It wasn’t much longer after we boarded the carriage that I could start to see the magnificent skyline of a true medieval fantasy castle and city come into view. Staged in front of a massive, natural mountain range, and surrounded by imposing stone walls, was the City of Solara. As our chariot continued to approach the settlement, the rough, dirt path gradually become a nice cobble stone passageway. Horse’s hooves changed from their boring “stomping noise” to a more comforting “clopping” as each stride rang out in rhythmic harmony.
Along the way, I passed the time by continuing to converse with the duke about the kingdom and his responsibilities within. From our conversations, I learned that his house was one of the three major powers within Solara. Roughly speaking, the Hawthorn, Merchantis, and Deceivis households held similar influence within the kingdom. Hawthorn was responsible for most diplomatic relationships to the south, while Merchantis was the primary economic powerhouse specialized in all matters of trade. Finally, the Deceivis faction were the diplomats for the northern influence of the kingdom where they boarded the holy kingdom of Valoria. However, the Deceivis faction was under suspicion of treason due to the recent deterioration of Solara’s relationship with Valoria. Of interesting note to this, was the Valoria nation’s well-known use of griffins in battle. Considering we had been recently attacked by a griffin, Duke Hawthorn was all the more eager to report these findings to the king as additional evidence towards the Deceivis family.
Looking out the windows, I was able to see the new section of the city, currently under construction. Heavy, marble slabs were being dragged and hoisted in the air to continue expanding the cities parameter. Remembering Yarn’s comment regarding how beastkin were treated in this kingdom, I noticed that all of the “workers” moving the massive slabs, were none other than beastkin. Many appeared to be malnourished and working under fear of a nearby taskmaster.
Eventually, we approached one of the many, massive stone gates to enter the City of Solara. All outside the entranceway, spanned a line hundreds of people long! I started to get worried at the thought entering the kingdom was going to take all day as the guards scanned and vetted each visitor to the kingdom! However, instead of approaching the gate straight ahead, the carriage made a detour over to the right-hand side, continuing around the wall’s perimeter.
“Don’t you worry Sir. Kotato, us nobles have a separate, less crowded entrance to the city. The same can be said for the many merchants that visit the kingdom to peddle their wares. All for the sake of efficiency in dealing with our important affairs. While you aren’t an official noble, you may enter on my permission and goodwill.”
“Thank you, Duke Hawthorn, I appreciate your generosity.”
Interesting. I guess the idea of separate entrances for verified or known individuals made sense. I decided to compare it to how a keycard access worked for people entering a secure building from my world.
Next thing I knew, the carriage had gradually come to a rolling stop as we approached the entranceway for the nobility. While the gate didn’t appear much different, there were noticeably more guards present, along with several pennants hanging off of the stone walls. I could only assume they were the coat of arms for the various noble houses within. After a minute’s pause, a guard approached and opened the carriage door to greet the passengers.
“Duke Hawthorn! Captain Reginald just finished relaying the events of the deadly griffin attack! I’ve already dispatched a messenger to the royal palace to report your arrival. Please, enter straight away so our healing experts can assess you for any injuries!”
“That won’t be necessary commander, I was valiantly protected by this honourable adventurer here. He single-handedly dispatched the beast while keeping my person safe. As a matter of fact, I would much prefer we head straight to the king himself, as he also bares an important message of utmost urgency for his majesty.”
“Right away your grace, please proceed to the palace. Lux tua luceat superbia!”
“Lux tua luceat superbia.”
While the exchange happened rather quickly and required no involvement on my part, I was interested when my ears picked up the phrase they said to one another. Since arriving here and undergoing the initial “assimilation” process, my mind was able to make sense of the languages spoken by the residents, kind of like a handy internal, real-time translator! I simply needed to speak to someone, and my words were converted to the appropriate language, or listen, and I could comprehend their sentences. While it was a very useful feature, and often utilized as an explanation in many isekai series, sometimes with plot relevance; that spoken phrase was never translated properly in my ears.
Lux tua luceat superbia? Though I was no linguist, audibly, those words sounded very similar to the old Latin language from Earth. Examining the phrase, I remembered that Lux was the Latin word for light, and I vaguely recall superbia meaning pride? So, something about Light and Pride? Maybe this auto translation feature wasn’t perfect, or perhaps there were rules I was unaware of? Brushing this aside, I decided I would ask the duke about this phrase later.
