Azimuth: The Elden Throne

This chapter was more of a recap than anything, not a recap of what already happened, but a recap of what would happen since I didn't want to go through more character reactions and conversations.

I want some action.

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/Later…/

Following his meeting with Erile, Dale went around the Village gathering the Elders for an 'emergency' meeting.

All of the usual members, including the new ones, the representatives of the Refugees, were called, those being Sarferato, his son, and Winthrope.

For the sake of simplicity, they reduced their numbers to only those three, which ended up being the right call.

Right now, due to Dale's choice and actions, Resko is in the middle of a transition.

From the current method of governance, a self-governing system where each Villager solved their problems in the way they saw fit while under the guidance of the Elders, who served as a neutral ground for the application of laws...

To its previous Monarchical system. Where there was a ruler and the Noble Families to support the management of the extensive territories.

However, it was still too soon for anything concrete to be established, and a sudden jump would help no one, so until then, and for the next few months as well, Resko would retain its current system, albeit in a more lax manner.

Over time, this transition would grow in strength, until Winthrope became the representative for the Village, albeit not for long or if at all as soon enough, all the weight would befall Dale's shoulders.

However, if everything went as planned, not much would change, at least for a while as Dale would still be free to move and act as he previously did.

Resko was no city with hundreds of socio-political and economic issues, Winthrope would be more than happy to solve the few we have and leave the rest for him to decide.

Of course, one day, things would pile up and Dale would have to choose, to be an actual ruler atop a throne, or remain an adventurer getting his hands dirty in the field.

But such choices were far away from the current him, for now, he was free to do as he pleased… Just like now, he bothered everyone, gathering them in a hurry.

It was to no surprise most were… Not pleased with the way he handled things, but as always, Dale would talk his way out of the situation first before telling them his reasons for gathering them.

First, he relayed to them what he found in the mines, including the ruins as there was no reason to omit it.

Revealing its existence should help everyone avoid the area, as long as they keep it amidst themselves…

If such information reached the ears of the players…

Anyhow, the discovery of large deposits of minerals and iron underneath the mountains was a great discovery to all, definitely something they all wanted to hear, and a good omen for other future discoveries.

But it wasn't enough for an emergency meeting, so Dale used his second card.

He revealed the Unlocked Sound Box and the 'truth' behind the fall of the Southern Wall, part of it at least, he made sure to emphasize this part as he didn't want to create any misunderstandings.

This revelation shook pretty much everyone present, to think that part of the issue, the reason why the Empire reduced their support for the South came from a political struggle, mostly from the Commander's wife…

Sarferato and Testros knew better of course, they realized the support for the Wall had been dwindling for a very long time, but the marriage between the princess and the Commander, together with the King's suspicion, was likely the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Of course, there was the possibility the Corps could potentially survive if they chose to go fully independent, but that would be rebellion.

It was clear the Corps possessed everything to maintain themselves, ample resources, personnel, and space to grow, they only needed to tap into it all.

But the Crown pressed limitations, preventing them from accessing it all, the reason why they actually began to dwindle.

They fell from grace not because they lost help from the Crown per se but because they were being sanctioned into oblivion... And the moment they resisted, it would signify Rebellion, which may lead to a Pincer attack from the other Four Corps...

If it wasn't death from the Devils, then it would be from their Conrads from far away... Although death was still death at the end of the day, no one remembers them now, but at the very least, that is better than being cursed for generations to come, isn't it?

With the revelation, came the reactions...

For Winthrope, his eyes even seemed to shine as he heard the news, and for good reason.

Can you imagine? If Dale, the candidate for being the Monarch of Resko were to marry Erile, who was not only of Royal blood but was also a chosen one of a Divine, wouldn't this give extreme credibility to his position and their claims?

All of this was talk for the far future, but there would be a time Resko would step back into the Political world, likely at a time beyond his, but he wished to build the foundation for his family to live well in a city he respected greatly!

This was where their roots grew, his job was to make sure the soil was as pure and nutritious as possible so the future seedlings could grow tall and strong and support the soil as well when they grew their roots.

This revelation alone sparked an entire discussion that went on for at least half an hour as everyone tried to speak their minds and opinions about this issue, until Tina cut through them all in her usual rude manner, saying they could theorize all they wanted, but the past could not be changed, they should focus on the present and in the close future.

Understanding the past was necessary as not knowing how one reached where they were is foolish, but trying to base every single one of their actions on their past footsteps was nothing short of a mistake. Especially if those steps weren't theirs.

With this opportunity, Dale proceeded with his revelations, showing the storage item of the Commander, shocking both Testros and Sarferato once more.

