Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

In the palace (III)

The tension seemed like it could be cut with a knife as they moved forward. The royalist guards who escorted their passage hadn't dared to take action, but that didn't mean they stopped being watched.

A couple of them had been on the verge during the assassins' attack, but the quick action of the Eldi Hnefa followers had dissuaded them. Surrounded by them, there was no gap through which to attack him.

It is true that without them, Eldi wasn't defenseless either. Some Walls could give him a break if he needed it, and Impregnable was still at his disposal. However, facing all those royalist guards would be really dangerous for him to be alone.

Hnefi had been enraged by the attack, and it hadn't liked the attitude of the royalist guards. It was now moving between them, staring at them one by one, as if the spirit could see into the depths of their soul.

They didn't know what it was capable of doing, but there was something about that ethereal guardian of the city that frightened them. Above all, to residents in the city. In fact, more than one had been exiled by the guardian, and others had been on the verge of it.

In any case, the guards didn't stand in their way, although it was disturbing that they closed behind them. It wouldn't be easy to return the same way they had come.

Perhaps, what they feared most was that traps could have been placed along the way. Therefore, a couple of Eldi Hnefa's escorts carried artifacts to detect suspicious mana fluctuations. However, none were detected, and no trap was activated. They weren't sure why.

In reality, it was simply because their enemies could justify the assassins' attack, but not the traps. They only had to regret that "an extremist group had broken into the palace, and attacked Eldi Hnefa."

It was much more difficult to justify the existence of traps in a common passing place. Furthermore, many nobles had crossed that same corridor. It would have been unacceptable for any of them to have discovered a trap. Putting it up after they passed by wasn't so easy, as it required time to create and hide them. It wasn't justifiable for them to simply appear in that long, guarded hallway either.

Finally, they arrived in front of the doors that led to the throne room. Two chamberlains opened them and announced his arrival.

"The illustrious Eldi Hnefa!"

He entered, while the chamberlains were announcing the names of his escort. He could see all the eyes on him. Some were hostile. Some curious. Some with hope. Some with fear. Some with respect. Some with adoration. Some with hatred. No one was indifferent. Eldi Hnefa was back.

Ricardo frowned after receiving the news of the assassins' failure. They now had no choice but to go all out at the reception. He would have preferred to avoid it.

"What about the spiritualists?" he asked his assistant.

"For now, we've only managed to contact one. He's on his way, although I worry he's a bit shady. We assume that the others were at the celebrations, my lord," he explained.

He suppressed a growl at the 'celebration' comment. Precisely, he had nothing to celebrate. As for the spiritualist, the adjective shady was rather good news. Otherwise, it would have been difficult to convince him.

Dealing with the city guardian wasn't exactly an honest business. In fact, if it had been, they wouldn't have even spoken to that spiritualist. In fact, his assistant was only acting as a liaison, he didn't even know what they were planning.

"We'll have to get rid of the spiritualist when he finishes his work. It's a matter that can't come to light," he thought, as he looked in Elsa's direction.

Near his ally, there were four somewhat strange individuals, four visitors. Besides, at least two of them had a rank that made them equal to the queen herself.

He stood watching allies and enemies, too worried to socialize. Until the door opened.

"The illustrious Eldi Hnefa!" a chamberlain announced.

His eyes immediately fell on the figure that had given him so many headaches in recent months. Without a doubt, he was just like the portraits removed from the palace walls. Around him, floated the city's guardian spirit, the same one he wanted to deal with.

He felt a chill when Hnefi looked into his eyes. The spirit was connected to all the beings in the city, and Ricardo was one of them. It didn't like what it had felt. However, luckily for the queen's advisor, there were many other consciousnesses fluctuating uncontrollably. Due to this, its attention jumped from one side to the other of the large throne room.

"Get ready. Pay attention to the signal," the message reached Liodon and his supposed companions.

Everyone nodded, although Liodon didn't have the same objective, rather the opposite. A glance with a certain maid who was carrying some drinks was enough for Lidia to realize it. Subtly, she moved closer to a more favorable position.

As she did so, her shoulder collided casually with that of another servant, or not so casually.

With a precise hit on his forearm, she indicated that the moment was approaching, that he should warn the others. This one barely changed direction at first. He left the canapés on a table, and then returned to the kitchen. His role was to liaise with those who were there. He had even passed some messages to noble allies before.

In just a couple of minutes, all the rebels were ready to act. They approached their positions and waited.

Also, among the nobles there began to be movement, on both sides. The tension, which had been palpable throughout the day, had intensified. Some even looked menacing at the other faction, as if they were close to breaking out into hostilities without caring about anything else. At that reception, there were declared enemies that couldn't stand each other. Only the queen and the main guest were missing.

All eyes turned to the door when it opened. Not a single one stopped observing the newcomer, and more than one with surprise at the guardian spirit of the city. It was the first time it had appeared at a public event. Until then, dealing with it had been a headache.

"The illustrious Eldi Hnefa!" a chamberlain announced.