Chapter 33: Delia (Part 6)

A black-haired woman walked out of the carriage, wearing an extravagant dress with lots of expensive accessories around her body. A large ruby attached to a golden string wrapped around her neck, a bracelet made of Mythril, and she wore a golden tiara on top of her head, signaling that she is a princess of the kingdom.

She looks absolutely beautiful but something was off about her. Her face has the look of an arrogant, pampered, spoiled princess. Everything about her reminds me of an overly spoiled child.

I found no reason as to why she would stop right in front of us and looked at Deiia's face with such scornful eyes. I would love to pluck them just for doing that.

She then spoke with a voice full of haughtiness and arrogance, "Oh my, oh my, why is our previous princess wearing such a repulsive dress? How much did that cost? Your whole savings? Hohohoho!"

A repulsive dress? Does she know how much that cost me!? That cost me a few gold notes! That's the most expensive clothing I've ever bought, and you dare to mock them!? Do you want to die!?

With an angry look on her face, Delia said, "It's none of your business, Lorallia."

While on top of the steps attached to her carriage, the Lorallia woman stared down at Delia, and said, "I see, you've been impregnated by some nobody in the slums. What is his name? Is it, Dillan? Hohoho, that peasant did score our precious princess. A shame that his leg was 'accidentally' cut off during the lumbering expedition."

I was fuming at this point but I stopped myself to listen to her rants, after hearing about this "princess" business.

"So you and uncle really had a doing behind that incident…" She muttered, I heard, angrily.

Lorallia didn't hear her muttering, and continues saying as she looks at me, "Hmm, is this your child? A wonder, did you adopt him? He doesn't seem to look like you, and he's a pretty cute child. I've decided! I will take him with me to the castle! Guards, chop, chop!"

""Yes, your highness!""

The guards surrounding her saluted and went towards me with their equipment making noises in their every move.

They surrounded me, all 10 of them, as one of them said, "Child, come with us. This is an honor for your lowly blood to be taken in by the crown princess, Lorallia. Do not resist."

Delia couldn't move as she did not want to endanger her unborn child, she could only watch as the guards ignored her and went straight for me.

I simply watched calmly, a bit surprised that this Lorallia would suddenly try to kidnap me.

I looked at the guards that were wearing silver armors, and chuckled as I said, "How novice."

I tapped the ground with my leg, and lightning coursed through the earth as they touched the boots of the guards, and in a moment, without any warnings, they were fried to death as millions of volts entered their armors!

"AAAAHH!"

"A-AAAAHH!!"

They screamed as they were electrocuted inside their armors. It was obvious to me that they weren't capable of using mana whatsoever. Therefore, they are weaker than the goblins I've fought before.

Only the soldiers in the empires are taught how to use their mana, and seeing that this kingdom has such a messed up economy, that means that there are not enough resources to train mana-using soldiers. These guards can't even protect her from normal monsters like goblins, let alone fight a hoard. How can they be guards when they are so weak? How incapable is this kingdom?

With all the money and resources they have in their vaults, they can't even train proper soldiers.

The moment they fell to the ground, I heard an old wizen voice from inside the carriage, chuckling as he says, "Hmm, my travel to this land was not wasted, at all! To think that I'll find such talent in this backwater kingdom, how lucky for this old man."

Lorallia turned around to face the entrance of the carriage as she said, "What do you mean by that, master mage? The child did that?!"

"Hah, hah, hah! That child Is more powerful than you think, young princess! Even your kingdom cannot handle the power he wields! I daresay that he might be able to beat me in terms of quantity and quality of his mana!" The old, wizen voice seems to be overjoyed.

Then, I saw an old man's hands come out of the carriage's entrance with the curtains being moved away mysteriously.

An old man with a gray robe, a simple wooden staff in his right hand, long gray hair with a long beard, and old black eyes having a certain twinkle in them.

He looked at me with a smile on his face as he pushed Lorallia off the steps, making her tumble down the ground, and walked towards me while stepping on the corpses of the guards, having no empathy for them whatsoever.

He arrived in front of me, and said, "Hmm, curious, curious. Would you like to be my apprentice, child?"

Cautiously, I said, "You said earlier that I have more mana than you, so why would I be your apprentice? And you haven't even introduced yourself!" I can't sense anything from him, so I must tread carefully around this old man. I can't endanger Delia.

With that unsettling smile, the old man said, "I apologize, child. My name is Christopher, a mage from the silver continent. I was invited by the Albion Empire to teach its crown prince magic but I've found something more intriguing, right in front of my eyes."

I readied myself to face him in case he assaults me, only to find out that I couldn't use my mana!

'Wah!?'

"Oh, do be careful, child. I have canceled the use of magic in the entire kingdom, for safety purposes." The old man said, and I quickly looked around to find an escape path to use in case of a fight.

The old man sighed, and said, "Do try to listen to me, it's disrespectful to ignore an old man, you know? Just a simple yes or no will do."

I decided to humor the old man, and said, "You haven't answered my previous question; why should I be your apprentice?"

He strokes his beard as he said with a smile, "Hmm, I can teach you everything I know. I can teach you how to wield the heavens and earth, with only a snap of your finger. Like this."

He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

*Snap!*

The clouds in the sky started to disperse and the ground shook with such a strong magnitude that I thought everything would crumble before my eyes. Thunder roared in the sky as a dragon entirely made of lightning descended, and another roar from the earth as a dragon entirely made of minerals from the ground of the huge road rose to the sky, joining the lightning dragon, circling each other.

"A-AH, WHAT'S THAT!?"

"Is this heaven's anger?"

"Run away!"

I stared with my jaws dropped as I saw everything unfold before my eyes. The bystanders around us had already run away, the only ones remaining were Delia, me, the woman Lorallia, and the old man.

Lorallia dropped to the ground, scared at the show of power in front of her. She didn't care whether her dress would get dirt on it and tried to run away like her people, only her pride stopped her from doing that.

With his arms spread wide open, his back arched, he said with a smile, "Wouldn't you like to control the heavens and earth, child?"

'How arrogant, how bold, how audacious!'

That's what everyone's thinking right now, including me.

I was in awe. The degree of control needed to do the things he did is massive, and even I can't do that.

"What do you think now, child?" He said.

But against all of his expectations, I only said, "If I accept your offer, would you join me in my exploits?"

His unsettling smile, combined with his unruly eyes, only made me uncomfortable as he said, "Of course, a master should help his apprentice in his adventures."

"Even if I dare to fight against the two empires, would you still be by my side?"

He nodded, "Such simple things should not be mentioned."

"Then, will you destroy this kingdom's royalty for me?" I asked, having figured out who Delia really is.

"Shush, I said that such simple things shouldn't be mentioned," He looked at Delia, who's right by my side, and I immediately became on guard but he said, "Don't be so untrustful of me. So, this is the woman you want to protect? Ah, I see, she is holding a child in her womb. But this woman… was the crown princess of this kingdom. Lorallia has talked a lot about you, how she and her father poisoned your mother to gain the throne. I also heard from her mouth that her father gathered every noble in the kingdom to rally against your mother, the queen. How tragic, isn't it?"

Lorallia, in her panic, said, "What!? I've never said that! How dare you spat such untruthful things about me!"

He chuckled, and stared at her with such deadly eyes as he said, "You call me a liar, young girl?"

She stuttered, "N-No! I would never, sire!"

"Hah, hah, hah! It doesn't matter, I just like to use illusion magic on guilty people a lot." He said.

I stared at the woman, with eyes filled with rage. So she is the reason why Delia is like this!

A dagger appeared in my hand, gripping it so tightly that I almost crushed the handle.