Chapter 21.1 – Meeting a King – part 1.1
Captain Ermo overheard the talk and asked, "What do you mean by protecting them, Fae? I never heard about a Fae protecting anyone!"
"We do that occasionally, depending on how interesting some beings are. Some days ago, an Ooman army tried to go after Meryda and take her by force if necessary. We kind of stopped them, and they had to retreat without their weapons and horses. If any Ooman tries something, we will stop them. Meryda came off her own free will to see how things are on the front lines, so there is no point for someone to try to take her for some dubious plan."
"I see… but I also heard you calling her Party Leader. Why?"
"Because we kind of joined her Party of Explorers and Adventurers, that's why. We are the shield in charge of protection. Meryda is the Mage, and her Monsters are the attack force, together with her Demi friends. We already did all sorts of successful and profitable Quests! We had so much fun!"
With his eyes wide open, the Captain couldn't believe what he had heard. Like him, he was absolutely sure no one ever heard a Fae saying they were in a Party, doing Quests. It sounded so absurd that it could only be true. He only nodded and looked straight ahead, still too dumbfounded and trying to think about the reason for a Fae to be doing that.
After a while, they finally reached the entrance of the castle on top of a hill, right in the middle of that enormous City.
The two guards stationed there saluted their Captain the moment they recognized him but were on edge when they saw the strange horses with wings and the three Monsters that Meryda had with her.
The Captain gave a quick explanation by saying he was going to take them to meet the King, and the guards went to both sides of the gate after signalling for the guards in the front yard to let them pass.
As soon as the Captain called for someone to take the horses to the stable, a Demi-Cat boy came running and immediately froze in front of such nightmares.
Craydon explained that he only had to point to the cubicles in the stable that they could use, and the horses would peacefully follow him, and as for the small dark fog, a bucket of water near those horses would be enough.
The boy gulped and called the horses, becoming surprised by how peacefully they followed him to the nearby stable.
From the barracks on the right side of the stable, a contingent of soldiers came, fully armoured, and they stood in line, making sure those strange horses entered peacefully and that the Salamander, which was near Meryda, was calmly walking next to her.
As they walked along the front yard, Craydon and Meryda were looking up, amazed by the absurd size of that castle. From a distance, as they were walking in the City, they knew it was big, but up close, it was immensely high.
The six towers, all of them bearing poles with flags adorned with Oka's coat of arms, were the most impressive elements of the entire building. It was as if they were an indication of the power and influence of that country. Or, they were supposed to indicate, if not for the Ooman influence in a Demi country, because Oka was strategically important since it was in the lowest part of the mountain range.
The other countries along the mountain range, like the Kamawaran Kingdom, Shoq League, Mangavasia, and the Kingdom of Malgudria, all had the highest mountains with permanent snow on top, making it impossible for anyone to cross them and reach the Demon's country on the other side.
Flying horses or any kind of flying Monsters was not an option to cross the mountain range because the only flying animal that existed was the Karkadann, impossible to tame or train, and Drakes were deadly Monsters, who could tear apart an entire City and an army of soldiers and Mages.
That was why Meryda and Craydon arriving with two dark Karkadanns caused such a commotion in the City and in that Castle. Most people didn't ever see one flying, let alone one walking peacefully near them.
It was well known that if you ever saw a Karkadann, you would die. Those beasts only saw Oomans and Demis as an annoyance that should be dead, and despite being vegetarians, they couldn't tolerate the sight of Oomans and Demis alive and well. There were even reports about Karkadanns attacking a village or a City during the night, only to kill anyone on sight.
The Castle doors opening to grant them passage made Craydon and Meryda stop looking up, and they both walked near Captain Ermo Sepp with the smiling Fae next to them.
The Salamander's claws scratching the floor echoed in the corridors as they were going deeper into the Castle, making a few servants come from several doors to check what that noise was, disappearing with a scream inside the room from where they came the moment they saw the frightening Monster.
Soldiers came from side corridors and stopped when they saw their Captain at the front of that strange group, and they watched in silence, wondering why such visitors came.
After a large room, which the Captain said was normally used for parties or to receive large groups of people who were waiting to see the King, there was another long corridor, and at the end of it, two massive metallic doors, with two Royal Guards stationed on each side.
At least for Craydon and Meryda, they looked like Royal Guards, because of the difference in their clothing compared to Captain Ermo and the other guards outside the castle.
The Captain explained why his guests were there, and one guard told them to wait, opened one door, and closed it behind him.
The other Royal Guard was staring at the orange Salamander, squeezing the spear and the shield he was holding, while the deadly Monster was seated on his back legs and with Meryda caressing his head.
Some seconds later, Craydon heard a commotion in the room on the other side of those doors, as if a lot of voices were speaking at the same time, and then went silent.
The Royal Guard returned and told them to follow him but to leave the Salamander and the Slime in that corridor, which Craydon refused because neither he nor his daughter could promise they would behave if they were left alone.
