the Cirlus Kingdom." Princess Cordelia smiled and didn't think much of the deal between King Redis and King Raghnall.
"I think I can understand the decision King Raghnall has made. Who can resist half of the Demon Kingdom's sea area? Although we still don't know what kind of person is hunting King Redis." Christoff joins in on their conversation.
"What do you think, Kalya?" Princess Cordelia asked Kalya. She had been silent since the start of their dinner at that table. Princess Cordelia saw Kalya glance at the students' tables several times. Her focus is not there right now.
"You're asking my opinion? I know nothing about it, so I prefer not to comment on the decisions of Kings from other kingdoms." Kalya smiles and gives a safe answer. She also didn't care about the conversation between King Redis and King Raghnall.
Not long after, Clara and the other girls finished with their dinner. Clara walked past the table where Princess Cordelia and the academy teachers had dinner.
"Miss Kalya, we have already finished with our dinner and will go to the garden behind the castle to refresh our bodies a bit. When you're done, please follow us there because we need a teacher to supervise in that place." Princess Freya blinked at Kalya then greeted Princess Cordelia and the other teachers. Clara and the other girls also greeted the people at the table.
At first, Clara and the other girls wanted to get some rest. However, they decided to breathe the night breeze in the garden behind the castle of the Cirlus Kingdom. Because from that place they can enjoy the sea view.
Princess Cordelia responded to Clara and the other girls' greetings casually. But when she saw Ziel in the group, she was dumbfounded.. Princess Cordelia did not expect to meet the person who defeated Leviathan so soon.
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