The Kingmaker System-Chapter 89 - 88. Infiltration (2)

I put my head down and let Ruba lead me, I wasn’t restrained by any ropes this time because I was going to be presented to the King so, I was supposed to act graceful.

"Come along." She commanded as she gestured for me and I followed her foosteps.

"Stop right there! Give your identification and purpose of visiting." The guard said and Ruba pulled out a seal which made them look at it before looking at her.

Apparently, Ruba had taken the citizenship under the name-

"Lady Amira Bilhal." The guard bowed slightly and then looked at me.

"Who’s this?"

"A gift for My Liege." She said.

I was dressed in a long white robe with golden borders along with a long veil that covered my face so, they couldn’t just see me.

"We can’t see." The guard said.

"Know your place, this is a offering to the Great Monarch. I won’t let it be sullied by the eyes of the likes of you."

Her voice was practically dripping with arrogance and solid strength which made the two falter. novelbuddy.cσ๓

"We-We apologize."

The large doors opened and she walked inside with me in tow.

As we walked inside, I noticed the sandstones that were studded on the ground separating the green grassy lands and the path that led to the several small buildings. Unlike the sandy landscape outside this place seemed to be the oasis with the green grass growing everywhere and the sound of water trickling from around.

"Make sure you keep your act together." Ruba warned me.

"Don’t worry." I mumbled quietly as I walked behind her.

"Besides, you... knew who was behind that curtain, right? That’s why you addressed them as ’my liege’."

"Yes, your code words aren’t too creative you know." I answered.

We crossed various such small sandstone buildings before we stopped in front of a building which unlike the other was made of white marble.

The small building that would have resembled an open temple if not for the guards that were standing around it.

"That’s the private chambers of the King where he holds his audiences and also has his bedroom." Ruba informed and I looked at the white marble building.

I would become a part of the harem if he approved of me and would be placed in the building which was attached to this building from the other side giving him the straight entry into his harem whenever he wanted.

"Hopefully, you won’t have to kill him in bed." She joked and I sighed.

"I won’t be caught dead in his bed."

"That’s the worst case scenario." Ruba said.

"It’s not possible."

"Let’s see. We will do our job as per the time you gave us so, make sure you live."

"I will, be prepared to sing my legend." I smirked under the veil.

The guards stopped and asked for our identification before letting us in. They demanded for my face to be revealed but Ruba used to the same words as she did with the guards outside the palace and they let us in.

It was quite easy to infiltrate the palace, I wondered and just as I was about to enter the building I was hit by a presence that made me pause.

[Passive skill Shield of Invulnerability has been activated.]

The notification popped up and I couldn’t help but frown as I started walking again.

[Goddess of Wisdom has assigned you a task.]

"Is this even a time for that?!"

[Gain the attention of the King of Mordino.

Reward: Temporary growth of your body.

Failure: Death of the Prisoners.]

I had to keep my jaw from falling to the ground and my tongue from lashing out at the failure of this task.

Death? Seriously?!

And wait, temporary growth of my body?

Like what?

[The body of the host will turn into that of a grown-up but it will be only for the given time limit whenever the host wishes for it. This reward can only be used for one time.]

The more I moved forward the more vague the rewards and the failures were getting.

Still, I couldn’t linger on the reward and failure because there was something close by here which demanded my attention.

The nature of this presence was familiar but I didn’t expect to be met by it over here, I had been extra careful about my appearance and unlike Ocean’s body I had added the specific human body details to my current body.

"Stand here." Ruba or Lady Amira commanded and I stopped in my place with my head down. The ground beneath my feet had been replaced from the marble to soft carpet and the air was cooler here with the scent of incense and wine in the air.

Did I by any chance, arrive in the place where Dionysus held his parties?

Even though, I was trying to take in my surroundings, I couldn’t help but feel the dominant presence trying to get to me. I wasn’t sure if the other person noticed me or not but my passive skill must have worked right on time. Still, I sucked all the mana that was flowing through my veins back to my heart and increased the intensity of the Shield of Invulnerability.

My eyes moved around and I could feel some presences along with the one which burned ferociously a few meters away from me.

"What is this, Lady Amira?" A masculine voice asked.

