Chapter 2: CHAPTER 2.
The throne room was ornate. Every inch was well lit and had something or the other occupying the space. Expensive vases with beautiful flowers whose fragrance seemed to spread through the room. Lovely tapestries littered the walls. Even the support pillars had something painted on them. It was a room meant to show off the wealth and power of its inhabitants and despite that; it was not overwhelming to where it felt ridiculous.
Adrian was certain that it was not something the King had arranged for.
The King was sitting on his throne, on a raised dais. Next to him was an empty throne that was higher than his own, something Adrian would not have noticed had he not been looking for some sign of the Queen. There were dozens of people in the sides of the room with a few more on the balconies high above the floor, every one of them dressed in elaborate ways. Women had complex hairstyles, clothes with jewels embedded in them and often had what appeared to be makeup. The men wore complex clothing that Adrian could not describe. It all looked very odd, but these men and women were rich and powerful. They were probably nobility, though they could also be wealthy merchants or some other people with power.
Aultcray had prepared for the Four Heroes and was more than happy to make a spectacle.
The entire room full of well-dressed people, the room had an upward slope as one approached the throne, the raised dais and the balconies all forcing anyone who sought an audience to look up to these people was nothing more than a power play. In fact, Adrian suspected that this entire thing was a show that the King was putting on. Presuming that what he had read in the Light novel was accurate and that Andre had spoken the truth, then by showing that the King had control over or at least access to the four Heroes, he could probably gain a great deal of power over other nations and his vassals.
Adrian could respect such a move. The King had time to prepare and put on a show, to show his power over figures that existed in Legends. Enhancing his prestige. It was a wise thing to do once the Heroes had been summoned if they played along, and truthfully Adrian saw no choice but to play along. There were guards surrounding the room but Adrian was not worried about them, or a direct attack on himself. What concerned him were the Shadows that were probably in the palace at this moment.
What if the Sword Hero did not play along? If all the Legendary Heroes choose not to play along? Would they have an accident? Would four new heroes be summoned to take their place?
Adrian did not know, he had no idea if that was even possible or wise, and that made him very, very nervous.
In this scenario, the King held all the cards, and the cards which were in Adrian's favour were ones that he was not aware of and thus could not use. It was like playing a game against an expert while not even being aware of the rules. For the moment all he could do was play nice and submit, let the man put a leash on him so he could get out of this situation with his head intact. In time Adrian knew that he could gain the leverage needed to escape this nation's grasp, but for the moment he had no choice.
This did not still his fury. Adrian was taken from his home, dumped into a World that was a cage no matter how large it was, and was commanded to fight against the Waves that were likely endless. No matter how they dressed it up with the talk of Heroes and honour and other such things, the reality was simple. The Hero of the Sword was a tool, just like the other Heroes. And this tool had one purpose, to stop the Waves. If the tools failed, then they would replace the set.
It was disgusting to have been reduced to this. All he could hope was that what he read in the Light novel and what little he knew about the web novel were overdramatized and that reality was much kinder and simpler than the stories, but Adrian did not have much hope. Life was rarely that kind.
"So these four young men are the four Holy Heroes?" the King stated. An odd introduction, but perhaps it was merely an icebreaker. The condescension did not help Adrian's darkening mood.
"My name is Aultcray Melromarc XXXII, and I rule these lands. Heroes show me your faces!" he spoke with a firm voice, a reminder of his authority and an implicit command to be obeyed. It was interesting how he sought to imply their obedience by commanding them to do something that they were already doing.
Still, his name was something that confirmed things further for him. This was going along almost exactly like the light novel. Plus, the absence of his wife, the summoning of all four heroes, the name Melromarc all of that implied that this was the exact scenario that he had read about. Adrian did not want to assume that the Light novel would be fully valid, such a thing would be unwise. Didn't his own presence show that things were going off the rails?
"Now then, I shall begin with an explanation. This country is on the brink of destruction." he started, his voice slowly changing into a more sober tone, "Our greatest adventurers and our army all stand ready but their strength will not be enough to fight the coming darkness."
The king slowly wove a story about a world threatened by the Waves of Calamity. Adrian had to admit, the man was a proficient speaker, his tone was sober and yet imperious, he spoke of the apocalypse and yet did so with confidence. The story he spoke of was a familiar one, the Waves would come with the signals of the ancient hourglass under the prophecies made by the oracles of old but the people of the current era had scoffed at the warnings given, considering it nothing more than a distant myth, until the Waves started as the sands ran down. The very sky split open and a dimensional rift opened up releasing monster after monster until the brave men and women of this nation defeated them. But the Waves would only grow worse until it consumed the nation.