The guard frowned and told them to follow him while unsheathing his sword. The sound of the sword coming out made the Salamander growl, and Meryda warned the surprised guard, "It would be better if you put away your sword. He knows swords are dangerous, and he often fights against people armed with swords. Besides, that wouldn't help you anyway, because if he wanted, he could easily break or melt it."
Without knowing what to do, the guard stopped for a moment in front of the opened door, and he then said, "There are a few Mages inside, and if he makes a sudden movement, they will attack."
Meryda said with a shrug, "And they will lose. We are used to fighting Mages and Adventurers at the same time, so it will be just another normal day for us."
"Don't say I didn't warn you, then."
The guard entered the room, and Meryda, Craydon, and the now-serious Fae followed him.
As he entered the large room, Craydon noticed several people in there, and they were all near the walls with Mages and Royal Guards making two defensive lines on both sides, along which the Royal Guard was walking, and it was expected that Meryda, and he entered that protected path as well.
The Mages had staffs with the crystal on top glowing with Magic, prepared to attack if needed. At least, that was what they were ordered to do until a Fae grew from the ground and stood in front of each of them. The soldiers on those two lines gulped when they saw a Fae standing in front of each Mage, blocking their view.
Captain Ermo noticed that the Mages were now unable to do anything, and he continued his walk towards the throne at the end of that vast room where his King was seated.
On the King's right side, there was a middle-aged blond Ooman man, richly dressed in clothes glowing with gems, which were reflecting the light coming from the tall windows around that room.
Next to that man was another Ooman, younger, and he looked as if he were his assistant because of his submissive demeanour, by looking down and keeping his shoulders low to make his size lower than his master. At his feet, there were two Sub-Monsters, seated on the cold, hard floor, dressed in a dark, long shirt, and both of them with the usual chains and collars.
The Royal Guard put one knee on the ground and said while looking down, "These are the visitors, my King."
Captain Ermo Sepp kneeled in the same way and said, "My King, this is Craydon Cross, and his daughter, the Monster Tamer Meryda Cross. They said they were going to the front lines tomorrow but wanted to rest tonight in the City, so I thought they should come here to meet you and perhaps rest in this Castle instead of the City. It would be safer for everyone."
Craydon and Meryda bowed their heads, and before the King could mutter a word, the middle-aged man said with a frown, "That is no way to greet the King of Oka! You shall now kneel!"
Without even looking at the annoyed man, Craydon said, "Forgive us, but you are not our King, so it would be pointless for us to kneel. We are also completely ignorant about the royal customs because we never had to deal with Kings before today, so I hope that by not kneeling, we are not breaking any law."
The man was about to say something, but the King spoke with a stern look on his face, "It is not a matter of breaking a law, but royal etiquette. It is already absurd enough that you are in my presence with two Monsters at your side and a group of Fae preventing my Mages from acting in case of need, so the least you could do was show you pose no threat."
"That goes both ways, my King. You could tell your Royal Guards to stand down and for your Mages to dissipate their Magic. We came because we were asked to, and no one told us we would be in any kind of danger or that we were going to be arrested the moment we stepped foot in this room."
"You are in no position to demand anything from King Vosen Rask! Who do you think you are?" shouted the Ooman, now with his hand over the King's shoulder, as if he were trying to show his influence.
"And who the heck are you, Ooman? This is Oka, a Demi country! If anyone can ask me anything, it will be the King, not you! Unless the King orders me to speak to you, you will not see me talking to you ever again!" said Craydon, taking everyone by surprise in the royal room.
The man looked down to the King, waiting for his input, only to hear him explain, "This is Ambassador Mairo Soosaar from the Shian Empire, and he is right. You are a visitor, but for the sake of a pleasant conversation, I will grant you your request. I hope you don't make me regret it. Guards and Mages, stand down. Give us some space, but stay in this room."
The Royal Guards and the Mages joined the group of Nobles near the walls, and the King continued, "And now?"
Craydon put one knee on the ground and looked down, and Meryda did the same, with him saying, "It is a pleasure to meet you, King Vosen Rask."
The King frowned when he saw that the group of Fae were still in the room, and one of them was next to Meryda, staring straight at him, making him ask, "And why are you here, Fae?"
"For no particular reason aside from making sure our friend Meryda is completely safe." The Fae then looked at the Ooman Ambassador and said, "You, Ooman, have no meaning in being here. Why don't you go away and let the Demis talk in peace?"
"Because unlike you, who comes and goes uninvited every single time, I am always here, advising King Vosen."
The Fae grinned and continued, "As if a mere Ooman could ever advise a Demi in any way! As much as you may think you are important, you are not. Your life is only a breeze in time, and you will disappear sooner than King Vosen because you know very well how brief Ooman lives are compared to Demis. But you are entertaining at least, with that annoyed look on your face and that proud behaviour. Now shush and let the Demis talk!"