Arthur's Point of View

Lestrania Thousands of Years Ago

Tensions were high as I found myself at the King's table. Not by his invitation this time. There were some words said in private between Mara and Rudnurth, but they were smart enough to use magic, so I couldn't hear them. However, things seemed rather volatile between several of the High Elves.

It also amused me that Mara cared nothing about the fact that I knocked her brother unconscious. "Sir Mordred," Mara began, and I looked up at her. "How are you enjoying the food?"

"Truly a feast fit for a king." Holding up a chunk of meat towards Rudnurth, I nodded towards him mockingly. "I needed this." Then I gestured to the table. "Well, not this, but some food is nice. Been a few days since I ate last."

"Enjoy to your heart's content." Mara stated.

Arceana then spoke up. "Sir Mordred, while your help in saving me and my men is greatly appreciated, your attitude has been lacking. If you did not want to converse with us, why did you return with us?" The Princess inquired.

Pointing at Aydan, I answered. "Sir Aydan promised me a reward, and I'd like to talk to him before leaving."

The Great Sage seemed interested in this. "While I did promise you a reward, I was unaware that you needed to speak with me. Perhaps it's about your reward?"

Eyeing him for a moment, the room was quiet as I replied. "Something like that." However, I then turned from him and to the others in the room. "Before we get to that though, I am curious about some of the people in this room." Gesturing to the blonde elf from earlier, I spoke. "I know Sir Aydan's student, and I've been introduced to three members of the Royal Family, but I must confess that the rest present are unknown to me."

"Truly?" Aydan asked back, surprised, and I nodded back slowly. "That's unexpected. Then again, you were unaware of the Lestranian Royalty, so I guess that makes sense."

"In what regard?" I questioned further as I took a bite of food.

Mara then gestured to the human from before, an elderly man around Grandpa Reed's age. "This is the former King of Lestrania." That immediately got my attention.

"The former King of Lestrania?" I repeated unsurely.

She grimaced and corrected herself. "Well, not Lestrania per se." Mara corrected.

Rudnurth then continued. "Lestrania has been formed by the combined efforts of the Humans, Elves, and the survivors of the Dove Clan that escaped the Massacre in the North." He then pointed at the previous King of Humans. "That is former King Robert. He and the former Queen of the Elves, who is not present, forged an alliance." The King then gestured to the bird lady.

Aerowyn stood up and smiled at the man. "They offered a place for us as well, and we accepted. However, tensions were high when they couldn't decide who would truly rule." She explained as she looked to Rudnurth. "That is, until the Goddess Davost herself presented us with a new option. King Rudnurth and his family were delivered to us in our time of need."

Looking at the Zugal, I gestured to her. "So, you're the former leader of the Zugal then?"

"I am." She answered proudly.

"And you chose to follow him?" I asked as I motioned to Rudnurth. "Really?"

"I care not for your tone, Sir Mordred." Rudnurth stated.

"I feel the same, except about this entire meeting. This has been nothing more than tedious to me and has filled me with regret." Then I held up a finger. "However, I did enjoy putting your brother in his place." Gesturing to the floor, I chuckled. "Which was on the ground beneath me."

Rudnurth looked like he was starting to lose it, which is what I was aiming for. "Insulting the Royal Family seems to be your only reason for being here at this point." Aerowyn pointed out angrily.

Shaking my head, I gestured to Aydan and Arceana. "In case you forgot; I was invited here. The insults only started when someone decided to have a Royal Procession in the damn courtyard while I was trying to relax." Then I looked back to Aerowyn as I took another bite. "Did you really think I wouldn't react poorly to that?"

The Zugal looked offended. "A show of force is good every now and then. Especially in front of unknown combatants." She replied.

"Aren't you supposed to be part of the peaceful clan? Why would you support a show of force?" I asked back.

"Because being meek and seeking peace did nothing to save my people."

"And yet, here you are." My reply got her to glare at me.

Former King Robert finally stood and held up his arms. "I think it is high time we resolve these issues before moving forward. If this continues, more and more problems will present themselves." Then he glanced towards me. "It would probably be best if you were to start."

Quirking a brow that they couldn't see, I replied. "Start with what?"

