Chapter 86—Formalities

Chapter 86: 86—Formalities Soon Lucen was at the front of the line, wondering if he should even be excited. Everyone that came out of the room smiled widely like they had discovered a treasure trove. The Veiled King would probably think Lucen was some bastard upstart and give him a few pebbles for his time. He personally wanted elixirs that would improve his Tripartite. He spent a lot of time thinking of the possible gifts, trying to keep his expectations low but stay hopeful. Winter root essence would improve his tenacity and ability to withstand pain and damage. Ashmetal cider would improve his ability to sense metal and danger. Luminous soul elixir made your soul coalesce faster. He wasn’t hoping for anything unreasonable. Just something that would actually help him, even if it was just a bit. The door opened and Helie came out beaming. She shook Lucen’s shoulders as she passed and high-fived Hither. She was strangely empty-handed He walked in immediately. The door led to an anteroom with a second door, which he knocked on before opening. "Come in, please," Kedral said from inside. Lucen opened the door to a long chamber. The room’s theme was dark blue and black wood. A single table that could seat ten people occupied most of the room, ornate chairs with embroidered cushions. Kedral was at the head of the table, grinning, elbows on the table. "Ah, young Lucen, I was worried you wouldn’t come." Lucen bowed then saluted him, cracking a nervous smile. "It’s an honour to even receive the simplest gift from you." He had already deduced that Kedral was an enemy, but Lost Wind must have believed he could be useful. Which was why she had Lucen show off against the Bull wolves. He waited for permission to sit. Kedral waved his hand impatiently, and once Lucen was seated asked, "Tell me about yourself, Lucen." He grimaced; this was certainly a test of some sort. "I’m nobody." Kedral raised an eyebrow. "Explain." "You’ve heard the stories about me already. You know each of them is true. But you’re asking why I fight and how I was able to accomplish those things. I have no convictions or aspirations that drive me. Just luck and some bad luck." Kedral nodded. "So it’s just bad luck? I don’t think bad luck drove you to seek out the Crunchers for a rematch, though. And I certainly don’t think bad luck drove you to stand beside Brock when you didn’t have to." But it was just unfortunate. If he didn’t help Brock, the Bull wolf Fiend would have killed them all. If deserting wasn’t a death sentence, he would have ran "I’m not brave or anything. It was kill them or be killed." Kedral’s smile wavered, his eyes narrowed. "You don’t have any enemies? No grudges? Like against the Crimson Tyrant." That beast was too harrowing for him to even consider going after her. A lot of people died in the carnage left behind by the wolves, people he knew. But he never cared enough to consider vengeance. None of them cared much about him anyway. There was only one person he still grieved to this day. "No, I frankly have other things to think about." Kedral’s smile was gone. Lucen wondered if he messed up. Should he have tried to sound more noble? "Do you know much about the Kirkian church?" Kedral asked suddenly. "Not much," Lucen answered truthfully. They are one of the two denominations in this region, Menian being the other. They both worship Kal but disagreed on his nature and some rituals. "They are rather brutal to halfbloods. They are the ones that advocate for the creation of a slave caste for them," Kedral explained. "Cardinal Corswet was a big supporter of that." Lucen was lost. Now he was just calling random names. "That sounds horrible." Kedral continued. "The King is vehemently against this. If the Lightcloaks are mistreating you in any way, know you can find help with the Crown’s men." What was even going on? Lucen nodded slowly. "I’m well treated here. But I truly appreciate the King’s magnanimous grace." Kedral looked into his eyes deeply. "You have a purpose. One that you can choose. Complete the quest and enroll in Crucible, and maybe that purpose will show itself." Nope. He was never going to set foot in Eshara, for a matter of fact. After all this, he was more resolved to find a way to escape. He needed a way to free himself from destiny. He would use Lost Wind and Kedral to do that if necessary. Lucen smiled. "Thank you for your encouragement." Kedral nodded. He tapped his ring finger against the table and a black box appeared on the table. Lucen eyed the Bluesilver ring on his finger. "The King also believes in your potential. That’s why he sent this for you." He passed the box to Lucen. It was inscribed with a golden Halo surrounded by clouds, the sign of the imperial house. It felt rather heavy—not to him, but in the sense that it had a lot of stuff inside. Lucen swallowed, opening it slowly. It was a layered box; the interior was purple cotton. He took out rows that were neatly packed with small vials of potions and found three scrolls at the bottom. Lucen gulped. It was a lot. But he couldn’t quite guess what these were. "The first row should contain Green Lake elixir, made in Thornspear. It’s a High-rank elixir for the mind," Kedral explained. "There should be some prescriptions for how to use them." He leaned over and pointed at the second row. "This is Cordsvein. Part medecine. Part poison. Its been refined to enhance the soul after quite a bit of pain. I’m not a fan of it, but it’s Heroic-rank." Kedral reached into the box between three scrolls and fished out two rings. One was Bluesilver; the other was made from an emerald-like material. "The Whitesilver is a Space ring, as you’ve already guessed, and the second one is an Spiral ring made in the Serpent grave. It can release a powerful burst of energy, but needs to charge for half a day. Both Heroic-rank, albeit the lower echelons." Then Kedral took out the scrolls. "And these are two High-rank spells and a Minor-rank Divine channeling technique." Lucen was lost for words. He stared at the box. "You’re letting me have this?" "Like I said, we believe in your potential." Kedral smiled. "Besides, Divine channeling techniques synergise well. You practise your current technique, and then this after for a short time, and you won’t see any overchannelling effects. You’ll also have a bit of Divine mana that you can call on." Lucen’s heart was pumping. He nodded, packing everything up before Kedral could change his mind. He rose and bowed, then saluted the man once again. Kedral smiled faintly. "You don’t need to have the greatest ideals to be a good person, Lucen. I believe one day soon, everyone in the empire will know your name. But I guess you’d still call yourself nobody." "Thank you for everything," Lucen said. "But I’m no hero." Kedral looked away. "You may go." Lucen stood for a moment. Something felt off. Missing. "That’s all? It’s done?" Kedral raised his head, and the deep look in his eyes startled Lucen. The King’s Voice stared at him for a moment, face flat, then nodded slightly. "It’s done."