Guild Wars

Hearing such a raw threat, the knight who was walking over paused, hesitating. He sensed a casual killing intent from Misery that told him that no matter what anyone tried to do to stop him, if the knight didn't heed the warning, the promised punishment would be doled out.

"Enough, there is no need to bind him. You may step back." One of the Councilors stated coldly.

The knight sighed, feeling elated for being spared a fate worse than death and glared at Misery as he slinked away. In his mind, this bastard would be dealt with by the Council for his insubordination. At this time, Misery finally looked up and eyed the various Councilors one by one.

Occupying the left most seat, which was styled in a red color, was a man with a heigh of, at best, 5'7, with very very average features. His nose was long and thick, his lips thin and pursed and his eyes beady and sharp. He wore a red coat with golden buttons and had strangely sharp claws on his right hand. At the front of his seat, on the table, one could see the plaque which read 'Councilor James' and on the plaque directly on his seat one could see the name 'Jack the Ripper'.

Beside him, to the right, was a seat styled in a blue color. In it sat a man who was tall and buff, looking like a modern Dwayne Johnson with his bald head and lack of facial hair. He had piercing blue eyes and wore a tank top which had the image of a roaring wolf on it. The table's plaque revealed him to be 'Councilor Sebastian' and the chair's plaque revealed him to be a descendant of Beowulf.

Again, to the right of Councilor Sebastian was Councilor Walter, who was eyeing Misery with a strange look. Walter was basically an older version of Kiran and wore only a loose white shirt and black pants, looking casual. His chair's plaque revealed him to be a descendant of Cu Chulainn.

On the next seat was Councilor Meredith, a voluptuous mature beauty with cold eyes. She was the one who had told the knight to leave and she was currently glaring at Misery with disdain. She was in the indigo seat, reserved for descendants of Morgana.

On the white seat that radiated honor and holiness was a typical handsome blonde haired and blue eyed man who wore thick silver plate mail. The shape of his jaws and the lightness of his stubble were enough to charm hundreds of young girls. He also wore a frown of distaste as he glared at the decadent Misery. His name was Councilor David and his ancestor was Sigmund.

The next seat was the green one, which housed a lazy looking fellow dressed in a green robe. He glanced at Misery with a smile, and he was one of the few faces Misery's gaze stopped on for more than one moment. This Councilor Edward was the descendant of Robin Hood.

The seat after that belonged to Councilor Damien, which was orange in color. He was glaring at Misery as well, and especially Sublime who had thrown such a dark and dirty accusation at him. Ironically, his ancestor was King Arthur.

The second to last seat belonged to a bulky fellow who was quite muscular in a body-builder type of way. He grinned widely as he made a toast to Misery, also drinking some rum while his scruffy beard swirled with the wind. Misery also toasted back with a wide grin, wishing he could go up and hug the fellow. This was Councilor Hector and as the descendant of Blackbeard.

The final seat was purple in color and it was chaired by someone Misery never expected to see there. It was a young man with black hair and golden colored eyes, making him one of the few who was different from the others in this regard. This young man glanced at Misery with a complicated expression, then looked away. He was called Councilor Adrian, and he was the descendant of Scathach.

9 seats, 9 Councilors, all of different ages and variable looks, but all focused on Misery who hadn't stopped drinking for even a moment, behaving casually as if he was still in his own living room.

"The Council has been called today to deal with a one Nicholas Spencley who had been exiled from our Lineage due to his rebellious nature and refusal to conform to authority." Meredith spoke coldly as she tried to take control of the hearing.

"Is that so? As I recall, he left voluntarily after arguing with you lot. I don't remember anyone pronouncing him an exilee, nor do I think any of you lot have the power to do that." Hector interrupted as he poured himself a drink.

Meredith's expression became ugly, and Councilor Damien used this chance to assist.

"Whether the exile was official or unofficial, it is a fact that Nicholas Spencley was a troublemaker in his time here and also abandoned his duties for years upon end without prior approval or notice."

"So a self imposed exile then? What does that have to do with the Council? Unless my memory betrays me, Councilor Damien, your son has spent the last 7 years partying and enjoying himself in the Bahamas. Has the Council convened because he too neglected the duties he was supposed fulfill?" Councilor Edward asked as he switched his leg on the table.

Councilor Damien's expression stiffened, and Councilor James laughed openly, whereas Councilor Meredith roared suddenly: "Enough!"

The other fellows seemed to be amused by her attempt to 'chair' the meeting, but were too lazy to argue. Misery had not even bothered to look at anyone but Hector and Edward, his two best friends from childhood, in the eye anyway.

Shit, from his casual demeanor and drinking, he was acting like a bystander watching a drama!

"The simple fact of the matter is, whether exiled or not, whether he failed his duties or not, Nicholas Spencley is here before us now. As such, there is one question we all have to ask ourselves, what shall we do with him?" Councilor Sebastian spoke as his eyes focused on Misery.

