The Storm King

Chapter 475: Changing Circumstances

As Leon leisurely strolled through the grounds of the Royal Palace, his thoughts eventually turned to what to do next.  He had no timetables, no responsibilities that forced him to be somewhere, he was well and truly free to decide what to do next.

Or, at least as free as Elise and Maia would allow him to be, and he’d still have to inform Valeria and Alix that the King had accepted his resignation—though it still struck him as far too easy, as far as he was concerned, it was now an indisputable fact that he was no longer a knight or a member of the Royal Legions.

At the very least, he wanted to go back to Teira for a little while.  Those archives below Argent Palace were calling his name, and he wanted to leave as soon as the order from the King that granted him unfettered access came down.

‘But where to go after that?’ he wondered.  And then it hit him, a grave duty that he had to tend to.  ‘The stone giants need their dead back…’

Instantly, his mood began to turn as he remembered Lapis and the hundred dead giants in his soul realm. 

“Sir Leon!” called out a familiar voice, breaking him out of his rapidly-souring thoughts.  When he looked toward the source of that voice, he saw Dame Minerva walking toward him, several of her assistants at her back.

“Dame Minerva,” he said in greeting.  “It’s good to see you, but I have to correct you on something: I’m no longer a knight.”

“Oh?  Have you been made a Paladin?  Something more?” Minerva asked, smiling at him in congratulations.

“Uh… no, I actually quit,” he replied, instantly freezing her friendly expression.

“You… quit?” she asked in momentary confusion.  He’s already told her multiple times that he wasn’t going to last long in the Legions, but she hadn’t thought he’d be resigning so soon.

“Uh… yeah,” Leon replied, suddenly feeling incredibly awkward for springing this on her like this.  “The King just accepted my resignation, so… I guess it’s just ‘Leon’ from now on, sans the ‘Sir’.”

“I… see,” she whispered.  She then turned around to her assistants and said, “Go take a break, I’ll see all of you back in the office.”

Leon cocked an eyebrow as his heart began to race in anxiety.  Minerva was pissed, that much he could tell even if she wasn’t showing it too obviously.

Once the two were alone, Minerva demanded, “What are you thinking?!  The Bull Kingdom needs you here!”

“No it doesn’t,” Leon immediately replied, despite wilting just a bit under the weight of her disappointment.  Trajan may have been his mentor, but he’d struck up a fairly good relationship with Minerva, too, and disappointing her was one of the last things he wanted to do, even if he knew he had to in order to leave.

“What are you saying?!  Prince Trajan didn’t take you under his wing just so you could abandon the Kingdom he sacrificed so much for!”

Minerva’s icy exterior began to crack and her true anger began to shine through, with her eyes narrowing and her voice beginning to rise in volume.

But Leon, oddly enough, began to calm down instead of growing more nervous.  “I would disagree with that sentiment,” he said.  “Prince Trajan didn’t do his best to make me a good knight in the service of the Bull King, he did his best to make me a good man, full stop.  It’s something that I’ve spent a rather shameful amount of time not letting sink in, I think, but… I’m ready to start trying to live up to that example.  But with all that said, I’m just not a good fit for the Royal Legions.

“Besides, I didn’t abandon the Bull Kingdom, and I’m not abandoning it now.  My job here is just done, you don’t need me here anymore.  I mean, my skills kind of start and end with putting sharp bits of metal into people’s fleshy bits, I’m hardly the person the Bull Kingdom needs right now.  People like you and Prince August are indispensable, but I’m just another guy with a knack of ending lives.  You don’t need me, so I’m moving on.”

As he spoke, Minerva began to compose herself, her immediate anger slowly vanishing with every word.  He knew that she was well aware of his shortcomings.

“Dame Minerva, let me ask you something: if you so believed that my place was here, as a knight in the Legions, why did you have me only stay home after Prince Trajan was killed?”

“I didn’t…” she began before trailing off, Leon’s point having struck home.  She nodded in understanding.  “I’m sorry for losing myself like that, Leon, I just… it’s just been a long few months.”

“That it has,” Leon agreed, a warm smile blooming on his face.  “I think the months to come might be longer, though.  Fixing what Octavius broke won’t be easy.”

