The events from earlier that day stayed on Marin’s mind. He couldn’t shake the feeling that someone had done too much research about him and connected too many dots. The last thing he wanted was his secret to be exposed to the world, and he was sure that if everyone knew that he was a living zombie, it would cause quite an uproar.

Enough of an uproar to get not only himself killed, but his kingdom as well. He took solace in knowing that no one outside of the castle could produce any proof of this claim, but that could easily change if his mask was somehow removed.

He needed better long term solutions. As the day progressed, some could tell his mind was preoccupied. After dinner, he invited Loid to his personal quarters to talk with him. Loid knew that the events from earlier today weighed heavily on him, despite talking most of it out in the main office with Helva and Harrel.

The two made small talk as they took the staircases to the top of the castle. They passed a few maids who were dusting and sweeping. Finally, Marin shut the cherry wood door of his quarters. They were alone.

Marin sighed an anxious breath.

“Loid, I am worried,” he stated. Both of them walked to the left doorway, entering his personal library. They sat in the plush red chairs in front of the fire place.

“Share with me what you’re thinking,” Loid said as he leaned forward to listen to every word the king had to say.

“I’m worried that there are people out there who want to find me out. That kid was just a scout. He was sent to investigate me.” Marin looked to the fire place with a worried look under his mask.

Loid sighed. He looked to the fire place too, and when he noticed the fresh logs in place, he struck a match and lit them.

“I think we’re going to be here for a while,” he uttered as he watched the flames start to engulf the log.

“And you know,” Marin added, “that ‘duel’ he demanded could have been a test of my strength also. Here I was testing him during the fight, and I didn’t even realize that he could have been testing me, to go back and make a report.”

“You were testing him?” Loid asked. “It looked like you had your work cut out for you. He was quite strong.”

Marin shook his head. “Loid, I held back more than you could imagine. If I wanted to, I could’ve ended the duel in two seconds.”

That intimidated Loid a bit. He tried to shake the thoughts if Marin was actually telling the truth.

“Well, he got a very inaccurate reading then, didn’t he?” Loid responded, choosing to believe Marin.

“I toyed with him. I was very upset with the way he was acting, and in response I also acted immature, entertaining his duel. Maybe I should’ve been more serious and shut it down immediately. Maybe I should’ve kept him here. Maybe I-”

“Sullivan, quit the maybe’s. What happened has happened. You can’t consume yourself in thoughts of what you should’ve done. And need I remind you, this is all speculation. Here’s a maybe for you: maybe you’re being paranoid.”

That shocked Marin a bit. He had never experienced Loid talking to him in this manner until now. He knew it came from a place of care, but it made him realize that perhaps he needed a second opinion on his thoughts.

“Anyone who knew about you two hundred years ago is dead by now,” Loid added, “no one has any good reason to pursue your true identity. What would they gain from it? Exposure? Even if they found out, what good would that information do them? Your immortality potion didn’t exactly work as planned, and I can guarantee you they would not want to share your fate.”

Loid stopped his rant, and looked into the fire. He knew that he had some validity, but Marin’s concerns actually had ground to stand on.

Loid sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. Obviously… we need to be careful. There is still the chance that this is all nothing to worry about, but we do need to be prepared for a worst case scenario. And in preparing ourselves, we can also be protected against other threats that might arise.”

Marin nodded. “That’s what I need to hear.”

Loid finally leaned back in the chair. “Do you have any ideas?”

Marin also watched the flames dance as they consumed the logs in front of him. There was one prominent idea he had, and he was mentally preparing for the fact that it would force him to go out into the world.

“...I think we need stronger allies.”

“What do you mean?” Loid asked.

“I mean… Look, our guards are enough to deal with petty situations arising from regular people. We can stop a raid or catch a thief. But Loid, if a wizard shows up on our doorstep, and I’m not here, this castle is in for a deep amount of trouble. You or Marge won’t be able to stop them, let alone our hired soldiers,” Marin explained.

“Are you saying that a wizard is going to show up demanding to find out who you really are?” Loid said with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m saying that its going to do us good in the long run to have much stronger elementals who are loyal to me living in the castle.”

“You’re going to have to venture out to some large cities,” Loid stated.

