Chapter 298: The Authority of the King

The rest of the girls turned at the same time to look at the one who spoke. All of them fixed their attention on the figure standing near the back of the throne room.

It was Chloe, the holy knight, who had just raised her voice in front of all of them. Her sudden intervention cut the silence that had formed after Ryan’s question about the whereabouts of the magical item.

"Hey." Lise exclaimed, taking a step forward to shorten the distance a bit.

The wind dragon was not at all happy with the way the human girl had addressed the group in the middle of the meeting.

"Do not speak with such informality before my master." The dragon added with a cold and hard voice.

Lise gave a threatening look that made the prisoner tremble from her place. The dragon made her position as a defender of the respect that Ryan deserved at all times very clear.

"Oh! I’m very sorry, really." Chloe answered immediately.

Her voice was full of panic feeling the strong gaze of the dragon on her. She didn’t want to cause trouble or be disrespectful. Chloe immediately knelt on the floor, letting the entire weight of her body fall on her knees.

She quickly lowered her head and did not dare to look up towards the throne to avoid further conflicts with the women in the room.

"Damn it, I was going to tell her that." Helen grumbled from her place near the steps.

Helen crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Lise.

The swordsman did not like at all that the new member took the initiative to scold the others. Helen felt that imposing respect for their leader was her own duty as Ryan’s oldest companion.

"Chloe." Karol called, taking a couple of steps towards the woman who was still kneeling on the floor.

"Do you really know who has the water twin in their possession?" Karol asked with some uncertainty on her face.

The mage needed to be completely sure that the girl wasn’t inventing things just to buy time or attention. That object was her highest priority.

"I don’t think it’s very convenient to believe what this woman says." Lise intervened, cutting the conversation.

The dragon looked at the holy knight with a lot of contempt from her position and then directed her eyes towards the throne.

"In any case, I could torture her." Lise suggested.

The dragon showed a cold and cruel smile on her lips when she said that. She was more than willing to force the truth out of her with her own methods if Ryan allowed it.

Beatrice, Alicia, and Irina remained silent from their places.

None of the three girls intervened to defend Chloe from Lise’s dark threat. But they didn’t support the idea of torture either.

They simply observed the tense situation in the room, waiting to see what decision their leader would make regarding it.

Then, Mirian decided to speak to clarify things.

"Why do you suddenly want to collaborate with us?" Mirian commented, frowning in doubt.

"What intentions do you have." The archer asked, analyzing the prisoner from head to toe.

Mirian wanted to understand why a devout member of the church would help their group by giving them such valuable information on her own, even when no one had asked her anything.

’I don’t entirely mind that they take that stance. But they make me feel pity for her. Just look at her, that poor holy knight must have regretted speaking.’ Ryan thought from his comfortable chair.

He understood perfectly that his group should be suspicious of prisoners to avoid any kind of deception. It was normal in their situation.

The fear in Chloe’s face and body was evident to everyone present in the room.

Ryan sighed with some heaviness observing the tense scene before his eyes. He knew he had to intervene soon before Lise or Helen scared their voluntary source of information even more.

"Alright, Chloe. You may speak." Ryan said with a clear voice, giving her permission.

Chloe swallowed hard hearing that Ryan gave her the floor directly.

She slowly looked up, looking towards the throne where he was sitting in his ruler pose.

"Yes, your majesty." Chloe answered with a lot of respect and fear in her voice.

At that comment, Lise gave a very threatening look to the girl. Lise did not like at all to hear that simple human title for someone as powerful as her master.

Chloe noticed her big mistake instantly from the look she received from the women in the room.

"Sorry, I mean. Demon king." Chloe quickly corrected.

Hearing that correction, the dragon directed her gaze directly towards Helen.

Lise let out a malicious laugh at the swordsman. She was openly mocking Helen’s preference for human titles.

Although Chloe tried to fix her mistake so as not to further anger the dragon who had suggested torturing her moments before. Now it was Helen who glared at her for using that new title.

It deeply bothered Helen that they called Ryan that way in front of everyone.

"That damn lizard." Helen murmured clenching her teeth.

Those two, Lise and Helen, maintained an intimidating eye contact between them. The tension between the two women grew in the middle of the room as they looked at each other with a lot of anger and rivalry.

’I understand Helen’s point. I am not a demon, I am human, and she wants to keep that identity very clear. On the other hand, Lise defends that stance now that I am the owner of these lands.’ Ryan evaluated while he watched them silently from his chair.

Ryan analyzed both sides of the small problem that was forming in his group because of a simple name.

’I am not interested in presenting myself as a demon king. But I have no problem using that title. I can simply accept its benefits and problems alike... At least I can say that today.’ Ryan thought, finishing his evaluation on the subject.

Then he clapped both palms of his hands together suddenly.

The clap made the entire great throne room resonate. The loud sound immediately caught everyone’s attention and cut off the staring contest between Lise and Helen.

Ryan raised his aura, letting out the energy he had stored inside. He projected a very dense and heavy energy around him.

The light appeared in a crimson tone that mixed with a deep violet. That color surrounded his body and his chair, filling the space with his imposing presence.

Upon seeing that energy, the women in front of him could not help but widen their eyes.

The pressure in the room suddenly increased, demonstrating the immense real strength that Ryan possessed now. No one could ignore that demonstration of power.

"You two." Ryan said in a more serious tone.

He planted his gaze on Helen and Lise, establishing his authority over them.

When they felt his heavy gaze on their bodies, they reacted instantly.

They immediately knelt on the floor, lowering their heads in total obedience before their leader.

"Stay like that." Ryan ordered, without stopping looking at them from above.

"Yes!" They both said in unison, obeying the order without any complaint or reproach.

Both knew that they had crossed the line by fighting in his presence. Then Ryan maintained his calm and turned off his aura. The crimson and violet tone disappeared from the place, returning tranquility to the room.

He directed his gaze again towards Chloe, who was still kneeling on the floor and frightened by the power she had just witnessed.

He stared at her, without saying a single word.

Chloe immediately interpreted it as permission to continue speaking. She knew that he was waiting for her answer.

Then she continued with her important information.

"Sir, the person I know who has the water twin..." Chloe said.

She took a short breath before revealing the name in front of everyone.

"Is Luciela, an SS rank holy knight."