Chapter 57

Rehny was in the palace again, dressed in a deep maroon shirt accompanied by black breeches. He'd substituted wearing leather boots for brown sandals that had his stubby toes sticking out like miniature sausages. He saw the look of contempt he drew from Captains of various Legions as he passed them but he quite frankly didn't give a shit. He'd just come from the Meeting hall where he'd met up with the Captain of the Thirty Seventh Legion. It wasn't a necessary meeting but the Captain had hunted him down and demanded to talk to him. He'd gone into the meeting feeling meh but he emerged from it with the urge to kill himself.

"THIS IS A DISGRACE!" The Captain of the Thirty Seventh Legion had started once they'd sat on opposite chairs with the long and wide dark wood table of the hall between them. The table had a Telinete Rhino curved in its midst and was lined with numerous chairs on either side, it occupied more than half of the meeting hall and Rehny always wondered how they'd gotten it in through the narrow hall doors.

"Mmph." Rehny had replied.

"An embarrassment! My Legion's name has been tarnished, they are the first Legion to fail at something as simple as a Gift giving! Can you believe that?" The Captain had continued.

"Mmph." Rehny had replied. It wasn't really that hard for him to believe, he'd been there. He'd seen the Kolotian. The Mad King comes.

 The Captain had gone on a full on rant for over an hour about his honor and dignity being soiled. The cunt wasn't even at the Ganidan plain but he talked as if his spirit had been in attendance, he was furious at his men's apparent failure and he danced around direct criticism towards Rehny. He couldn't scold him directly though, every Captain knew better than to get on their Commander's bad side.

Rehny, however, wished the man would have insulted him. Wished that he'd had the balls to even strike him and declare him a failure and unworthy of his status. He really wished someone, anyone, would stand up and launch a campaign to ensure he lost his position as Commander. That would be glorious! He would move out of the city after being impeached and would find a nice secluded village where he would raise pigs and grow Galiu meal.

"My wife can't even look me in the eye Commander! Can you imagine that? My own wife thinks I'm weak!" The Captain had said.

"Mmmph." Rehny had replied while wondering if he would be able to find a woman who'd help him raise the pigs and harvest the Galiu meal. The woman would have to be physically strong enough to carry the same load of harvest as he could. She didn't necessarily have to love him or look him in the eye, she fit the position he needed filled as long as she could lift sacks of Galiu and rear pigs.

"I am very disappointed in how my Legion was used in this expedition. You were in charge of my men and as Commander I would like to hear your point of view on the whole matter preferably in a letter to the King stating the efficiency of my men and how my absence at the Ganidan plain had been a major mistake seeing that I am the most equipped to lead my Legion." The Captain had said while practically frothing at the mouth.

"Mmmmph." Rehny had replied while nodding. His answer didn't quite give much away but it somehow calmed the lanky Captain's rage. If only the man knew that Rehny's mind was full of pigs at the moment, trying to see how many he could raise effectively on a small piece of land together with his strong wife who didn't love him but shared in his enthusiasm for pigs.

"So, will you write the letter?" The Captain had asked with his beady blue eyes on Rehny.

"Mmph." Rehny had replied. The Captain had looked like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He was tall and his once rich blond hair had been reduced to a few strands upon his balding scalp. He looked old but the smile that lit his face brought a shadow of youth to his face. Rehny looked at the man's face, he felt like pounding his fist into the man's smug face. The Captain didn't really care about his men, all he thought of was his image and what others thought of him. Typical Binorian nature, putting oneself above others.

Rehny had exited the meeting hall shortly after, leaving the Captain satisfied with their conversation that had involved the man complaining and Rehny answering with monosyllabic sounds and nods whenever given the chance to respond. He emerged from the meeting hall with the mantle of Commander of the hundred Legions still on him, its weight suffocated him and he felt like he was constantly fighting for breath. Am I really going to write the King a letter? Rehny decided he would rather skin himself and roll in the mud while oinking than do that.

Rehny contemplated ending it all as he made his way towards the palace exit. The life of a farmer wasn't an option for him, it was all just wishful thinking. The only way he could escape it all was if he died. All Commanders relinquished their position through death, mostly on the battlefield. He could do it, he didn't need a battlefield, he could kill himself and have it over with. He didn't even know what kept him going. Everything was a struggle! There was no joy, no semblance of peace. Even sleep had eluded him the previous night, forcing him to stay awake and suffer under the weight of nothingness.

He drew the eyes of everyone he passed as he trod upon the marble floors of the Palace halls. He could see fear in the eyes of the white pale people who scurried out of his way as he approached. He also saw disgust. There he was, a full Commander looking like a man who'd fallen asleep in a tavern. He wasn't adorned in armor as was necessary of him as Commander whilst in the palace. His hair that was once dark was disheveled and lined with grey. Rehny looked a mess, felt a mess and not a single fuck did he give concerning the whole matter.

Rehny decided that he'd have to be creative with how he ended his life. He could pay someone to stab him in an alleyway and make it look like he'd been mugged or he could just fling himself off the highest palace tower and splatter onto the palace grounds, making it look like an assassination or an accidental slip. He wasn't comfortable with either idea because it all ended with his corpse out in the open, drawing a crowd that would have people staring at his lifeless body with thoughts of pity riddled on their minds. I don't want anyone's pity. He thought. I'll just fall on my own sword in the confines of my chamber.

"Excuse me, Commander." A voice said from behind him. Rehny turned to find a handmaiden dressed in a grey silk dress. She had brown hair and brown eyes, she definitely had Remu blood in her ancestry that was muddled by her pale white skin and sharp Binorian nose. He knew who she was and his heart beat fast as he watched her bow low.

"Yes?" His voice sounded dry and rough . He wondered if he'd ever drunk water.

"Queen Lamical requests your presence at the orchard behind the West wing." The servant said. Rehny felt like turning around and bolting, never stopping until he reached the outer gate of the city. You're going to kill yourself, would it do you any harm to see her one last time? The thought bubbled to the surface of his conscience and filled Rehny with need, the need to see her one last time.

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