Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

Meanwhile, at the exact same time Dion was having breakfast, King Alexius sat at his desk inside the royal palace of Lutherias. He held a piece of parchment containing an urgent front-line report. Mateo stood silently at his side, stealing glances at the king, whose face shifted from white, to green, to gray, and finally to a dark red. Crunch! The king crumpled the report in his fist.

”The undead army has advanced right up to our border... Mateo, send word to the front line immediately: the moment they come into sight, attack without delay! Do not let them close the distance!” Alexius ordered.

”Understood, Your Majesty. I will dispatch the orders to the front lines at once,” Mateo replied.

”Where is Fergil? I asked him to report to my office, why hasn’t he shown up yet?” Alexius demanded.

”Ah... Fergil is currently organizing the mages to prepare a protective barrier for the capital. He also dispatched several powerful mages to the city of Phobos to erect a barrier there as well, Your Majesty,” Mateo answered.

”Hah... Who authorized him to prepare barriers?! Don’t you know that against the undead, barriers are utterly useless because they won’t hesitate to sacrifice thousands of troops just to break through them?!” Alexius snapped, glaring at Mateo.

”B-But isn’t that the standard procedure Cleo always used, Your Majesty?” Mateo asked, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

”That’s what we do against regular monsters or lord-class armies attacking us, not undead! Go fetch Fergil right now! I need to speak with him face-to-face!” Alexius shouted sharply.

”Y-Yes, Your Majesty! Excusing myself at once!” Mateo stammered.

Mateo hurried out of the office. Alexius leaned back into his chair, placing a hand over his chest as he tried to compose himself, though veins still bulged on his forehead. Suddenly, a chilling sensation washed over him, the distinct feeling of being watched. He whipped his head toward the window, his hand instinctively snapping to the hilt of his sword. Outside his window, a single beholder was casually peering inside, completely devoid of fear.

”Guards! Guards!” Alexius roared.

Two royal knights burst into the room. Seeing the creature at the window, they instantly drew their swords. But before they could move, shatter! the beholder burst through the windowpane. It hovered in the air above the two knights on bat-like wings, the tangle of tentacle appendages squirming behind it like serpents. Suddenly, its round body shifted, enveloped in a cloak of shadows. Alexius watched the creature with heightened vigilance as its form slowly morphed into a humanoid figure. Its wings reshaped into a draped robe wrapping around its body, while tentacles continued to writhe across its back.

When the shadows dissipated, a bald man with long, upward-pointed ears stood suspended in the air. He possessed a single eye and lacked any facial features save for a massive, gaping mouth. Dozens of tentacles wriggled continuously behind his back. His arms were unnaturally long, and his frame hunched slightly forward. His crimson mouth curled into a wide, menacing grin filled with razor-sharp teeth. Alexius’s face drained of color as he tightened his grip on his blade.

”Damn it... an A-rank Damned Beholder! Kill it! Hurry!” Alexius barked.

”At once, Your Majesty!”

One of the knights lunged forward with his sword, but the creature casually parried the slash with its long-fingered hand. Two writhing tentacles slammed directly into the knight’s chest, sending him crashing backward across the floor. The second knight, watching his comrade get thrown aside, turned back to face the monster in front of him. His face was pale with terror, his lips trembling. But he stole a glance at Alexius, seeing that while the king was pale, his gaze held no fear. Gathering his resolve,

”Hiyaaaaa!”

He charged, swinging his sword down in a heavy vertical strike. The beholder took a single step back, causing the knight’s blade to bite into the floorboards. Spinning on his heel, the knight swung a horizontal slash aimed squarely at the beholder’s neck. But clang! once again, the beholder’s clawed palm caught the blade effortlessly. The beholder thrust a kick straight into the knight’s abdomen, sending him airborne to crash onto the floor, still clinging to his sword.

As the beholder raised a long claw to execute the fallen knight, Alexius stepped forward and delivered a sweeping sword strike. The beholder leaped backward, landing across the room as Alexius took a defensive stance in front of the prone knight.

”Skreeeee!”

The beholder hissed violently. But before it could spring forward, blam... blam! two fiery blasts shot into the room, blocked by a shield of squirming tentacles.

”Your Majesty!”

Fergil, Mateo, and several additional knights rushed into the office. Fergil, a handsome young man with long black hair, striking blue eyes, and an intense flame-like aura radiating around his body, stepped in front of Alexius, raising his staff directly at the monster. Seeing itself surrounded, the creature burst into a chilling laugh. It sprang backward out the shattered window, reverting into its winged, tentacled eyeball form before darting away into the sky. Fergil sprinted to the window, raising his staff to fire three consecutive fireballs, but the monster effortlessly ducked through the air, accelerating away out of reach.

