Consequences of one's actions

The day after came. The group silently headed towards the Teleportation Circle, paid the price set by the receptionist and were headed back towards the Erst duchy. Up to this point, there were no problems.

But the moment they appeared in the Erst duchy, Savine could immediately notice something wrong. Curious, she looked around.

There were way more guards around the Circle this time around, and their eyes were all focused on them. Some of them were even mages.

<It's them…> someone's whispers entered Savine's head.

<Are you sure?>

<I'm positive, Sir Gunnar.>

Savine looked at the source of the conversation and saw baron Lant whispering to a knight. The latter discreetly sent the other guards a handsign and the air tensed slightly.

'Ah, maybe Lucius was right.'

He was the only one who was worried about the fact that they killed two people of the Erst duchy.

"Boss, who's side will you be on?" Savine asked.

"Huh?"

"Don't play dumb, you're the one who's been looking around the most, all excited. You can see the mess that's about to occur, right?"

"…"

"I'll give you a hint, though," Savine smiled nonchalantly. "I'll always win. Even if I lose, I'll make sure that I'm the one who gets the last laugh. I'm petty like that."

"…"

Boss couldn't give an answer immediately. She could guess why. Shaking her head, she patted him on the back.

"Go over there if you want to. Don't regret it, though."

At that, there was hesitation in his eyes. Since Savine was acting so confident, he wasn't so sure about his decisions anymore. But logically, the answer should be made already. Savine's side was Fest, while the other side was Erst. It wasn't hard to see which side was the stronger one at a glance.

Moreover, Boss wasn't privy to the deals Savine had with the temple and the Sovereign. He only thought they were visiting due to an obligation of some sorts.

He slowly walked towards baron Lant.

On the other hand, Lucius was angry. 'I told you so,' his face seemed to scream.

"Don't worry too much," Savine said. "If it doesn't work out for us, I can just kill everyone here. …Why are you looking at me like that? Don't worry about leaving any witnesses alive. I may not look it, but I'm very thorough in these matters."

It took a second for Lucius to realize she was joking. Then his face crumpled, finding the joke distasteful and unfunny.

Speaking nonsense, Savine walked towards the knight. The siblings followed behind her obediently. The knight was confused, seeing her walk towards him, but he assumed a steady pose and glared at her intently. Scoffing at his attempt at intimidation, Savine spoke up.

"Sir Knight, please arrest these two men for the attempted kidnapping of a ducal family," she said, pointing at Boss and baron Lant.

"?"

"Three days earlier, when we tried to move towards the Sovereign's city, a group of twenty people attempted to ambush us. These two were at the forefront. They asked me about my family, perhaps intending to see what reactions will my disappearance beget. I've told them that us are the ducal family of Fest, but they didn't believe us.

"I warned them not to try anything stupid, and I can let them walk home with all their heads intact… But foolishly, they refused to listen, thus we killed two of them as a show of might. Since we weren't sure they would try something with the Teleportation Circle, we were forced to bring this one along with us."

Boss was staring at her with a complicated gaze. There was indignation in his eyes, asking how she could so quickly start accusing him of his crimes? Weren't they getting closer to each other during these couple days?

Savine gave him no heed. She offered him a place beside her and he refused. That was that.

As for the knight, he looked unconvinced.

"Is that so? Regardless, you can explain yourself to the duke," he said dispassionately.

He was holding onto a handcuff, but glancing at Savine and the rest once more, he put it away.

"Please follow me."

Savine had no qualms about that. "Lead the way."

The group walked silently towards the mansion in the middle of the city. Seeing the array of guards, the people nearby stared curiously.

Eventually, they arrived at their destination. It was a majestic mansion, the duke's residence. Everything was big. The pillars that supported the architecture, the furniture that felt like they were made by logs instead of planks, and the grand paintings that adorned the house walls.

'Perhaps if Dred was a duke, he would have such a house,' Savine thought jokingly.

But when they reached the duke's open meeting room, Savine realized just how right she was.

In the middle of the room, a gigantic throne sat. It was wide enough to fit three adult men and its recliner stood at least 5 meters tall, almost nearing the ceiling of the tall room.

The person on it, however, somehow made the throne look like a reasonably sized piece of furniture.

'How is he so tall, yet bulky?'

Savine couldn't help but think so, seeing the two-and-a-half-meter giant resting on the throne. It was hard for people to be tall and bulky at the same time. Their weight became a burden that threatened to break the bodies.

But the man in front of him looked none of those things. His giant stature suggested only stability and strength, instead of frailty and weakness.

"Your Highness, we've brought the suspects," the knight said. "Not only did they admit to killing two of our citizens, they even dare to impersonate a ducal family."

Savine glanced at Lucius. Sure enough, he was readying himself to speak up. She silently turned the recorder at her waist on.

"It has been a long time, Your Highness."

"Lucius Fest?" duke Erst said, scratching his cheeks. "And that must be Eliseline."

At that, the knight's expression soured. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. He had just accused a duke of impersonating himself.

"What's this all about?" duke Erst groaned.

"As we've said, we've been ambushed in the middle of the night by a group of 20 men. Two mages at the forefront. We've made an example of two of them and we were forced to bring one Boss of the Dispatch center, concerned for our safety. After all, Teleportation Circle accidents are no joke."

Duke Erst's face transformed into a giant frown. He glared at Boss and baron Lant and also at the few scholarly-looking men beside him.

"I've been told that you all investigated this matter properly," he growled.

"We did, Your Highness! These people acted utmost suspiciously! If they're the ducal family, shouldn't they at least inform us of their visit?!"

"Must we inform you of everything we do?" Eliseline interjected. "We had no business in Erst, hence we hurried on without bothering anyone. Just because of that, you assume we're impostors?"

'So they did a background check on us?' Savine wondered. 'There's something worrying about that statement… but what is it?'

Something felt wrong, but Savine couldn't tell why.

"Silence!" duke Erst bellowed. "Learn to own up to your mistakes."

Lucius spoke up. "It's a small matter, Your Highness. A misunderstanding. If you have no more business with us, we shall be on our way."

Duke Erst was about to nod, but one of the scholars nearby leaned towards his ear to whisper something.

<Your Highness, we must not let them off so easily.>

<Why not? It's only two dead commoners. Let the matter go.>

<They're a ducal family, but it's only Fest! And it is true that they executed two of your citizens without knowing! That's treasonous, invasive act if you think about it! We must get something back from them! Please remember the shortage land we're facing to south!>

Duke Erst thought for a bit and soon nodded enthusiastically. Savine sighed.

'I hope this farce ends soon.'