Boiling Beast Bloodline
Chapter 1024 - 258: The Masked Hero

Chapter 1024: Chapter 258: The Masked Hero

Hesitation was never Liu Zhenhan’s style; since the opportunity had arisen, Liu Zhenhan straightforwardly put in his resignation to His Majesty the King and to Head Priest Nee, claiming that he was feeling unwell and had to leave early.

Head Priest Nee and His Majesty the King both smiled understandingly, mistakenly thinking that the Shaman of Divine Songs, Richard, felt embarrassed by the cold treatment from everyone and wanted to leave the banquet early.

"Today is the farewell dinner, and after tonight, it will be some time before I can see you again," His Majesty Grecke Sal nodded to the Shaman of Divine Songs, "The mission to raid the Desert People bandits in the Taklamago Desert and rescue the princess cannot succeed without your great assistance, Richard! And upon your return, there are four Main Temples that need you to bless with the Divine Song aura. Go rest early; I know you have been tired in body and soul recently."

"Truth be told, whether it’s the temples or His Majesty, we all have high hopes for you, Richard," Head Priest Nee raised his wine glass towards Liu Zhenhan, with a brilliant smile on his face.

"Thank you for your love, Your Majesty and Head Priest Nee. I will definitely do my utmost to complete the tasks assigned to me by the kingdom and the temple and to fulfill the sacred duty of the chief Shaman," Liu Zhenhan replied with a sarcastic smile to the insincere head priest, rattling off a string of unproductive official jargon.

"Richard, before you go, I have a few words of caution for you. I don’t permit you to personally risk danger, I don’t permit you to fight deep into enemy lines alone, and I don’t permit you to have an excessive love for battle," His Majesty the King said to Liu Zhenhan with three prohibitions, "The kingdom neither needs nor relies on a priest to clear paths on the battlefield. What priests should do is to bless the Beamon warriors with war songs, and that is enough! I have studied all your battles, and let me say, I would rather not hear any more news about you grappling hand-to-hand with the enemy while riding your magical beast—priests should stand at a safe distance, and fighting is the duty of magical beasts and followers... I cannot imagine how great a loss it would be for the entire kingdom if anything happened to you!"

"I will take your teachings to heart," Liu Zhenhan nodded, at least finding a hint of visible sincerity in His Majesty the King’s words, and that sincerity moved the old Liu.

"While it is inevitable that there will be casualties in war, I hope that every member of the priest group here today can still stand here one by one at the celebration banquet upon your return," His Majesty the King stood up and patted Liu Zhenhan’s shoulder heavily, "Complete this mission for me!"

"This time’s enemy is not considered strong; the task that His Majesty has given to Richard shouldn’t be hard to achieve," Head Priest Brut chuckled.

"I can’t make any guarantees! After all, I only manage five priests," Liu Zhenhan had passed the age of getting hot-blooded and shouting slogans and was not taken in by the head priest’s flattering words, "However, I can assure Your Majesty and Head Priest Nee of one thing—none of the priests following me will lose a single hair!"

That was pretty arrogant. Head Priest Nee snorted through his nose and nodded with a forced smile as a sign of appreciation.

"With that assurance, I am relieved!" His Majesty the King waved his hand, summoning a servant to bring over two glasses of wine and handing a goblet filled with bright red juice to Liu Zhenhan with a "ding" of their glasses, "Richard, let’s drink to this as a farewell!"

Liu Zhenhan drained the wine in one gulp, wiped the residue from the corners of his mouth, gave a respectful nod to His Majesty the King and Head Priest Nee, and quietly excused himself.

The whispering priests and nobles, glancing askance at the quickly departing Shaman of Divine Songs, began murmuring amongst themselves.

"Head Priest Nee, what is your true evaluation of the Shaman of Divine Songs? I mean your sincere opinion," asked His Majesty Grecke Sal, watching Richard’s retreating figure. He then leaned in close to whisper into Head Priest Nee’s ear with a sudden, out-of-the-blue question.

"He is like a dangerous weapon, sharp enough indeed, but with the slightest carelessness, he can harm others as well as himself..." Head Priest Nee pondered for a moment, lowering his voice to say, "...what worries me most is his wild and unruly nature. You and I both know that he is not of the Pigiel race, it’s just that now we cannot afford to deny it anymore! With his current title as the Shaman of Divine Songs, if he really were an agent planted by the humans, then the consequences..."

"Hahaha..." The Beamon King burst into a hearty laugh, the unrestrained merriment startling the nobles who were enjoying their wine at a distance.

The High Priest Brut, clad in red, was somewhat baffled, as he couldn’t understand what was so funny about his own words.

"Head Priest Nee, you worry too much..." His Majesty Grecke Sal gently tapped his palm with the Staff of the Golden Thorn, eyeing the High Priest, "...There’s a slight difference between your view and mine. I acknowledge that your evaluation of the Shaman of Divine Songs is very apt, but I don’t agree with the part you didn’t finish."

The High Priest Brut raised his eyebrows, noncommittally.

"The unknown future is what drives us forward," proclaimed His Majesty the King, raising a finger and giving it a gentle wag. "Head Priest Nee, you and I have a notable difference: you prefer to expect the worst, whereas I prefer to hope for the best. There is really no need to think too highly of the Shaman of Divine Songs. With his level of political acumen, how could he be a spy? What human nation would train such an inept agent? Besides, even if the future turns out as you fear, what good does worrying now do? If worry were of any use, we Beamon wouldn’t have been driven from Kalimdo to the Donau Wastelands."