Rise of the Godking - Chapter 114

Daneel collapsed to his knees and sucked in large, deep breaths even though he had not been the one to cast the spell.

His head felt like it was splitting, the point in the middle of his forehead burning as if someone had put a torch to it. His stomach turned, threatening to spill out the eggs he had eaten in the morning, and none of the queasiness was due to the blood leaking out of the body in front of him.

He had seen scenes much worse, and on occasion, had even caused them to play out without batting an eyelid. No, the reason behind his exertion was what he had just done.

Like a child running before learning how to walk, he had used magic beyond his level. Hell, he didn't even know the levels of mages in this land, but he was sure that he had skipped quite a few by doing what he had just done.

Struggling to his feet, he couldn't stop himself from stretching as it finally felt good to be able to move again. This time, he scanned around him again, to make sure that no one else was hiding in the corners that he couldn't see.

The vault looked thick enough to block any sound from going inside. Besides, if his screams hadn't brought any notice, then there was no way that the silent assassination he had carried out would alert those inside about anything that had just happened.

Going to the indentation again, Daneel knocked four times. While dicing with the merchant, he had found out that this was the code always used for official purposes, and the man had learned it from a guard who had who once worked for the beggar king.

For a few seconds, there was no sound from the inside, causing Daneel to sweat and itch to knock again. Doing so would betray the tension he was feeling, though, and if that happened, he was unsure how those inside would react.

He had heard a lot about the man's kindness, but he hadn't managed to find out anything about whether he was cunning, or intelligent. Anyone who was both capable of what they had done in this city and the cold-bloodedness with which they had come to Graiton must definitely have at least a modicum of both, so Daneel was mentally prepared for whatever was going to happen, prepared to make no mistake and give no quarter.



When the sounds of the vault opening echoed inside the library, he let out a sigh of relief. He stood right in front of the door, intending to obstruct anyone who might wish to look beyond, as the body of the woman was still there, leaking out blood from the wound that could never be healed. He had pondered on the idea of moving the body, but the white carpet had already been stained; so, his plan was to get inside as soon as it opened enough, giving no chance for the king to react and close it again.



If everything had gone to plan, he would have arrived here without much difficulty, but so many things had already gone wrong. He didn't want anything else to affect the outcome of the entire plan, so without hesitation, he ran towards the frail old man, one hand outstretched, going straight for the throat.

He was still wearing the clothes of a beggar, and his skin was just as wrinkled and soiled as it had been when he had arrived to try and kill Daneel. Those hawklike eyes had the same intensity, too, and they widened when they saw the threat coming for him, but he was too late.

Daneel almost smiled when his hand tightened around the man's throat. In a smooth movement, he caught the beggar's hand with his other hand and pulled, bringing it behind his back painfully while still holding him by his neck. A few seconds later, he had him on his stomach, both hands securely tightened behind his waist, face pressed against the rich carpet of the room, ready to be questioned and be dealt with in any manner that he thought right.

The door of the vault banged shut behind them. The first thing that the man had tried to do after seeing Daneel was close it, but alas, he had been too slow. Hence, in doing this, he had even finished the last task that Daneel might have set for himself if it wasn't already accomplished, and right now, all that was left was to question him, and finally find some answers.

"Let me go! LET ME GO! How are you here? Damn this vault! I shouldn't have come in here in the first place! But the mage outside…what are you?!"

He finally understood the reason behind the absence of the guards who were supposed to be here. The man had actually tapped someone capable of using magic to protect him, but because the one hunting him was even capable of getting past such a powerful safeguard, there was no way that he could have escaped what was coming for him.

Without giving an answer, Daneel moved up the hand that was holding both his arms. He was still weak, yes, but the man he was holding seemed just as weak as him.

He winced and moaned with pain as the feeling of having his arms almost pulled out of their sockets coursed through him. With a grim set to his face, Daneel bent and said, "Hurts, doesn't it? It's nothing compared to what the family of that man you killed felt, though. There's only one way to make you feel that… and that is to kill you. If you don't want that to happen, I advise that you answer me truthfully. I will know if you lie."

The man was about to say something in response, but to shut him up, Daneel used his other hand to punch him in his ribs. As he groaned, his entire body shook, and ignoring him for a moment, Daneel studied his surroundings, remembering what had happened in the library because he hadn't taken this important step before.

Of course, there wasn't anyone there, as they would have acted as soon as he got his hands on the king. The vault was decorated as richly as the rest of the place. There was a wooden door on the wall opposite the entrance, and the entire place was big enough to hold 20 people inside. To his left was a large table, and in front of it, a fire was blazing in a fireplace gilded with silver and bronze.

He almost turned back to the beggar to ask the most important question on his mind, but he paused when his eyes fell on a map that was present beside the fireplace. It was huge, easily the length of two grown men, and it was even half as wide, taking up the entire part of that wall.

It was filled with different colored spots all separated and surrounded by something blue. Different things were written on each of them. Some spoke of deals that were in the process of being made, and others called attention to some or the other event that had happened recently.

He understood what he was looking at in a second. Frantically, he searched for the place that meant the most to him, and when he found it, the words that were written on that spot made his lips part in confusion.

"KIND REBELS(DANGER LEVEL: RED)! 

NAME: DANIEL HARROLD! 

DECISION: KILL THE LEADER AND SAVE THE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN BEFORE THE INSPECTORS ARRIVE!

STATUS: ONE ATTEMPT FAILED. LOSS: ONE GUARD. WRITTEN OFF AS AN ACCIDENT. 2 CORRODING DARTS USED UP. ANOTHER ATTEMPT BEING SET UP. TARGET EXTREMELY DANGEROUS! CONSIDERATION: EXPLAIN THE STAKES AND BRING HIM TO MY SIDE?"

Before he could react to what he was reading in any manner, the wooden door opposite the metal wall of the vault burst open and Daneel tensed, expecting a fearsome enemy.

Instead, a gang of kids emerged, and taking one look at what he was doing, they saw him in the same way that he had seen the most terrible villains in his life. It was something he had never, ever expected to see in anyone who looked at him, and while he was captivated by those innocent eyes filled with accusation, one of them shouted, "Evil villain! Let our father go! We will fight you!"