Departing for the capital

Paying no attention to Marcius's brutal actions, Blake continued cheerfully, "Oops, my bad. I must be getting senile."

Blake's pleasant demeanor was deceptive, but Marcius knew about the person hidden behind that cheerful facade. 

And he was even aware that even if he wished to kill this old man, he wasn't capable enough. In fact, at the moment even if he had not stopped his axe, he wouldn't have been able to scratch a single strand of hair out of him.

In a close battle between a Knight and a mage, out of 10 times, a knight would emerge victorious 7 times if they are of the same level. However, the same was true about a mage emerging out victorious most of the time if they were to clash in a ranged battle. 

"So, would you mind moving this axe away from my face?" Blake asked while retaining the gentle smile on his face.

Grunting subtly, Marcius then pulled back the axe, "Just do your job and leave old man"

☼☼☼☼ ☼☼☼☼

Thud!!

"Welcome back Captain"

"Greetings lord Blake"

Outside the tent, a voice full of vigor accompanied by a heavy sound as if somebody was kicking the ground resonated. 

Upon hearing those sounds of salutation coming from outside the tent, Lucius instantly drew to a conclusion that the envoy from the capital had arrived. 

Based on the honorifics used by the guards, he could tell it was someone very important. 

'Blake huh? If the memory of the previous owner serves right then he should be the only grand magus in this empire' Contemplating about the name he had heard, he tried to remember as much as he could.

'So basically, he's a person of great influence. I'd have to be careful around him.'

As the veil of the entrance of the tent was lifted, two people entered the entrance. One was the burly man named Marcius, whom he had already met before. 

The other was an elderly man with attractive features dressed in an intricately designed robe with long silvery hair cascading down his shoulder, giving him an ethereal appearance. 

Even those time-worn wrinkles on his face could hardly conceal his striking appearance and those silvery pair of jewel-like eyes were only accentuating his charm.

And there was something about his smile which could deceive almost anybody into thinking that he was only a harmless old man. 

But Lucius was no such fool.

Aware of the capabilities of this old monster, he immediately raised his guard as he tried to remain as calm as humanely possible. 

"So, you're the boy who saved the life of our princess huh?" Fixating his eyes on Lucius as if he were observing him, Blake spoke softly.

"Lord Blake, it is an honor to meet you. Your words flatter me, my lord," Lucius replied humbly upon hearing his remarks while crossing his only arm on his chest and bowing his head; greeting this elderly man with silvery hair in front of him with utmost respect.

"So, you know who I am?" Blake asked, sounding a touch surprised, "It's always interesting to meet someone who recognizes you, isn't it? Hahaha..." he added as he laughed heartily. 

"Lord, you're practically a legend, there'd hardly be anybody in the empire who doesn't know your name" Lucius replied firmly, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

Slightly opening his mouth, soft laughter escaped his mouth as he answered, "Boy, you're good with words but flattering me won't get you anywhere"

While the two were conversing, Marcius who was present at the scene was getting annoyed and furious by this idle conversation and their exchange of pleasantries. 

Those words full of respect directed towards Blake were like thorns to his heart— it was utterly painful and humiliating.

And the one responsible for such pleasantries was a nuisance to his eyes.

Was that boy underestimating him? Or was that boy simply unaware of him? Or was that boy intentionally ignoring him?

Whatever the reason, Marcius wasn't happy with Lucius's treatment. 

After all, he too was a person of importance. But the treatment he got when compared to the treatment Blake was receiving at the moment was astronomically different. 

It was almost similar to the treatment of an emperor and a common guard in the palace. It was almost as if he had no values. 

Blake was aware of Marcius's envy and foul mood. However, he was enjoying his distress. Thus, instead of getting things done quickly, he was intentionally dragging the conversation with Lucius. 

But dragging on longer might result in facing his wrath. So, he decided to wrap up the conversation with Lucius.

"For somebody good with both sword and magic, I'm sure you must be quite devastated, right?" Hinting at his lost limb, Blake questioned. 

Lucius quickly picked up the meaning behind his question. Even the fact that this man knew about his traits which he had known only recently about the previous owner being good with both weapons and magic, gave him an important piece of information— this man here had already done some investigation on him before coming here. 

Thus, while answering, Lucius tried to remain as humble as he could while at the same time, he was careful enough not to sound overtly superficial, "Well it will probably affect my progress and livelihood going forward. And I won't deny that it's painful and I also won't deny that I'm scared too."

"But I still have to do what I can. Even so, things may or may not work out. But isn't it better than doing nothing and despairing at the past that has already past?" Sounding a little optimistic, he questioned back. 

Hearing Lucius's response Captain Marcius felt touched by his sentiments.

He could feel the mentality of a warrior from those words of Lucius.

At this moment, his entire view of this boy changed drastically. 

With eyes glistening with reverence, he simply couldn't help but view Lucius in a different light.

"Aren't you quite the brave boy? Even after sacrificing a limb for someone else, you hold no grudge against the person" Blake praised Lucius.

Lucius however remained silent upon hearing the praise.

"Now then shall we leave for the capital?" Blake asked.