Monarch's Rebirth: Chapter 34

"If you need anything else just tell me."

Ha Yun has been helping me heal up for the past few days. Her family are aristocrats from the east region, having close ties with the ministers. She came to the western region for studies and would go back to the east to further carry on with her studies. Needless to say her stay here wouldn't be long.

"Thank you. I cannot thank you enough for how much care you've shown me." I told her back in response. She helped me around the class even knowing that I come from the slums. It's rare to find people like her in this world.

She gave me a wide smile before running her hand through my hair. "There's no need to thank me. Just focus on getting better." She said while caressing my hair.

My heart began to race and my face slowly turned red as she did that.. "O-okay…" I muttered out, slowly laying down on the infirmary bed for the second time this week.

Ha Yun turned around to leave me at the infirmary to continue her classes. I would be out for the last two classes due to this injury.

She glanced back at me once more as I rested on the bed. "I have something to tell you tomorrow. Meet me on the rooftop during lunch. It's urgent."

"S-sure…"

She disappears through the curtains as I lay on the bed, pondering on what she meant by that. Feeling tired, I closed my eyes and tried to fall asleep. Whatever she had to say she would say tomorrow.

"Artorius, wake up. Astrid is already here. His carriage entered the city."

I heard knocks from my door as I slowly woke up from my slumber. I was left puzzled and confused after the dream.

What… Happened…?

Slowly I get up from my bed and rub my forehead. "Ha Yun…" I simply said under my breath.

Another barrage of knocks came from my door and I took a moment to take everything in for once.

"Yeah alright. I'll be taking a bath."

Felix walks into my room and walks straight into the bathroom without a word. I look back around to see Amelia slowly getting up from her sleep, stretching and yawning after a night of well deserved rest.

"Good morning. Time for a bath. We don't have much time." I told her through telepathy while grabbing my shirt from the table. "Good morning… I want five more minutes…"

I chuckled from her asking for five more minutes of sleep, taking me back to my own childhood.

"The bath is ready. You may go at any moment." Felix said before walking out of the room. "How much time do we have?"

"Not much, enough for breakfast hopefully." He said before closing the door and leaving.

I walked over to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth before taking the bath itself. Amelia slowly walked into the bathroom and jumped into the bath by herself. I continued brushing my teeth while thinking back to the dream I saw.

"Damn, only if the dreams stopped."

FELIX'S POV

It was a gloomy morning with rain being a high probability. It was getting quite windy but I expected Astrid to still come no matter what happened to the weather. The chef was already cooking up the food and the guards were on standby. Things will get quite messy from here.

I walked into the living room where the guards were stationed to be on standby. It was a form of intimidation. Even though they are no match for Astrid when he goes feral. If he does go feral, Artorius is always there to calm down the situation no matter what happens.

"Stay here. You won't attack even if he goes feral. Only defend if he does. Last thing we want is blood being shed in this room." I told the guards as I left the living room.

"Yes sir!"

There was a lot to do today. Though this is the hardest plan for today, the rest is smooth sailing from here.

A maid came from outside as I walked through the foyer to the dining room to check on food preparation. "Sir Felix! A letter from the supreme king came! A courier came by just now giving this letter." She told me while handing me an envelope with the royal family's stamp.

"Royal family? For what?" I asked, skeptical of what King Alaric had to say.

I took the envelope and gently opened it. Inside the envelope I found a letter and a special crest as well. Minding the crest I did a quick read through the letter.

"Dear Artorius. My son, Amadeus Von Leonard, is going to have his birthday on the 40th of Spring. It is mandatory for you to attend the party. You may bring two guests excluding your assistant. I expect to see you at the party."

After reading the entire letter I was dumbfounded as I forgot that Prince Amadeus' birthday was coming up so quickly. I had never attended the party myself since I was Artorius' assistant. But I always heard stories from Uncle Finn who was King Theo's assistant about all the things that happened at the party.

"Oh my! It's an invitation to Prince Amadeus' birthday!" I exclaimed after reading through the letter. The maid smiled happily, even though she won't be attending the party herself.

She quietly walked away as I turned around to go back to Artorius' room to give him the letter. I shouldn't have opened it myself but I couldn't help my curiosity.

I walked in haste through the hallways to his room with a joyful smile on my face. I knocked on his door to get an answer from him.

"Artorius! There's a letter from King Alaric himself! You might want to read this as soon as possible!"

Suddenly he opens the door and jumps back from seeing me so close, as usual. "Goodnes! What letter? GIve it." He said while catching his breath.

I hand him the letter and he looks at it with a blank expression like he did with Astrid's letter. He reads through with curiosity and looks back up, confused from the letter.

"Mandatory? Why is it mandatory?" He asked me, annoyed, to go for a party at the supreme king's castle. "Why not? It's a party."

"Seems useless. I have work throughout the week. It's in eight days too."

"There will be alcohol. Really expensive ones too."

"Oh wow! Is it mandatory? I didn't even need that to be included to go!"

