New Fantasy World: Galeia
Chapter 191

Chapter 191: Chapter 191

It came out of nowhere.

It was painfully obvious to anyone with the slightest drop of situational awareness that Her Excellency was a novice in the ways of Nobles and Royals.

A few comments laced with sarcasm, openly scowling whenever commerce or politics were brought up, long blinks that betrayed her rolling her eyes- or resisting the urge to do so-, tired sighs whenever a Noble overstayed their presence before her, and short responses accompanied by insipid questions that inevitably killed the conversation no matter how hard the other party tried.

And everyone understood that. Halves are not beings of subtlety. Quite the opposite, actually.

Still, Her Excellency held eye contact, spoke clearly, and treated people as if they were her equals. The last a mindbogglingly wrong notion, but appreciated by most when it came to respectful exchanges.

The circumstances were unfortunate for most. Nobles wanted to introduce themselves and engage in their games with Her Excellency, but she wasn’t told how it worked.

Perhaps she simply didn’t like it.

It was a pleasant surprise for everyone when Lady Dabrak of Riverfield presented herself before Her Excellency and the Halve had a genuine conversation and threw a few jokes. Her Excellency Natasha inquired about Lady Dabrak’s employee, Tay, an Alchemist, and her progress with a few potions the Halve sold.

That got the attention of the other Nobles around the Hall of Dawn.

Halven Items.

The way in which the Nobles’ masquerade of politeness almost broke in a flush of envy was hilarious. If one were to guess, most were cursing Lady Dabrak’s boldness and insolence. Purchasing Halven Items from a newly born Halve could be considered a sacrilegious act worthy of a thousand years of torture under the supervision of Clerics to ensure pain tolerance remained at its lowest.

If the Halve was an empty shell of ignorance, that is.

Her Excellency Natasha is many things. Ignorant is not one of them. That much was obvious to me.

An individual does not learn about ’life’ in two and a half months. The tragedy of life is understood only after going through it. That is something that can not be faked no matter what one tries, and it would become obvious to any keen observer.

Much like Her Excellency’s lack of knowledge in the Noble and Royal ways, a person who fakes having gone through tragedy will have their own lie exposed by their behavior.

An example would be Her Excellency’s behavior while talking to Nobles. She does not demand respect, but requests it instead while offering it to others as well through her gestures, tone, and expression. That is something mortals are expected to do when living in civilized society, but not something a Halve should engage in.

Hopefully that will change in time. I am willing to aid her in that endeavor. To become a being no mortal would dare to cross.

Her Excellency is on that path already, fortunately. The face bereft of pity, regret, hesitation, and empathy she wore when dispatching Zalan was the most beautiful I have ever seen in my life.

To see that same person talking with Nobles as if they are her equals is troubling, however.

I would not be as insolent as to think I have the right to change Her Excellency to fit my own expectations, but I hope I can advise her on how to act as a Higher Being... though I suppose it’s the same thing in the end.

While harboring such thoughts, it came.

A chill. A warning. A threat. A promise. A taunt.

Breathing became difficult. The high pitch signaling the body going into flight of fight struck the ear. Muscles became taught, ready to sprint away as fast as possible. Blood pumped faster to ease oxygen in reaching the vital body parts to facilitate survival.

Death was coming.

No.

Death was already next to everyone. Standing there, in the middle of the room with silver teeth revealed by curved golden lips.

A blade was placed on the throat, slowly pushing into the flesh, threatening to carve the life out of the body the instant any decision was made.

That’s how it felt, at least.

A memory surfaced in my mind.

In my youth, I used to sneak out from home and go on little Chases to sate my childish curiosity. I would leave through my bedroom’s window and go behind my family’s home and towards the town walls. I used the sewers to leave town and into the wilds. One day, I left later than usual and night soon fell. I was below level ten so I felt the cold eat into my bones. Snow had piled up and turned the land around my city into a white canvass in which almost nothing could be seen... not at that age, at least. It was that day I ran into my first monster. It was a level 28 Rodska. Laughably weak in the grand scheme of things, but certain death to a seven year old girl. When I saw the monster, the feeling of impending death was similar to the one I felt now. That helplessness that eats the mind. Naturally, people had seen me sneak out. I was seven years old, after all. There was no way I could hide from people from the Church whose responsibility is to take care of children. When the beast attacked, the Crusader that had followed me felled it with a single swing of his sword.

The terror I felt that day was something I thought I’d never experience again. Even less after acquiring a third Class.

Yet there I was, frozen in place.

"Hmm..." Her Excellency hummed in both joy and interest. "Lord Punten. I see," she muttered.

The Human was pale and sweating. Sef Punten tried smiling several times but failed. "Y... Your Excellency?" he managed to squeak out, fear and confusion palpable in his voice.

"Say," Her Excellency began, narrowing her eyes. "When did you become a Noble?"

