Kitsune of the Blue Sun

[Keeno POV]

“I’ll get straight to the point since we don’t have much time, but I think the Prince isn’t as trustworthy as he seems.” (Freyr)

 

“You’re only now figuring that out?  I knew he wasn’t any good the first time I ever saw him.  If you’re only now just learning this, then you need to get better at reading people, Freyr.  Otherwise, you’ll be overthrown very quickly when you become king.” (Keeno)

 

“What!?” (Freyr)

 

He gave me a look like I had two heads and fifty tails.

 

“Don’t give me that look.” (Keeno)

 

“Why me?  I’m not fit to rule, and out of anyone I know, you are the only one with the bloodright to do so.” (Freyr)

 

“I will NEVER rule this country.  I have more pressing matters to attend to outside of this place.  I’ve told thing to you before, Freyr, I’m only here for Emma, Sigurd, Ortlinde, and the Dead Zone.  I thought you’d figured that out when we first negotiated my terms for helping you in this rebellion.” (Keeno)

 

“That was then, this is now.” (Freyr)

 

“My terms haven’t changed.  That doesn’t mean I won’t leave someone to help you, which can only happen if we finish this war, but she will have to agree to it, now if that’s all, then we need to go.” (Keeno)

 

“…We also have to worry about Duke Lucius.  He hasn’t made an appearance yet, and when he does, we must all be in top form if we’re to survive.” (Freyr)

 

“Pffft.  Ahahahahahahaha!  You don’t need to worry about that Taboo Breaker, we just killed it.  That thing was…I can’t even say its name now.” (Keeno)

 

I looked over at the corpse of the thing and I spit on it.

 

“You deserved much worse than this, you disgusting, taboo breaking mongrel.” (Keeno)

 

“How did he become this?” (Freyr)

 

“He broke the Dragon Taboo, that’s all you need to know.  Now, let’s go commit some regicide, I’m done with this conversation for now.” (Keeno)

 

This small reprieve helped with recovering some mana and stamina.  I started moving in the direction of the tallest building in the city, the castle.  The others followed me, with Freyr taking the lead, showing us the quickest way there.  On the way, I decided to ask a few questions.

 

“Freyr, which entrance to the Dead Zone is the better point to go through.  Above or below?” (Keeno)

 

“Above.  Though I’ve never been inside it, the truest entrance is behind the throne while the bottom is just where the bodies were disposed of, minus the king’s…’art.”” (Freyr)

 

“Then I have a feeling we’ll be settling things there.  Sigurd, once we finish things with the king, I want you and Freyr to stand by for when the Prince gets there.  Emma, Pram, Freya, and I will take care of the Dead Zone.” (Keeno)

 

“I thought you said that only those with draconic bloodline could enter.” (Freyr)

 

“Anyone can enter, but only I can do what needs to be done.  Oh, and Freyr, where is Fafnir’s reverse scale?” (Keeno)

 

Freyr froze up when I mentioned that.

 

“Yes, I know about the dragon scales, Freyr.  I don’t know the story of what happened, and I’m not happy about what happened to them, but I know you had no say in it, so there is no point in taking out any anger on you, though I do want the ones that Prince has collected once this is all over.  They were bequeathed to me after all.” (Keeno)

 

“Yes…I’ll make that unjust action right.” (Freyr)

 

We continued onward through the city.  I noticed as we went that the water in the canals was becoming clearer and the thunderclouds above were dissipating, allowing the suns to shine on the city.  This being the first actual time I got to see it in detail, I was, though I am loath to admit it, impressed.  The buildings were made of white stone while the canals were lined with aquamarine pebbles.  In a few plazas we passed through, I briefly saw several murals made of multicolored stones.  They mostly depicted an old man wearing a golden crown.  Others depicted the old man sitting on a throne of white.

