“I’m sorry, can you please say that again?” Robyn said. She pinched her brow. It was too early in the morning for her to be dealing with fools like this. The team’s fight with Wrath drained them of all their energy. Sleep only came once they returned home, but it was short-lived. First, the tavern was bombarded with people wanting to see the famous team and even receive autographs. Nicholas and Rex were unfortunate enough to live in the front room, so they were dragged out to meet the masses. Robyn and Xander were able to sleep for another hour or so, but then this idiot showed up.
“King Carlos-” Announcer Drew tried to say. Like most announcers, he possessed a spell that amplified his voice and used it frequently. Each word bounced off the walls and rang in everyone’s heads. It was completely unnecessary to use such magic indoors, but overzealous displays of authority were always to be expected when nobles were involved. Adding to the emphatic performance, Drew used a dramatic voice when he spoke.
“Without the ridiculous voice, please. It’s hard enough to listen when the king’s got five names.” Xander said. He groaned loud enough for the announcer to hear. It was bad enough to be bothered every waking moment since their return home, but Drew was just being a nuisance at this point and somehow making it worse. Whatever his message was, it could have been given much quicker without the additional performance. Robyn and most of the customers within the tavern nodded in agreement. They all wanted to hear the king’s message, nothing more.
Drew grumbled for a moment. It wasn’t every day he was hired by the nation’s monarch. Why shouldn’t he add a bit of glamour to his speech? Plus, he was an announcer. The spell to increase his volume was the only one he knew. He liked using it. Clearly, these tavern-goers weren’t aligned with their more artistic side. Drew cleared his throat. He begrudgingly deactivated his spell and normalized his voice.
“Very well. Our lord, King Carlos John-Cayden Macron Diem Del Dios, has officially invited The Unnamed Team to the capital.” Drew said. The passion had left him. He rattled off his message with a dejected look. No announcer wanted to be silenced in such a way, but it was also difficult to turn down a request from two of the people that defeated Wrath. Drew shook his head to fight away his conflicting thoughts. This wasn’t the time for that. He needed to get The Unnamed Team to the capital quickly. The king was a busy man, as were his guests.
“Oh, we’re finally getting out bounties for the sins?” Robyn asked. That was the only part that registered in her mind. She had a hard time remembering every name of each noble she met. Of course, addressing the king with only his first name was a serious offense. It was essentially disrespecting the crown itself. Robyn sighed. She and her team would need to practice that name, and the queen's, before they made fools of themselves.
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Why did nobles have to have such long names? It was understandable to have family and house names, but this society’s hierarchy was annoying for foreigners. The higher a noble was, the more names they had. It was meant to symbolize importance, but it also resulted in a higher chance of messing up their names and ruining relations. Seriously, who designed this? The duo furrowed their brows. This was probably the work of Genesis to mess up the team after so many victories…or it was just a standard naming scheme for nobility. It was hard to blame the omnipotent voice for all of the team’s problems. Their inability to remember long titles was their issue alone. It didn’t come from a negative skill or the like.
“Indeed. His Majesty has provided you with a splendid carriage to take you there, and proper accommodations have been prepared for your arrival.” Drew said. He was also supposed to return to the capital with them but conveniently left that part out. The Unnamed Team would probably be hesitant if they knew they had to share a carriage with a walking megaphone. Drew smiled and gestured to the tavern’s front door. Their ride was waiting for them to depart.
“Cool. We’ll need to get the other two before we head out.” Xander said. He realized Drew was implying that the team had to leave at the moment. Nicholas and Rex had yet to return, so they needed to be grabbed quickly to depart on time. They should have been able to deal with the crowd of people by now. If not, Nicholas could have summoned Beta to act as a distraction while the two snuck away. What was taking them so long to come back?
“Not to worry. I’ve taken the liberty of collecting Master Nicholas and Master Rex. You’re free to bring two more guests if you wish.” Drew said with a smile. He was a man who did his job well. Half of the target team was already prepared to depart, and the remaining half was minutes away from the same. As per the king’s decree, The Unnamed Team was allowed to bring two additional people into the capital and meet with him. They were also allowed to participate in the Annual Winter Ball that would be held within the palace during the team’s stay.
“You already got those two?” Robyn asked. She was confused about how Drew managed to perform such a feat. It should have been next to impossible to wrangle those two while avoiding detection from the crowd. The Feral Tomcat should have been overrun with people, yet no one came. How did he do it?
“Master Nicholas and Master Rex were arrested along with Master James and Lady Lizzy. The four were found in the southern plaza wrestling in the street. It seemed a bit more serious than a simple dispute over the annual tournament's results, so I had them restrained and placed in the carriage.”