Urgently, the carriage began moving again, this time towards the towering palace in the northern section of the city. As the horses blasted through the streets, I continued looking out the windows to see the various citizens going about their busy days. Apparel wise, everyone appeared to be sporting fashion from the 1700’s! Fancy, frilly shirts and coats for men, while the women donned fancy corsets with large bottom dresses. Well, I’m sure they had a proper name, but regardless, the style was clearly recognizable. Actually, maybe this was how all of the nobles dressed in the city since we entered from their special gateway? Perhaps common citizens wore more plain clothes? Regardless, I figured I would need to update my attire at some point to better blend in with the city’s inhabitants.
Finally, after another short carriage ride, we stopped just outside some impressive gateways leading to the Royal Palace. Guardsmen quickly waved us in, seemingly having already been informed by the dispatched messenger. I felt a tingling sensation course throughout my body. The feeling was oddly familiar and comparable to “goosebumps”. I swear I’d felt something like this before? Almost like a déjà vu? Once inside, the carriage attendant skillfully drove us to the lengthy, stone entranceway so we could enter the palace proper.
“Sir. Kotato, please follow me, while I cannot guarantee we will meet with the king right away, I will do my best on behalf of the Hawthorn name.”
“Much appreciated your grace!”
Following closely behind, the duke and I ascended the extravagant entranceway. Massive, stone columns lined the pathway, each of which covered in a fancy array of cloth and metals. Pennants and banners were also affixed to the pillars as we got closer to the massive, metal doors. I imagined that the banners represented the various noble houses, and that the larger ones closer to the entrance was a way to symbolise their importance or status in the kingdom.
At the doorway, two fancy looking guardsman with brilliant golden plated armor, opened the gargantuan metal gates to the castle’s interior. Once inside the palace, I was completely blown away at the incredible environment!
Directly in front of me, was a massive foyer with a wide staircase leading to the 2nd floor. The floors were a well polished stone covered in luxurious carpets serving as the “roadways” for palace attendants and visitors to walk across. Directly above me, was a brilliant, crystal chandelier roughly the size of a tree! While the ornament was clearly a work of art, its size was dwarfed by the sheer magnitude of the entranceway’s height and size!!! Completely awestruck, I continued following behind Duke Hawthorn who led me to another esteemed looking individual. Then, the duke motioned for me to stay put while he stepped ahead to talk to the man.
With a bow, the duke began speaking to the gentleman and briefly summarized our situation. The individual was of a taller build dressed in a very modern looking business suit and attire, much different from the assumed nobles I noticed earlier. His suit and dress pants were a matching purple with thin gold threads all throughout. His hair was a solid brown colour, and expertly styled back with an excessive amount of grease. For facial hair, he had a very well-kept full beard, something I was rather jealous of since I could never quite grow the style well myself!
Paying attention to their conversation, the individual appeared shocked to see the duke present and personally explaining the situation. I could see them shooting glances towards my direction as they were examining me. Well, I mean, I did look very out of place in this setting. My clothing was still quite battered, torn, and ripped in many places. I was in no way appropriately dressed to be speaking with nobles, regardless of the circumstances!
Eventually, the duke motioned for me to approach where he formally introduced me to the individual.
“And here, advisor Daemonium, is the brilliant and honourable Kotato Yamata I was talking about. If you would please, he has an urgent message that must be delivered to his majesty; personally. I trust you will be able to arrange such a meeting?”
In an elegant and arrogant voice, the man responded to the duke’s request to grant me an audience with the king.
“Duke Hawthorn, as I’m sure you’re aware, his majesty is very busy with state affairs lately and it would be impossible to grant such a request on short notice. Furthermore, at arrival, our attendants were unable to verify his status as an adventurer in our system records. Are you certain this person is who they claim they are?”
Crap! Somehow, without realizing it, the palace had already “scanned me” and had difficulties viewing my status window! I could only imagine the shock of the poor attendant seeing a corrupted status file!!!
“Advisor, please, you have my word this individual is not a threat to the palace. Furthermore, please take the time to examine the letter they bare. That should serve more than enough as ample evidence to my statements.”
Taking the que, I took the envelope out from my pocket and handed it to the advisor. He seemed rather curious at the parchment and eagerly grabbed it from my hands to examine it in detail. He could be seen staring rather intently at the paw shaped stamp sealing the envelope.
“If you don’t mind, Sir. Kotato, I will open the letter and read it’s contents to verify the authenticity of the sender. Depending on the contents, I will then take the appropriate actions deemed necessary by the state. All information must first pass through me before reaching the king.”
