Entering the Silver Palace

"Want to talk about it...?"

After boarding a carriage headed for the Silver Palace, Paul waited for a few minutes before broaching the subject of what happened back at the Citadel. Reida had been in a lousy mood ever since, so she was currently using his lap as a pillow after Paul assured her it would help.

Exhaling a sigh, Reida surprised Paul by muttering, "Pat my head..." before eventually going on to explain, "About a year after I arrived in the Capital, the man that had taken me in, Earl Erland Edvard Greenbull, did just about everything in his power to get me pregnant. He seemed to believe that if I bore him a child, I would have no choice but to become his mistress. For a while, he even tried to convince me...eh, forget about it. That's something that happened more than thirty years ago; I don't feel like talking about it, and I seriously doubt you want to hear the specifics..."

While continuing to run his fingers through Reida's hair, Paul hummed in affirmation before responding, "You're probably right...still, if you feel the need to talk, I'm here to listen. The Gods know you have a lot to get off your chest..."

Though it probably wasn't the most sensible or sensitive thing to do at the moment, Paul punctuated his words by sliding his hand into Reida's top. Her breasts had a peculiar firmness to them, but they were still soft and smooth to the touch.

"..."

Resisting the urge to smack Paul's hand, Reida remained silent for a short while before asking, "Have you thought about becoming my successor? If you do, it will go a long way towards putting the King's mind at ease..."

Bringing a faint smile to Reida's face, Paul answered, "I intend to give it a shot. However, so long as you have a Vision, I can't see anyone removing you from the position. I don't know how much, but I can tell you've gotten stronger since our separation."

Though she still had her head in Paul's lap, Reida nodded her head as she replied, "You're damn right I did. At my current level, even that bastard of a Sword God might not be able to defeat me."

Imagining how her next encounter with Gal would go, a vicious smile developed across Reida's face. If she had a list of the people she most hated, Gal would easily make the top three. Their status and affiliation with the Asura Kingdom made it difficult for them to do battle, but she had dreamed of wiping the smug look off his for the past twenty years.

"Mmm...just promise me you won't die. I won't tell you not to do anything reckless; that's half the fun of life. Just make sure to come back in enough pieces to put back together."

Raising and lowering one brow each, Reida gave Paul a side-long stare as she retorted, "You're way too weak to be worrying about others. At least get to the rank of Water Emperor before you start spouting sappy shit and giving people advice..."

Though she was secretly a little happy about Paul's concern, Reida didn't like being looked down on. She knew that wasn't Paul's intention, but she was still the Water God. She would never have gotten this far if not for an inordinate amount of pride. In fact, back when she was still an Emperor, before inheriting the name Reida Reia, she was known as The Lion's Pride, Katalina.

Interpreting Reida's words as concern for his well-being, Paul just smiled and replied, "Looks like I have another goal to reach..." before reclining his head back. As he did, Reida waited for a few seconds before asking, "How much longer do you intend to keep groping me...?"

Adopting a noticeably broader smile, Paul softly replied, "For as long as you allow it..."

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After nearly half an hour, the carriage Reida and Paul were riding in was forced to stop and stage outside a massive, silvery archway. This gave Paul his first close-up view of the Silver Palace, a colossal structure that was constructed almost entirely of bricks that had been heat-treated with rare minerals such as Mithril and Orichalcum. These were what gave it its renowned silvery hue, but their most important function was inhibiting the use of Magic.

Freeing Paul from his thoughts, Reida gave him a light yet crisp-sounding smack to the back of the head as she said, "Stop gawking and stay close. If you get caught wandering around without an escort, getting thrown in the Dungeon will be the least of your concerns. Also, until you meet with the King, it's best not to speak. It's a pretty well-known saying, but in the Silver Palace, the walls have more than just ears."

Demonstrating his understanding, Paul elected to nod instead of verbally responding to Reida's words. He knew the First Prince and his Faction of fucknuggets would have been informed of his arrival by now. The former was known to never leave the Silver and Concubine Palaces, so there was a fairly high probability he would pull something during one of Paul's visits to the Palace.

Returning an approving nod, Reida told Paul to stay within three meters of her before leading the way into the Silver Palace. Their passage garnered the attention of pretty much everyone they passed, but as Reida's status even permitted entry into King's bed chambers, no one attempted to stop them. Many even saluted her outright, standing off to the side of the halls to allow her free passage.

After wandering about for what felt like a literal hour, Reida showed Paul to a room guarded by a group of heavily armored Knights. They were the first to stop and ask them what their intentions were, but Reida shut them down pretty quickly by informing them it was none of their business and that she was carrying out the will of the King.

Though they clearly weren't happy about Reida's response, the group of Knights still allowed her and Paul entry into what appeared to be a giant library or some kind of museum. The flanking walls were slightly curved and lined with massive bookshelves that extended nearly 10m to a ceiling decorated in a manner reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel. There were large and intricate murals covering the entire ceiling while skeletons of various monsters, rare artifacts from ancient civilizations, and even a taxidermied dragon decorated the floor space.

