Chapter 399: The Elder
The silence in the surrounding area had now reached its peak. The five Master Knights were frozen in place, unsure of what to do next. Should they help protect their leader or stay back? They were leaning heavily toward staying back! Not only because Valtor and the rest were putting pressure on them, but because of Vale himself!
Vale had overpowered their leader with seemingly minimal effort, so why would they want to risk themselves as well? So they held their hands and watched on as Oskar was slapped senseless.
"Why did you not want to give me what rightfully belongs to me, Oskar?" Vale asked again. "Is this from the Tachibana Clan?"
Oskar froze, his face so bloodied it was almost unrecognizable. All the previous arrogance had been beaten out of him, and the only thing that remained was fear. "Yes, yes! The Tachibana are the ones giving me instructions!"
Of course, Vale already knew. All he was doing, the beating and the interrogation, was to draw out the other person who was surely in hiding. The logic behind it was simple. Oskar was a Saint of Tachibana; he must have been heavily invested in. There was no way they wouldn’t keep an eye on him and his work here.
Which begged the question, why exactly was he sent to Matsumoto? A person like him should not be here. By normal standards, Oskar was indeed stronger than lots of Master Knights, so why send a promising Knight on a mission like this?
Unless... Oskar actually had a unique position in the Tachibana Clan and had been sent out to gain experience, or to get out of the way temporarily in case of trouble. Either way, there must be a strong protector looking after him!
Vale paused, but he saw no interruption. That didn’t stop him, though. He slowly raised his hand and gripped Oskar’s head, then he began to slowly heat his hand.
Oskar didn’t react at first, but the heat was rising fast. His bald head began to heat up and cook. That was when a whimper slid out, a whimper that he tried so much to hold back, but it couldn’t be helped!
Before long, he began to scream, his voice raw with pain. He writhed, his hands trying to get Vale off, but the other had already begun to reinforce his hand with essence, making his grip stronger!
"Ahahhhhhahahahhhh!"
His screaming voice was the only thing left in the silent surroundings. But the more he screamed, the more the heat burned his head, burning through the essence he was using for protection. The smell of cooked meat began to fill the air, and any minute now, his brain would turn to mush!
"Alright, that’s enough!"
The voice was unfamiliar. It was filled with annoyance as it cut through the air. The voice wasn’t normal either; it overlapped as if a few people were talking at once.
Vale smiled in satisfaction as he turned around, a bit surprised to see where the envoy of the Tachibana Clan was hiding. The envoy was actually in plain sight!
The five Master Knights took a single step forward together at once. Their faces began to blur, and they spoke with the same voice.
"Are you really looking to provoke the Tachibana Clan?"
Then their faces turned into a single face. They now had white hair, a slightly wrinkled face, and eyes that burned with sharpness.
"Is that what you are after, Vale Athrimir?"
Vale stood up and looked at the ’person’ before him. He was sure they must be a very high-ranking member of the Clan. He bowed only his head.
"You are...?"
Before he could speak, Oskar’s anguished voice was heard first.
"Clan Elder! Elder Siegmar! Elder Siegmar Longchen, you’re here! Are you here to save me!"
Elder Siegmar’s face curled with disgust, and his figures completely overlapped and turned into a single person.
"Oskar Tachibana. You have brought shame to your family!"
Vale stiffened when he heard that. Oskar was actually a Tachibana? Although he didn’t necessarily have to share the blood and could be adopted because of his talent, he was still a part of the ruling family!
’....Thank the Crimson Lord that I did not kill him, or that would have given the Tachibana Clan a reason to come after me seriously. Although they are busy with the High Clan affairs, they can still snap if they need to. Especially if I killed a family member. It’s a shame they can’t overlook.... The thing is, Vale had to find a balance! Something not too big for the Tachibana Clan to react to, but not too small that he wouldn’t get his benefit....’
’....This Elder might just be what he needs....’
And the Elder intentionally pointed it out so that it could serve as a warning to Vale.
Vale, in turn, made no reply or reaction as he watched Oskar run to the Elder. His own forces left their previous positions and came to stand beside and around him.
"This is quite the new turn of events," Tiber said, and he didn’t sound happy about it. Their conquest of the city was going well up to this point, but now an Elder had suddenly butted in? This changed everything!
Matsumoto was to be used as an example!
"Let’s wait and see. I’ll have my full dues here, Tiber. I intend to," Vale said quietly.
The Elder scolded Oskar for a while before he focused on Vale once more.
"Vale Athrimir, this junior of mine has really caused a big misunderstanding. Come, let’s talk about this in the city. I’m sure we have a lot to talk about."
Vale didn’t move a single muscle.
"You mean, my city? Elder, this city is already mine, and at the moment, we are not accepting visitors."
His voice was cold.
The Elder paused, his eyes flashing.
"I said enough. We’ll deal with everything later. Come into the city."
Vale smiled with dark amusement.
"Is that a command I hear in your voice, Elder Siegmar? I paid my respect to you earlier. Anything more than that, and you’ll be pushing me."
The air seemed to freeze between them. This was a brief struggle for power, something small but something that would set the tone for all their discussions!
If Vale entered the city on Elder Siegmar’s invitation, then he already lost. But the Elder didn’t want to be on the losing end as well.
The Elder slowly gritted his teeth as he realized that Vale knew where the balance of power lay. Unlike Oskar, the Elder did not have the Tachibana family behind him. He was an Elder in the Clan but not an Elder in the ruling family. The difference was quite huge!
He was forced into compromise.
"Then let’s have our conversation here. It matters not."
Vale waved his hand.
"Eryndor, you go with the Radiant Sky and secure my treasures in the city. Kill anyone that stands in your way."
"As you command!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
The two swung into action at once, and Vale smiled leisurely as he began to walk toward the Elder. The Elder was doing his best to hide his fury. Vale had completely flipped the board!
"But Elder, he’s going to...."
"Shut up! The Clan disciplinary committee will deal with you later," Elder Siegmar shut him up firmly.
Just then, a casual voice commented,
"I might just kill him before the disciplinary committee gets to him."
Both the Elder and Oskar stiffened at the voice. The anger in Siegmar could no longer be hidden as his face flushed with it.
"Watch yourself, Vale! I am the representative of the Tachibana....!!"
Suddenly, Vale blurred forward with incredible speed, so fast that he left afterimages behind. He appeared directly in front of Siegmar and Oskar, shocking them into flinching.
Vale laughed at that, seemingly enjoying himself. Then he said frankly,
"I can kill you, Elder Siegmar, and I can kill Oskar too, although that wouldn’t be wise. But killing an Elder like you is no big deal. If you were that important, you wouldn’t have been sent to babysit him.
"But I won’t kill you. You know why? Because you will make a good messenger. Go to the Tachibana Clan and tell them that I want to speak with someone with real authority."
Elder Siegmar’s face turned paler and paler the more Vale spoke. He swallowed with difficulty, and the dignified figure he had shown when he first appeared was completely shattered!
Worse, he knew that Vale spoke the truth!
Without speaking, the Elder turned toward the bird-like ship, but Vale sighed and shook his head.
"Ah, Elder Siegmar. You want to take my ship too? How shameless can you be."
Then his voice turned cold.
"Are you really going to rob me in broad daylight?"
The Elder stared blankly and then turned to look at the expanse of farmlands surrounding the city and beyond that, as if he was looking at the long stretch of road that would lead to the Tachibana Clan.
He couldn’t say anything.