Minerva sighed and shook her head.  “No, it won’t.  He hollowed out the government about as much as he was able.  There just weren’t enough nobles around for him to replace everyone that he purged.  I’d say only about ten percent of the bureaucratic positions that have to be filled were by the time we arrived in the city.”

Leon visibly cringed.

Minerva continued, “We’ve already started working on re-hiring as many of those administrators and paper-pushers as we can find, but it’s probably going to be years before the Kingdom is running as smoothly as it was only six months ago.  Perhaps even as long as a decade or two.  We’re also waiting on seeing how the King will deal with the nobles, and if enough of them rise up in rebellion over Prince August’s stated goals, then…  Well, I doubt that’ll happen, the nobility has been fairly well decimated during the war, so I doubt they’d be able to muster enough forces to try and force the King’s hand, but you can’t always count on nobles being practical and willing to cooperate.”

“I can’t pretend that I don’t envy you for that,” Leon jokingly stated.

“Keep it up, smartass, and I might consider being more justifiably angry,” she replied, lightly smiling.  “I suppose it’s for the best, though, that you’re not going to stick around.  I know that even if you stayed, I wouldn’t have anything for you to do that would complement your skills.”

“I do make some pretty mean omelets, though,” Leon replied.  “Just… you know, don’t ask how long it took for a Heaven’s Eye chef to teach me what was required…”

Minerva chuckled as she gave Leon an odd look.  “You look a lot happier than I think I’ve ever seen you.”

“I’m feeling a lot happier right now than I have a long while,” Leon replied.  “A sudden lack of responsibilities along with a reunion with my lovers can do that for a man.”

Minerva sighed in envy.  “Good luck to you, boy, though I suspect you won’t need luck if you pursue whatever you intend to come next with as much passion as you train with…”

“Thanks.  I don’t suppose while we’re here, you could tell me a little bit more about the current situation… I have to admit that I’m kind of curious…”

“I’m not sure I should be saying this to someone who just resigned,” Minerva teased, but she didn’t deny Leon the knowledge.  “Both Prince August and Octavius have been arrested.  Octavius was moved to the dungeon while August is in his old apartments, though, so it’s pretty clear which side His Majesty currently falls on.”

“What about the Princesses?”

“Princess Stefania and Princess Cristina are already on their way home.  I don’t know what will happen with regard to them.  I suppose Princess Stefania will return to her old life while Princess Cristina will finally be presented to the Royal Court and allowed to choose what to do with herself.”

Leon nodded appreciatively.  He was already chafing from just four years in the Legions, he couldn’t imagine what Cristina endured during her eighteen years stuck in the Royal Harem.

“Beyond that, Bronze has effectively been appointed Regent until the King is back on his feet full-time, and we’re already starting to work with the old minsters and the Consuls to establish an interim government, keep the peace, and make sure the armies are sent home until the bureaucracy has been completely restored.  So, things are a little touch-and-go right now, and there are a lot of nervous people with the Legions taking a more active role in governing, but most of the Exarchs are still in power and the nobles haven’t had their territories stripped—yet—so even with everything that’s happened, I’d say we’re about as mercifully stable as we could possibly ask for.”

“That’s honestly good to hear,” Leon replied.  “I’d hate for things to get so bad that you’d have to turn to me for help.”

Minerva momentarily glared at Leon, only to be met by his cheeky smile.  She, in turn, couldn’t help but smile and lightly punched him in the shoulder.  “Keep up that attitude and I’ll recommend to the King that you be drafted as a Paladin, Sir seventh-tier-mage!”

“Ah, you’ve got me shaking in my boots,” Leon said as he exaggeratedly rubbed his shoulder.

“You’re wearing sandals, not boots.”

“Would you look at that, so I am.  I’m also clearly not shaking.”

“All right, boy, get out of here,” Minerva cried with good-natured humor.  “Go enjoy your life, do whatever it is you’re planning on doing!”

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” he said as he turned to leave.  Before he did, though, he glanced back over his shoulder and said, “Hey… if we don’t see each other again… thank you.”

