Chapter 45: Six weeks agreement

In this vast world lived many different races.

One of the least known by the common folk but most feared by the various Human Kingdoms chose to live in the large sea separating the two giant continents. This noble race called by the human, the 'Shinawa People' were the guardians of the sea and were well aware of the greedy Human nature.

To expand their territory and gather more resources and wealth, these Kingdoms wouldn't hesitate to wage war against other Humans. Therefore, this proud noble race always living far from the others has implemented a strict regulation for the ships crossing the sea between the continents.

Only commercial ships could cross the large sea and a single port city for each Human Kingdom was allowed to exist.

The strength of each Human Kingdom was probably not inferior to the Shinawa People but, on the sea, they were the indisputable supreme rulers.

After several vain attempts, each Human kingdom reluctantly accepted these rules and developed as much as they could these lonely port city.

That's why, in the entire Dorell Kingdom covering half of the Eastern continent, only the capital could compare itself to the large port city of Alderal gathering the entire commerce with the Western continent.

Not far from Tegralle stood this imposing capital.

In the heart of this majestic city stood numerous buildings more luxurious than the one next to it. However, none could compare to the royal palace. This symbol of the King's strength sheltered the entire royal family but also the King's advisors, most of whom came from the four Great Noble Houses. 

It's in the West wing of the palace that Dano Calrimann, the King's advisor replacing Arthur Waldemar, was living.

He was sitting in front of a massive desk made of luxurious wood loaded with an impressive mountain of papers.

He wore simple clean clothes far from the usual extremely luxurious garments worn by the nobles. However, he couldn't care less about his appearance at the moment.

He had too much to think about.

Arthur Waldemar, the head and last remaining member of this Great Noble House was dead.

Dano didn't spare any effort to hide this information from any outsider. Therefore, Arthur Waldemar's death was still a secret. However, it wouldn't remain that way for much longer. He already missed an appointment with the King incurring his wrath and suspicion in the process.

It was only a question of time before everyone realized that he was dead.

His death symbolized the true end of the Waldemar great house.

Once this fact was confirmed then everything would be over. The lands, properties and wealth not hidden of the house would be split between the other houses and this great name that shook the entire kingdom for so many years would slowly disappear from everyone's memory.

Dano would also lose everything.

He couldn't let this noble House disappear and lose its support even if it only had the presence of greatness that Arthur Waldemar sought to maintain for so many years.

He wasn't an outstanding mage who would be welcomed with open arms no matter where he went. Therefore, if he lost his position he would simply become again a simple warrior risking his life against deviants in the wilderness.

However, it wasn't over yet.

Arthur Waldemar still had a son who became an adventurer many years ago.

Dano knew that his master would have never agreed to let him become the head of the house. His hate and suffering were already too strong for any possible conciliation. However, he was already dead and Millodas was his last heir alive.

Therefore, he was currently exercising all his efforts into finding this last heir and hope of the Waldemar house. However, so far his efforts were in vain. Finding someone in this vast continent was easier said than done especially if this person didn't want to be found.

While he was looking for Millodas to bring some hope to the Waldemar house, Dano continued to investigate the murder of his former master.

His corpse was found near the Great forest of the West along with Amanda's body trapped in a coffin made of ice.

Dano sent numerous men to track the culprit and many strong mages near the King's valley to ambush him the moment he was ready to enter the Dorell Kingdom.

However, all of it was also in vain.

The culprit remained untraceable as if he completely vanished.

Of course, finding someone in the vast and dangerous wilderness was an incredibly difficult task in the first place, but Dano still hoped that his fast reaction would be enough to find him.

Now that the murderer chose to avoid the 'Blueway' to reach the King's valley, it was most likely impossible to find him in the wilderness. However, Dano still had the testimony of the coachman describing the culprit as a clue. To his surprise and horror, it was a young boy around ten years old who killed his master.

Dano had troubles believing this testimony but the coachman didn't have any reason to lie.

Therefore, he stopped his blind search in the wilderness and concentrated his effort in the kingdom with this physical description as the only clue.

Dano wanted to find him to avenge his master but also to have answers.

Who was this boy?

Why did Arthur Waldemar hide his existence from him and took so many risks?

These questions circled endlessly in his mind.

To make matters worse, this young boy was apparently a Sacred mage of ice.

This sensitive information should have been kept secret. However, one of his subordinates who found the corpses wasn't careful enough. Dano was only able to prevent the death of Arthur Waldemar to be known but the existence of a Sacred mage of ice was disclosed.