Unfortunately, most of the items within were beyond recovery, but Dale emphasized how important they were nonetheless, making use of the supplies the Commander gathered could potentially save Resko from many hardships in the future.

The question was how to make use of said resources, it's not like they can pull the Armors and Weapons from the stash and hand them over, that wouldn't enforce their image, which was necessary right now, much less incentivize the people to train so they could deserve said items.

But it was still true that Resko needed strength and fast… They didn't have much time left to prepare.

Yet, they had the Refugees didn't they?

On one hand, the Refugees maintained a certain standard of combat ability, magical ingenuity, and technological development, giving them the right to utilize such equipment.

However, sharing too much with them could lead to a fracture in the already thin balance between them and the Villagers.

This sparked another half hour of discussions as they went over everything inside the storage item, and once they were done talking and wasting saliva, Dale decided it was time to reveal his real reason for being there…

He went through it slowly, answering as many questions as he could as he tried to convince them of the "truth", blaming it all on Ju-Arkesios as he omitted Babylon from his story.

It was to no surprise they didn't exactly take his words quietly…

…

/Later…/

Around a kilometer North of Resko, several people could be seen standing on the dunes as they came and went with the wind…

"It's not too windy today, a good day for some outdoor training…"

/SHOOSH!/

"Let's begin." Sarferato said deeply as he rested his massive cleaver on the ground

"I'm ready." Dale replied as he held a training sword in his hands

"As you should be. But don't forget why we're here boy, I can see it in your face, don't try to hide it."

"..."

"I don't doubt you, I imagine few do… We're too old to hold suspicions on people anymore…"

"Speak for yourself." Tina said with a chuckle as she sat on a rock nearby, Sarferato also smiled as he looked at them

The pride of two old people who successfully recovered part of their youth…

"Ahem… I'm not here to prove whether or not what you said was real… I came here to reassess your current self."

"I forbid you from using your previous equipment, this is meant to be a test, not a combat session."

"Wouldn't that be a spar then?" Dale asked as he raised an eyebrow, already knowing the answer

"Heh, you think you can spar with me boy? Guess I really trained you well if that's the case!"

"What about your cleaver? Isn't that unfair for me?"

"Heh… You already know the answer don't you?" Sarferato replied as he grasped his cleaver, pulling it from the ground and resting it on his shoulders

"..."

Dale looked at his sword, it was a standard model used by the Corps, there were over a hundred of these in the storage item, Dale only picked one for this training session because Sarferato ordered him to.

The Sword was only Half-Unique, one of the lowest item grades he had ever worn, which was quite ridiculous, most players didn't even have Rare items…

On the other hand, Sarfertato held his cleaver, a Half Luminous item.

The difference was appalling, Dale wouldn't be surprised if the cleaver just cut straight through his sword like butter. He would need to push himself just to keep the sword in one piece throughout their bout.

This would be hard… But he expected this, it was just something Sarferato would do…

'I'm surrounded by bullies… Old bullies with no one to torment but me…'

Closing his eyes as he remembered all the suffering this old fart had him go through in the future two months, Dale took a deep breath, ready to face him again.

"What exactly do you want me to do?"

"Nothing specific… Just keep standing until I'm satisfied."

"And by all means... Don't fall!" He replied with a wide smile as he kicked the ground underneath him!

/BOOOOM!/

The sand dune was compressed and blasted under the might of the old man's foot!

With his cleaver in hand, Sarferato raised it high in the sky, ready to swing it down at Dale with the full might of a Division Commander!

"Phew… I want a break…"

This was a sight Dale had already seen dozens of times before, it was Sarferato's preferred method of initiation, a direct and simple strike, but don't let it fool you.

Sarferato had already gone through everything. He faced enemies that clashed with him directly, those that fled, and those that evaded his strike and defended against it.

He knew exactly how to counter each strike in the most violent and efficient way possible.

Dale learned that in the bad way…

There was only one proper way to respond to his move, and likely the reason he started with it in the first place…

/BURN!/

He let his Vitality ignite and his heart to tremble.

At the center of his body, his Vision materialized, taking the shape of a deep purple color…

It enveloped his blade like a film akin to the surface of a still lake, shaking ever slightly.

"!"

'So it was true! The boy has mastered it!'

At the sight of such a phenomenon, Sarferato smiled with joy and pride, before focusing on his task once more.

/ZAP!/

/ZAP!/

"I'll be ramping this up a notch then!" He said as his ax began to tremble with red thunderbolts

"..."

Raising his head, Dale suddenly felt even more tired…

The sword and cleaver met, cascading into a show of lights!

/BOOOOOOOOM!/

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Notes