Skillfully opening the letter, I watched as the man scanned and read the letters message. While I had no idea what Felice had written about me, I could only imagine the details within as I saw the advisor’s face turn from an annoyed scowl, to one of jaw dropping shock! Then, coughing into his hands to compose himself, he spoke to the both of us.
“My apologies Duke Hawthorn, I will inform and get his majesty straight away. As an aside, did this messenger share the contents of this letter with you, perhaps?”
“No, Sir. Kotato made sure to keep the contents of the letter confidential. However, based on your reaction, I can only assume it is a matter of grave importance to cause you, the great Daemonium, to lose their composure!”
“Enough Duke Hawthorn. Now, as I’m sure you’re aware, you will be required to make a formal report with our military commanders surrounding the griffin attack in addition to your report from visiting Colosseum.”
“Why of course, advisor Daemonium, I would never dare delay relaying such an important report to those in command. – Sir. Kotato, best of luck with your meeting.”
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After a quick bow, Duke Hawthorn left me with the advisor as he proceeded down another set of hallways to deliver his report. Looking at the advisor, I could tell he was still quite shocked at my presence, and merely continued to stare and examine every part of my being. While I would have preferred the king to read the letter first, it did make sense for an advisor of sorts to filter and view information first, then deliver the messages in order of importance as needed. Once Duke Hawthorn had left ear shot range, the advisor began to speak to me.
“Sir Kotato, if I take the contents of this message to be true, I must humbly apologise on behalf of the kingdom. If you’ll excuse me, I will fetch his majesty, King Solar right away so you may meet and speak with him.
Attendants, please bring this individual some refreshments. I will return shortly with his majesty.”
Then, breaking into a brisk run, the advisor rushed up the massive stairway, quickly reaching the 2nd floor, disappearing from my sight. Noticing the advisor’s abrupt departure, palace attendants seemed to pick up on the urgency of the command and rushed to my care! Within minutes, I was surrounded by beautiful maids offering me water and cookies! Surprised, I was more concerned with how fast they produced the goods in question!
While it didn’t take long, I imagined I was waiting for no more than 15minutes. During that time, I was able to sample several delicacies such as fine meats and delicious baked goods! I was also offered some alcoholic like beverage but declined the offer and instead downed everything with some refreshing water. While I was enjoying a rather pleasant cookie, the atmosphere suddenly changed to one filled with tension!
Standing at the top of the staircase, in a brilliant red and white robe, with accompanying golden, jeweled crown, was the king. Immediately, all of the attendants kneeled before him as he began descending the staircase towards my direction. I could see the advisor person was also with him, following closely behind. Not wanting to stand out much more, I also decided to kneel down as I waited for the king to approach me.
Kneeling, looking at the red, carpeted floor, I could only hear the king’s footsteps as they grew closer and closer towards my direction. Finally, after arriving mere feet in front of me, the king spoke in a commanding and stern voice.
“Kotato, please rise so that we may speak.”
Not wanting to cause any problems, I obeyed the order without delay, rising to meet his majesty. Looking at the king, his face was old and grey, yet possessed youthful energy. While there were wrinkles etched into his face from age, his eyes bore a cold, piecing gaze of confidence. His hair was long and white, resting at shoulder length with an equally impressive beard to match. The king was the spitting image of royalty you would expect to find in any fantasy story! Then, he spoke to me again.
“Attendants, please leave us—
Kotato, while I have some uncertainties about the authenticity of the letter’s contents, I wish to clear all doubts of that here and now.”
The king paused, giving ample time for the attendants to leave the hallway, leaving only the advisor and myself, in the presence of the king.
“Kotato are you really, a summoned hero from another world?”
Excitement coursed through my body. After what felt like forever, I somehow, had finally managed to make it to the royal palace and inform the king that I was the summoned hero they attempted to bring to the kingdom! While it was a bit different from the start of many isekai stories, I was thrilled that I would finally be able to begin my epic quest to save the world! So, I happily responded to the king’s question.
“Yes, your majesty! My name is Kotato Yamata, and I believe I am a summoned individual to the world of Terra! Yesterday, while the twin suns were at their peak, I fell from the sky, landing in the Eldermyst forest. Somehow surviving my fall, I managed to collect my bearings and attempted to find civilization. During my exploration, I was attacked by some bandits, but defeated them with the help of a beastkin. Then, after spending a night at the adventurer’s branch outside the city, I was given the letter to personally deliver to your greatness explaining my circumstances.”
