'How Did I Fail?!'
"Yeah that's fine," I say with a brief dismissive wave of my hand, passing glances around to some of my teammates who were giving me different kinds of questioning looks.
Merch had actually inched a bit closer to Harlow while the others briefly waited with baited breath for my response while. If I gave him a nod instead of a slight shake of the head, Mr. Harlow would have been the first one dealt with. The others would probably disperse through the house in search of Canly and his family to check their loyalties.
I would have dealt with the old lady myself in such a circumstance. No matter how righteous I tried to maintain my morals, I would have shoved her adverse rights 'where the sun don't shine'. Even if they were willing to, I could not let my teammates actually kill an old crippled noble lady.
Papi, though, would be dealt with soon enough. As it was, the only people I could think of who would be more worthy of the cap and knighthood were Go or Lil. Because of how I would be dealing with Papi, if I really wanted to keep Lil as a part of the main party then I would need such a legitimate tie as her knighthood under the Delai family.
Since I already had a few ideas for my job as the Delai Family Guardian to ensure Lana's safety, I decided to stay the current course. For the most part. There would, of course, need to be some small changes.
After a few moments of shocked silence at the overall lack of reaction to what should have otherwise been devastating news, I walk calmly forward and leisurely clasp my hands behind my back while finally approaching the group. Smiling casually to the others to show them everything was alright, I come forward to stand beside Lana off to the side of Lady Mara and say, "Now, old lady, it's time to talk about the consequences of your actions."
Calmly patting Lana's shoulder as Lady Mara finally looks at me with an open scowl, I walk slowly forward around the old lady while saying, "I will be holding you accountable for the personal crimes of your arrogance. To think that you would consider your personal opinions of more importance than the well-being and relations of my people is an insult to my dignity as their friend and leader.
"Because of this, I will now crush your goals and formally step down from the position of Delai Family Guardian," I state loudly and firmly after coming around to stand only a few yards away and directly in front of the seated old lady, openly looking down on her. "Lana, I would like to formally nominate LilChurro as my replacement. She is much more loyal to me than her father and now it is very important to me that she takes this position."
After saying this I looked over at Lana with a more calmed expression and lightly nod my head with a hopeful look. She was confused and silent for a while, probably from the shock of my essentially abandoning her as a punishment to her aunt. However, the nomination of one of my companions was probably reassuring.
Slowly closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, a feel an odd pain in my heart when a small trail of wetness appeared at the corner of one of her eyes while she says, "Hack… I accept your resignation. Lil, would you be willing to fill the role of guardian for my household?"
Lil herself was even more surprised by the events taking place and took a moment to recover after actually being addressed. This right here was a testament to Lana's loyalty to me and potentially and outright slap to her aunt's face. I was playing every card from her feelings of debt to me for saving her life as well as all of her other feelings for me. If I did not reimburse everything she was putting at stake at the moment, I would not be able to consider myself a man.
After only a few seconds, Lil says in a soft but affirmative voice, "I gladly accept."
The Delai Family Retainer title worn above her head instantly went up a color grade to purple as the final word in her title became 'Guardian'. The title I had been wearing which said the exact same thing simply disappeared but was automatically replaced by the legendary Divine Designer.
Deciding to make a down payment on my new debt to Lana, I walk forward and openly hugs the girl in a tight embrace and ask, "Lana Delai, will you become my Divine Acolyte and accept all of the power and responsibility that comes with it?"
More shocked by my sudden and open affection than anything else that had happened so far, more tears suddenly appear at the corners of her eyes as she returns the hug just as tightly and says, "Yes, Hack, of cour-"
"Lana, you have no idea what you're even-" Lady Mara starts to say, cutting Lana off before she herself was cut off by a blinding gleam of golden light that was suddenly filling the foyer from Lana and I.
Moments later, the light subsides and my vision returned to reveal a slightly different Lana in my arms. Above the young lady's was now the privately shaded golden legendary title 'Life Hack's Divine Acolyte' and below the title was a shocking head of silvery white hair. As she recovered from the light as well and looked around, I realized that her irises had also turned a dusky golden color like ancient amber.
[Acquired Divine Acolyte: 3/10]
[Name: Lana Delai
Title: Life Hack's Divine Acolyte
Race: Blessed Human
Class: Divine Designer's Acolyte
Level: 1
HP: 1000
MP: 1000
PATK: 500(+214)
PDEF: 500(+200)
MATK: 500(+197)
MDEF: 500(+193)
MVSPD: 210%
Strength: 428
Endurance:401
Agility:416
Intelligence: 394
Willpower: 387
Luck: 416
Inventory: N/A
Skills: Divine Swordplay LV MAX Divine Bow Hunting LV MAX Elementalism LV5 Healing Arts LV MAX Divine Grace LV1 Acolyte's Slash LV1 Acolyte's Chop LV1 Acolyte's Thrust LV1 Acolyte's Flash Movement LV1 360 Edge LV1 Flying Guillotine LV1 Acolyte's Sweep LV1 Acolyte's Aura LV MAX Divine Self-Enchantment LV1 Divine Strike LV1 Melpomene's Blessing LV1 Stat Mirror LV MAX
Description: N/A]
"How do you feel?" I ask softly as Lana slowly recovers from the shock of her experience. Her race had changed from a normal human to something more and she had been granted a divine class as my acolyte.
