Chapter 69

"What is it that you want to talk to me about?" Artorius asked as he took a seat.

I also take my seat and start rummaging through my drawer, looking for the letter that I wrote for him, just in case.

"There is something I must give you now," I tell him while glancing back. "It's really important and do as I say. It's my dying wish to you."

"So you admit that your time is up?" Artorius smirked arrogantly.

"Yes, it is," I admit nonchalantly.

I found the letter under some paperwork and took it out of the drawer. It was sealed and ready to be given to him.

He notices the letter and stares at it curiously. "What is this letter for?" He asked me while looking back and forth between me and the letter.

"It's for you," I slid it across the table to him. "Now don't open it yet," I ordered.

He took the letter in his hands and placed it back on the desk. Though he seemed curious, he held back and listened to me.

"Let me confess some more secrets that I've kept hidden from the world,"

His eyes widened as he listened to me with all the attention he had to offer. This time I was on the winning side.

"Oh? I'm excited to hear!" He said in a sarcastic tone.

"Firstly, let me ask you. Do you remember when I got trapped inside the cave?" I asked him, though knowing his answer.

"I do."

"There is something that happened inside the cave that I have never told anyone about, except Sylas,"

Artorius listened carefully to what I was saying. He nodded to every word but kept his expression the same.

"When I was trapped, I was scavenging the cave for any food. That is when I found a shrine with fresh fruits that could last me a few days,"

"You took food from a shrine, inside the cave?" He said, bewildered by my carelessness.

"Perhaps, yes," I admit. "I was desperate and needed food. But what I did changed my life forever,"

I came closer to him and he came closer to me. We both leaned over on my desk, whispering to each other at this point.

"It was the shrine of Mori, the god of death," I whispered slowly.

Artorius recognized the name as his eyebrows shot up. He looked at me, completely shocked and out of words.

"T-then?" He asked me, finally building up the strength to speak. "What did you do?"

"He said he will show me the way out if I begin to worship him," I continued the story. "From then on, I've been worshipping him. But it seems that even worshippers have limited time in this forsaken world."

A strained chuckle came out from Artorius. He smiled and laid back on his chair, moving away from me and relaxing.

"So, have I just become a priest that listens to your confessions?" He asked.

"No, there is more to this," I told him as I laid back as well. "Let me get to the main point then.

Artorius takes the letter in his hands and puts it inside his coat's pocket. He looked back and urged me to continue with the story.

"I do not know what connection you have with death and Mori himself, but I know you have some sort of way that links you two together. A strange bond between a deity and a king."

"You think so?" He giggled. "Perhaps it has some truth in it."

I let out a deep sigh and smiled. "Maybe I will not know the answer to this. Perhaps in the afterlife, I will. But for now, I will be ignorant of this."

A pleasant yet uneasy aura filled the room as I talked more about this. It made me feel as though I had already passed. Now I am left talking to a man who has connected to me through spiritual means.

"I've lived my life as a coward. Not using my power to make the world a better place. But you, Artorius. You are different from me. Since you have left your old ways, all you've done is good deeds. When I leave this world, I want you to do the opposite of what I did."

"Hm, very well," He said while crossing his arms. "I will see to it that Amadeus will be different from you. I will ensure he is a competent ruler and fit to rule. I swear by my father's name."

His words gave me a sense of relief. Being told that Amadeus will have someone like Artorius to look after him. I can peacefully pass.

"Open that letter after my death. Do it when you're free, after your locomotive project." I told him my final order.

Artorius nods his head, agreeing to do as I said. "As you say, your majesty," He says before standing up, ready to leave as soon as he could.

"I assume you don't have anything else to tell me," Artorius said before turning around

"I don't. You can leave if you wish to leave this sickly retired emperor to rot in his room."

He walks to the door and opens it. But before he left, he looked back at me once more, opening his mouth and wanting to speak.

"Good night, your majesty. I'll see you on the other side," Artorius said before walking out and closing the door.

ARTORIUS' POV

He revealed everything to me, yet I didn't tell him any of my secrets. Possibly for the better. But he would be dead soon. Mori was walking alongside him as Amelia would describe it.

Amelia said that Alaric had a tall, hooded man following him, walking side by side. She mentioned he locked his arms around him and walked along. No skin or meat was on his arm, just a semi-transparent skeleton arm that hung loosely around his shoulders.

Nevertheless, we've come to peaceful terms and let go of each other's throats. We agreed on a deal and I've given my word to protect his family. I've finally reached the end of my journey.

As I walked through the vast, echoing hallways, I began to ponder on what to do after the party. There's no way to get back to work if he dies after tomorrow. Everything will come to a halt and everyone has to attend his funeral, making the world stop in its tracks.

