The Divine Summoner: Godson of Altima Page 4
While his knees touched the ground, Roujan dutifully recorded the information with a pencil and a logbook bound by a golden cover. Once he finished this task, the priest slowly climbed to his feet. He passed a white cloth to Luka to wipe his hands and complete this holy ritual.
Once Father Roujan retrieved the item, he patted Luka gently on the shoulder, "Let's go out." The priest opened the door and led the child out of the chapel. He saw the gathered crowd and cleared his throat to announce the result. Father Roujan said the following: "Although Luka's status card is private, I will attest that he possesses the Divine Summoner class as well as the Godson of Altima title. And he has an astounding 4,000 mana."
The announcer casually glanced at the rabbit in the arms of the child's mother. The priest couldn't believe this innocent-looking animal was a demon king in disguise! However, the evil creature behaved adequately and had no intention of rampaging inside the church. Roujan decided to report this matter directly to Pope Demetrius, who couldn't attend this event due to a scheduling conflict.
"4,000 mana!" someone yelled out in disbelief while staring at the boy. "Even the court mages have only 1,000!"
"He is truly the son of Tsunka Heavensfell!"
"Now that we have a divine summoner in the kingdom, we don't have to worry about another Netherese invasion!"
Some of the more ambitious folks saw an opportunity to form a closer relationship with the duke family and began to make invitations to the two. "Duchess, I would be honored if you could visit my estate with your son for dinner tonight!"
"No, please allow me this honor!" another noble interjected.
Juliette smiled faintly and began to decline. "I appreciate your kind offers, gentlemen, but my son needs some rest," she replied.
Suddenly, a contingent of royal knights arrived! "Make way! Make way!" the escorts yelled.
A man dressed immaculately in red color hurriedly entered the building. "I am Quentin, a royal messenger. His Majesty the King has summoned Duchess Silverblade and Luka Heavensfell to the castle after completion of the heir's Ceremony of Blessings!" the royal servant announced. "Your Excellency, please use the royal carriage to visit the castle," Quentin said while looking at Juliette.
The duchess and her followers bowed because the messenger was acting as an official proxy for the king. And this summons was a royal command. Thus, she obeyed and entered the royal carriage with Luka and Quentin. Luka sat next to his mother while the civil servant faced the two from the opposite side.
Quentin tried to ease the silence during the voyage by making small conversation. "Luka, is this your first trip to the castle?" the man asked in a friendly tone of voice.
"Yes, Your Excellency."
Quentin laughed. "I'm just a messenger. There's no need to address me in that manner. Call me 'Quentin,'" he invited.
"Yes, Quentin," the boy nodded. "This is my first summons by His Royal Highness," Luka confirmed.
"The king was best friends with your dad. So His Majesty is quite anxious to meet you. That's why he asked me to swoop in and take you directly from the church," the messenger explained.
"I'm trying to protect my son from the king's bad influence," Juliette interjected in a frosty tone of voice.
Quentin laughed. "Well, the two did garner poor reputations during their youth. But the weight of official responsibilities have a way of making boys mature faster," he noted with a wistful tone.
"Is this going to be a social visit, or does His Majesty have something important to discuss with us?" the duchess asked. Juliette thought the king would propose marriage between Luka and a princess.
The servant waved his hand. "It's nothing serious. The king wants his family to meet your child. That's all," he replied.
Juliette stared at him for a moment and made him sweat. When she released her intimidating aura, the victim smiled wryly.
Quentin looked out the window and saw that the carriage already reached the capital city of Tsuchimiya. "We'll arrive at our destination in a few minutes," he announced.
The guards at the gate saw the royal crest and immediately waved the carriage through without inspection.
When the vehicle finally stopped, Quentin climbed out, followed by Juliette and then Luka and his rabbit.
Bel hopped on the boy's head and enjoyed the stares of the servants who gathered to greet the guests.