That's one way to get him.

He puts on his cape and fixes his jabot and vest before closing the door behind him. "I'll talk with Astrid after breakfast." He said before taking the lead down the hallway.

I gave him a nod and followed behind him. Astrid would be coming in five minutes and he would spend at least twenty minutes finishing breakfast. Astrid will be furious if he enters and sees Artorius casually lounging and eating.

"Astrid might arrive in five minutes. I got word that he would head here right after having his own breakfast. His last known location was at a restaurant finishing his breakfast." I told Artorius to keep him notified.

He did not flinch or react and just kept walking in silence. "He's going to survive today if he keeps his hands off my food and Amelia. If not, he will be going back to his home the same way his son did."

Those words sent a shiver down my spine as it passed through my ears. What was he really planning? He's always been devious and sly with everything he does, having ulterior and selfish motives.

We walked down to the dining room in silence and he took his seat, picking up his daily newspaper and reading it while waiting for the food to finish cooking. I stood beside him in silence, knowing the silence won't last long.

ARTORIUS' POV

I read through the daily newspaper as usual in silence. I did not want breakfast, rather I just wanted to make Astrid angry.

Reading through the newspaper I realised something shocking.

"Felix, what is this?" I asked him, repeatedly reading the headline again and again.

He comes closer and reads the headline as well. "Possible queen of… Faunus kingdom…? Wait a minute…"

He took another look at the newspaper and read it once more. "What…?" He said before bursting out into a fit of laughter.

I covered my forehead and eyes in shame and disbelief. "I have no words… I've dug my own grave!" I said while trying to understand where everything went wrong.

Suddenly a loud bang could be heard coming from the foyer. I looked up from my newspaper and watched a tall, bulky man enter the palace and look around furiously, searching for something.

Astrid was quite tall, towering over me who was considered very tall in this world. He had grey hair from ageing but it was still long enough to run down his shoulder blades. His bulky build made him look terrifying to an average human or elf.

A scream could be heard as he laid his eyes on me. His eyes screamed fury and rage as he sped towards me, trying to enjoy my meal.

"THERE YOU ARE YOU PYSCHOPATHIC MURDERER!"

Here it all begins.

Astrid comes at me with his fists clenched and ready for a punch. Felix stares with a big smile on his face and so do I.

With a calm and condescending smile, I stare at him as he comes to me, ready to kill me on the spot.

"Welcome, Mister Astrid. I am having my breakfast at the moment so could you please wait in the living room? I will have my servants bring you tea if you wish."

I knew he had no intentions of having a civil talk about this. Beast peoples usually have a temper as short as a mosquito's lifespan.

He really didn't like the fact I was treating this lightheartedly. He began to grow even angrier and slowly turned into his beast form, just what I wanted.

"Do you not realise the weight of this situation!? Are you that ignorant?" He shouted out as he stood in his spot, stunned from how unfazed I am by his rage.

I stood up from my chair and slowly walked over to him. "Mister Astrid… I do understand the situation. But please, with all due respect. This is my palace and I would like to keep everything civil."

He growled from frustration and anger, becoming larger in size, growing quadruple in size from his normal human form.

"I swear to god… Take this more seriously or that fox of yours is becoming my next meal."

Astrid's threats were all empty in my eyes. Amelia knew they were empty too. I still hated how he was treating me, as if I was on the same level as him. He did not realise he was talking to a king, not a fellow aristocrat.

Even still I smiled at him widely, trying to get him to calm down. "No need for violence, Mister Astrid. Please, calm down."

This was his breaking point. He went completely berserk from here on out and slid his giant arms across the table, throwing the decorative flowers that were on the table and the rest of the cutlery to the floor. Luckily Amelia was not injured but he made one mistake. My wine.

He gave me an arrogant and annoying grin after ruining my entire breakfast and table. "Enjoy your breakfast, king." He said with arrogance.

My smile stayed on my face even still but I was growing more and more irritated as time went on. "That wasn't very nice of you, Mister Astrid. I gave you my warning, making you remember that this was my palace and you are in my kingdom. I'm not a mere aristocrat, I'm a king."

That's enough of the sideshow. The main character has arrived with the main show.

Without a second thought and a second to spare I clenched my fist and with all my body swung a powerful punch on his stomach.

The punch was enough to send Astrid flying through the doorway that was considered small to him. He broke off a chunk from the wall and rolled through the other hallway on the other side of the palace. He lay lifeless on the floor, beat from one punch.

Even still I didn't break my character and walked over to his corpse-like body. It was a long walk but I was having too much fun to consider that. Amelia and Felix walked along with me to see if he was still alive.

Once we made it to him he still was alive, luckily, but he had no fight left in him. He was slowly shrinking to normal size which meant he still was conscious.

I dragged him by his long silver hair and dragged his face across the hard wooden floor, lucky for him it was carpeted.

I had already done enough damage to the palace. I'd rather not damage it any more. I dragged him out of the palace and into the courtyard where guards surrounded the entire area.

