Civilization Chronicles: Rise of the Divine Creator

Gasps sounded as everyone from the Rockwell Kingdom hurriedly stepped back, distancing themselves from the corpse of their former countryman.

Lowering his finger, Lord Jeremiah sneered, ”My little Hannah was indeed the most amusing of all the tributes offered; in exchange for completely dedicating her body and soul to me, all she wished for was the death of the one who sold her in the first place.”

”Hah, truly, one can find amusement even in the most unexpected of places.”

Not caring one whit about having just killed a high-ranking minister of the Rockwell Kingdom, Lord Jeremiah turned around and walked out of the Royal Council Chambers, humming a tune as he went.

.....

Half-an-hour later, after seeing off Lord Jeremiah and his entourage, Nathanial Rockwell and the rest of the Royal Council returned to the meeting hall and took their seats again.

Naturally, the remains of former Minister Mace had been removed and the blood stains had been cleaned; however, the image of the dead man with a hole through his head would not soon fade from everyone’s memory.

Gazing around the room, which was filled with a gloomy silence, King Nathanial glowered at several members of his council before darkly uttering, ”I hope this lesson is one all of you will take to heart. You may flatter a beast, you may even offer it precious... gifts, but do not expect gratitude in response. The beast sees everything as its own already, it does not require your permission to take it.”

Many of the Royal Councillors, as well as the nobles who happened to be in attendance, lowered their heads further at the King’s chastisement.

Nathanial Rockwell had made no effort to conceal his distaste for them sucking up to the Imperial Overseer over this past month.

The King, a well-known overprotective father, had been especially incensed at those who offered up their own daughters, granddaughters, and other female family members in hopes of ’pleasing’ Lord Jeremiah. He had even warned some of them that doing this would only bring disaster to them and the ones they had sold off like common whores, and time had now proven Nathanial right.

Some amongst the Royal Council wore looks of genuine regret, but Nathanial did not miss how some only seemed upset that their petty scheme had failed.

Although the young King was further angered by the greed and shamelessness these people were putting on display, he knew that now was not the time to start a fight.

The Rockwell Kingdom had just suffered a massive disaster and lost a high-ranking minister, so there were plenty of more important matters Nathanial had to deal with right now than distasteful politics.

”Your Majesty,” First Minister Emerson spoke up nervously, ”Are you sure it is wise to speak so... provocatively?”

As the somewhat timid First Minister was speaking, he unconsciously glanced towards the east, where a single Imperial Envoy remained in the most luxurious guest palace.

In response, Nathanial Rockwell, who was in a terrible mood, simply snorted, ”A single Low-Rank Spirit Elite cannot spy on us in this chamber from so far away, there’s no need for us to act so cautiously in our own house.”

”Enough, enough,” the King waved his hand impatiently, ”Let us get back to the matters at hand.”

Sitting up in his throne, which now felt oddly uncomfortable after the Imperial Overseer had so casually sat in it, Nathanial declared, ”First and foremost, I fully support Marquess Balfour’s actions in the South-West Province. Clearly, such extreme measures were more than warranted.”

Murmurs spread amongst the Royal Council members, some wondering why the King had done such a massive about-face when he was clearly displeased with Celestina earlier.

Many, though, faintly understood what was going on, with Minister Roth being the one to ask the question, ”Does this have something to do with the... item, Lord Jeremiah took with him?”

Nodding solemnly, Nathanial Rockwell explained, ”In Marquess Balfour’s letter, she wrote that the justification for her actions was contained within that box. I had yet to open and examine it when the Overseer arrived... In fact, I believe the whole reason Lord Jeremiah decided to make an appearance was for what was in that box.”

”Was it truly that valuable, Your Majesty?”

”Indeed,” Nathanial muttered with a slight frown on his face, ”I was the only one close enough when Lord Jeremiah opened it to catch a glimpse of what was sealed in that box, but I’m certain you all felt it, yes?”

”So, it really was a Seventh Order Beast Core?” Harrison Roth asked, his expression dimming considerably.

”Precisely,” the King confirmed, ”I cannot say for certain what its quality was, but I do know it was no lower than Middle-Rank in strength.”

Gasps sounded throughout the hall as everyone present understood the implications of a Mid Seventh Order Beast Core appearing here. There was also no shortage of frowns as well at having lost such a precious treasure to the Imperial Overseer.

