Chapter 135: Bee-hold the King!
A couple of days passed. Belissar and Muuraqi built a small stone chamber for burning queens to evolve in, then Belissar tried to keep himself busy planning for the beekeeping lessons. He did not start on them though, for he was preoccupied with the ongoing negotiations. He, the karnuq, and the bees had many discussions on what preparations they could make, then spent much time and effort making the preparations decided on. Not only he and Chief Rohsuak, but all the karnuq and the bees had a role to play.
In the meantime, Chief Rohsuak met again with Second Queen Berbiya to hammer out the final details of the deal, to tour the proposed borders, and to arrange for Belissar and King Ratuatapi to make the final agreement. As Chief Rohsuak predicted, the skunk people requested to visit the Sacred Den and observe Belissar make his promise before the Shrine of Bees. Chief Rohsuak and the second queen then had animated discussions on the details of that visit, particularly how many guards King Ratuatapi would bring along with him.
But eventually, they worked it out. Neither side wanted to waste any time, either, so they set the date for the day after that talk. That day was now here.
Belissar frowned as he held his arms out.
“Is this really necessary?”
Metsaitti nodded as he placed a heavy fur coat across Belissar’s shoulders.
“Even a cave panther can be intimidated by a fearsome appearance. This is a weapon as well, Sacred Den Master.”
Belissar could only take the karnuq’s word for it as they dressed him up. It turned out they didn’t initially have much clothing in his size, so the karnuq had done a rush job adjusting everything. They had no choice, though, since Belissar’s own wardrobe was limited to worn tunics…and that was before he had become a Sacred Den Master with nothing but the one on his back.
He now wore a far newer tunic and pants under the fur coat Metsaitti had just put on him. He was adorned with pieces of honeycomb built in the shape of bees directly by the workers. On his head, he had a crown of woven mana flowers, still faintly glowing. Metsaitti then handed him a spear that was just a bit too large for him, but he managed to hold it upright. Metsaitti nodded.