New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

It did not take long to reach a garrison, as there were many on the inside wall that led to the royal district. Once he reached close to it, he stopped in front of the counter, where a soldier was looking at him nervously.

The aura Astaroth was giving off might not be noticeable to a little girl, no older than five years old, with no mana capacity. But to a trained soldier, with at least a small amount, it was a different story.

Astaroth’s figure seemed shrouded in deep red waves of hatred from the soldier’s perspective, and he was barely holding on to his consciousness.

“C… C… Can I h… h… help you, S… S… Sir?”

In the most deadpan tone the soldier had ever heard, Astaroth replied.

“Yes. Take this little girl in. She requires the kingdom’s protection. Her mother is… deceased.”

Astaroth’s aura flared a little more when saying that last word, eliciting a small yelp from the soldier.

It was clear to see that he was a recruit, being stationed at a garrison post like this. The young man was no older than twenty, and had probably seen next to nothing in life.

Being face-to-face with Astaroth, who currently exerted enough power to be on par with the military officers in the capital, was a lot to take in for the soldier. But he held on, nodding his head with sweat flying off his chin.

“Of c… c… course, Sir. Right this way little m… m… miss.”

The little girl turned to Astaroth, who had led her here.

“What does deceased mean?”

“It means taking a long nap. Now go with the soldier. He will protect you for now.”

The little girl nodded her head, unaware of the situation she was truly in. She walked over to the door the soldier had opened to the side of his post, walking into the garrison.

After letting the girl in and closing the door, the soldier went back to the window. His armor was already drenched in sweat.

His stuttering had stopped, but it was apparent that it took a lot of willpower for the young man to do so.

“Anything else I can help you with, Sir?”

“No. Take care of the girl.”

Astaroth walked away, heading toward the nearest gate that led inward to the royal district. There was, unsurprisingly, no queue to go in?.

But the guards suddenly blocked his way as he tried entering.

“Halt! No one is allowed past this point without the king or his court mage’s approval! State your name!”

Astaroth looked at the surrounding guards, seemingly unaffected by the mana washing off of him. He was holding in his power, so no physical phenomena were happening yet.

“I am the king of a nation. Lower your weapons, soldiers, unless you want to get into trouble.”

The guard that had spoken to him scanned him up and down with his eyes before bursting into laughter.

“Hahahaha! If you are a king, then I am the prince of the Ash Elves! Stop lying, you delusional fuck, and walk away before we kill you for trespassing.”

Astaroth clicked his tongue in disdain.

“Fine, have it your way.”

Snapping his fingers twice, Astaroth produced an invisible sound wave that washed over the surrounding guards, who suddenly started wavering.

One of them seemed a little more resistant to the effect, and as he noticed his buddies crumbling on themselves suddenly, their forms turning to heaps, asleep on the ground, he stabbed his spear at Astaroth.

But the attack was sloppy, and slow, allowing Astaroth to catch the tip of the spear between his fingers, holding it there.

“You should have just let yourself fall asleep.”

Taking a swift step forward, Astaroth punched the guard in the stomach with enough force to bend his armour inward. The man collapsed on the ground, passing out from the lack of air and pain.

As he hit the ground, and Astaroth was about to walk into the gates, a man in black robes appeared not far ahead, standing in his path. .

“Hmm. I don’t recognize you, young man. Do you serve this kingdom?” the man in the cloak asked.

Astaroth frowned.

‘He has no presence or mana. How did he appear there?’

“I used to. Now, I am the king of my own lands, and I request an audience with King Uuthli’vlos.”

The man shuffled in his robes, prompting Astaroth to pull out Ad Astra, in a shortsword form.

Raising one hand forward, as to show his peaceful intentions, the man pulled out a scroll.

Unrolling the scroll, he seemed to look through its contents before putting it away.

Astaroth couldn’t see the man’s face, even though the cloak wasn’t covering it entirely. Only a black shadow was visible, instead of his face.

That, in itself, was enough for anyone to feel weary of them. But many other things troubled Astaroth.

The lack of a mana signature, in a man that had just teleported in front of him.

The weird familiar sensation he was getting from the man.

The cloak, which seemed to warp light itself around it.

Many things were eerie about this man.

“King Astaroth. It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am sure the king will be glad to see you. Don’t mind the mess here. I will see that the guards are punished for their rudeness. If you could just follow me.”

Astaroth’s frown grew deeper.

“How do you know my name?”

“Ahh, excuse my rudeness, your highness. The scroll I was reading is a registry of all the rulers on the continent. Your name is in it, right over an image of your illustrious self.”

Although Astaroth didn’t like the prospect of someone knowing his face and name from a scroll, it was something plausible for this world.

“Maybe the guards should be equipped with such a magical item. It would have prevented this situation.”

“I will consider your wise advice, your highness. Now, if you would?”

Giving a slight bow, the man waved his arm behind himself, gesturing Astaroth to follow him.

‘I don’t like him,’ Astaroth thought, stowing his weapon away.