Speaking for the first time in more than an hour, Paul muttered, "Wow..." as his eyes roamed the massive room. In response, Reida offered a curt nod before explaining, "This is the King's Gallery. It's where he displays all his most valuable, private possessions. You're free to roam around, but don't even think about stealing anything. Also, make sure not to touch the crystal display cases. They're enchanted to burst apart and mince anyone dumb enough to try and remove them."

Raising his brows, Paul asked, "I can look around? I would have thought most of this stuff was off-limits."

Shrugging her shoulders, Reida replied, "It is. However, the King enjoys people taking an interest in his collection. So long as you don't damage or try to steal anything, he shouldn't mind. Besides, we're going to be here for a couple of hours, and I'd rather you not get handsy while we're in the Palace."

Blinking in surprise, Paul parroted, "A few hours...?" before furrowing his brows as he added, "You could have mentioned that sooner. I told the-"

Interrupting Paul's words, a somewhat incredulous look marred Reida's face as she asked, "Weren't you supposed to be smart...? What, did you think the King would come running over the moment he heard about your arrival?"

"..."

Taking advantage of Paul's silence, Reida went on to explain, "This is a hell of a lot faster than if you had shown up for a formal audience. The King only rations around an hour of his schedule to audiences, so you would have had to wait between 2-3 weeks before being allowed to see him. Don't complain about a few hours."

Resisting the urge to say he wasn't complaining, Paul remained silent for a few moments before shaking his head and expressing, "You're right. Sorry if my words came across as impatient or selfish..."

Exhaling a faint sigh, Reida suppressed the sudden pang of guilt she was feeling, crossing her arms as she replied, "Well, so long as you're aware of it..."

Feeling a little awkward, Reida abruptly turned away and added, "There's a reading lounge near the back. I'm gonna go take a nap." before walking off. She wasn't used to people apologizing or admitting her faults, so she never knew how to react when Paul expressed his sincerity.

Following the raven-haired beauty with his eyes, Paul briefly considered if Reida's words were an invitation to join her or a warning against it. In the end, he decided the safest thing to do was grab one of the thousands of books present before making his way over and sitting on the opposite end of the sofa she was occupying...

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After nearly seven hours of waiting, Reida abruptly raised her head from Paul's lap, stating, "He's here." before quickly rising to her feet. Paul was a bit slower to rise due to his leg falling asleep, but it was nothing his Touki couldn't remedy.

As Paul followed in the direction Reida had hastily departed, he could hear the profoundly deep voice of a man stating, "No need for formalities." before asking, "Where is he?" in a curious tone.

Answering in Reida's stead, Paul revealed himself before bowing low and respectfully as he said, "Water Saint Paul Greyrat humbles himself before the Great King of Asura. It is a tremendous honor to finally meet with Your Majesty in person."

Adopting a toothy grin, King Ansalem gave Paul an appraising look as he repeated, "No need for formalities. I make a concerted effort to ensure no monitoring occurs within this place. Speak freely."

Though he bowed his head even lower in response to the King's words, Paul eventually raised his head and stood ramrod straight. He knew that the King's words were just another formality. If he actually spoke freely, it would be an extreme faux pas.

Nodding his head in approval, King Ansalem stated, "It's good that you haven't forgotten your place. Though you may have had your status and title stripped from you, nothing can change the fact that you were born as the First Son of House Notos."

Gesturing toward the room Paul and Reida had just emerged from, King Ansalem declared, "Attend me." before bypassing the duo and entering ahead of them. As he did, Paul and Reida made sure to lower their heads, not as a sign of submission, but respect. Then, as if they had practiced it in advance, they raised their heads at the same time and entered into the lounge to find the King holding up the book Paul had been reading.

Without needing to confirm the duo was paying attention to him, King Ansalem remarked, "Records of the Chaos Era..." before half-turning to ask, "Does Saint Paul have an interest in Antiquity...?"

Lowering his head, Paul replied, "Your Majesty has supposed correctly. While it is not my primary interest, one of the books I read in the past stated that those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. I would never refer to myself as a scholar, but I make a concerted effort to know where humanity has come from so that I can better understand where it's headed..."

Adopting a broad smile, King Ansalem's eyes appeared to twinkle ever so slightly as he remarked, "Well said. It's no wonder that son of mine feared your potential. With that manner of thinking, the Milbots Region may have become an independent nation in the future..."

Though he wanted to refute the King's words, Paul could easily imagine Ningguang annexing the Milbots Region if the Royal Family kept getting in her way. The King seemed to realize this as well, his smile gaining a hint of ferocity as he abruptly inquired, "Paul Greyrat...are you a threat to the Asura Kingdom...?"

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