“What for?” Minerva asked.

“I suppose… everything,” Leon answered, and he refused to elaborate.  He simply waved at her and began walking down the road back toward the bridge to the city.

Minerva smiled as he walked off, a feeling of melancholy settling into her stomach as she watched Leon ‘leave the nest’, so to speak.  But that feeling quickly passed as she remembered just how much work was on her plate, and she started making her way back to the Royal Palace.

For his part, as he walked, Leon began to think about everyone else who he might want to say goodbye to.  First among them were Charles, Henry, and Alain.  He hadn’t seen them in more than a year, and if he had a blade at his throat, he might admit that his friendship with them was probably over if he didn’t see them soon if it wasn’t already.  It was painful to admit, but he was starting to learn that friends don’t necessarily stay that way after enough time spent apart.  But he still wanted to know for certain, he didn’t want to leave the Kingdom without getting together with them at least one more time.

Then there was Marcus and Alcander.  It was still quite possible that they remained in the city, for while they were related to landed nobles, they were also knights in the Royal Legion.  After they fought at his side for a couple of battles, Leon at least wanted to touch base with them before disappearing into the wild blue yonder.

Lastly was Gaius.  Leon’s feelings of anger and hatred towards the young nobleman had long since cooled, then warmed again into something that resembled respect.  And Leon didn’t want to leave before he played another game of keeps with him and unambiguously won.

Beyond them, there weren’t many people that Leon was close enough to that he wanted to seek them out before leaving the Kingdom—at least, none that he wasn’t soon going to be related to once he and Elise tied the knot.  Assuming he didn’t screw up badly enough to get her to call the thing off.

He groaned a bit, remembering their conversation right before Bronze showed up to summon him to meet with the King.  It seemed to him that Elise, in her desire to keep the peace between him and one of her best friends, wasn’t taking the destruction of his family seriously enough.  Hells, it seemed that Valeria was taking it much more seriously than Elise was, given how quickly she’d forgiven him for confronting her the way he did.

‘I’ll need to talk to Elise about this before we take the next step,’ Leon morosely thought.  ‘I’ll just wait a little while longer until any lingering anger from this morning has dissipated…’

When he returned to Emilie’s estate, he found almost everyone gone.  Elise was at the Tower working, while Alix and Valeria had gone out to train in a nearby park.  Only Maia was still in the palace, idly lounging in a garden near Elise’s private wing.

Before he could move to join her, however, one of Emilie’s servants intercepted him.

“Sir Leon!” the young man said as Leon walked across the atrium.

“Hmm?” Leon responded as he turned around.  “Feel free to drop the ‘Sir’.  Just resigned.”

The servant blinked in confusion, but then quickly said, “As Good Sir wishes.  Lady Emilie requested to meet with you once you returned.”

“Where is she?”

“Just follow me.”

A minute or two later, Leon was shown into Emilie’s private offices in her estate.  Unlike her office in the Tower, this room was far smaller and cozier, as well as far more private since there weren’t dozens of attendants, secretaries, and servants waiting in the wings.  At least, as far as Leon could tell.

Emilie herself was sitting behind a desk pouring over some documents with a look of seriousness that Leon rarely saw on her face.  However, as soon as she looked up and saw him, a more familiar playful smile appeared on her face as she rose from her seat and walked around her desk.

“Leon!” she said in a warm, motherly greeting.  “Please, come in, have a seat!”

Leon complied, and she sat down across from him, her eyes seeming to bore holes in him with their intensity.  She and Elise looked so much like each other, the same shade of brilliant green eyes, the same fire-red hair, the same voluptuous, hourglass figure.  The same frivolous attitude, in some respects.

“What’s going on?” he asked, feeling a few twinges of discomfort as the silence stretched on.

“I wanted to touch base with you,” Emilie said, smiling at him.  “You know, feel out your intentions, where you want to go, what you want to do.  Your plans for the future, essentially.  I mean, you’ve ascended to the seventh-tier—congratulations, by the way—so I wanted to know if you had any higher aspirations than what you’ve already attained.”