"I am Bryan Ernsworth, the head butler. On behalf of His Majesty the King, I welcome you to Castle Morninglory," he said and bowed formally. The royal butlers and maids behind him copied his movement. "He is waiting in the throne room." The butler turned and led the guests straight through the main hallway and briefly stopped before a double door.
The butler quietly informed the royal guards of the identities of his guests. "Duchess Silverblade and her son have arrived," someone announced as the door opened.
Juliette entered the throne room with her head high and her back straight. She stopped ten feet from the throne and dropped a knee on the lush carpet with her head lowered.
Luka immediately followed her lead while Bel stood next to him and looked around with great interest.
"You may stand," King Joram Winfred Morninglory told them. The monarch took a moment to study their faces. He was anxious to meet his best friend's son and hoped to make a good impression on Luka. To his consternation, the blasted woman absurdly refused his previous summons for her to bring Luka to his castle by making one feeble excuse after another. Furthermore, his informants told him that Juliette forbade her son from leaving the family estate and refused all visitors.
Joram thought she was overly protective of the child. Thus, he ordered the royal messenger to arrive at the duchy's local church after Luka received his Ceremony of Blessings and publicly summoned the boy to the castle. If Juliette dared to refuse, the royal knights received instructions to bring her and Luka forcibly.
"We are Joram Winfred Morninglory, the ruler of this Morninglory Kingdom. This king is glad to meet you, child," the king said.
"My name is Luka Heavensfell, and I am honored to meet Your Majesty the King," Luka replied with a perfect salute. He saw a middle-aged man with jet-black hair cropped short, pale blue eyes, and a golden crown on his head. The king wore a red cape over a golden shirt and black tights. Luka thought the man possessed a calm aura and somewhat resembled Keanu Reeves.
Sitting with the king was a regal-looking woman with brunette hair, soft green eyes, and who wore a circlet over her head. Another beautiful woman with golden hair seated to the king's right; four well-dressed children stood behind the trio.
The king laughed. "You resemble your father very much. We met at the royal academy and became best friends. This king hopes that you will treat us as your uncle. Now, we shall introduce the royal family. To our left is Queen Ariela Puljon Morninglory; on our right is the second wife, Queen Marmlova Xantare. Next are our eldest son Crown Prince Yarek Winfred, Prince Josen Fulstrom, eldest daughter Princess Alexandria Theresa, and youngest child Princess Camellia Harchesta."
The women nodded slightly while the children offered salutes and curtsies as the king introduced each person.
"This king hopes that you will treat our family like yours, Luka," the monarch added with a bright smile. He then turned toward Juliette. "We are very pleased with your child's proper upbringing, Duchess Silverblade."
"Thank you for your kind words, Your Royal Highness," Juliette responded with a curtsy.
"This king summoned you to learn of the results of Luka's Ceremony of Blessings. The fate of our country depends on it," he said. "May we ask the boy to show his status card in this court?"
The duchess hesitated because Father Roujan had shown her Luka's results in the logbook, and some information was very controversial and problematic. "May we show only Your Majesty?" she requested.
The question caused a stir with the nobles assembled in the throne room because they were shocked by its implication. What could Luka Heavensfell possibly have to hide?
King Joram's dark brows rose, but he kept his face blank. "We shall grant this wish," he agreed. "Luka, you may approach the throne."
Luka slowly walked over and climbed the platform. He called up his status card and waited while the king read it. Once the monarch finished, Luka dismissed the report.
Joram surprised everyone by patting the child's head! "Luka, you are a lot more talented than your father. Work hard to become the next head of the Heavensfell duke house!" he offered encouragement to the boy with a warm smile.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Luka replied and saluted.
"Good! We invite you to dine with the royal family tonight. In the meantime, this king has further consultations with Duchess Silverblade. Our daughters love animals, and they probably want to play with your rabbit. Please get along with our children."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"This meeting is adjourned. We will talk to the duchess in our private study. The kids shall play in the garden."