 

“Freyr, if there is any more of this country that is using my ancestor’s body for something, tell me now.  Some of these murals are depicting something I’m not to fond of.” (Keeno)

 

“Unless things have changed in the last decade, then I don’t think so, though as has been pointed out to me time and again today, I have not been the most observant, so I claim no responsibility for anything other than the scales.  Though many of these murals are new, the king I know would only spit on the people who made them for ‘dirtying his image with mortal standards of artistry.’” (Freyr)

 

“How in the name of all that is divine did you ever serve this king for so long without question?” (Pram)

 

“You fail to understand just how much we are brought up thinking of the king being a god in mortal form, you lady.  Being chosen to serve him is like being given the chance to become a god yourself.  When I was younger, I was much the same, just a bit more skilled than most, so I earned the title of Knight Commander.  After that, I was a glorified brute who would slay anything or anyone the king commanded.  Only once I saw what the king does with the bodies of people he had killed, or even killed himself.  After I discovered that, I questioned everything I ever knew or thought.” (Freyr)

 

“…” (Pram)

 

“I knew this country was bad from what Okami said, but that’s just…” (Freya)

 

“I had it easier than most, actually. The family I was born into was a high-ranking noble family, though I gave up the title to become Knight Commander.  I was blinded by the trust and power that position gave me…I…” (Freyr)

 

“Stop putting yourself down, Freyr.  You did things you regret; we all do that.  What matters now is what you do to make up for it, like what you’ve been doing for the rebellion.  It doesn’t matter if it’s all been a game by some royal mongrel, you’ve done true good here, and you will into the future.  You haven’t fallen too far, and your soul is still neutral.  You’re human and mortal, you are allowed to make mistakes and to correct them.  Remember this, Freyr, the only reason I didn’t take Sigurd and Emma from the rebellion and storm this place on my own when I got here was because you are a decent person in a sea of corruption in this country.  The same applies for some of the others in the rebellion.  If you want condemnation for your actions, then wait for a few years, rule this place as best you can, and then we’ll see if you still feel the same way.” (Keeno)

 

“…You are an enigmatic being, Lady Okami.  I will take your words to heart, though I still find myself unworthy of this trust you are putting on me.” (Freyr)

 

I was going to just silently acknowledge his words, but Ama whispered something to me and told me to say it to him to push him into fully accepting his inevitable future position.

 

“Few good rulers find themselves worthy of their rule.  All they can do is what they think is right.  I see that kind of conviction in you, Freyr, you can make Falheim what it should be, not what it currently is.” (Keeno)

 

“…I understand.” (Freyr)

 

After that, the only sound that we could hear was the water in the canals and our feet hitting the ground as we ran.  Almost an hour later, we found ourselves at the gate of the castle.

 

Chaos Realm:

Luna: Taboo Breaking mongrel: Dead. Next ruler of Falheim: Convinced.  Next on the list: Regicide.

Atmos: …Needs more pizzazz.  They’ve been too serious and aren’t having enough fun with this.

Atmos, not everything needs to have comedic relief.  And besides, once they are done with this, you’ll get all the fun, cute, fluffy antics you can stomach.  Think of all this serious stuff as an intermission to the true purpose of all of this, the cute fluffy couple moments.

Astraea: YURI!

Yes, Astraea, yuri.

Astraea: YAY!

Luna: You’ve stopped caring about her knowing that?

Order: Well, it IS her third Authority, so she’d have to learn about it eventually.  And besides, she has so many examples of it in front of her, it’s kind of pointless to shield her from it until she’s more mature.

Luna: Good point.  Though now I kind of feel like a bad influence.

Don’t worry, yours and Keeno’s relationships with your Fated Ones are more wholesome than some others we can name.

Luna: That makes me feel slightly better.

Atmos: Come to think of it, when is that Fiametta girl going to join Amaterasu in watching Keeno finish up in Falheim?  It seems like something she’d want to witness.

She’s still spending time with the Radiant Knights.  She’s about done there, though, so she should be able to see the last bits of the Falheim debacle.

Atmos: I see.  Sounds fun, I’m gonna spy on them for a bit, let me know when it gets interesting over on Keeno’s side again.

Sure.