He knew that Jalyse Vanothice, member of the magic council, would expend as much effort as she could to find him.

Even if he used the remaining authority of the Waldemar house, he wouldn't be able to influence her decision in the slightest.

She was after all one of the leaders of the 'Sanctuary Order'.

This powerful organization gathering many famous mages didn't care about politics or power struggles.

In this kingdom, the Noble houses used their impressive resources and nearly unlimited wealth to hire powerful mages and gain an enormous amount of influence. These mages gave them enough military strength to force the King to recognize their influence and to allow them to direct a large part of the politic of the nation.

However, the 'Sanctuary Order' was different.

They could ignore the wishes of the noble houses and even the King in some circumstances.

This kind of favor didn't come from wealth or connections but from power.

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An overwhelming and frightening power.

This organization didn't gather many members, but each one of them was a strong mage who embarked on the true path of magic. They weren't just some artificial mages who blindly trained their barrier magic.

The future achievements of each of these members would probably not be negligible.

However, the reason why even the King couldn't casually order members of this order was that the magic council that led this organization was entirely made up of Master mages.

These powerhouses were also led by the most powerful and ancient mage of the kingdom, the War hero: Yllion Exdel.

Only the Ryuno clan could threaten or order this council around. It wasn't something that the Waldemar house would have ever attempted, even at the peak of its power.

If Jalyse Vanothice, the Water Master mage of this council, wanted to find this mysterious young Sacred mage, there was nothing he could do about it other than finding him before she did.

He had to find the culprit before this organization but also had to look for Millodas as fast as he could while keeping secret the death of his master.

All of this was enough to drive him crazy with despair and anguish.

At some point, Dano even hesitated to take the entire wealth of the house for himself that he was currently guarding, before fleeing toward another country.

However, he knew that it wasn't something possible.

He was under surveillance by the other noble houses. If they learned that all these treasures were guarded by him without any real protection, then he would be beyond dead.

This terrifying amount of wealth was useless in his hands. Only a true family member of Arthur Waldemar sharing his blood and name would have a chance to use these treasures along with the information and connections accumulated throughout the years to let this house regain its former glory.

Dano was helpless as his fate was already closely tied to the fate of the Waldemar House.

There was no turning back.

While Dano was still lost in his thoughts, trying to figure a solution to his multiple issues, a loud booming sound echoed in the elegant office disrupting him at the same time.

Before Dano could swear or even wonder who had the boldness to be so disrespectful, the door slammed open revealing a tower-like man with a large grin on his plain face.

If Millodas or Aten were there, they would have instantly recognized this bulky man with eyes as black as coal not hiding the viciousness of his nature. His impressive muscular body was barely enough to manipulate the large axe hanging on his back.

This savage man named Vated Kolur was one of the most nefarious mercenaries of the Dorell Kingdom. His crimes were horrifying and numerous while the testimonies against him and his men were as numerous as the clouds. However, he was still calmly and arrogantly standing straight in front of one of the King's advisors inside the Royal Palace.

This fact alone was enough to prove that he was protected by influential factions.

The Waldemar house was one of them.

Arthur Waldemar often hired this man and his subordinates to protect him and to execute various missions.

The price for hiring him nearly continuously wasn't low. Dano was clearly aware of this fact but when he saw the dazzling white pendant half-hidden behind his dirty shirt, he nearly strangled himself.

Vated noticed the gaze of Dano on his neck but simply smiled mischievously while playing with the long chain lazily with one hand as if he didn't care about this precious item.

A heavy silence settled down between the two of them for some time before Dano forcibly swallowed back his indignation and frustration.

For better or for worse, Vated was one of the last support he had. He was one of the strongest Saint earth mages of the kingdom as he developed to a very high-level several aspects of this element. As long as he was protected and paid, he would prove to be very useful.

"What are you doing here?" Dano asked while trying to sound as calm as possible.

In this world, strength was what mattered the most and a single glance at this man was enough to tell Dano that he wasn't his match.

Even with the high status of Dano as a King's advisor, Vated didn't seem to mind as he walked into the luxurious office with big strides.

He totally ignored the question or even the presence of Dano who didn't dare to raise any objection. He simply curiously explored the office while touching nearly everything picking his interest. Dano even saw him shamelessly put a valuable statue decorating the room in his pocket, without restraint or embarrassment.

Dano turned a blind eye to his actions. He knew that it wasn't a wise move to anger this powerful madman, especially in his precarious situation.