Juliette walked up to her son and said, "Please make sure Bel properly behaves. I'll see you again in the dining room." The mother then followed the monarch into a back room.
The two princes looked at Luka's pet and rolled their eyes. "I need to finish my homework," Prince Yarek said and left the room via a side door.
"Me too!" the other boy said and escaped.
"Stupid brothers!" Princess Alexandria muttered in a small voice.
Queen Ariela reached down and grabbed Luka's hand. "Let's have a tea party in the garden, okay?"
"Yes, Your Highness!" Luka nodded.
"Please watch over the children while I check in on our dear husband," Queen Marmlova said. She knew that her husband once had a crush on the duchess when they attended the academy together. Thus, the wife didn't want to leave the king alone with the other woman.
"Okay," the first queen agreed. She, too, felt threatened by Duchess Silverblade's beauty and charm. "We'll meet up for supper."
Chapter 5
Morninglory Royal Family
As Luka followed Queen Ariela's group through a side passage connecting to the throne room, Camellia suddenly stopped and turned around. The young girl's eyes stared at the rabbit in his arms.
"May we hold him?" the princess asked.
Luka was surprised by the way this young daughter addressed herself. "Yes, Your Highness," he agreed and handed over the animal.
Camellia smiled with delight as she snuggled against the furry creature.
[You better give me lots of meal tonight, you little toots!] Bel grumbled as the familiar tolerated her annoying behavior.
"Hand him over!" Alexandria demanded in a haughty tone of voice.
Camellia immediately stepped behind Luka and used him as a human shield.
Queen Ariela looked at the two girls and sighed because she felt embarrassed at their behavior before a guest. "Girls, you will have plenty of time to play with the rabbit in the garden," she reminded them.
The eldest princess glared at her rival and then followed her mother out of the passageway.
Luka breathed a sigh of relief because he didn't want to stand between the feuding girls.
"We showed you an unsightly seen," Camellia performed a one-handed curtsy while squeezing Bel against her torso like a ragged doll.
When he struggled against this treatment, the girl mournfully handed Bel back to his owner.
Camellia suddenly grabbed Luka's hand and pulled him out of the passage. She led him to a section of the garden with patio furniture under a big tree.
When the two arrived, Alexandria approached Luka and demanded, "Gimme that!"
The owner wordlessly surrendered Bel and watched as the girl hugged the rabbit tightly.
[Dammnit! I'm not a toy!] Bel grumbled and tried to squirm out of his constraint.
Luka left Bel to his fate and took a seat at the table. He saw a platter of cookies and helped himself to a few. Since the church ritual took place at noon, Luka ate only a small brunch. Thus, he was rather hungry.
"Please leave some room for dinner," the queen said with a laugh. Ariela wished to spend this opportunity to observe Luka closely. According to her sister-in-law, Luka had never departed from his family estate before. Thus, Ariela worried that the boy suffered from some undisclosed health problem or a mental issue. Typically, noble children visited each other's homes to make essential connections between allies.
But from Ariela's observation so far, Luka behaved like an average child with no discernible defect. "Luka, how do you spend your days at your manor?" she inquired in a friendly voice.
Luka thought for a moment. "My mother arranged a busy schedule for me. I receive swordsmanship training in the mornings. My afternoon classes rotate between noble etiquette, math, reading, and writing. During the weekends, I go horseriding and hunting with her," he answered.
"Can you show us your swordsmanship?" Queen Ariela requested.
"I would be delighted," Luka answered with a salute. He took his sword out of his storage ring and walked to a free spot in the garden. The boy performed his regular stances and then began to attack an imaginary target. He slashed diagonally from left to right and then horizontally. He lunged forward with feints and quick jabs before spinning on his heels like a human tornado. Luka's feet hopped off the ground, and his body propelled forward as his sword slammed with all his might; the wind current generated by his attack left a path of cut grass and bit into the tree trunk six feet away!