"So, we need your aid." the King said, "Our World needs your support young heroes," he concluded.
Adrian jumped in. He did not remember what the Heroes had said in the Light novel. What he remembered was that they had been impolite. Adrian did not know about the source of their confidence, perhaps they genuinely had a reason, but as of this moment the Four Heroes were being perceived as one unit and he had no intention of letting the other three set the tone of this critical conversation.
"Thank you for the information Your Majesty." he said, "I'm sure that I speak for all of us when I say that we appreciate an explanation to this rather novel event, however as it stands we are merely starting with weapons that have most of their power sealed away after being taken away from our homes and expected to save this world," Adrian observed the King and the man standing to his right carefully. Their reaction to his next statement would tell, "I hope that we are to receive sufficient aid for our quest. As you have stated, failure in this scenario is unacceptable, and without the right tools we are unlikely to succeed."
Unfortunately, the Spear Hero took this chance to speak up, preventing Adrian from continuing, "Yeah. I get where you guys are coming from, but we aren't people you can just command. Don't think we'll just work for nothing."
"This seems fine...for you." spoke the Bow Hero
And to Adrian's surprise, even the Shield Hero spoke up, "As they have said, we don't have a responsibility towards this world. If we dedicate ourselves to securing peace and prosperity for your nation can we expect anything except a 'thank you'?"
Adrian felt a little helpless as these three fools ruined his little plan to gain more aid from the king. They were demanding compensation, but did they even know what they could offer? Did they have any idea about the disposition of the people they were negotiating with? For all, they knew this King could have their heads chopped off for what he considers disrespect. Adrian had planned to convince the King to provide them various materials, tools and access to blacksmiths and such, getting as much aid as possible as early as possible when it was the most necessary. It had been a longshot, but Adrian had planned to attempt it at the least. But he had not wished to start with demands. Not when they were in the weakest position, they would ever be. Adrian could not be sure that their strength would grow, but it was only natural that with time they would have more of an advantage.
Now it was a little too late to ask for something like that. These three heroes were acting as mercenaries, not loyal troops who would fight and die for the sake of the Kingdom. Who was the king more likely to support in this case?
Adrian had skimmed over this part when he had been reading, but living through it? He felt incredulous. Where the hell did these guys get their confidence from? Were they living in the same world he was in? Or was it they knew something he didn't?
The King, however, shot his advisor to the side a glance, before turning back to them, "It is only natural that we shall compensate you all for your efforts." He continued with a smile, "We shall aid you financially and provide you with all that you require."
The three fools didn't hide their excitement, and Adrian felt more than a little stunned that they were so willing to express their emotions in front of the very people they were attempting to extract wealth from. Still, the King's statement was a wonderful time to jump in.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I had a specific request, however. It is detailed information regarding the Waves and the Legendary weapons we wield. I hoped to speak to an expert regarding the matter as soon as possible." Adrian said.
"We have the Headmaster here. I am certain that he will be more than willing to aid you in this endeavour." the King stated calmly, before turning to look behind Adrian where Andre had been standing since the beginning of the audience.
The robed man walked forward when he was addressed and knelt before the King before stating, "It would be my honour to inform the Holy Heroes about their concerns, Your Majesty. Please leave it to me."
"I believe I have met your concerns a young man." the King said, and Adrian had to fight for a moment to keep calm in the face of his condescension.
"Indeed, Your Majesty. Thank you," he said, instead of what he wanted to spit at the man.
The King then continued, "We shall also provide any other aid required to the other heroes. Please rest assured about these matters."
The spear hero launched himself into the conversation at this point before shooting Adrian a small glare. "Well, if you keep your promise, we won't have a problem."
"Do not presume to think you have bought us off though. I'll help as long as we are not enemies."
"Yeah, this is fine," Naofumi stated, looking a little unsure.
"Very well then Heroes. Tell us your names."
"My name is Motoyasu Kitamura, I'm 21 and a college student."
Ah, so that had been his name. Truthfully, Adrian had remembered the man as the Spear Hero and left it at that. Now he had a name to add to the face and the list of irritating traits. The man was fairly handsome, but his irritating personality was truly something that Adrian could not tolerate for long. Not when he had recklessly charged forward in a situation like this.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone