Emperor's Reckoning

One of the guards was running across the hall of the inn. His face was drenched in sweat. The order came straight from the majesty himself. 

The Pala Kingdom suddenly found itself in a tense situation. Everyone could sympathize with the guard running frantically toward the single door at the end of the opposite hall. 

*Click!

The guard raised his eyebrows before he stopped his advance. 

The door was pulled open before Hezar showed himself. His face was grim as he looked at the guard. He knew that the latter was sent by the king, nevertheless.

"What is it?"

"T-The king ordered your presence in the meeting room."

"I understand," said Hezar as he walked past him before stopping. "Keep an eye on the room for me, don't let anyone enter nor out!"

"I-I understand," said the guard before Hezar left.

Hezar nodded before he continued walking. His steps felt increasingly heavy as he approached the meeting room.

(The atmosphere is devastating!) he gulped before he entered the place.

The Elite Five had awaited his arrival, he noticed the prince and the king. (Huh? Are we missing one of them?)

"Hezar!" the king said with a stern voice.

"Y-Yes! Your Majesty," he quickly knelt. His forehead was drenched with cold sweat before he gulped. He knew that besides the prince, everyone in this room could waste him. 

The king took a breath before he said, "One of the Elite Five is dead."

His eyes opened wide in disbelief. He couldn't fathom the words that he received from his ears. (One of the Elite Five is... dead?!)

"Y-Your Majesty? Is that true?" asked Hezar. He knew how powerful a single Elite Five was. They were tasked with the safety of the one that ruled the Pala Kingdom and had succeeded in doing so without a single of them ever falling on the job. However, right from the king's mouth, one of them had died.

"Know your place Hezar!" shouted Erlang.

"F-Forgive me!" Hezar didn't dare to show his face. (I-It's true!!). Though he himself was a careful person and trusted few, he saw no gain for Erlang nor the king to lie about this matter. 

"B-But, who would dare to do such a thing, Your Majesty?" asked Hezar.

The king of the Pala Kingdom let out a heavy breath as his eyes showed a glint of rage. "Who else but your favorite boy, the one's that promised to kill you."

Hezar's heart sunk in disbelief as the smirk of the young man appeared inside his mind (H-Him?!).

'Deadman'

The word echoed in his mind vehemently echoed before he shook his head. "This, it cannot be!"

"He didn't die by his hands, but by his name," answered Barat to Hezar's confusion.

"By his name? You mean his subordinate killed...ah."

"That's right," said Raul who managed to regain his senses. "That brat is not that powerful but his subordinate... we couldn't even react before he was pinned down and got his skull crushed with a single hand."

Hezar had his mouth gaped as he heard the prince's words. The Elite Five was not made from some random cultivators they found on the street. They were handpicked, trained, then excelled. They were the cream of the crop that was not made public. It was also due to their contribution that the kingdom had multiplied its sheer military prowess.

"I, I...."

He was lost for words. He would have never thought that his subordinate would be that strong. If even an Elite Five died by his hand, then the words that the three leaders of the Mortal World said were true. Lyon was more than capable to end his life at any given moment. He just needed to spare a few words before his head was severed.

He made a harsh gulp, "B-But, even so, he still killed a person inside Afurnae. This is an offense against all of the four kingdoms!"

"I'm sure you know," said the king as he narrowed his eyes, "For Afurnae to be able to become a neutral ground, it's because the place is strategically so. The other three have been eyeing on this land and they surely know of our exploding growth this last few years."

Barat furrowed his eyebrows, "They might see this as an opportunity to strike us, especially a strong force suddenly arose out of nowhere."

"Y-You mean that they would side with him?" asked Hezar before he shook his head, "No, not all of them, at least th Golden Dragon won't cooperate."

The king furrowed his eyebrows, "What makes you so sure about that?"

"They have some animosity together, just like us with him," said Hezar.

"You mean that jade-haired woman?" asked the king as he furrowed his eyebrows. "You think that they would join us instead, all because of one woman?! Hezar! What are you talking about?!"

Hezar could feel the king's rage freezing his goosebumps up. The aura of the ruler of the Pala Kingdom pushed his soul to a knee.

"It seems like you have turned dull," commented the king as he narrowed his eyes.

Hezar opened his eyes wide.

The king continued, "Did the brat from the Mortal World got you too?"

Hezar immediately replied, "N-No, your majesty!"

(Damn it all! Wh-Why am I like this?! I cannot think a couple of steps ahead like I used to?!) thought Hezar before that smirk resurfaced inside his mind. It was like a curse that kept haunting him down. He was already fighting Lyon before he even knew that it had begun already.

"What should we do now, Your Majesty?" asked Barat. 

The king of the Pala Kingdom furrowed his eyebrows as he averted his glance toward the door.

"We must kill him, that is a matter of course, if not, our image could be tarnished!" said the king.

"We must act with haste too," said Barat. "The more we let this go, the more it will damage us."

"Then what do you think that we should do, Barat?" asked the king of the Pala Kingdom.

He was the leader of the Elite Five. The calmest and the most powerful one of the Elite Five. The serene in his eyes were daunting rather than peaceful.

"Please do forgive me, but I have not learned who is this young man is.  I need to know certain things before ending him since direct assault is clearly out of the question. For now, I suggest to call him out in the arena."

"Arena?" asked the king.

Barat nodded, "We need to make this as public as possible. Surely the other three kingdoms won't sit idly and joined there."

"Elaborate," said the king.

Barat nodded, "Protecting your majesty will be our priority, after all, this is our job. However, if that young man's subordinate could end him so easily, then I'm afraid it would be really difficult to protect you without some other interference."

"Other... interference?" asked Raul.

"That's right, Prince Raul. With the presence of the other three kingdoms, we have a larger chance of protecting His Majesty, since His Majesty's presence is greatly required for this matter."

"But..."

"If we are talking about justice, we are on the winning side. The ones that break the rule were them, not us. This is already a huge advantage for us."

"I see," nodded the king. Playing the justice card would be proven beneficial. Especially with the presence of the other three kingdoms. (Surely they cannot betray justice) thought the king.

"Y-Your Majesty, I have something to say!" 

The king furrowed his eyebrows before his sight landed on Hezar, the famed commander. "What is it?!"

The daunting tone almost made his heart skip a beat, but nevertheless. "I-I have taken captive of the three leaders that ruled the Mortal World."

"And?" asked the king.

"M-Maybe we can use them as bait to lure Lyon back into the arena, since, he cared about the three of them, particularly, the lady."

The king nodded, "Alright, do what you must!"

"Yes!" Hezar bowed.

The king stood up. "Our great adversary had not yet born! This is nothing but a trivial matter that could be solved within our reach! Humiliate the mortal and then kill him. Nobody should offend the Pala Kingdom!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

"Go!"

The figures inside the meeting room immediately left to do what they were told.

Meanwhile...

Hilde was rushing toward the meeting room in her own inn. There laid wait for the two people that rule the Bolg Kingdom. Her father and her mother.

"Father..."

The man nodded, "So I've heard."

Hilde nodded, "T-Then, what are we going to do?"

The queen shook her head, "Killing someone in Afurnae is still a great offense, regardless of their status."

Hilde couldn't refute what she was saying, instead, she let out a sigh. Even she couldn't believe that it would actually happen. She knew that the mortal was mad, but she never thought that he would go this far. (Lyon... really... what the fuck)