His swordsmanship riveted the females because Luka was much better than they expected! His movements were extremely refined compared to the two princes who moved their feet stiffly and relied too much on their arms.
Bel hopped over to the tree and kicked it! [Cut the falling leaves!]
Luka obeyed and slashed quickly at the small targets within reach. Whoosh! The swordsman managed to split a handful of those leaves.
Queen Ariela clapped her hands, and the girls joined the adult.
Luka returned his weapon to storage and bowed. When he sat down, the hostess asked, "What is your proficiency level in swordsmanship?"
"Third, Your Highness," he answered honestly.
"That is very impressive!" Queen Ariela marveled. "My son, Yarek, reached level 6. But he's already 17 years old. When did you start practicing?"
"Two years ago."
"So it took two years for you to reach tier three while Yarek spent four years to reach the same result. You inherited your mother's martial talent," she praised him. Without warning, the mother reached across the table and grabbed his hand. Ariela's fingers ran across his rough calluses and frowned. "If you feel that your mother is pushing you too hard, please ask us to intervene. We will ask her to lighten your schedule."
"I appreciate your kindness, Your Highness, but my mother arranged my lessons with my best interest in mind. I can keep up with her training schedule without a problem," Luka declared with a confident smile.
The queen smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes. She felt uncomfortable because the boy was too smart for a five-year-old. Instead, Ariela thought Luka's temperament was similar to Yarek despite the thirteen-year-gap between the two. Moreover, Queen Ariela spent a lot of time teaching the crown prince about court politics and using conversation to charm listeners and persuade them. But Luka could do this naturally at a much younger age. Thus, she felt that Luka could threaten Yarek's claim to the royal throne whenever King Joram dies.
Queen Ariela kept her dark thoughts to herself while engaging in light banter with Luka about the castle and life in the royal family.
During dinner in the royal mess hall, the king tried to make small conversation with Luka, who sat between his daughters. With no place to put Bel, the boy left the rabbit in his lap.
"How was your afternoon in the garden?" Joram inquired.
"We played with Bel," Alexandria answered.
"Luka gave a wonderful performance with his swordsmanship. He cut a handful of falling leaves with one stroke of his blade
," Queen Ariela added.
"Since Luka is the son of a renowned magic swordswoman, I would expect him to inherit her martial talents," he replied.
The king glanced at the rabbit. He remembered that Luka's status card listed this creature as the boy's familiar and identified it as "Belphesto (sealed Demon King)." By allowing Bel to play in the garden, King Joram took a calculated risk that the creature would not rampage and hurt his daughters.
If Bel ran amok, the monarch would have a strong justification to execute the evil demon regardless of its ties to the boy. Since it behaved adequately, the rabbit inadvertently earned a royal reprieve. King Joram made a mental note to consult the royal mages and research information regarding Belphesto's history.
The two princes perked up because both were proud of their sword skills and often sparred with each other. They were tempted to challenge Luka but felt the kid was too young for them to fight. Besides, Yarek and Josen believed that Queen Ariela exaggerated Luka's martial prowess. How could a 5-year-old cut falling leaves? Even they couldn't pull off this feat!
The servants soon entered with pushcarts. Two servers laid a big platter at the center of the table, which contained a whole roasted baby pig. Next came a platter of chicken and fish, followed by a choice selection of lamb ribs.
The servants handed out small bowls of rice and baby carrots to each guest at the table and big mugs of warm ale for adults; children received honey tea instead. The servers cut and distributed a portion of each dish to every patron at the table. They also refilled the king's mug, at first with ale but later on with red wine.
Luka ate very little because he was busy watching Bel and ensure that the familiar behaved properly. His mother only sampled a few dishes because she disliked the royal family, especially the shrew and calculating Queen Marmlova.
An hour later, Duchess Silverblade excused herself and her son. With the king's permission, the two guests departed the castle and entered the royal carriage to return home.