Understatement

It was a modest sight. People from all over the city had gathered near the center where the Count was going to give a speech this evening and announce the start of the festival. So people were gathering up. Shia dragged me to the very first row where they had special seats for some special guests. We didn't have seats but we did get to stand by the headmaster and some of the nobles.

Someone else was also going to give a speech. Namely, the Cardinal.

Apparently, each city had several priests and one Cardinal who oversaw everything. I always thought Mrs. Barack was a priest but I was wrong. She was a Cardinal, something in between a priest and a high priest. No wonder the Barack family was so highly regarded here.

According to my past knowledge, Cardinals could vote on who got to be the next pope and all that stuff. I wasn't sure if that was the case in this world. They had a pope and all that stuff but the church was surprisingly secretive about their inner affairs.

"Greetings everyone," the Count came and people stood up. We all greeted him as he took the podium and started his speech. A fairly basic speech about how the city was doing great and how he'd actively helped the city and the academy be safe.

Fucking liars.

Next, Mrs. Barack. Shia's mother. She started off with a prayer to Askavan. I'd seen her recite that very same verse about a hundred times during my time working for the church.

She actually had a fairly nice voice. Would have made a great opera singer.

Shame how under that pretty face she was a murderer… no, everyone's a murderer here Sol. Even you. To live was to kill, literally. "And that's why, please help us keep this land safe and usher a new age of prosperity not with hate, not with grief; but with cooperation and equality!"

I could almost spit on the ground. But I didn't.

Sighing, I wanted to leave. But Shia held my hand and just watched her mother with wonder in her eyes. To her, her mother wasn't a murderer just like Lin wasn't one to me. They were heroes.

"I love her," Shia said. "I trust you and support you Sol. But I'll never betray my mother… and I'll never forgive you if you do as well."

"I'll keep that in mind."

At the end of that day, I wasn't part of their family. And I didn't have any right to question much of anything about them.

Barack senior already hated my guts and I'd probably pissed off Mrs. Barack as well. The moment I'd end up antagonizing Shia would also be the moment my relationship with their family formally ended.

Still, before that day eventually came, I wanted to make the most of my school life. And perhaps live a decent life all the while.

If the Headmaster were to be believed, the church wouldn't take any drastic measures but they would definitely keep an eye on me and would approach me sooner than later because of my contract with Rexen.

I thought Rexen being a cavern lizard would make me a traitorous soul they just had to punish but that wasn't the case. If Rexen was a high spirit, or fiend, that would have been the case but since he was a deity, a being close to a god, he wasn't being treated like a lizard. Yet, I had a feeling it wasn't that simple. Rexen was a lizard, there was no doubt about it. But at the same time… there was more.

Those wings and… and honestly, I felt something really sinister and malicious about him. Of course, I never felt that intent directed at me or my family. Hmmm… I remembered an odd thought. A hero would sacrifice you for the world. But a villain would sacrifice the world for you. Perhaps I was better off with Rexen after all.

Besides, Rexy was hella cute.

The people started dispersing and the festival started off without a hitch.

"Mew," the cat reminded me that I hadn't yet fed her. Greedy little guy.

We started hitting the food stalls and before long found some milk for the cat. Rexy never really ate much though. I never saw her eat anything. At first, I was worried sick about her health but she was fine. All she needed was one small portion of raw meat and she was good for the rest of the week. She got super giddy just after a meal and really liked jumping around too!

"So, how's your little club coming along?"

"Not bad. It's a little hard to find proper information from a sea of history and fiction though," I gobbled up some hot stir fry and basically burned my tongue. Delicious but damn it!

The streets were crowded but not over crowded. Kind of noisy though.

"Hmm… then I guess you'll be happy soon."

"What do you mean?"

"I heard mom say, help is on the way."

Huh?

Well, I certainly didn't like the sound of that, that was for sure.

 

The next day, my fears came alive and I fully understood what Shia meant.

Familiar robes, a tall human. He held a book to his chest and looked down at me with big eyes. 'Bout twenty, definitely young for a priest. And glasses!

"Morning Baron Soler Barack. I'm hereby assigned to you by his grace Samari Zamari from today onwards to aid you in your conquest to spread the greatness of lord Askavan. I Shall be waiting for you in the clubroom this afternoon."

Dude left just as fast as he'd knocked on my door.

He didn't even tell me his fucking name.

To say I was flabbergasted… was a fucking understatement.

[A/N (copied from patreon)]

I wanted to end the volume right here, but since I want to finish the festival too, I figured it'd be best to hold on until then. Maybe I'll just speedrun five chapters into one. Will take a while though, my left hand is pretty busted. All the fatigue has finally caught up for real.

Thanks for reading.

Have a nice day