“I see.”  Leon quickly filled her in on the meeting he had with the King, including his resignation and the agreement to return his and Elise’s villa.  “… though I kind of doubt that we’ll be living there for too long.  I was hoping to leave the Bull Kingdom soon.”

“Oh?  Where will you go?” Emilie inquired.

“Probably the Central Empires,” Leon replied.  “There are some things in those regions that I want to check in on.”

“Care to share what they are?”

“I… would like to keep those matters private, if possible.  No offense, I trust you implicitly, but it would just take a depressingly long time to explain.”

Emilie lightly frowned, but a moment later she said, “I suppose I can restrain my curiosity for a while.  However, your resignation does lead nicely into something I wanted to bring up with you.”

“What is it?”

“How would you like a position with Heaven’s Eye?”

Leon blinked in surprise.  ‘Wasn’t expecting that, especially not so soon…’

“I… uh… don’t know?  Can you be more specific?”

Emilie smiled.  “Heaven’s Eye is always on the lookout for new talent, and if you’re not going to be a knight in the service of the Bull Kingdom anymore, you’ll need something to do.  I can write a letter of recommendation to the bigshots down south that’ll ensure you a nice, cushy position down there if you need it.”

Leon chuckled.  “You know, Elise asked me to join you way back during my days at the Knight Academy.  I can’t lie that I really wish I took her up on that offer.  However, right now, I’m not quite ready for that.  I just left the Legion, and I have some personal business to take care of.  Places to see, you know how it is.”

“I do,” Emilie replied as she nodded sagely.  “You need some time to explore your freedom.”

“I couldn’t phrase it better myself.”

“Take all the time you need, Leon.  My offer will remain open indefinitely.”

“I appreciate it,” Leon honestly replied.

“I’d recommend taking it up sooner rather than later, though, I may be recalled back to Heaven’s Eye Central Tower soon.  I may have… bent a few regulations not too long ago…”

“Wait… what?”  Leon stared at her, utterly flabbergasted.  However, she simply leaned back in her seat and chuckled, treating the whole thing like a joke, and he wasn’t sure if it was genuine or if she was just putting on a show for his benefit.

“Oh, don’t worry about it.  If I were you, I’d worry more about when I plan to marry Elise.”

Leon froze up, wondering just how in the hells she’d found out so soon about his proposal.  Elise may have told her, but he thought they had an unspoken understanding not to tell anyone, yet.

‘Maybe I should’ve made that a spoken understanding…’ Leon thought in panic.

“We… haven’t set a date, yet, and I don’t have one in mind…” Leon replied.

This time, it was Emilie’s turn to freeze up, her eyes locked on Leon, the only part of her body that moved was her lips as they slowly blossomed into a wide, utterly joyful smile.

“So…” she whispered as her voice returned, every word bringing more and more joy and boisterous energy into it, “… you and my daughter… have… gotten… engaged?”

Leon cocked an eyebrow as his heart skipped a beat.  “Did Elise… not tell you?” he asked.

“She did not,” Emilie replied as she shot out of her chair and sat down next to Leon on the sofa.  “What happened?  How long ago did you propose?  Was it even you that proposed!  Oh, tell me everything!”

Leon, feeling more than a little overwhelmed with her sudden enthusiasm, moved back a little as she got closer with every question.

“Ne-Never mind!” he almost shouted, cursing at himself for making assumptions and spilling the beans.  Emilie didn’t back off, but she still stared at him, her eyes bright with expectation, her smile so wide that it was a wonder she could maintain it.  “Please don’t tell Elise I said that,” he asked.

“Trying to keep this a secret?” Emilie asked, pulling back slightly.

“I… asked her last night, we haven’t spoken about when to tell everyone else…” Leon murmured.  “Please don’t let on that you know!”

Emilie began to laugh as she finally gave Leon some space back.  “I… will do my best…” she said, her smile not lessening in the slightest.

Leon felt like he just made a huge mistake, but he thanked her regardless and got out of the office as fast as he could without being overly rude, leaving Emilie still sitting there, any possibility of punishment for interfering in the civil war now driven from her mind in light of this most joyous of news.

‘My little girl is finally getting married!’ she thought with unrestrained, utterly unrepentant glee.

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