Dave rubbed his temples, holding up a finger to the woman first in line. She carried a small boy in one arm, his pinkish-red eyes wide with awe. Her long, sunset-pink hair almost reached her waist, and her mouth was set in a tight line.
Things could be worse, he thought. Could have the Everdalia villagers in Endworld. Large noses, incoherent speech no more than grunts, borderline idiots. At least they have good trades.
"King Dave, my husband has been killed in your ranks. Will I be able to get compensation? I can't raise this boy on my own!" Her words crescendoed into a soft wail.
He pursed his lips. "3 gold a month. I'm sorry for your loss."
She nodded gratefully, hefting her son and smiling at him. "Say thank you and goodbye!"
"Tank you!" He cooed. "Bye!"
Dave smiled as they left, switching back to his straight face as he tended to the next in line.
"I'm not going to say all of their complaints," said Darryl. "But I will skip to the important ones."
"Good," groaned Nick, earning a slap from Clay.
A stout man with close-cropped dark pink hair came up, the last in line. Letting a out a soft sigh of tiredness, Dave waved his hand to allow the man to speak.
"My liege, my crops have all been killed!" He exclaimed, waving his hands around. Dave set his mouth into a frown. The last thing he needed was a drought or crop-killing monster.
"In a very confusing way too," the man continued. "It seemed like they had wilted overnight, yet it had rained only a few days ago. Some even had stems and leaves that were veined with what looked like shadows."
Dave jerked up, his crown clattering to the floor. The man jumped, and his guards advanced ever-so-slightly.
"They what?!" He rasped, grabbing his crown and setting it back onto his head. "Black? No..."
"'Fraid so," the man said shakily, dusting his trousers uncertainly. "Now, I'm the last person you'd ask to identify weapons, but it seemed like they were poisoned by some sort of Shadow poison, not deliberately, but second-hand. My farms are close to your castle, has anyone been training with Finisver weapons lately?"
Dave gulped. "Well-not exactly...but thank you. I will definitely look into that. Our time is up, goodbye."
The king wiped his brow as the man left, and he immediately went to his room, raising an eyebrow as he locked his gaze onto a baby-blue envelope that sat on his sheets. He carefully opened the crisp letter, his cheeks warming as he read it.
Dear Dave,
Hope you've been well since I last saw you. I just wanted to say two things: I never got the chance to talk about this, but when I said why I ever would date you, you seemed very upset. If I ever made you uncomfortable, I'm so sorry. I would never dream of doing something to hurt you on my own accord. If I ever do it again, I'll never forgive myself.
On the other hand, my citizens have been telling me of sightings of former captains of my military. There have been rumors of them trying to start a rebellion, to try and usurp our power. I suggest you keep an eye out for two men: one has a distinct dark birthmark on the right side of his face, and the other is a leopard-man hybrid with questionable outfits.
Hope this finds you well, and again, terribly sorry for last time.
Sincerely,
Zak
He set down the paper gently onto his bedside table, pulling out his own falcon feather quill and ink pot. Carefully unraveling his scroll, he tore off a considerable size of paper and wrote a reply.
Dear Zak,
Thank you for the letter. I forgive you, and I know it wasn't deliberate. Just, please don't talk about stuff like that again. I'd like to keep that private.
In other news, I will keep an eye out for the two men you mentioned. I suggest you keep watch as well, because a boy that has been in my custody has escaped with a deadly Sword of Shadows. He's a Finisver, brown eyes, light grey skin, dark hair. He's already ravaged crops and killed people. Be on the lookout.
Write back soon!
Love-
He hastily dabbed out the last word, red eyes flitting around the paper to check for spelling mistakes, flirtatious words, or dragged out and unneeded parts. Once he'd read over it again, he picked up his quill again and finished off the letter.
Sincerely,
Dave
He picked out an envelope the color of cream and slipped in the letter, carrying the message to the stables and asking a soldier checking on his horse to carry it to Zak. He reluctantly obliged, eyeing the paper with a hint of a smirk.
The pig headed back to his room, closing his drapes and changing into nightclothes.
As he rested his head on his pillow, his pink hair fanned out, he watched the candle flame flicker on his windowsill.
And with one final blink, he fell asleep repeating his words in his mind.
Love,
Dave
YOU ARE READING
Blood for the Blood Gods: A Skepnoblade Fanfic (ON HIATUS)
Fanfiction✨𝐴 𝐹𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑦 𝐴𝑈✨ In times of old, there was a ruthless king named Dave. He was so skilled with a blade that he was nicknamed by the locals, Technoblade. His best friend, King Zak of the Adamas, was crafty and swift, using his unassuming but...
