A Degenerate's Tale

Saryll POV

Stepping into the meeting room, I allow my majestic aura to set forth. The Spirit Knights at the round table immediately stand to greet me.

"We welcome Your Majesty!"

From left to right, their names are Eins, Zwei, Vier, Funf. There is one seat missing between Zwei and Vier that belongs to Drei who is currently in prison.

It's a shame the Spirit Agreement doesn't allow me to execute Drei and Vier directly. These brothers are becoming too arrogant, especially Vier.

"Be seated."

The knights return to their seats. Behind me, Abelis and Earl are the only ones who remain standing. My eyes linger onto Earl for a moment longer than they should, causing him to meet my gaze. His mysterious purple eyes give me flashbacks to the lewd things we've been doing, making me incredibly excited.

I return my vision to in front of me.

"Before we get started, I would like to announce that the position of the Royal Aid has been filled by this human behind me, Earl Roth."

The knights immediately look at each other at my decision. Their reaction was no surprise considering during my reign in these past hundred years, I've operated without a Royal Aid.

"As a brief introduction, Earl has been under my care since he was a child. He will also be engaged to Alea, marrying into the Royal Family."

There was silence.

"This is unacceptable, Your Majesty. A human marrying into the family!?" Vier immediately speaks up.

Eins then followed up with a calm voice. "I agree. He will die of old age before Princess Alea takes the throne, Your Majesty."

This reaction was to be expected. I look to Abelis and he immediately backs me up.

"The time has become so peaceful you've learned to question Her Majesty, huh?"

His voice oozes of his Grand Rank power. Without a doubt, he was one of the strongest in the Kingdom. Stronger than me. Stronger than anyone in the room.

"This is Alea's decision and I will not allow anyone to question it!" Abelis continues to talk. His aura presses onto Eins and Vier in particular.

The atmosphere within the room has become tense. But this is soon broken when Zwei begins to speak.

"Now, now. This is no time to be so tense. It's a time of celebration after all. We elves are always so platonic, why don't we look at this change optimistically for once?"

As the only female among the Spirit Knights, she is the most carefree and laid-back of them all. Coming from the ancient family of Ailos, she has their signature white hair and red eyes. Needless to say, she is very beautiful. The Spirit Knight armour she wears gives her a very valiant vibe. Unfortunately, I don't swing that way.

Except for Vier, the other knights begin to nod in agreement. I give Zwei a smile of appreciation to which she returned a small one back.

"Let's also take this opportunity to introduce ourselves. Hello, Earl! My name is Zwei. I'm only a couple of hundred years young, but I guess that might be a lot for you? Anyways if you ever need any help you can come to me. Nice to meet you!" She smilingly greets Earl and ends it with a wink.

This harlot...

"It's my pleasure, Miss Zwei. I'll be in your care."

Earl politely greets her back. Him being the way he is, I don't know what he's thinking exactly since he would shift his demeanour to a more comfortable one to whoever he's talking to.

"I guess I'm next since Zwei started first?" Vier spoke with a dark face. "My name is Vier. I come from the noble family of Arainne. That is all."

"Hello."

The Arainne family... What a pest.

"It's my turn now. My name is Funf but you already know that. I am in charge of the training ground you and Princess Alea always go to."

Funf is a big man with a thick chest and broad shoulders. He is a man of heavy presence despite his few words.

"It's been a while, sir."

And last but not least, Eins.

"My name is Eins. I apologize for my words earlier. If Princess Alea has chosen you, you must be someone special."

"I've heard of your name."

Eins is the one in command of the Spirit Knights when Abelis is not around. He has dirty blonde hair and a battle-hardened face. This man is very serious so he's a good subordinate but it often comes off the wrong way.

With the introduction done, we begin to talk about arrangements for the Spirit Festival.

The Spirit Festival is the biggest event in the Kingdom. It is the time when everyone comes together to share their joy, their happiness, their troubles, and much more.

As a part of this festival, there is the Spirit Festival Youth Competition. It is a time for those under the age of 100 to battle and show their talents. The Spirit Festival is an event that happens every 10 years. Every 10 years, the winner would get the chance to meet the Spirit King and enjoy his blessings.

This blessing would give one eligibility to become a Spirit Knight. Of course, this was not all, considering there were only 6 Spirit Knights in all the years that passed. This was part of the Spirit Agreement set by our ancestors thousands of years ago. It is also for this reason that I am unable to exterminate the pests known as Drei and Vier directly.

To expand on the Spirit Agreement, the origin of it all started when it became known that the barrier between the Spirit World and the Middle World is weakest during this time every 10 years. This means the connection between the Spirit World and the Middle World is at its strongest and many elves would often find their talent in Spirit Magic during this time. It is also time to get a Contracted Spirit if one is lucky enough.

It was an event that benefitted both sides. Users of Spirit Magic need spirits to become stronger. On the other hand, spirits become stronger the more they stay in the Middle World.

I'm planning to use this chance to have both Earl and Alea get their own Contracted Spirits during this time.

It was my favourite event for a good reason. Just thinking about the smiling faces of the citizens, the big crowds, the lively crowds, and the flashing lights in the night sky was enough to put me in a good mood.