(A/N: I am currently looking for someone that would be willing to do some fan-art of characters from the story, just so it seems more personal with the audience. Also I am trying to do my best to get a lot of chapters out right now to make up for my long break.)
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I am currently eating my lunch with Sana. I am having a stew, while she is eating one of the many sweet-buns that she keeps in her dimensional storage. The stew was pretty good, the meat was collected from Orcs, and was prepared in a way so that it was super tender. It almost felt like the meat was melting when I put it in my mouth.
We spent a few minutes like this, happily eating in the diner part of 'The Feathered Harpy'. In fact I even ended up ordering a second helping of my Orc Stew.
After we had finished eating at the inn, we stepped outside and saw that the sun was currently high in the sky. We figured it might be time that we should head to the castle to finally meet with the king about receiving our rewards for rescuing his daughter, the princess.
However, it seems there were new guards at the gate today, compared to the ones from yesterday. They had pointed their weapons towards us, asking what business we had in the castle. Instead of trying to take the time to explain everything to the two men, I pulled out the token given to me by the king, holding the Cilvine Family Crest on it.
They were still somewhat cautious, so I handed the token over to one of them and let them examine it themselves. It seems they were still reluctant to let me in, however, since I was holding the royal token, they begrudgingly stood aside and opened the gate for me. Well, I can't really fault them for the way they were acting. They were just doing their job after all.
So, after dealing with the guards, we then walked the same path that we were shown by Fhuran yesterday, to return to the throne room. When we entered the throne room, what we saw was many individuals sitting upon different thrones, each one was designed differently from the other. Then we saw the fox king sitting upon his throne, that was decorated in a way to represent the Fox-Clan. Usually a person would feel somewhat intimidated, standing here among these many kings of the beastmen races. However, I would participate in the talent shows at my school, back on Earth, and I would always bring an instrument to play a song that I had just recently learned. So I don't really feel that intimidated having all of these eyes on me.
After walking to the center of the room, I faced the fox king, and got down on one knee with my head bowed as a sign of respect.
"Raise your head, young fox." (Fox King)
"Are these two the adventurers that you had spoken of, Fox King Sebastian?" (Wolf King)
"Yes, these are the ones I had mentioned, the ones who defeated a dragon, and risked their lives to save my daughter in the process." (Sebastian)
"I see....Well the young girl, definitely does radiate an air of power and maturity. However, the male doesn't seem to be all that impressive...Is it possible that they might have made up the story about saving your daughter, in hopes of getting in your good graces?" (Wolf king)
"I agree with wolf king Dehn. How can we be sure that the story told by these two is even true? Is there any evidence to back them up?" (Feline King (Tiger))
"I assumed the same thing when I was first explained the situation by Fhuran. However, I had spoke with my daughter after these two had left the castle yesterday, and she was able to recount the entire battle from beginning to end. She said that these two hold such immense power, that it would be unwise for us to make enemies of them." (Sebastian)
Well, they seem busy with their conversation, so I decided to wait until it was over. After all, it's rude to interrupt somebody when they are speaking....unless they're trying to kill you that is, then it's fine to interrupt them. Although, I didn't have to wait long before their discussion ended. What made me feel awkward though, was that they spent that entire discussion, talking about Sana and I.
"Young Fox, and Young girl. May I ask, what are your names?" (Sebastian)
"Yes, your highness. My name is Sora, and this is my adventuring companion Sana. We are both currently S-ranked adventurers within the guild." (Sora)
"S-Ranked? Quite admirable, don't you think Dehn?" (Sebastian)
"Bah! It's not that impressive! There might not be that many S-Ranked adventurers, but I still don't see why these two are considered to be S-Ranks! I mean, look how weak and frail the both of them look!! I mean come on, the boy only has four tails!" (Dehn)
It seems that wolf king Dehn, is all about strength being represented in a visual aspect. There's nothing I can change about making my body look stronger, but I could reveal my five remaining tails, so they can see that I have reached the ninth-tail stage. However, I think that it would just bring unwanted attention....maybe just reveal two more tails? Then they would think I have only reached the sixth-tail stage.
Well, if it is strength that he wants me to show...I begin focusing on the tails that I had fused together, and concentrate on only un-fusing two of them, to show six tails.
"......" (everyone)
I still had my head up, but instead of looking at the fox king, I was focusing my attention on the wolf king. He had his eyes widened in shock, at the sight of two more tails appearing out of nowhere.
"S-s-six tails?!" (Sebastian)
"Yes. Is there a problem with having six tails, your highness Cilvine?" (Sora)
The fox king chose to reveal his tails, and showed that he only had five. However, he could be doing what I am doing, and hiding his remaining tails. I probably won't ever know unless we fight.
I may have asked the question towards the fox king Sebastian, however, my eyes were focused, again, on the wolf king Dehn.