Looking at the king, I could see he was holding the same letter the advisor had taken from me. After reading through it’s contents quickly, he cast his gaze towards my direction again. I felt a very cold, and uneasy feeling.
“I see, while I am surprised, the series of events does roughly line up with one of our attempts at summoning in the palace. Now, I take it the headmaster at that branch is the only other individual aware of your status as a summoned individual?”
Crap— While I knew Felice was aware, I had also mentioned to Inari that I was from another world during my excitement! Based on my previous knowledge from isekai anime, summoning a hero was sometimes kept as a state secret during the initial few months. I quickly extrapolated that only the most trusted of individuals should be aware of my presence, making this national level classified information!
From my discussion last night, Felice had also taken great care to exclude Inari from our conversation and clearly stated she didn’t want Inari involved in my affairs. On a scale of probabilities, I couldn’t imagine Felice revealing Inari’s involvement in the letter addressed to the king.
While I didn’t want to do it, I decided lying to the king was for the best in this scenario. While I hated lying, I was also doing this out of concern for Inari’s safety. Beastkin were commonly seen as slaves in the city and I didn’t want to entertain the thought that my actions here might condemn Inari to slavery, or worse; execution for knowing a state secret. So, in the most confident voice I could muster, I gave my reply to King Solar.
“Yes, your majesty! Only the headmaster at that adventurer’s branch is aware I am a summoned individual.”
“Good.”
The king’s reply was short and to the point. Internally, I sighed to myself, relieved I had made the correct decision to withhold some information. Then, my relaxed demeanor quickly changed to surprise as the king aggressively crumpled the letter in his hands. Satisfied the letter was now a tightly bound ball of parchment, he began uttering an incantation:
“Terra, bring forth flames to course through thy hands— Burning Touch!”
*Schrooth!*
In an instant, the crumpled parchment was engulfed in a ball of powerful flame. It didn’t take long, but before I knew it, the only evidence serving as proof I was a summoned individual, had been reduced to a small pile of ash. Then, the king spoke to me in a commanding tone.
“Kotato, while I applaud you in your efforts in reaching the royal palace, I regret to inform you that my kingdom with be unable to care for you as a summoned hero.
You see, we have already completed an additional hero summoning after we believed yours to be a failure. Presently, we are in the process of caring for a Spear, Bow, Magic, and Sword hero, and cannot afford it within our kingdom’s budget to take in another. While it saddens me to do so, I must either confine you to this palace, or, place a powerful magic seal on your mind, prohibiting you from revealing this information to the public.
Seeing as you have acted with integrity thus far in your duties and instinctively knew to head to the nation’s leader, I, in my generosity, will offer you the choice in which judgement will be imposed on you.
Should you choose to remain confined at the palace, you will be treated with all respects due to our errors. Food, hospitalities, and women, will all be at your disposal should you so desire. However, you will remain inside the palace until the heroes complete their goal and unlock the magic for world returning.
As for the seal, it will place an uncleansable, ancient magic monitor in your mind that will actively scan your thoughts and intentions. Should the spell detect any intent to reveal you are a hero, or, under its influence, it will instantly execute you on the spot without question. However, due to the security offered by this spell, you may choose to live freely in this kingdom as an adventurer, as I understand summoned heroes often crave this style of living.”
Well.... Fuck...
What the heck was that?!?! I could hardly believe my ears as the king spoke with such confidence at his decree! His kingdom failed initially in summoning me, so they tried again, and summoned four other heroes, and now I’m simply to be tossed aside at the inconvenience of showing up at their doorstep?!?!
Well, he technically did offer me two choices. I could either live as a secret “shut in” while enjoying all sorts of humanely pleasures, or, I could have a bomb planted inside my head that would explode the moment I tried to tell someone about my circumstances!
...
While I was presented with a choice, it was very clear his majesty wished for me to take option 1. Looking towards the king and advisor, I could see they were both eagerly awaiting my reply. Most concerning of all, was the devilish grin growing across Daemonium’s face. Something about his mannerisms seemed to portray he wasn’t a human, but some type of “devil in disguise” as he maniacally tapped his fingertips together. Well, I guess he was “technically” like a lawyer in this world, and all of those potatoes were devils in my opinion, so the comparison fit, but still!
Deep in thought, I brought my hand to rest underneath my chin as I contemplated my only options. Should I live a life without worry, enjoying sensations I never got to experience back home? Or, should I surprise my jailors and take the “exploding bomb in my head” pathway?
No.