"A tribute to His Majesty. I heard Lord Baudir was kidnapped and the gifts that were going to be presented to the King also escaped so, I brought this one to appease him." She explained.

"Ha! You’ve wrapped him up pretty well, I can’t even see his face."

"I’d rather only present this before His Majesty since I wish for him to be solely devoted to My Liege." She announced and there was laughter.

There were around four more men apart from us and the dominant presence that was still in its place without any movements.

"His Majesty will take time to arrive, why don’t you show your gift to me and I’ll see if it can be approved?"

I could hear footsteps moving towards me.

"Do you have the guts to put your hands on something that is a tribute to our Great Lord?" Ruba spoke in a tone which would have chilled the hall.

"Y-You get serious quite easily, Lady Amira. I was just messing around." The man laughed it off but I could feel the underlying hesitation in his tone as he recedes away from me.

I didn’t pay much attention to him as the presence was growing closer now.

"The Sun of Mordino, His Majesty is arriving!" The announcement was made just as I felt the intimidating presence slowly growing more and more.

"Kneel." She commanded and my body acted.

I kneeled with my head bowed down deeply, it was just like everyone in the hall as the doors opened and the footsteps resounded.

The Tyrant was here.

I lifted my eyes without moving my head and saw the large man who sauntered over and he plopped down on the golden throne. The two cheetahs as I had heard about walked behind him and sat on either side of his throne.

He was dressed in a white sleeveless tunic with a long white skirt which had slits on both sides revealing his muscles legs.

His long golden hair flowed down his shoulders with the gem studded ornaments adorning his body. He suited the image of a Tyrant who was sitting on the pile of dead bodies.

"It’s been a while, Lady Amira." He spoke up and I closed my eyes calming myself for my performance.

"I apologise for not showing my face often, Your Majesty."

"What’s that?" He asked.

"I dare present this tribute to Your Majesty. This is the boy whom I came in possession through my acquaintance, he is unsullied and haven’t been touched by any one. I wish to present him to Your Majesty, if you deign him worthy then I’ll be the most grateful."

She sure knew how to talk.

There was a low hum along with the sound of low purs before the Tyrant spoke up, "My pets seem to be curious about him."

I could hear the sound of the soft footfalls of the two felines as they approached me.

This was a test. I just needed to figure out what I was supposed to do.

I sat still as I felt them sniff at me and from the corner of my eye I saw their little faces making me close my eyes.

Don’t look.

[Goddess of Wisdom wonders if you’re scared.]

[Defender of Divine Glory finds the scene of you being scared astonishing.]

"I’m not scared! Animals instincts are way better than humans. They might notice that I’m a Dragon, that’s why I’m worried."

[Goddess of Wisdom finds your reasoning preposterous.]

"Leave me alone, I’ll do whatever I want!"

I felt one of the cheetahs brush its head against my leg and I wondered if it already figured out that I was a Dragon.

Damn!

These two were the ones who feasted on the Tyrant’s enemies or those whom he found to be annoying.

The other cheetah also started brushing against me, if it weren’t for the Tyrant speaking up I would have almost thought that I’ve been found out.

"Interesting, my little kitties seem to like this one."

The cheetahs turned and made their way back to the King.

Did he notice? Do I have to kill him right away?

"Stand up." I heard the command and I stood up along with everyone else.

"Remove the veil, I’d like to see what you have brought for me, Lady Amira." The King commanded.

I hadn’t looked at his face yet and I was warned of not doing it since he was an extremely sharp person. The last person who dared to look him in the eyes had his eyes gouged out.

I kept my eyes and head down as the veil over my head was removed exposing me to the eyes of the ones present. I could hear the audible gasps as I stood in my place like a statue.

Being objectified wasn’t a particularly thrilling feeling, I wondered how the people who were suffering from such a thing coped.

My senses picked the movement ahead of me and I heard the footsteps which reverberated in the silence. There was no other sound not even the one of people breathing as the footsteps grew louder and stopped in front of me. I could see the large feet with thick golden anklets in my vision but my body was aware of the presence towering over me.

The presence which had irked me in the beginning and still was.

I felt his large hand coming up and touching under my chin bringing my face up and my eyes met his.