TBATE | Twisted Ethos [Hiatus]

Just Business I

||Grey Heirghund||

It was nauseating no matter how much I use the teleportation gates, a feeling that I will unfortunately never get used to even as time passes by.

"State your business!" A guardsman stopped me by my tracks as I walked through the city's entrance gate. He struck the ground with the spear he held and looked me in the eye with much scrutiny.

I pulled out a letter patent that had the king's seal on it.

The guard's face paled the moment his eyes met the king's seal imprinted in red wax, he distanced himself from me as he read the letter which I held near his face.

"P-pardon me, s-sir. I should've known!" His voice was shaking and he let me through to enter.

"Don't let it cloud your mind, you were merely performing your duties as a sentry." I squeezed his right shoulder.

"The King has just returned from his abstinence and fasting from the grand mountains, please do understand why we exercise such caution." Another guard explained.

"You are all pardoned, never you mind." I dismissed it and raised my arm slightly.

It was still early and the sun was just about to rise on the eastern horizon people were just starting with their morning chores with their houses dimly lit and the store owners at the doorstep of their establishments, the castle that housed the royal family was towering over the entire city with its façade being highlighted by the golden rays of the morning dawn.

The rain just subsided a couple of hours ago, filling the city with the moist scent of the roads which were lightly blanketed by fog while little puddles of water scattered.

The wind was quiet and the noises were slowly, but surely, increasing as people started to get out of their homes with their apparel for work.

I turned to one of the many winding corners of the city to pass by a well-known bakery in this district. The smell of freshly baked pastries whiffed and coated the air with its fragrance that enticed all of the passers-by. After I went inside and ordered a fresh batch a distinct mana signature immediately caught my attention to a familiar figure who was standing near the entrance of the establishment.

"You didn't take a carriage to arrive here, sir?" I was greeted by a man with his hair that was stylized in a curtain haircut, draping his temples with white hair he has, he had a square jaw and was built like a bear due to his broad physique, his broag physique reminded me of Scythe Dragoth when I first came under his tutelage.

Aside from that, he was ornamentally dressed in a black suit with golden trimmings, having a matching black long sleeve emphasizing his white tie coupled with the fact that he has formal attire with white gloves which could only mean one thing...

"I didn't," I responded to his inquiry, but left my mouth agape to ask him one.

"Ah, you must be father's accomplice?" I questioned, staring into both of his eyes which were as sharp as an eagle.

"Yes, I am, sir." He replied with a short bow.

"I wanted to take a walk for a while, besides the teleportation gate in Xyrus offers a direct route towards here," I answered his question earlier.

"Would you want me to fetch a carriage then, sir?" He politely asked.

'He knows his place, good.' I remarked inside my head.

"It would be appropriate to do so," I replied innocently.

Immediately as I said this a carriage appeared from the corner of my eyes.