“I realize that,” Marin responded with some difficulty.

Loid tried to imagine Marin embarking on a trip into a world that was two hundred years into the future. He wasn’t exactly a social person, and the fact that he was used to things as they were long ago wouldn’t help his case. It was going to be a struggle getting anyone on board, especially as mysterious as the King had to look.

“And how do you plan to recruit these stronger elementals?” Loid asked, trying to get Marin to realize what a difficult idea this was.

“Well, I have monetary support.”

“You can’t throw gold at everything, Sullivan,” Loid sharply countered.

“Yeah, yeah I know. I’m hoping to find people that would value working for a king, and all it entails. Some people find honor in that, right?”

“Perhaps.” Loid tried to picture individuals who didn’t have to answer to anyone due to their strength. Then he tried picturing them submitting to a King. Even with a large salary of gold, he found it hard to do so. There was little chance that someone with enough power to instantly over take a town would want to take orders from anyone less than them.

Then Loid realized that Marin wouldn’t be less than them. He got an idea.

Loid leaned forward a bit. “I think you will have better luck if potential recruits knew how strong you were.”

Marin was confused. “You think that matters?”

“Very much so. Especially in the world we live in today. I don’t know how people felt about kings and kingdoms and honor two hundred years ago, but it’s not like that today. Kingdoms don’t hold as much influence as they used to.

Ever since the central government took over, kingdoms became more figurative than literal. And because of that, kings aren’t as powerful as they used to be. But Marin, that’s not you. You are powerful!”

“I’m powerful in a different way!” Marin explained.

“Exactly! You’re strong in the way that matters these days! You can get the respect and the reasons you need for people to join you. You just have to show them!”

“Loid… I don’t know if I completely agree with your thought process,” he admitted.

Loid didn’t hear him. He was too focused on his own train of thought. “We just need to show them…”

He snapped his fingers. “Aha!”

Marin shook his head, in partial amusement from seeing Loid in such an excited state, but also in slight terror in wondering what station his train of thought would end up at.

“You need to join a fighting tournament. Elementals going head to head. A show of raw strength!”

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“Loid, you are out of your mind if you think-”

“It will be your largest shot at exposure. They are very popular these days. Thousands gather to watch. And, it’s also a great place to meet the powerful elementals you desire! You could very well face off against your future subordinates!”

“My elemental skills are not for theater! Do you take me to be some entertainer? Should I excite the crowd further by striking poses?! Loid, you know that’s not what I am about. And besides, I thought I was trying not to bring attention to myself! Need I remind you why I’m doing all this in the first place? It is to prevent people from learning too much about me!”

Loid found it comical imagining what Marin had said, but knew there was reasoning in his words. It definitely was not something he would enjoy doing, even if it was the optimal way to get what he wanted.

“Look Sullivan, I know you’re not one for showing off. And I know you’d rather go unnoticed, but this is your best shot at getting results. It sure as hell will beat standing on a street corner handing out fliers. You will meet the people you need to meet, and you will earn their respect. Put the spectators out of your mind, they don’t matter.”

Marin tapped his finger on the chair’s arm in thought. He did not like it at all.

“You don’t have too many other options. You’re not one to go out and make a power move. And another emergency situation like the raid that happened at Heroca won’t exactly fall into your lap for you to be able to prove yourself to everyone,” Loid explained.

Marin finally stood up from his chair. “I will think about it,” he finally admitted. “It certainly is an avenue, albeit one I do not fancy. I’d like to try completing my goal without the sights of thousands, but if I can’t, I may be forced to go with your plan.”

Loid got out from his chair as well. The logs had mostly burned away at this point.

“So what will you do now?” He asked.

“I’m leaving tomorrow. But I want someone to accompany me,” Marin responded.

Loid was shocked at the suddenness of it.

“Tomorrow?! Am I to go with you?”

“No. You need to stay here and continue to run the castle, as well as defend it if need be. I will try not to be gone too long. It’s best I leave sooner than later before a new plot stirs up from some who are not too fond of me.”

“Well then who are you going take?” Loid asked.

“I need someone who is young, knows the world decent enough to handle interactions for me, and can reasonably defend themselves,” Marin listed.

It made enough sense. Loid knew with Marin’s mask, he would look just suspicious enough to prevent him from getting the best service he could. It didn’t help that his speech was slightly off from being that of two centuries ago, either. Someone had to assist him in this new world.

Loid mentally ran through a list of every Nocturne citizen, trying to find someone who met all his expectations.

“What about Gus Albore, one of your guards?” Loid asked.

“Gus…” Marin said, remembering the talks he had with him going up to the castle from Heroca in the cart.

“Yeah, he grew up in Whitewood, making him comfortable in the large cities you’ll be in. He’s a decent talker, he’s young, and being a guard, knows a bit about combat. Do you think he would be a good fit?”

Marin slowly nodded. “He’s a good kid. I think he will do nicely.”

With that in mind, Marin decided he would make the offer to Gus tonight before he retired for bed. They talked for a while longer before he excused Loid for the night, and made his way down to the lower bedrooms where he could find Gus.

Gus had finished his day shift of guarding the castle earlier. After dinner, he was found regularly sparring in the barracks. Marin was unaware, and had a decent challenge trying to find him. He eventually found Max Coronga, the captain of his guard, and asked where he could find the young lad.

“Gus is usually found in the barracks playing games with the other guards while off duty. But I believe he told me he was making a trip to the blacksmith to get his weapon sharpened. I’d try there,” Max explained.

Marin nodded and thanked his captain. He needed no further direction as he knew the entire castle like his own body. He passed the guard’s stations and arsenal, and took a turn down a hallway towards the large forge room in the lower floors.

When he got down there, Gus was seen sharpening his sword on a grindstone wheel. His foot pumped a petal to get a perfect continuous turn. As soon as he saw the king dressed in his royal blue robes, he became flustered.

Gus dropped his weapon to the side, stood up, and quickly hailed him.

“King Marin! I – I didn’t expect to see you here!”

Marin waved his hand in a downward motion to get Gus to calm down.

“It’s okay. I know I’m not usually around this area. I came to find you, Gus. I have an offer to make you.”

Gus’s mouth opened from the shock and excitement. What task could the king have for just an everyday guard like himself, he thought.

“Sit back down,” Marin instructed. When Gus had done so, Marin approached him, walking away from the entrance of the forge. When he was besides him, he held his hands out, and quickly extended his fingers. A perfect chair made of ice crackled before him. Marin walked around it and sat in it.

Gus looked at it in bewilderment. Couldn’t he have just gotten a chair from a corner? Or was it truly that easy for him to just create temporary furniture.

“I’m in need of stronger allies,” Marin started. “I need to venture back out into the world, and recruit some more elementals to help guard the castle.”

“Okay…” Gus said, at a loss for words about where this could be going. He still stared at the icy chair the king sat in, watching the cold steam slowly rise from it.

“And I was wondering if you would like to accompany me.”

Gus Albore wasn’t exactly sure what that meant. Did he want him to actually travel to distant lands with him? Leave the castle for weeks when he had a duty here? Why him? Gus didn’t exactly think much of himself, compared to Loid or the King or even several of his fellow guards.

“Um… You want me to go with you?” Gus reiterated.

“That’s correct,” Marin answered without a pause.

It was true. Despite all of Gus’s thoughts that he had misunderstood what the King had asked, he indeed was asking him specifically. If he was going, however, he wondered how many other people were going too.

“So who else is joining us?” Gus asked.

“No one. Just us. I’m trying to keep a low profile, so it will only be me and you.”

This caught him even more by surprise. Marin must have made a mistake.

“Uh, my King? Surely someone else would be more fitting for such a job…” Gus reasoned.

Marin tilted his head. “Are you saying you don’t want to go?”

“NO! I mean… Yes, I would love to go! But I’m not sure I’m qualified for such an important job.”

Marin stood up and rested his glove covered hand on Gus’s shoulder.

“Gus, I’ve picked you for this offer. I need someone young, who can navigate a busy city reasonably, and is able to defend themselves. Are you not all three?”

Gus paused in thought. “I guess I am!”

“Very good, we leave tomorrow. I will inform Max about your situation and he will relieve you for the time being. I will see you at breakfast tomorrow.”