"I'm tired.." Amelia groans out to me in telepathy, breaking the silence I've heard for the past few minutes.

"Let's go home then, shall we?" I replied to her. "Enough partying for a day."

She didn't reply.

"Did you fall asleep already?" I asked her again.

"W-wha!?" She exclaimed after a long pause. "I fell asleep!"

Relief washed over me as she answered back. "Let's go home," I told her again.

"Okay…" She replied before dozing off.

I walked down the flight of stairs to the second floor and made my way back to the ballroom. Though I thought the hallway was empty, I was proven wrong.

A short grey-haired boy walked down the hallway towards where I was headed. He had a holster with a black and gold scabbard on him.

It was Zenith.

He heard my footsteps and turned around, alert and ready to fight. But he recognized me as I walked towards him and eased up.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I was going to meet his majesty," He replied, bowing down in respect.

I walked past him and kept walking. "Come then, I was going to meet him too,"

He followed behind me without hesitation. We both walked into the ballroom together, grabbing the attention of Alexander as soon as we entered.

"Artorius!" He called me "Where have you been!?"

He rushed to me in a panic. The way he suddenly acted made me nervous. Did something serious happen?"

"What is it?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow.

"You need to save me! I've made a mistake!' He whispered aggressively.

"What did you do?"

He looked around and noticed Zenith. I motioned him to move aside to give us privacy. He did as I motioned and moved away from us, keeping a safe distance.

Alexander came closer and whispered to me.

"I might've taken Lady Iris' daughter for the dance and now she's after me!"

"But why?" I asked him out of curiosity.

"She said if I danced with her she would use her connections with Lucious to score us some material." He explained further.

I blankly stared at him, completely bewildered and dumbfounded.

"A-Artorius…?"

"Good for you!" I spoke out happily. "That is such wonderful news!"

Alexander was taken aback and stepped back.

"W-what!? How is this any good!? Help me damn it!" He shouted at me as I gave him a cheeky smile.

Behind him, a lady dressed in a long red dress was dashing towards us. I already understood what was about to happen.

"Oh~ Alexander!" The lady called out. "Why are you running away from me!?"

He shrieked in fear and whipped around to face his doom. She came running to him and embraced him in a tight hug.

"L-lady O-Oliva!" He muttered. "T-too tight!"

She closely resembled her mother, from the

My attention was taken away from her by Alexander's death stare. He looked at me with eyes pleading for help and anger.

It took all my strength to not burst out laughing from seeing him make such a face.

"Oh, how I've missed you!" Olivia spoke out, sounding drunk and slurring her words.

She held onto him tightly as Alexander tried to hold her up. Trying to keep the drunken princess on her feet.

"I'm so lonely tonight~ Alexander, let's go frolick in the vast plains of this empire together under the night sky as the moonlight shines down!"

Seeing as Alexander was busy, I sneakily slid past him and took Zenith with me.

Amadeus was sitting at his table with his mother, talking with Elric as the new emperor of the Rigel empire.

"Where is his majesty?" Zenith asked me, frantically looking around the ballroom.

"Over there," I pointed towards Amadeus.

He looked closely but was unsure. "I don't see him,"

"Are you blind?"

"All I see is his highness and her majesty," He rebutted

Was he absent during the crowning?

"Wait a minute," I halted and turned to him. "Were you not present?"

"Present during what?" He looked at me with ignorant eyes.

"That explains it,"

"What?" He asked with a stern gaze

"Let me fill you in then," I told him while kneeling to eye level.

I stared into his eyes and put my right arm on his shoulder, making him ready to hear the news.

"His majesty has stepped down from the throne and given it to Amadeus. In short, Amadeus is the new emperor,"

I could see his face turn pale as his eyes widened from shock. Zenith's mouth opens but no words come out. He tried to form words but couldn't

"W-what…?" He muttered.

I got back on my feet and walked away. "Let's go greet the new emperor then," I told him as I walked closer to Amadeus.

Zenith dashed and caught up to me, blocking me with his arms spread and not letting me pass.

"Where is his majesty?" He asked with an intimidating stare.

"In his office," I answered. "He's feeling unwell, I must warn you."

He didn't waste a second and went off running past me. Why does he need to speak to Alaric so badly?

I sigh and continue to walk over to Amadeus, still busy with Elric at the moment.

"Good evening, your majesty," I greeted as I got closer.

His head twirls around and his face brightens up. "Oh, Artorius!" He exclaimed with joy.

"I see you are busy, perhaps I should come at a later time," I told him with sincerity.

"I'm not that busy! Come here!" He called me.