"I apologize your highness's, but, may we proceed? I would hate to be rude, but I do have other matters that I must attend to." (Sora)
It seems that I snapped them out of their shock with my statement, because they shook their heads for a moment and then Sebastian, the fox king, stood up from his throne and stepped towards me while speaking.
"Adventurer Sora, and Adventurer Sana...no, Sir Sora, and Lady Sana. For your bravery in defeating the dragon near Rikuru Village, and for saving my daughter's life. I have chosen to discuss with the other beastmen kings and have decided, to grant you the rank of nobility. You are hereby Count Sora, and Countess Sana. You shall also receive a portion of land that you may govern over within my domain of the beastmen kingdom. Following, as you are now members of nobility you shall be granted a surname." (Sebastian)
I had nothing to say to this. We were being given ranks of nobility...and why were we suddenly given Count, and Countess?!
"Wait! Your highness, why are we being given the rank of a count and countess? Don't people usually have to start off as a Baron or something?" (Sora)
"Yes, that is usually how it goes. However, because you saved my daughter's life, and defeated the dragon yourselves, she believed that, with the silent teamwork you had with each other, you two showed excellent potential as leaders. Therefor, she begged to have you promoted to Count, in hopes that you will not only make our domain prosper, but also bring prosperity to the entirety of the beastmen kingdom. Or do you still see a problem with this as a reward? You will still receive something else regardless if you accept or decline this offer." (Sebastian)
I didn't know what to say, my mouth just kept opening and closing, but no words were coming out. It was almost as if someone had stolen my voice box. Then from my side, I heard a voice that was normally loud only when angered.
"We accept. Highness." (Sana)
I looked to her in shock. She was the last person that I expected to be accepting this offer, especially with what she experienced in the past. I was getting ready to change the answer to decline, but then Sana shot me a look that could kill a normal person. I understood that her look told me that I had no choice but to accept. So, with a cold sweat running down my back in fear of her, I just kept my mouth shut and bowed my head back down.
Girls are scary....
I think she might be angry at me for hiding my tails from her, and now she thinks I am hiding more secrets....I mean I am, and I was planning to tell her after this audience anyway, but still I don't think that this warrants her famous 'Death Stare'.
With that settled, we were given the titles of Count, and Countess. We were also handed a map by a nearby maid, it showed us the location of where our land was. I was expecting maybe a small town, but it was actually just a large village.
Maybe they are giving us a village because they want to see how far we can progress it. I'm not quite sure on how well things will play out, but I do know that if I borrow the knowledge from earth, I might be able to make the village as powerful as a country. Although, if I make it that powerful, then I will just be asking for trouble to come knocking at my door.
Although, I don't really think I have a choice, considering that there are such high expectations being placed on me. So, I accepted the map to the village, the contract stating that I was the new lord ruling over it, and a large bag of gold that was given to me as funds for the progression of my land. I can already see my following days in this world being filled with exhaustion and little sleep.
"Now, you will have a few days to rest and collect your things, along with handling any business that you have planned, before you will be escorted to the location you will be ruling over." (Sebastian)
I really didn't want to do this, but I guess Sana won't be giving me a choice in this matter.
"Y-yes, your highness..." (Sora)
With that settled, we ended up becoming lords of a village to the West of Serali, in the fox kings domain. Afterwards, when the reward ceremony was finished, everyone but Sana, myself, and the fox king, remained in the audience hall.
"Sora, as promised, I will teach you the way to hide your beastmen features to appear as a human. Are you prepared?" (Sebastian)
"Yes, your highness!" (Sora)
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I walked into our room we were staying at inside the inn, and was immediately blasted against the wall by a wind spell. Now, I am getting pretty tired of being flung around, but I guess I kind of deserved it this time.
"Sana! I was going to tell you everything after the audience with the king today, please give me a chance to explain everything!" (Sora)
I tried to appease her with sweets, but it seemed that she was wanting to get some frustration out, so she continued to pummel me with spells.
Our room was a mess by the end of it, the furniture was all destroyed, and I was hurting all over...stupid resistance skills! Why don't you work correctly like you're supposed to!
Thankfully, it seemed like Sana had calmed down a bit, and was finally willing to hear me out. We sat down on the destroyed bed, since it was actually the least destroyed object in the room. I figured she might hate me later if I kept hiding it, so I decided to let her be the first and only one to see all of my tails. Concentrating on the six tails that I have, and imagining them returning to their original form, they slowly came apart until three more tails were added to the mix, showing a total number of nine tails all together.
She looked at my tails, and reached her hand out to stroke the fur. I figured stroking my fur was a lot better than her beating me up, so I didn't stop her. So, while she stroked my tail I began talking about my past...including the fact that I was reincarnated into this world to become the overseer of not only this world, but the gods that rule over it as well.