The Legends of Anigma: Ethiel Archer | ONC 2023

PART XXIII

None of the townspeople could see any of them; all of them were happily going about their own business, walking right through them.

“Which one of us should be the king’s guard?” Ethiel looked around at the others.

“Lord Veer!” Tifa exclaimed.

“That would be a nice idea.” Maya agreed.

“Maybe, but it would be better if Ethiel takes up that role.” Lord Veer said confidently. “The trial requires us to find the one who threatens the king’s life; that is something Ethiel would not be suitable for right now. He would be best suited for the king’s guard given his keen eye and good ranged-combat skills. The ability to freely travel as a spirit will be of great advantage to me. As for the second person, we can choose anytime. Being resourceful is exactly what we need here.”

The logic was sound and there was no denying that. Investigation was not a skill of Ethiel and he knew that.

They all agreed.

“Spirit of the cave, I will be the king’s guard.” Ethiel confirmed.

The next second, he was in a royal, giant hall flanked by knights. He felt uncomfortably dressed.

“I will get it done, sir!” Someone shouted in his ears from the left.

He got startled.

It was a soldier. He marched away after giving him an odd look.

“Are you alright, Mander?” An old voice came from the right.

It was the king, seated on his grand throne.

He figured he had been teleported. “Y-Yes, sir – I mean – your majesty.”

“Hmm? Odd. Never before have you been this absent-minded. Any problem?”

“N-No, your majesty. Nothing of the sort.”

“Hmm, very well.” The plump king shrugged and sank back into his throne.

“Ethiel, where are you??” The worried voice of Tifa asked in his mind. It felt like she was right next to him.

“I’m with the King.” He replied mentally.

“You got me worried!”

“I just realised that myself–”

“Still!”

“Tifa,” Lord Veer addressed, “you go to check the Palace; Maya, you take the west side of the Kingdom, I shall take the east side; and Red Wings, check wherever you think is necessary – and do not even make the mistake of failing on purpose in hopes of leaving soon unless you want to starve for a week.”

Whether that was a warning or Lord Veer teasing Red Wings, Ethiel couldn’t understand.

“Tch Tch, and yet everyone think I am a sadist.” Red Wings scoffed.

“Ethiel, you are to be alert at all times. Be mindful of your surroundings. Any information you can discover regarding the King’s safety, or anything you feel suspicious of, you let the rest of us know.”

“Yes, Lord Veer.”

“Do your best, everyone.”

The whole telepathy thing felt like a group call and Lord Veer was their head, which he undoubtedly was – he was a natural, since he was a king.”

And so began the search.

Ethiel stood by the king as told and his eyes were running all around more than the thinking horses in his head.

When it was time for the king to take a stroll in his enormous, beautiful, and fragrant garden, he became even more alert and sharp. That sharpness reached its peak as a bulky, tall, and intimidating warrior with a formidable expression approached the king. Hopefully, he turned out to be a loyal, special-grade solider who thought the world of the king. After thanking him and offering him a grand bouquet that had been specially made by his mother with utmost gratitude, the warrior walked away.

Upon asking the king, Ethiel learnt that he used to be a lost bandit whom the king offered a chance in becoming a man of great service to the Empire. In the explanation, Ethiel noticed the sadness in his eyes and the sigh he let out after finishing – it didn’t make sense given the situation.

Not giving him more time to think about his observation, Tifa suddenly started reporting what she had discovered in the Palace.

The report was on the queen and the prince, both of whom had ill intentions for the king. The queen was planning to discreetly poison his greatly cherished wine in his coming birthday, and the prince was planning to get a necromancer to curse both his parents to death. However, since their “disgusting plans” – as Tifa tagged them – weren’t going to be executed anytime soon and definitely not on that day, it was decided to strike them out of the threat list.

The day went on and soon came the lunch time. Whilst Ethiel watched the king eat his meal dully, Maya’s report came in: the entire Kingdom was overly fond of their benevolent king for keeping them secure and making available great opportunities and facilities and even free food for the poor. He was clearly a considerate, noble man with an even nobler heart. Most if not all of his subjects prayed for his good health.

In the evening time during the council meeting, Lord Veer informed everyone of his finding. There was this little group of greedy and foolish people who found fault even in the king’s great rule and were plotting against him; according to Lord Veer, they had been commissioned by opposing kingdoms for domestic disturbance. But again, the group didn’t pose any immediate threat and therefore out of the question.

The sunset was nearing and they still hadn’t found the killer. Ethiel was with the king in his majestic balcony. An air of regret hung about the king, and his back was sloped perhaps in low spirits.

Unexpectedly, something Ethiel never expected happened: Red Wings had found something. Two assassins had come to a bar in a hotel and their lousy conversation gave away their hideous purpose of coming from far away – the king’s assassination. They seemed rather extremely skilled to him.

From what Ethiel could understand telepathically, Lord Veer and the others teleported to where Red Wings was and after analysing the enemy, Lord Veer decided to materialise and take on the mercenaries. Lord Veer was Lord Veer, and he easily took care of them. After an interrogation packed with solid punches, he learnt that they had been sent by another king who happened to be the King’s best friend. One of them mentioned that his best friend was right about the king being able to predict all disasters in advance – that was the oddest detail so far.

Once this information had been collected, Lord Veer knocked them out for the day.

Ethiel thought the assassins were the threat and they had been nullified. He looked at the king, expecting something to happen, be it the king suddenly turning around and handing over a key to the next trial or something.

Nothing happened. The king sighed heavily and gloomily.

The sun was about to set.

Frantically, Ethiel’s eyes shot at all possible places nearby fit for a shooter. He found nobody.    

“Your majesty,” he frowned, still taking around. “I think it would be better if we get back into the castle.”

“You are not the Mander who has served me this far, are you?” The King asked without surprise. “Now, do not say no. Your behaviour, your way of speaking, it gives it away. Speak the truth.”

Pretendence no longer had significance; the cat was out of the bag. Ethiel gulped and spoke the truth.

“No. I... I’m not.”

“Who are you?” The king finally turned and looked at his face, but surprisingly he wasn’t angry or alarmed; rather, he was smiling.