"A very astute question. Personally, I dislike his lazy and decadent demeanor in the face of the Council. It reeks of a lack of respect for authority and righteousness!" Councilor David expressed his thoughts while slamming the table.

Misery simply poured yet another glass and raised it to him before downing it, making Councilor David's expression turn cold.

"I also agree that it is in bad taste to let a miscreant into our humble Lineage. What sort of precedence would we set if we allowed someone to come and leave as they pleased? There should certainly be a price to pay for such things!" Councilor Meredith added.

"A punishment is not only right, it is fitting. We can actually call up many offenses this fellow has committed in the past and presently since he came here, all warranting severe punishment." Councilor Damien inputted.

"How pompous. He ranks above most of you here, and is the only one personally chosen by one of the 9 to directly become her representative! Have you all forgotten that before that incident the most prominent headache it gave our predecessors was to have to decide whether to give him councilmanship for his grandfather or grandmother's position? Or both?" Councilor Edward sneered.

"Not to mention, how dare you mention his past and current offenses? Fine then, let me also dig up your past and bring out all the offenses you've committed since you were born. Get down there and let's try you!" Councilor Hector added with a cold laugh.

"The truth of the matter is that this entire trial is a farce. Why are we wasting time on this?" Councilor James asked while sharpening his claw.

"I agree, this is stupid and childish on all sides." Councilor Sebastian concurred.

"More importantly, I want to know why Councilor Damien attempted to press himself on my daughter today. Are we going to ignore that?" Councilor Walter spoke for the first time since the trial started.

"Slander! She was trying to cause trouble!" Councilor Damien roared in anger.

"Seems unlikely to me. We all know Little Mary is a sweet and beautiful young miss, so I'm not surprised an evil old fellow like you would covet her beauty." Councilor Hector retorted lazily.

"Poor girl, to be almost devoured by a piece of old dung. She must have been fearful since it was a Councilor who could cause her a lot of suffering if she refused, but she was still brave enough to cry out." Councilor Edward added with a sigh.

"I want a proper explanation for what happened to my daughter, or I will use the attending Councilors to declare an inter-branch war this instant!" Councilor Walter stated coldly, with no indication that he was joking.

Councilor Damien's face became black, while the other Councilors wore grave expressions. Councilor Meredith realized that she had to quell things and so spoke up.

"Enough, what is with this? Our target here is Nicolas Spencley, not Councilor Damien. What are you trying to do by disrupting the Council?"

"Enough your mother. Just because we ignore you when you try to act like a chairwoman doesn't mean you are. Scram to the side!" Councilor Hector roared at Councilor Meredith, making her face pale.

Councilor David frowned. "I don't think taking such a tone with a fellow Councilor is appropriate."

Councilor Edward sneered. "Why? Is it because she lets you lick her feet in your intimate time? Is that why you speak for her? Even if we take such a tone with her, what the hell can you do about it?"

"You..!!" Councilor David began, but the council room went silent when Councilor Sebastian released a powerful aura that swept across the room.

7th Order Knight!

As the strongest Councilor, and the oldest one among them, he had a certain prestige here, not to mention that power spoke the loudest. Even Misery had to pause and raise his head with a grave look.

"It seems things haven't changed. Whenever this brat, Nicholas Spencley is around, everything becomes chaotic and troublesome, just like his ancestors back then." Councilor Sebastian commented with a wry smile.

Misery could only shrug helplessly. He hadn't even said a word and he was still being blamed? Where was the sense of justice in this?!

Councilor Sebastian took in a deep breath. "The most important question now is no longer what to do with Nicholas Spencley, but what Nicholas Spencley himself came here to do."

At the mention of this, the faces of everyone in the room shifted slightly. That's right, they never actually considered that. They had simply assumed he had used Sublime to slink back in and try to get back in the good graces of the Lineage after disappearing for so long.

As such, all eyes fell on Misery with curiosity wondering if he might indeed have had a different reason for coming here today.

Misery poured a glass and raised it to Sebastian, who received the raise with a nod. He then downed the glass before he spoke in a calm voice that penetrated the entire councilroom.

"A very good question, and I am grateful for the opportunity to FINALLY say me piece. First of all, let me clearly state that I have no intentions whatsoever of returning into the fold, and if you want, you can make my exile official or whatever. I just came here as an escort, to bring home a lost child."

Misery then pointed at Kiran with his ring finger.

"Since you're all old enough to remember exactly why I left, and when I left, I won't need to remind you of the whole fuckery with the Buddha Lineage. Well, it seems like fate is fond of spitting in the faces of everyone, because that same half-breed child you lot refused to recognise as one of ours is still alive and is standing right there."

Silence. Absolute silence as all eyes fell in Kiran, who was staring at Walter with a complicated expression.

"That's right. That brat is the legitimate son of Councilor Walter and the late Juno of the Buddha Lineage, the two prodigies of their Lineages at the time." Misery revealed and seemed to absolve himself of this matter as he walked down from the trial stand.

Meanwhile, the council room erupted into clamor.