”Damn it... It escaped,” Fergil muttered bitterly. He turned around to face Alexius. ”Forgive me, Your Majesty. Had I been here from the start, this wouldn’t have happened,” Fergil said, bowing his head.

”It’s fine... But how did that monster infiltrate the palace completely undetected? Isn’t the entire capital protected by the magic barrier?” Alexius asked, looking out the broken window at the translucent, semi-spherical barrier enveloping the city.

”That is precisely what we must investigate, Your Majesty. A monster like that should never have been able to bypass the barrier... unless someone granted it entry from the inside,” Fergil answered gravely.

”Are you suggesting there’s a spy inside the city?” Mateo asked, a bead of sweat running down his neck.

”My thoughts exactly,” Alexius added.

”It is highly probable, Your Majesty, Lord Mateo. We must investigate this thoroughly. But one thing is clear: that Damned Beholder was an assassin dispatched by the undead forces specifically to eliminate you, Your Majesty,” Fergil said in all seriousness.

Alexius went quiet, lost in thought, as did Mateo standing beside him. However, Mateo occasionally stole glances toward Alexius, as if waiting to hear the king’s final ruling on the matter. Alexius turned his gaze onto Mateo.

”Yesterday, we received a report from Eredor’s Shadow Hand operatives stating that several Damned Beholders were heading north, correct?” Alexius asked.

”Correct, Your Majesty. They did inform us of that movement,” Mateo confirmed.

”In that case, inform King Lamberd of Thetor and King Kenzo of Eredor immediately. Warn them to stay on high alert regarding these Damned Beholders. Their objective is to assassinate the rulers. Handle this without delay,” Alexius commanded Mateo.

”Understood, Your Majesty. I shall take my leave at once,” Mateo replied.

Mateo hurried out of the office to carry out the king’s orders. Alexius then signaled the two guards at the door to close it tight. Once the heavy doors clicked shut, he faced Fergil.

”Fergil, quietly investigate who granted that monster access. Keep this assassination attempt strictly confidential and interrogate everyone... including Mateo,” Alexius instructed in a low voice.

”Huh... Including Lord Mateo, Your Majesty?” Fergil asked, visibly taken aback.

”He is the deputy head of the magic bureau in this city, and he holds access privileges to the barrier maintenance chamber that you and Cleo used to manage. So even though he is my right-hand man, he must be investigated all the same. Understood?” Alexius explained firmly.

”Understood, Your Majesty. I will handle it,” Fergil answered, nodding.

”And as for the rest of you in this room, keep this attempt on my life entirely secret. Tighten palace security until we locate whoever betrayed us,” Alexius ordered the knights who were tending to the two injured guards.

”Understood, Your Majesty!” all the knights chorused, including the two who had been wounded protecting the king.

”Now leave us. All of you,” Alexius said.

”But... the situation isn’t entirely safe yet, Your Majesty,” Fergil protested gently.

”It’s fine. I will be leaving the room shortly as well. The sooner you begin your investigation, the better,” Alexius countered.

”I understand, Your Majesty. I shall take my leave,” Fergil said, bowing low. He turned to the knights. ”Let us move out.”

”Understood, Lord Fergil. Excusing ourselves, Your Majesty,” the knights replied.

Fergil and the knights filed out, and the door closed behind them. Alexius stood alone by the broken window, still gripping his sword, his hand trembling slightly.

”If Cleo were still maintaining and setting up the barrier, something like this never would have happened... Ah... I shouldn’t have forced her to leave,” Alexius thought to himself, staring out at the shattered glass on the floor. His face remained calm, though his skin was deathly pale and his heart hammered against his ribs.

***

Meanwhile, back in Dion’s territory, inside the makeshift prison where Dhorga was being held, achooo!

Dion, Luna, Sheila, Aria, and Mei all turned to look at Cleo, who had just sneezed. Even Gina, perched on top of Cleo’s head, tilted her head upside down to peer into Cleo’s face. Across the room, Dhorga sat in his chair with chained hands, while Nala stood quietly by the entrance guarding the door.

”Ah... sorry. I guess someone’s talking about me,” Cleo said, noticing everyone staring at her.

”Hmm... Right,” Dion chuckled softly.

Dion turned back to face Dhorga. A faint smile touched his lips, though his eyes remained razor-sharp as he locked gazes with the chained general across from him and Sheila seated at his side.

”So... what is your decision, General?” Dion asked in a calm, steady voice, a smile gracing his features.