I had no idea why I was in this world. My gut was telling me that this whole scenario wasn’t right, and that I was missing some information. While the first offer seemed like the most favourable, how would I know they could keep their word? If I truly became a problem, it would be more than a simple task to dispose of me. The same could be said about the bomb spell being implanted in my head. While that attempted to give me freedom, there was a high likelihood an additional trigger could be implanted as well to eliminate me if they so decided.
And so, after carefully considering my alternatives, I made a decision with a plan I would enact after receiving my punishment.
“Your majesty, I am most humbled by your generosity in allowing someone so unworthy such as myself, to make a decision regarding their fate in this wonderful kingdom. So, after careful consideration, I would like to—”
Que one intense, dramatic pause for effect!
“Select the uncleansable, ancient magic seal as my choice. You are correct in your wisdom, King Solar, that I would appreciate the opportunity to explore this world and make a name for myself as an adventurer. After all, such opportunities do not present themselves in my era. Seeing as this option provides ample safeguards surrounding keeping my status confidential, I would like to proceed with this option.
However, I do have one, extra request I would like to make upon taking this offer. King Solar, would you be able to provide me a small amount of currency as compensation as I begin my journey? There is much I still lack in basic, common knowledge about this world, and would appreciate a small “safety net” of funds so that I may establish myself. Could your kingdom, with all its wealth and power, spare me a mere 30 silver Solar as I begin my life as an adventurer?”
That’s right, while I was taking a big risk in making additional demands for this option, I figured doing my best to be positive and pampering towards his majesty would help me in my persuasion attempt. I mean, it was a true fact, I did have much to learn about this world, and I had no monies at all for survival. If I was to be allowed the “freedom” to be an adventurer, then I wanted to have some type of advantage along my journey. Plus, I still needed to enact my plan once this was all approved.
Surprised at my decision to have a literal magic bomb planted in my head, the king was taken back, raising his hand to his chin while making an audible “oh ho!” sound. Then, with an evil laugh across his face, he responded to my request.
“Haha! Well, I am certainly surprised by your decision Kotato to have an ancient, deadly magic implanted in your mind, I will respect your choice. As for your request at additional funding, I too, agree with your proposal. If I may be honest, I had never expected you to even entertain the thought of taking this option, but here we are. 30 silver Solar will be granted to your person from our royal coffers. Now, Daemonium, the spell, please.
“Why of course, your excellence.”
Daemonium’s reply came through gritted teeth. His face was filled with anger and shock at my choice for selecting the ancient magic spell. Clearly, he had also wanted me to stay within the palace so I could be monitored. Then, after a brief pause, he began casting a spell towards me.
“World bind my targets mind in an ethereal prison, make it so their thoughts will break if they utter thine secret. By punishment of death, inscribe my will to thee— Mind Seal!”
As he finished casting his spell, I received an angry reply from my internal assistant:
[Warning! Ancient Imprisoning Magic Detected – Error – Harmful Status Applied – Unable To Dispel – Error – Mental Functions Limited – Mental Prison With Inscribed Activation Rules Applied – Summoned, Hero, Other World, All Identified As Spell Trigger Words – Warning! Death Predicted On Spell’s Activation – Caution!]
Geez that was a mouthful! But it seems the spell was as I expected. Any use of the words: “Summoned”, “Hero”, and “Other World” would seemingly activate the spell and kill me on the spot. Making mental note of my new found restrictions, I turned my attention back towards the king.
“Thank you, your majesty.”
I gave my reply with a slight bow. Next thing I knew, Daemonium had somehow produced a small sack filled with coins from seemingly nothing! Then, he tossed them towards my direction.
“Kotato, your payment of 30 silver Solar as requested by the king. Do take care to enjoy yourself and your new found freedom. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have other matters to attend to.”
I caught the sack of coins. The weight of the bag was light, as the metallic currency rustled and jingled inside at the slightest movement. Finally, with a short bow of his own, Daemonium began to leave me, standing at the entranceway to the palace. Following behind him, was the king as they both began to ascend the staircase to the 2nd floor.
I, on the other hand, merely stood still, calmly taking in all of my thoughts as to what had just transpired. Rolling the sack of money around in my hands, thoughts about how I would deal with this newfound restriction bubbled to the surface. While I had several ideas, none of them I could enact while still inside the royal palace. Alone with my thoughts, I continued to remain at the bottom of the stairs. As I stood there, the only audible sound, echoing throughout the massive hallway, was the sounds of the king and advisor, ascending the giant staircase. Then, in one final attempt, I made an intention clear to his majesty in a life-or-death gamble.