"Mending our current state," Robert answered. "Surely you don't want to continue down this path."

I shrugged. "I'm not too worried about it. After the previous show of force by…" Pausing for a moment, I changed topics. "What was his name?" No one answered, so I clarified and leaned forward. "The guy who attacked me."

To my surprise, Elincia spoke up. "My brother, Elias Delmaris." She said in a sour tone.

Elias was a good name. "Him!" I said as I pointed at the child version of Elincia. "Yeah, after he attacked me, I knew there was nothing to worry about." Leaning back in my wooden chair with a smirk, I pointed at Aydan. "He is the only one I would need to worry about, but even then, I'm confident I could kill everyone in this room if I felt like it."

If I had my sword, I might've stood and pointed it to the ceiling, saying 'I have the power', but that felt a little too condescending.

"Big words." A new voice came from behind me.

"Not really," I responded without looking. "They were rather basic words, to be honest. I'd assume even a child would be able to understand what I said."

At the side of my chair appeared the man in question, looking at me with a hateful glare. "Can you prove it, though?"

Elias had apparently recovered, and I just smirked. "No offense, your majesty, but didn't I just prove it to you mere moments ago?"

Gritting his teeth as magic began to gather in his hands, he leaned closer to me. "I will admit that I underestimated you, and I thought for sure my surprise attack would render you harmless. I was wrong."

"How does being wrong feel?" I asked back. "Does it give you a mild headache or concussion?" My inquiry made the High Elf grabbed my chair and throw it with me in it. "Really?" I asked as I adjusted my body to make sure the chair landed regularly with me still sitting down. "I'm beginning to understand now."

"What might that be?" Elias inquired as his magic started to grow.

Gesturing to the King with my head, I began explaining. "Rudnurth is a bit of a tyrant who believes everyone is beneath him, including family." Then I pointed to Elias. "You're the hothead who doesn't think things through. Arceana is the one trying to prove herself to her siblings and herself, while Elincia is just a child."

Mara spoke up from her seated position. "What of me, Sir Mordred?"

"Cunning and deceitful is what I'm sticking with for the moment, but I could be completely wrong. You might actually be as diplomatic as you pretend to be." Rolling my shoulders as I stood, I moved towards Elias. "However, I am a little unsure of that just because of your sibling's attitudes and the fact that you are young. Of course, Sir Aydan might've actually gotten through to one of you, so again, who can say?"

To my surprise, Mara looked over at Aydan with a smile. "I like him."

Aydan just sighed and rolled his eyes as he stood. "At least one of you does." Moving around the table to Elias's side, the Great Sage stood between us. "Please, can we take Robert's advice and try to rectify these issues?"

Moving through the middle of them, I grabbed some food from the table. Piling it into a plate got everyone's attention, but I paid them no mind. Once the plate was full, a smirk came to my face as I picked it up and started to leave the room. Obviously, this surprised everyone, but pissing off Rudnurth was the goal at this point.

"Stop him!" Rudnurth ordered, and I smirked as several guards got in my way. "You seem to be very mistaken about who is in charge here." His frown deepened when I turned around and kept eating. "Your insolence will not be tolerated, and nor will your insults!"

About time he got angry enough to stop me. "Listen, if you want to keep playing at King, I suggest you let me walk out that door, or you're not going to keep that crown."

I guess threatening the King about taking his crown was enough to get the entire room to act. Soldiers poured in from everywhere while Elias, Aydan, Aerowyn, Arceana, and more all moved towards me. Rudnurth was pissed and rightfully so. Didn't mean I was going to put up with his shit. After all, if I'm the one who killed him, it'd only be following history, right?"

"Kill him!" Rudnurth shouted as he slammed his fists on the table.

To my surprise, Kodnar teleported in front of me before anyone else. "I warned you to mind who you were talking to!" He roared as he launched a spell at me.

"Oh no! It's the beta male! Whatever will I do?!" I asked, overly dramatic, right before I slammed my palm into his face and threw him into Aydan. "Here's your student!" The Great Sage used magic to slow him down and gently cradle him while Elias summoned a sword with magic. "Do you want to say hello to the ground again or your brother this time?" I asked the young High Elf.