45 Chapter 45: King's Audience

Inside the throne room of the kingdom of Satirica, where the golden throne was located—at the end of the red carpet. The current king, King Spandex Satirica, was sitting while his head was resting on his hand. An old man with long white hair. Standing on his side were Mikaela, Hyuna, Vahili, and the current Queen, Slahty Satirica.

Unlike the king, the queen was just in her early 40s and had long black hair, blue eyes, a beautiful figure, and massive boobs, which both Vahili and Hyuna inherited from her.

At the side of the red carpet were hundreds of knights, standing proudly. Their armor was shining due to the morning sunlight coming from the windows.

Then, all of the attention was taken when the massive golden double door opened as the person they were waiting for arrived.

"The legendary mage Zero has arrived!" The announcer shouted.

Zero entered the throne room, his red eyes looking straight at the throne and the people standing next to it. His eyes darted to Mikaela, then to Hyuna and Vahili, but stayed a moment longer on the queen before taking his gaze to the king sitting on the throne.

Zero stopped a few meters away from the throne, looking directly at the highest-ranking individual in the kingdom.

"Lord Zero, I am pleased to see that you have accepted my invitation," Spandex said with a smile; however, his eyes were visibly showing caution.

The highest-ranking knight walked forward, looking at Zero with judging eyes. "In case you already forget, Lord Zero, it is customary to kneel before the present of the king."

"I don't kneel before a mere human, especially those beneath me," Zero replied.

All at once, the knights in the room raised their weapons, prepared to attack—or that was just making it to be—all of them were shivering, knowing that they were just throwing their lives for the sake of this foolish audacity.

"My, my, we don't need to start an unnecessary conflict just because of such a trivial matter," Spandex said. He waved his hand. "Isn't that right, Lady Mikaela?"

Mikaela bowed her head. "You are right, your majesty. As long as he is not provoked, I am sure that Zero would not hurt anyone in this room." Her sharp, gazing eyes darted to the highest-ranking knight. "But it's up to you if you really want to test his temper."

The highest-ranking knight swallowed and gestured for the other knights to put their weapons down, which they immediately did. Then he walked into the farthest end of the throne room.

"King Spandex, last time I saw you, you were a dashing prince—I also remember how you did everything just not to get enlisted to join the war," Zero said with mockery in his voice. "Did you become braver now that you are the one running this place? Or is it really you who are in charge?" Zero's eyes darted his eyes to Mikaela, who just narrowed her eyes.

Spandex laughed. "And you never changed, Lord Zero; you are still not holding back with your words when talking to me." He shrugged. "I must say that leading an entire kingdom is a great responsibility—I had to change, so I did."

Zero crossed his arms. "So... let's get to the reason why I am here."

Spandex cleared his throat and gestured to Mikaela. Mikaela, on the other hand, moved forward.

"Zero, we just received information about the movements of the Heralds, and we heard about them establishing an outpost in the kingdom of Orjee," Mikaela explained. "That kingdom is massive, and their king is corrupt; by offering him great power, I can see the king letting the Heralds turn that kingdom into one of their bases."

"So, you want me to go there under your command?" Zero asked.

"Uhm. It's not really a command; it is more of a request. It is still up to you if you are—" Spandex's words stopped when Zero's sharp eyes darted on him. "Right, I'll let the two of you talk."

"Yes," Mikaela replied without even a hint of hesitation in her voice. "If these continuous, millions of lives will be put in danger, the Heralds' first move is to gain military power by turning corrupt and weaker kingdoms into their army camps; everyone will be forced to join the war for the realization of the Heralds' goals."

Queen Slahty walked forward, her eyes filled with concern. "Imagine the fate of the people of countless nations in that predicament—men, children, and women being forced to join a war for a cause they don't agree with."

Hyuna and Vahili nodded at the comment from their mother.

"Being forced to join a war without your consent is unacceptable," Spandex said.

"Of course, you know that feeling," Zero said, his mockery toward the king palpable.

Spandex scratched the back of his head. "Now, I am starting to wonder why he specifically hates me. I am starting to think that it's personal."

Then, what followed was a complete silence. Zero remained standing while seemingly contemplating; on the other hand, all the participants in the room were just watching his every movement without making any sounds.

Zero turned his back and walked towards the exit. "Then I'll do it," he said, leaving all the people behind him smiling.

On the other hand, Mikaela followed after him. They walked silently until there were no more people around.

"You should stop being hard on Spandex. He is a changed man now—well, sort of," Mikaela said, catching up with Zero.

"It's not even the worst I can say," Zero replied. He exhaled and looked at Mikaela, his eyes softening. "Didn't I tell you to retire already? Let the kingdom handle itself; you are not the king, but you have the responsibility of one."

"I just did; I am already packing my stuff," Mikaela replied.

Zero jumped out of the window. "Good. See you around."

Mikaela just shook her head. "You never changed. To be young forever, it must be great. If I don't have a very short life span, I can even join you on your journey." A bitter smile showed on her face. "This is one of the times that I regret being born as a human. If only there's a way."

On the other hand, Zero, while plummeting in the air, put his hand on his chin. "It seems it's time for me to leave this kingdom."