As quickly as he had entered, Marin left the room. As he made his exit, the ice chair shattered, the shards of ice on the ground melting away in record speed.

After he had watched the ice shards disappear, Gus continued to sit there, replaying everything that had happened in his mind. He had so many questions, like where exactly they would be going, but knew the answers would have to come later. He imagined what cities or kingdoms he would possibly be visiting. After a few minutes, he realized he had been sitting there doing nothing the whole time. This was not good, seeing as he needed to prepare for the coming journey.

“I have to pack!” He yelled out alone, bursting from the chair of the grindstone and running down the hallway.

As Marin prepared himself for another sleepless night, he brought himself back into his library chambers. Spread out on the table was a large map of the continent. At the top corner, RAM was sure to state that it ruled over the whole land in humble wording.

In the center was a large mountain that read Niyeton. There were also three other prominent landmarks. One side of the map had a large dot that read Arkana. The other side had one that read National Elemental Organization (Neo). One close to the center was the government capital. Smaller dots were sprinkled everywhere else of holds, kingdoms, towns and cities.

Nocturne was stationed in a northern mountain range, right above white forest.

Marin debated where he would first embark to recruit allies. He considered Whitewood City, especially since it was close by and Gus was from there, but was concerned that too many people would know who he was.

Arkana was not a good choice in his mind, either. He knew what most elementals who lived there were like, and he didn’t believe it would be worth trying to recruit from a pool of stuck-up snobs with an elitist mindset. It was best to take a chance somewhere else. Neo was a military base and while everyone training there had good qualities he was looking for, they signed on with that faction to even be there, so that was no use either.

He also ruled out kingdoms, since he guessed he’d have more difficulty pulling people from their king. That excluded the points on the map that read Fairgoth, Lonedeep, Kybervald, Rayfelt, Orhome, and a few others. He was left with several large cities that were independent of any kingdom.

After reading the map a bit more and making notes, he rolled up the large paper, and placed it on the side of his desk. He then grabbed a bag, and began packing it. He loaded it up with several pouches of gold, a smaller map, documents, a couple tools and other useful items that he deemed necessary.

Once he believed his messenger bag had weighed enough, he slung in over his shoulders and practiced walking around with it on. He paced his library, seeing if the bag was getting in his way too much. He adjusted the strap a few times.

Finally he walked to the center office of his quarters, and placed the pack on the desk. He checked his two windows, and noticed that the sun had completely gone down, starting the long night. Then he entered the bedroom portion to the right. In his room, he stared at his neatly made bed, one that had never been slept in yet.

Because he had a maid that would enter his quarters to clean once a day, he was sure to ruffle the bed up every morning to create the appearance that he slept. To most, it would be cruel reminder that one would never be able to sleep. For Marin, though, after sleeping for over two hundred years, he did not miss it.

He just had to deal with the boredom that came from not having to do it. From there, he entered another door that went out to his balcony. Cold wind blew that brought a slight downfall of snow. From up high, he saw two of his guards changing shifts, one holding a lantern, giving it to the other.

He could barely make out their voices echoing from down below, but he knew they were filling in on any events that had occurred that evening. In that moment, he realized that his kingdom was fully running again.

Outside from the final allies he wanted to gain, his kingdom was complete. Everything was restored. He had a full running staff including maids, guards, cooks, repairmen, and movers. Even a botanist, an alchemist, a librarian, a carpenter, and a few others with specialty jobs that brought in revenue to the kingdom. Although it wasn’t enough to cover outgoing costs, Marin could afford to stay slightly in the red for many years.

The castle was repaired entirely. All doors, windows, and rooms fixed. New furniture bought, old furniture restored. Every brick was inspected thoroughly. Ones that didn’t pass inspection were ordered to be replaced. All was well.

With everything doing so well, it worried him greatly to think that there could be some people out there who would want to attack him or his citizens. Until RAM officially recognized his home as a kingdom, they were not under protection of the government. It made him anticipate the letter from RAM even more, which hadn’t shown up today either.

Marin returned to his bedroom in the walls of the castle, and shut the door to the balcony. He sat on his bed. Tomorrow would start a new chapter in his life. Marin hoped that he would find success quickly in making new friends so that he could be back at the castle as soon as possible. Time would tell.