It's only when this strong man finally sat on a massive red couch in the corner of the room that he spoke again with his rough voice and vulgar speech unfitting of the Royal Palace.

"I don't talk with minions. Go get the old man to come here."

"He isn't here. If you have some business with him, you can talk to me."

"Not interest. Go get me some wine little worm, I will wait for him here."

Dano nearly strangled himself hearing his disrespectful words and finally lost his temper.

"Stop fooling around. I don't have time to waste with you. State your business with me now or leave."

Seeing the cold glint and murderous intent in the eyes of Vated made Dano immediately regret losing his composure and shouting louder than he wanted. However, Dano wasn't a pushover either. He spent too much time fighting for his life to act like a coward in front of someone stronger than him.

Moreover, he knew that even if he was a madman, he wouldn't casually attack a King's advisor inside the royal palace.

After seconds as long as minutes of silence between the two men, Vated finally snorted and unhappily replied.

"I'm here to complete the mission that the old man gave me several months ago. I had another assignment so I couldn't come sooner, but the old man insisted on the importance of this task. Where is he by the way? It's rather surprising that he would miss another appointment."

Dano's face darkened hearing his words.

"You know about that?"

Vated smiled mockingly and answered with the same perkiness as before.

"Of course. Nearly everyone influential in the capital knows that Arthur Waldemar missed an important meeting with the King. It's a little suspicious for a serious and prideful man in his unfortunate situation to miss this kind of appointment."

Dano tried to maintain his composure while hearing the suspicion in his words. Vated looked at him as if he was trying to extract the truth from his reactions.

Even if he was more versed in fights, this didn't mean that Vated was stupid. After hearing about the missed appointment with the King, he was a little suspicious especially knowing the character of Arthur Waldemar.

He frowned a little seeing him ignore his words but still continued to speak.

"Don't you also think that's it's a little weird that he is not here to welcome me? I just finished a long mission, so I wanted to take some rest but he insisted that I had to come back as soon as I could to complete his mission."

"What is your mission?"

"The old man didn't tell you about that?" asked Vated mockingly.

"So?" Dano continued with some annoyance.

Vated who was still comfortably sitting on the red couch befitting a King simply shrugged his shoulders while smiling indifferently.

"I already told you, go get the old man. I don't talk to minions. Go get him or the mission is no more."

For the first time, Dano expression changed slightly. He tried to push Vated into telling him the nature of his mission. This way he would have been able to better understand the last actions of his master before his death. However, Vated didn't fall for it. He couldn't be violent with a King's advisor but likewise, Dano couldn't do anything to him either. He didn't have the power for that.

As long as Vated refused to cooperate, then Dano wouldn't learn the nature of the last mission given by his master.

In such a dire situation, Dano couldn't afford to lose a possible precious clue.

However, before Dano could make his choice, Vated's voice resonated once more in the quiet office.

His voice wasn't carefree or derisive like before. His expression also changed and darkened as his suspicions were finally confirmed.

"The old man is dead, isn't he?"

Dano who struggled to take a decision finally sighed before silently nodding in approval.

"Fuck, how the hell did this stubborn old fool kicked the bucket?"

"You can't tell anyone!"

In front of the loud voice of Vated, Dano ignored his question and warned him.

He couldn't silence this man but that didn't matter. In a desperate situation, Dano made a gamble.

He had to use the strength of this man.

If he decided to sell the information about the death of his master, then he would probably be able to earn quite a bit of money but Dano wasn't too worried about that. Vated was a bloodthirsty killer but he was also smart and greedy.

He knew that he could earn much more from a noble house on the brink of destruction.

Each with their own motives, the two men began to exchange information.

Carefully at first before talking about eventual rewards.

In the end, Dano didn't hide anything about the circumstances of the death of Arthur Waldemar to him while Vated told him all about his mission and his appointment with Arthur Waldemar.

All the pieces, the events and the information that Dano collected without being able to understand finally put themselves together.

He finally understood the actions of his master before his death and why he didn't tell him anything about it.

He could even make an assumption about the identity of the mysterious young murderer of his master.

All his previous efforts to find Millodas were nothing more than a last desperate struggle.

However, now everything was different.

There was some hope.

Even with the death of his master, as long as he could complete this mission then the Waldemar house wouldn't be on the brink of destruction anymore.

This six-weeks agreement that Vated spoke about was definitely his last chance.

Nothing could go wrong.

No matter the cost or the number of lives he had to sacrifice.

He couldn't fail.