I snuck away from the meeting the nobility were having, and started to roam the metallic halls of Redleaf Palace. Lilian followed behind me at a distance, letting his gaze linger on each and every piece of art that we came across.
Eventually, we got to a long, bland hallway, so I decided to try and catch up on some of the information I was having X search for.
X, how much have you been able to find out from the Primal Kingdom regarding the rise to power of any neuromancers?
X appeared as a floating entity in front of me, and matched the pace of her floating to the speed of my walking.
“I’ve found a list of deaths, Master. There have been a string of murders over the past two weeks. It seems that one of the users has come to the same conclusion as we have: that Judgment users are Fallen Neuromancers who hid their powers. Fortunately, it seems that they are still fledglings, and don’t have the foresight or knowledge to cover up their killings.”
I nodded. That, or they are trying to lure us to the Primal Kingdom by making their job look sloppy. It’s not like you to not think of something like that…
X stared into my eyes, before shrugging. “Possibility recorded. Regardless, there are deaths happening in the Primal Kingdom, and there is a very real possibility that a Judgment User is responsible.”
Then, how many Neuromancers are left in the Primal Kingdom? They couldn’t have all been hunted by this murderer.
“There are fifteen remaining, all being protected either by their local law enforcement, or the crown.”
Ok. Locate their exact whereabouts, and compile a list for me of the most likely candidates to be Judgment Users.
“As you wish, Master.” Judgment bowed, and then evaporated into thin air. I continued walking down the hall, until I realized that my footsteps were the only ones still moving.
Why did it feel as though she was acting strange? I turned around, and frowned as I noticed Lilian standing completely still, staring at a portrait of the royal family on the wall. I walked over beside him, and looked up at the painting as well.
“Is that really necessary?” I asked after Lilian had paused for the fourth time since we had left the throne room. The former mob boss looked over in my direction, and shrugged. That, however, was deemed as disrespectful, and therefore, Lilian was shocked with an electric current.
“Starlord’s taint!” Another shock, this time making Lilian sit down against his will. “Did you increase the output from before!?” Lilian clutched at his chest.
“Yes, I did. You kept on ignoring the other shocks, so I figured I might as well edit that part of our contract, just for you.”
“Master Joshua, with all due respect, I think some people would call you inhumane.” Another shock occurred, staggering Lilian in his attempt to rise.
“What? That’s nonsense. You get a week of leave a year. How could you ask for anything else?” I said sarcastically, and Lilian grinned.
It annoyed me, so I sighed and put my foot on Lilian’s face. “I think you’re forgetting who is in charge here. Just because I honored a promise with you, and made you my subordinate, doesn’t give you the right to act however you please. I could have just turned you into an emotionless husk, a shell of yourself, but instead I let you keep your mind and personality. This is something that I can change at any time. Do I make myself clear?”
Lilian gulped and nodded his head. “Please tell your User to get his foot off of mine, X.” Three appeared above her user, and stared daggers at a point over my shoulder.
X appeared behind me, and shot a menacing look at Three. “Why should I? That place suits the loser just fine. Or, did you want to go back into subspace again?”
Three shuddered, and grabbed at her throat before dissipating. “Ha, I didn’t think so.” X disappeared as well, leaving just Lilian and I in the corridor.
I took my foot off of his face and offered him a hand, which he quickly accepted. “I don’t know what’s been happening with X lately. I feel like she’s trying very hard to be how she imagines a human to act.”
“Hurtful, Master.” A small shock sparked out of my Judgment Panel, and a smile grew on Lilian’s face.
“Master Joshua, she’s not acting just like any human, she is acting like you.” I stared at him blankly, and finally put two and two together.
Fuck. That’s right, isn’t it? X, please try not to imitate me. I’m definitely not a human ideal, and shouldn’t be treated like one. You were fine the way you were before.
“...Understood, Master.” Judgment sounded a bit dejected, but making herself more relatable to me, and therefore dumber by comparison, wasn’t helpful or desirable to me in the least.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
I started to walk down the hall once more, and Lilian followed closely behind. “So, Master Joshua, where are we going now?”
Without turning to look back at him, I responded, “We’re going down to the guard’s quarters. I left two idiots here without any real supervision, I’m just hoping I don’t have to do anything to them that I’ll regret.”
---
After being left to their own devices while I was gone, I was glad to see that both Devin and Craig had been keeping up their end of the bargain, and had gathered intel as I had instructed.
“Honestly, we expected you to be gone longer than just a handful of days, kid.” Devin leaned on his electrical spear, and yawned.
“Yeah, we thought we’d at least get to send you an update before you got back. What happened?” Devin asked, head resting in his hands.
Craig stood next to the counter in their shared room, waiting for his coffee to be made, while Devin sat at the table, having already made his drink of choice. Their room looked like it was designed from a single-bedroom apartment, and was about the same size as well.