A Mid-Rank Seventh Order Beast Core was of no use to anyone in the Rockwell Kingdom as it was too powerful for any of their Spirit Professionals to work with, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t be sold for a hefty profit in one of the Large Kingdoms.

Former Queen Ariana, the King’s Great Grandaunt, was a Mid-Rank Spirit Elite with some small standing in the Kore Sovereignty, and through her, it would be entirely possible to auction this Mid Seventh Order Core for at least a million Low-Rank Spirit Crystals.

While such an amount wouldn’t come close to making up for the losses the Rockwell Kingdom had recently suffered, it was also no small sum.

Yet now, that Beast Core had been snatched up by Lord Jeremiah, and all the kingdom got in return was a dead minister.

Many wanted to roar about the injustice of it all, but none dared to. As Nathanial had already said, the beast did not need their permission to take what it deemed was already its own.

”Your Majesty,” Duke Roth, who seemed to have been deep in thought for some time now, suddenly spoke, ”If a Mid Seventh Order Beast truly appeared in the South-West Province, then Marquess Balfour’s actions do not seem too extreme anymore; however, I do wonder how she came to possess that Beast Core. Surely, she does not claim to have slain such a fearsome creature.”

This question drew another round of murmurs from the crowd, with many also beginning to wondering just how Celestina obtained this Beast Core.

Unfortunately for them, Nathanial had no more answers than they did.

Shaking his head, the King announced, ”Marquess Balfour has formally requested a Royal Summit be held 30 days from now, with all those at the Count Rank and above in attendance, where she promises to fully explain the situation in the South-West Province.”

A few glances were exchanged amongst the councillors before they nodded in agreement. They wanted to hear from Celestina on a variety of matters, and they were certain the rest of the upper nobility did as well, so holding a summit in the capital aligned perfectly with everyone’s interests.

As for preparing for such an event in less than a month, it would be difficult, but not impossible.

Having reached a consensus, Nathanial Rockwell signaled to his First Minister to make a note before turning back to the hall, ”Are there any other items which require our attention today?”

There were, of course, many things that the Royal Council needed to discuss still, but no one present was feeling particularly enthusiastic about continuing to work after everything that had just happened, so they all shook their heads.

Seeing this, Nathanial waved his hand and dismissed the meeting for the day, planning to re-convene the council tomorrow afternoon when they had all had a chance to rest and process what they had learned.

Only after everyone else had shuffled out of the chambers and the doors were closed again did the King turn to his most trusted advisor and ask, ”What do you think, Perry?”

Pursing his lips, the timid First Minster replied with some uncertainty, ”I’m not sure, Your Majesty. Marquess Balfour’s actions seem to be justified, but there is no doubt they have also brought great harm and expense to the kingdom. Punishing her in some way may not be avoidable this time, even if it is just to satisfy the Council.”

”Haaa...” rubbing his temples, Nathanial sighed while silently wishing his old mentor would stop making life so difficult for him.

Celestina cared little of politics, and when it came to crises in the kingdom, she much preferred to act first then ask for forgiveness, rather than ask for permission while standing idly by.

Nathanial Rockwell sometimes wished he could be more like his former commanding officer, but he was a King, so he knew that wasn’t possible.

Staring out at the empty council chambers, especially the faint scorch mark which had been left behind from Rafael’s attack, Nathanial also couldn’t help wondering how his youngest daughter was doing.

He had sent Christina away specifically to keep her out of the Imperial Overseer’s sight, figuring she would be safe under General Balfour’s protection, but if the situation in the South-West Province had gotten so dangerous that even Seventh Order Beasts were dying, Nathanial couldn’t help worrying he had made a mistake.

Shaking his head, the young King got up from his seat and stretched his aching muscles, muttering aloud, ”I guess I just have to trust that Teacher can handle whatever is going on in the South-West.”

”Speaking of which,” First Minister Emerson said from the side, ”I wonder why Lord Jeremiah decided to leave so suddenly?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Nathanial walked down the throne’s steps and towards the door while musing, ”Who knows. He said his mission was complete, but he never even mentioned what that mission was. Whatever the Imperials wanted, they seem to have gotten, and they certainly aren’t going to tell us about it.”

”Fair enough, Your Majesty,” Perry nodded, following close behind his liege as the pair left the hall.