I walked over to him and made eye contact with Elric. He was a few inches taller than me and had dark brown hair, neatly tied in a low ponytail that ran down to his shoulder blades.

Beside him was his wife, Asta Wyot. Compared to him, she was much shorter but just as dark-skinned as him. I would've mistaken them for brother and sister if it weren't for her hair being black.

"Emperor Elric," I bowed down. "It is an honour to be in your presence."

"The pleasure is all mine, Artorius," He smiled and answered in a voice that suited his intimidating aura

I nod at Lady Asta and glance back at Elric.

"Why did you want to talk to me?" Amadeus asked, taking my attention away from the dark elves.

"Ah, right," I said before taking the empty seat next to him. "I'll be leaving soon,"

"Oh? I see," He said while clapping his hands. "You must be tired, huh?"

"It's not me who's tired," I laughed. "It's Amelia, my bond. She's fallen asleep and needs to rest."

"Very well!" He exclaimed. "Come! I'll see you off then,"

We both stood up together and excused ourselves from the royal family. Lady Serena heard our conversation and smiled as we both left the table.

I glanced back to where I last saw Alexander and he was still trying to calm down the drunken princess as she babbled about her romantic interest in him.

"Alexander is in quite the trouble," Amadeus says as he notices the commotion happening between the two.

"Heh, it's humorous, isn't it?" I chuckled while staring at the two.

I noticed him trying to get my attention but I acted as if I didn't notice. It felt mean but it was fun to watch him suffer for a while.

Both of us made it to my table to pick up Kathlyn to leave. She was sitting with Lady Feronia and talking more about something that I couldn't hear. She noticed me heading her way and smiled.

Amelia was on her lap, sleeping soundlessly in her usual curled position. Lady Feronia noticed me as well, her ears perked up as we came closer.

"Oh, Artorius!" Lady Feronia exclaimed. "Where did you go?"

"I escorted his majesty back to his room," I answered. He was feeling unwell and I felt uneasy having him walk alone,"

"How thoughtful!" She said in amazement. "I didn't even notice him leave, nor did I notice how he was feeling. You have sharp eyes."

Amadeus stayed quiet as the three of us talked. It seemed strange to me that he is usually quiet, yet he acts socially around people. But sometimes he goes quiet and doesn't speak up.

Though I was wasting his time with small talk. I should end the conversation quickly.

"Well then," I acted as if I was about to get up. "Let's go home?" I asked Kathlyn.

Kathlyn smiled and nodded. "Sure, I was waiting for you to finish your business,"

She stood up and carried Amelia with her. Lady Feronia got up as well and suddenly embraced Kathlyn.

"It's been a pleasure talking to you, Kathlyn." She said while holding onto her. "You're the only one who shares such an odd interest with me."

Kathlyn on the other hand seemed nervous. "I-I see," She stuttered. "Let's talk more about baking another time then!"

Feronia's pointy ears wiggled with excitement. "We must! I have so much more to talk about!"

She lets go of Kathlyn and turns to me. "I'll see you two in the future hopefully!

"We will meet soon!" I reassured her. "It seems like you two have grown close in just a few hours."

Amadeus, Kathlyn and I start to walk away from her as she slowly waves us goodbye. It felt wrong separating the two from each other. They seemed to have kept each other company throughout the evening.

But before we could leave, I made sure to take a souvenir with me.

A butler was walking back to a table with a bottle of wine which I managed to snatch from him. He panicked and tried to have me give it back.

"Your majesty! I could bring you one if you want! Please give this one back!" He shouted as he panicked.

"Who are you taking this for?" I asked him out of curiosity.

"Sir Astrid, your majesty,"

"I'll be taking it then,"

The waiter shrieked but was powerless. He accepted defeat when he noticed Amadeus staring at him, persuading him to give me the bottle.

Both of us followed Amadeus as he walked out of the ballroom and into the long hallways. He already fits his father's shoes very well.

"Artorius," Amadeus speaks up and breaks the silence. "You've been keeping up with recent news, right?"

"I have," I replied. "Was there something special in the news?"

"No, but there was something regarding you that I was curious about."

The past few news reports didn't have anything about me. What is he talking about?

"Remember the beast you killed that roamed the forest near Redwater?" He turns to look at me.

It clicked in my mind what he was talking about. The one I sent off to the scientists to research on. I never got a report back and forgot about it afterwards.

"Oh, I remember," I answered back. "What about it?"

"It has been identified as a one-of-a-kind creature," He says with a serious tone. "It doesn't exist in this world. Nothing like it has been observed in the past."

I felt my heart pound as he spoke further about it. Since the creature is not native to this world, I might've killed the only known case of it in cold blood.

Perhaps I've made a mistake in making such a bold decision.