They had offered drinks to us as well, and I refused on instinct. Lilian, though, was sitting on their couch with a cup of what smelled like oolong tea.
I sighed and sat down next to Lilian, who moved over to make room for me. “Yeah, it was a real shit show. I thought I was going to spend weeks, or maybe even months there at most.”
I turned to the former mob boss, who gave me an inquisitive look. “Fortunately, their leader was one hell of an impulsive idiot, and basically handed themselves to me on a silver platter.”
Lilian scowled at me, but could do nothing to retort the stupidity of his past actions. Devin looked surprised, and gave me a slow clap. “Congratulations, Mr. Luckiest Person on the planet. Anyway, should we begin on what we’ve observed of the kingdom’s politics in your absence?”
I nodded, and Craig walked over to a seat across from the couch, sitting down while a floating tray carried his coffee beside him. “Alright, first, can your Paladinship make sure that our room is soundproof, and devoid of any bugs or espionage devices?”
“Did you really think that you’re smarter than your boss? I did that before I even set foot in your room.” Craig mumbled grumpily at my comments, and took a sip of his almost milk-white coffee.
Devin finished his own drink, and pulled up the chair from the table to sit beside Craig, and across from me. “Alright, Craig, that’s enough pouting.”
Craig gave Devin a dirty look, but eventually relented. “Sorry, it’s just been stressful this week. My wife is pregnant, and she’s due this month. I’ve been high strung ever since.”
Devin gave his partner a pat on the back. I crossed my legs and said, “The sooner you make your report, the sooner you can go back home. Tell me what I need to know.”
Devin gave me a quizzical look, but sighed, taking his hand off of Craig’s back. “You really are not good with people, are you, Master?”
Not now X, I need to pay attention to the report. I want you to transcribe it as well. “As you wish.”
“Ok. I guess we should start with the overall picture. It appears to us that the kingdom is gearing up to compete in the next war games with the Primal Kingdom, and following that, another war game with the Empire of the Sun.”
The Primal Kingdom one, I was aware of, but not the one of the Empire of the Sun. Which if I remembered correctly was… South Africa. “I get it.” I held up a hand to keep Devin from speaking, and acted as though I was lost in thought. I don’t get it. X, what is a war game?
“A war game is a simulated combat scenario in which two nations send out squads of up to 100 people to fight and die in order to secure an edge the next time an incident arises between the two countries, or the advantage can be used when discussing trade negotiations.”
Thank you. I put down my hand, and, taking that as a sign to continue, Devin did just that. “On that point, Prince Raiden Lightning Metron is being sent out as our representative for the war game with the Primal Kingdom, and Princess Venus Light Metron is our representative for the Empire of the Sun’s war game.”
I nodded. I hadn’t properly met Venus yet, but if she was anything like her siblings, getting along with her would be an uphill battle. “More than that,” Craig began speaking, “The politics inside the kingdom itself are getting more tense as well.”
I turned to face him. Seeing as I was remaining silent, he continued, “Many factions within the kingdom are upset that you made Reya, an entity that no one had any stock in or connections to, into the crown princess.”
“Will any of them pose a threat to me?” Craig met my eyes, and shook his head vigorously.
“No, not openly, anyway. They may try to do something in a roundabout way, like what happened this morning, but other than that, the status of paladin will shield you from most things.”
“Thank you both. You’ve done your jobs spectacularly. Is there anything else that I should know?” Craig scratched his chin in thought, but Devin spoke up immediately.
“Yes, actually. Prince Brice, the prince who you maimed,” I rolled my eyes at his pause, “is making a steady recovery. His political faction has all but been obliterated and eradicated, as he is no longer the same person who was willing to do anything to win, no matter how underhanded it may have been.”
X, is this because we fucked around inside his subspace? “There is no known research on the subject, but it can be inferred that since you erased his subspace, a projection of his being, and returned it to a blank slate.”
“The Queen herself saw to his recovery, and with her assistance, he has made an amazingly fast recovery. The only thing… the Queen has been openly complaining to anyone who would listen that you have too much power.”
My eye twitched as Craig picked up where Devin had left off. “She’s been trying to gather enough nobles to appeal for a weakening of the Paladin position. It’s been vacated since the inception of the Kingdom, and she believes that it still isn’t necessary to have one.”
I sighed, and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Ok. I see what you’re getting at. I guess I should have a sit-down with the King and Queen in private, at some point during our stay here. Other than that, I guess I should try and get to know Raiden better, since we’ll be going into battle together.”
I got up to leave, and both Devin and Craig stood up to give me a salute. “Thank you both for your services. I expect you to notify me if anything else comes up.”
“Yes, sir!”