As I stepped outside I saw how rainy the weather was. It would seem that rain would start any minute. I had to make this quick if I didn't want to get wet from the rain.

"Thank you for letting in this punching bag for practice. It's been a while since I actually had proper training."

I threw his limp and weakened body to the ground and smiled arrogantly, just like he did with me. "I would justify your anger at me for killing your son. But I can also justify my reason to kill him."

He picked up whatever he had left in him and looked at me with fear, petrified from the soldiers that surrounded him and the man that punched him nearly fifty feet across a palace.

"W-what kind of reason do you have…? That… justifies killing… a noble!" He exclaimed.

A menacing smirk broke out from my face as he tried to question my reasons. "Your son killed two soldiers and was about to kill an innocent florist that lost her mother a month ago. Do you have any idea how much he fucked up?"

Felix brings me the daily newspaper from a week ago and also from today. "Read these headlines. Make the judgement."

He sits upright and slowly puts his hands forward to take the newspapers. His hands shook from fear and as he read through both of them, even the headlines terrified him.

"I-I'm sorry! I apologise for his actions!" He said, stuttering over his words. "Two soldiers died. I only equalised the number of killers to the killed."

He bowed down on his knees in front of me. Tears rolled down his face as he begged me to let him go. Usually in these situations I would let him go, but today I felt extra mischievous.

"I will let you go on one condition. You will be funding my recent project." I told him, grinning with a huge grin on my face. He looked up at me with tears rolling down his face. "W-what? What do you mean?"

Felix handed me a contract that I wrote out last night. The contract favoured me over all and would prove to be a challenge for him. It's a perfect plan, he gives me most of the fundings and I spare his life.

Astrid knows this and reads through the entire contract. "S-s-seventy percent of the p-p-project is funded by us!? That's impossible! I cannot!"

"Felix, where is my sword?"

"I'm sorry! I'll sign it right away!"

I provide him with a pen and he signs it with tears rolling down his face. It's amusing seeing someone sign away most of their life on just one deal, I might get hooked on doing this more.

He handed me back the papers and pen and I looked at the signature. "Perfect! Now scurry off before you meet your son."

Within seconds he dashed away while stumbling on his one footing. The soldiers that gathered around the front of the palace all saw him leave and closed the gates as he did. The mission was a success.

"Good job, men. Go back to your duties now. "

"As you command, General Artorius!"

The soldiers in shining armour left in formation. I turned around to find Felix holding Amelia and just staring at me with a proud smile of a father.

I scoff and smile back at him. "Let's get on with the rest of the day." I told him while taking Amelia from him. We walked back inside and realised the damage from the punch that sent him flying to the other hallway.

"This will be fixed in a few hours. We already calculated this outcome so I already have a team to fix it and make it look like nothing happened." Felix said as I gawked at the damage, eyes widened from horror.

"Well, I hope it's finished quickly."

ALARIC'S POV

"Will Artorius be there this year?" Amadeus asked me, excited for his seventeenth birthday.

Amadeus was never this excited for his birthday. Usually he is just happy to have a grand party but this year it seems different for him. Maybe because it's his seventeenth birthday?

"Why yes! He's definitely coming this time and for the years to come. After all he is the king." I told him with a warm smile.

Amadeus' eyes lit up in excitement. "Yay! I can't wait for him to come back here!" He said, excited for the first time in a while.

Artorius can easily make people trust him. It's as if he has this ability that makes everyone around him trust him. This made it all so important for me to know him properly before dying. I need to make sure he is no threat to Amadeus.

The reason why I wanted to make him Amadeus' role model is because he seemed like the perfect monarch. He has everything: looks, charisma, leadership, hard work. He does not lack any qualities whatsoever. He might find himself as the next supreme emperor if this is how it goes.

Amadeus left my room as I continued pondering about this one of a kind person known as Artorius. He is someone I overlooked, expecting highly of him since he is Theo's son. Not only did he go past my expectations but he also bewildered me with the way he deals with everything.

Just then Sylas entered my room with another report. This will decide if I trust him or not.

"My majesty, here is the latest report on King Artorius." He said as he fixed his hair that covered his eyes.

A quick read through the report revealed everything he did today. I was shocked to find what he had done with Astrid.

"Goodness… What is he thinking?" I muttered out, reading the quick report. "He has no remorse. I suggest staying alert of him." Sylas said in an at ease position.

Seventy percent of the funding… He wouldn't even be mentioned as an investor. It's as if he killed Bjor so that he could get this deal. You madman!

I shook my head, frustrated from how much tension Artorius has around him. He's too dangerous. "Keep a close eye on him at all times. Do not let him off the hook even once. Do everything you can."

"As you say, my lord." Sylas said, bowing down and leaving the room as swift as wind.

I am left in my room as usual, pondering on what to do. With my time being numbered and a new threat on the rise, I am left in a really tight situation.

Nevertheless I still had a final meeting past midnight. I might as well get ready for that right now.