Sef Punten blinked twice, most likely confused by the question. "1...1710," he stuttered single numbers.

"One, seven, one, zero..." Her Excellency repeated with a nod. "Two hundred and seventy years ago, then..."

The Noble quickly nodded a few times.

"You took good care of Lapia," Her Excellency pointed out their previous exchange. "You must be a good person, right?"

The man tried chuckling, which resulted in coughing. He gulped, then cleared his throat. "I... I-I hope I a-am..." he croaked, still trying to smile.

"I am going to try this only once, Lord Punten," Her Excellency announced. "I do hope you cooperate."

Sef Punten fervently nodded.

Everyone around us was in a similar state of primal fear. Eyes were wide open, sweat poured out of every centimeter of skin, and a few had a more unbecoming incidents.

Then, Her Excellency Natasha whispered, "Ó̸̧̮̫̼̮̠͈̪͈̮̰̑̾̔̓̊͒͛͗̍̓͑̋͂̓d̷͎͉̼͊̾͐̄̋͑̈́͘͝a̸̛̹̩̫̝̱̟͍̳̤̯̼͊̈̉̌̃̀̈́k̶̬̗͂̾̽͊͐ ̷̧̢̛̩͔͙̬̹̣̪̠͈̺̥̓̄̋̉̿́̒͋̈́͌͠ủ̷̹̘̗̣͚̭͒̉̈́v̴̯̞̮͚̒́̈́͌̃͊͐͗̈́̀̕͝i̷̼͔̪̲͔͇̪͎͌̊͂̒̅̕͠m̵͖̠̠͕͐̄͆̇͆̑̽͜ ̴̨̧͔̠̝̤̬̩͍̼̞̙̼̤̈́ͅk̵̛̮̮̜̤̟̅͋͒̈͆͑͜õ̴̡͎͈͓̙͓͍̮̘̺̺͕̏̊̽͒̈́̆̑̀̕͝͝?"

A snarl that sounded like worms wriggling under the skin. The air vibrated, echoing in the bones. It felt like a rotted finger trying to plunge itself into the ear canal.

My instincts tried to activate every defensive skill at my disposal, but I prevented it with every gram of willpower available to me.

No matter the circumstance, I would not insult a Halve that way.

Sef Punten’s eyes widened to the very limit. Understanding dawned on him and his expression turned grim. The man nodded.

After his gesture, the feeling of having the entirety of the ocean’s weight suddenly lifted off the shoulders. The blade on the throat disappeared. The body relaxed.

The promise of death was no more

The first to move were the Clerics, activating skills to aid those who had never looked death in the eye.

"Seventeen heart malfunctions," one told another while helping the Nobles who had been closest to Her Excellency.

The hall soon erupted into a constant flow of people going back and forth, stabilizing the panicked and the fainted.

Alyssa showed up quickly enough, healing people while looking over at Her Excellency with a confused expression.

Those present moved away from the source, either afraid or too confused to make sense of the situation.

Such is the fragility of comfort. Power comes at a price, and it’s highest when the individual is born with it.

And yet, Her Excellency’s body wasn’t glowing like when she got angry.

The Rulers, however, approached without much care. Perhaps their respective pilgrimages granted them a different view of the world than those below them in the hierarchy.

Plesani helped Alyssa and the other Clerics.

Odnik was vigilant, observing the many entrances to the Hall.

Gordon wore a worried expression, looking at the Nobles’ pathetic state.

Paveli was sweating but his standing was cautious.

Claudia was smiling, looking at Her Excellency.

The Harpy was with her people some distance away.

Still, not a soul screamed. Impressive, to say the least.

Yolin approached Her Excellency and pulled her golden cheeks. "What happened?" She asked with reproach in her voice.

The Halve bit her lips, looking around. "I held back, though," she muttered in confusion.

My eyebrows went up in surprise. That was ’holding back’?

"I see," Yolin continued, arching an eyebrow. "So, what happened?"

Her Excellency looked Yolin in the eye.

The Oni slowly nodded in understanding.

Her Excellency shook her head.

I wanted to facepalm and vomit blood. How obvious can they be with their Bond Messages... This two need instruction in being covert about things.

Lapia, Elena, Pokh’Orra, Thelea, Bonte, and Bromisnar showed up. In that order.

King Gordon walked closer. "Is everything alright, Your Excellency?" He inquired.

"Yes," Her Excellency replied. "Just... a prank that got out of hand," she explained with a tight smile.

"A prank?" The King repeated in confusion.

"I met Lord Punten shortly after I woke up," Her Excellency informed His Majesty. "And I thought it’d be fun to surprise him."

His Majesty’s face turned even more confused.

I felt blood going up my throat. That had to be the most... ridiculous excuse I have ever heard. Looks like Her Excellency doesn’t know how to lie. At least convincingly.