On top of this, all of her stats had been suddenly raised to my level so she probably had a lot to adjust to. However, after only a few seconds of looking at numerous notifications she simply laughs and hugs me once again.
Showing no signs of letting go of me again, Lana simply sighs a few seconds later, "Safe. Right now, I feel safe. Thank you, Hack… for everything."
Resting my chin on her head and narrowing my gaze at the pale and infuriated Lady Mara who was glaring hatefully in my directions, I just smile and lightly rub the young lady's back reassuringly while saying, "Taking care of you is my responsibility, just like taking care of me is now yours. I'll watch your back and you'll watch mine."
"Does this mean you won't leave me again?" She asks suddenly, leaning back to give me an angrily hopeful look that was made humorously heartbreaking by the vague streaks from tears under her eyes. She was not wearing any make up, displaying her natural good looks, but the few wet lines were still clearly visible.
Of all the things she could have asked… sighing, I sadly shake my head and say, "You're probably more than ten times stronger than you used to be but there will be things that you cannot take part in. But, when I leave Sierra, you will definitely be coming with me. We'll be going to the capital to have your knighthood recognized as well as my own achievements. If I told you that you were serving an emperor and that my other two servants are demigods, would you believe me?"
As I spoke, I cheated and switched titles with my thoughts, changing first to the golden Monarch of Plague title and then to the Infected Emperor title. Then I called out to Cweeper and Hermes who were nowhere in sigh but arrived just a few moments later with blurred speeds.
She was certainly shocked with slightly widened eyes at the mention of an emperor but then the sudden appearances of my main familiars. However, now that she was also an acolyte she could see the privately shaded information above their heads.
Letting go of the young lady and simply turning away from the group in general, I say, "The day is not yet over and I still have a great deal of work to do. Tragedy's Travelers, go to the Guild and seek out your class trainers. Tomorrow, we meet the baron and I want everybody to stockpile all the special achievements for being over leveled or whatever they can get. Enjoy the dinner, though."
A single Flash Step later, I appeared outside under the late afternoon sun and only a moment later so did Cweeper and Hermes just a few steps behind. Not long after, though, a third and then fourth body appeared outside the manor on the steps and then blurred forward to catch up with me just outside the garden courtyard. Those bodies were first Lana and then Go.
A moment after they caught up with me, Go says, "I told you that you should do the quest properly."
"How did it feel?" I ask with a shrug, not even looking back at my followers.
"I never liked him anyway," he says with a slight laugh to his voice. "Amazing. What are we doing about the outlaws and what's this about the baron?"
Shrugging once again but slightly picking up the pace all the same, I say, "I went and visited Sir Beryl, the Elder Oak has become a paid challenge for both NPC and players. Anyway, I told him about the cordyceps and most of my other stuff and he's gonna help me safely integrate my races into society."
"Do we really need to go that far?" Go asks with some surprise. "Shouldn't everything just be mapped out for you at this point? You're a freaking oracle for crying out loud."
"It's too easy and my race is too dangerous, the emperor could easily see me as a threat or conspiracy means like being a puppet and the people behind him won't like me either," I explain with a shrug. "Originally, that imperial knighthood would have essentially been my swear of allegiance to the Mortal Emperor. Without it, public relations become necessary."
After a brief moment of silence, I add, "Things have been too easy, but that's because we've been on the road. These are just the first real steps we'll be taking. Think of it like a new quest."
[You know you are considered to have failed your quest, right?]
This actually managed to stop me in my tracks for a moment. "I Failed? How did I fail?! That was only the optional aspect of the quest! I still turned in the damned cape and knighthood!"
[You cut ties with the Delai family and then made their household your subordinates. If looked at from the right perspective, this can be seen as you taking over a minor imperial noble family by force which is a serious offense for most people. For someone in your current status of unrecognized nobility, it could be seen as an act of war in worst cases or a felony offense in general cases]
"How do I make it look good and not bad?" I ask as the others stop around me with confused expressions. Except for Cweeper and Hermes, they looked calm but actually had a hand on their weapons as if to express my own sudden anxiety.
[You are on the right path so far, but you need to step carefully. You do not have to toady up to the baron, but you do need to respect his authority. Especially in times like these during a siege event. Sierra might benefit from your abilities but the last thing the city needs right now is your kind of authority-ignorant personality]
Nodding my head slowly, I realize that things would not be too bad as long as I played my cards right and leveraged Sir Beryl's authority against any negativity the old lady could inspire against me. As long as I proved myself manageable and useful to the baron, I would have this nobility's support.
"Alright, what are the results from failing my quest?" I ask honestly, wondering what the actual consequences would be.
[Failed Quest: Investigating Lost Divinity]
[-100 Imperial Reputation]
[-5% Sierra Favorability]
[Not much, really]
"Yeah, that's not much, working on this tithe will cover that and then some," I say with a relieved sigh before turning to look at both Lana and Go. "Okay, so, I failed my quest with the Delai family but we can work things out. Alert the clan to start performing community services, everything from cleaning the streets at night to discounting NPC sales. I want increased publicity and positive acknowledgment by the end of the day!Get a hold of merch and tell him to take a to-go box to the Guild."
*