Chapter 220: [220] The King Of Donia

From the moment Eliron stepped into the council room, he could basically taste the disdain that was emanating from the nobles.

’This again…’ it was laughable at this point. But then again, why would they respect them? Two nobody wood elves had walked into a meeting of the highest ranking nobles, and the king for that matter.

Ariel would have been respected more, considering she was a second class mage, but half elves were not treated so kindly anywhere.

So to them, the three of them were stains that had to be wiped clean. If not for Alexander, the guards would have probably cut them down by now, or rather tried to.

King Darius stared at them, his gaze measured. His eyes stopped on Ash for a few moments, but when they landed on Eliron, a small smile appeared on his face.

— What are they doing here?!

— Prince Darius is on it again. Has he no respect for we nobles? To bring an outsider to our meeting…

The nobles began to grumble, but only one of them stood up. He was a mature man whose entire hair had turned grey with age.

From the way he carried himself, and the sharpness in his eyes, Eliron could tell that he was a powerful swordsman.

“Greetings Prince Alexander.” The man bowed respectfully. “We have been expecting you for so long now.” He smiled politely. “Please take your seat, let us resume our talks.”

“Greetings Grand Marshal.” Alex replied.

’So that man is the grand marshal?’ Eliron mused. Now it made sense why he felt far stronger than the rest.

Alex smiled and bowed before his father. “Greetings father, I apologize for my tardiness, there were things I had to attend to.”

Ciera bowed as well, but she did not speak, she knew better than to interrupt a discussion between royalty.

Ariel was also about to bow, but when she saw Eliron and Ash made no move to do so, she remained standing.

’Good girl.’

This alone was enough to cause another wave of murmurs among the nobles. But since the king was not done speaking, no one interrupted.

’Noisy. Are they no better than market women?’ Eliron’s eyebrows twitched.

It was annoying that he could hear every word they were saying, including the inventive insults.

The king acknowledged Alex’s greeting with a nod. Eliron could see that the man seemed relieved by his presence. “I’m guessing that the people behind you are part of the things you needed to attend to?”

Alex nodded, his hands still clasped together. “Yes, father, they are very important guests of mine.”

King Darius’ gaze then swept over Eliron’s group once more, before landing on him. It seemed just from a glance, he could tell who the leader of the group was.

He rested his chin on his palm, while his free hand was resting on his hammer’s surface. “A peculiar group I must say… young man, do you know who I am?”

“No need to beat around the bush. Of course I know who you are, why not ask the real question you have for me—”

Bam!

Unable to control himself any longer, one of the nobles got up from his seat and slammed his hands on the table.

Not only had Eliron refused to bow to their king, he had also spoken so casually, in a way that would be seen as an insult by many!

“You will shut that foul mouth of yours! You are in the presence of the kin—”

Eliron glanced at the man, his eyes colder than winter itself. The noble froze, nearly fumbling over his own words.

’How does he have those eyes?’ Zakhari thought. It was the same eyes he had seen on the king in the past, a gaze of someone who believed that had absolute authority.

“Stand down Zakhari.” The king’s voice was calm, but there was a warning behind it.

Then he glanced at Eliron, amusement tingling in his steely eyes. “Is there a reason you refuse to bow?”

“Ah, about that—”

“Let him speak.” Alex was about to answer when his father interrupted him.

He sighed and gave his father a wary look. ’Don’t start any drama here! Are you so bored that you are looking for the tiniest bit of amusement??’

His father caught his gaze, and Alex could swear he saw his old man smile.

Eliron shrugged casually after hearing the king’s question. “King Darius.” He said without the tiniest bit of reverence in his voice.

Although he could have been respectful, people often had a way of seeing respectful people as beneath them.

Eliron had plans of Artaris benefiting greatly from this meeting.

If he wanted them to actually gain anything from what would be discussed here, then he would need them to see him as equals.

When a king meets his allies, neither bows before the other. That was the standard, and that was what Eliron had decided to follow.

Not only would this make his words have more weight, he would be able to negotiate from a higher ground, considering it was they who needed his help.

“I am Eliron Traquil of Artaris, the current lord of elves. Tell me King Darius, when two kings meet, does one bow before the other?”

The smile Darius was hiding was beginning to show. “It depends. Even among kings, there is a hierarchy, you know?”

He adjusted his position so that he now sat at his full height, which made him seem even more opposing.

“The lesser kings bow before the greater, the weak pray for the mercies of the strong.”

Eliron smirked. ’As expected of a warrior king, strength is the only thing that appeals to him.’

“Tell me Lord Eliron, how well do you measure up on this scale?”

VWOOSH!

Darius unleashed his mana, and it was as though Eliron had been rammed in the chest by a truck.

The nobles stiffened, nearly everyone there was a high ranking warrior and yet the blood drained away from their faces.

But Eliron, who the mana was directed at, stood with a small smile on his face.

“I like the way you think of King Darius. Shall we have a friendly spar then?!”

What was the point of trading words when you could trade blows? Eliron agreed with him, strength was the greatest show of competence.

“HAHAHAHAHA!” King Darius burst out into laughter.

“You didn’t even shake when I released my mana! Now I’m rilled up! Let’s do it!”

His warhammer immediately reoriented itself, flying right into his arms, and then a miniature shockwave cut through the room, causing the table to rattle, as panicked looks spread through the nobles.

Eliron grabbed the hilt of his sword, the black blade slowly revealing itself— the cold alloy giving off a sinister gleam.

“Shall we?”

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