King Gordon turned to Sef Punten. "How are things, Sef?" He probed.

Lord Punten sighed, then nodded. "Good, Your Majesty. That got me," he muttered with a friendly chuckle.

I turned to Her Excellency. See, Your Excellency? That’s how you lie.

Her Excellency cleared her throat. "Looks like we need to continue our talk elsewhere, Lord Punten," she said with a friendly smile.

The Human looked around at the indisposed Nobles. "Seems so," he muttered and sighed.

"Lead the way," Her Excellency instructed, then turned to the King. "I’ll be gone for a bit. Call for me if something happens."

His Majesty slowly nodded. "I will, Your Excellency," he replied.

The King must’ve realized what was going on. Well, he isn’t King just for show. If he demands answers it could be considered interference with a Halve’s duty. He has no other choice but to let it pass.

Sef Punten turned to the King and bowed. "I will be leaving sooner than expected, Your Majesty. My apologies."

King Gordon nodded. "Take care, Sef," he said with a gentle smile.

Lapia placed a hand on Her Excellency’s shoulder. "We’ll talk later," she told Her Excellency.

The Halve tilted her head. "Obviously?" She replied.

"Good," the Elf said with a satisfied nod.

Her Excellency looked at her companions. They had been drinking and were a little inebriated. She turned to me. "Wanna come along?"

I nodded. "As Your Excellency wishes," I calmly replied.

Her Excellency chose me! I must do my utmost to not disappoint.

She nodded back, turned to Sef Punten, and gestured for him to start walking.

The man sighed and moved.

We followed him out of the hall and out of the Royal Palace to the front of the building. We reached a parked carriage and stopped.

Her Excellency’s stomach rumbled like thunder. "It’s inside," she muttered.

Sef Punten turned around with a pained face. "Please, Your Excellency," he pleaded. "She’s a good woman."

Loud steps came from behind.

I quickly turned around.

A young Human male was jogging towards us. "Father? What’s going on?" He shouted as he approached.

Very slowly.

[Perco Human, Lvl 76 Tax Aid]

I relaxed after seeing his low level.

Her Excellency, however, took a deep breath. "Shit," she whispered.

The young man walked past us and stood next to Sef Punten. "Is this about mother?" He demanded with the bravery of ignorant youth, glaring at Her Excellency. "I knew we shouldn’t have come."

A sob came from the carriage.

"Silence, Rico!" Sef Punten chastised the young man. "You stand before a Halve. Show respect!" He spat.

"Mother is crying!" The young man argued, glaring at his own father. "Family comes first," he finalized and went inside the carriage.

Sef Punten closed his eyes and sighed. "Apologies, Your Excellency," he said with sadness in his voice. "My son loves his mother too much. He sometimes fails to see the bigger picture whenever she’s involved."

Her Excellency looked over to the distant city walls. "That’s nothing to apologize over," she stated. "Are there soundproof enchantments on the carriage?"

Sef Punten nodded.

"Let’s go inside, then," Her Excellency declared, leaving no room for rejection.

The Human sighed, nodded, and opened the vehicle’s door.

Inside, Rico was patting a Human female’s back.

Nothing was out of the ordinary.

We went inside and sat down.

Sef Punten and Rico Punten were sitting to the sides of their wife and mother. Rosalia Pinoc, with whom Sef had been married for close to three hundred years according to my information gathering.

The woman, however, was slightly trembling. Almost like she was a student during winter.

[Perco Human, Lvl 199 Actuary]

I sat next to Her Excellency, ready to retrieve my weapons and kill the three at her word.

The Halve retrieved a pair of sungoggles and looked at the woman through them. "I see," she muttered with a nod and handed me the accessories.

I imitated her and appraised the woman.

[Amikoneth, Lvl 1082]

My eyes widened to the limit. My scan didn’t recognize any illusion being applied. Discerning Eye of the Regicide didn’t inform me of her taking a shape that wasn’t her original.

"Show me your true form," Her Excellency demanded. "Or you’ll join Nerissa."

"Hmph!" The woman, who I wasn’t sure anymore was Rosalia, scoffed. "That brat had it coming."

Her Excellency retrieved a dagger. "Not what I asked," she muttered and ran a finger on the blade.

The... whatever she was... if it was a she... gulped. Her form shimmered and her body morphed.

Three horns, gray skin, red eyes, feet like a large feline’s, and clawed hands. "So pushy, Hellwalker," the Amikoneth complained, crossing her arms under her chest.

"Hooh..." Her Excellency nodded. "You’re not scared," she pointed out.

"I am," the Amikoneth replied.

Her Excellency examined the creature in front of us. "There were very few of you," she commented and stored the dagger.

The creature clicked its tongue. "Naturally," she sighed. "Nerissa’s kind... embraced the whispers."

I looked at Her Excellency, then at the creature.

What the fuck is going on?!