Free Web NovelChapter 57: Ch 57: A summon for meeting
[Grand Master Kael,
We are grateful for all the help you have provided up until now. We are also happy with the progress that Hero Leon has shown under your tutelage. It is incredible how you were able to achieve all this while being ’so young’ yourself. I am sure your helpers and tutors must be proud of you.
However, as much as we appreciate all you have done, we have concerns of our own, especially those concerning the current Hero.
Our current Hero is only fourteen years old. He is far too young to begin monster-hunting training. Rushing him would not be a good idea either. So, as much as we would like to oblige you and approve this request, we cannot do so with a clear conscience. We refuse to send a ’child’ onto the battlefield.
We also understand that you are currently young, Grand Master, and can easily be influenced by those around you. It is also clear that you are keeping some...’unfitting’ company that is influencing these hasty decisions.
As such, we would like to have a meeting with you to make sure you are still ’capable’ and not under any external influence.
The meeting will be held tomorrow at 02:30 PM. Please come with the Hero as well as your other companions. We will need to evaluate them as well.
Sir Henry Buckmen
From the Noble Faction and Temple Secretary]
"These bastards. If they want to insult me, then they should do it to my face. Why hide behind these flowery words? Do they think I won’t realize what they mean?"
Kael had realized one thing after coming back—everyone underestimated him because he was young.
It was also a feeling that had been present during his second life. But due to access to the internet and social media, the gap had been much smaller. It was much easier to gain recognition in that world, regardless of your age.
Here, the thought process was backward, and due to the lack of information sharing, it was very easy to bury information.
Not that those at the top were going to do anything about it.
The media was controlled by these people, and they could throw their weight around and rewrite history however they wanted.
Unless...
"Should I screw these people over by inventing the internet in this world? We currently lack the technology compared to the other world, but we have magic that can be used to produce similar results."
Kael’s mind was running through ideas at full speed.
He was also getting excited just thinking about toying with the people who wanted to cause him trouble.
Unfortunately, it was not a one-day task.
And Kael would not be able to achieve it alone.
"I should get started on a prototype first. Once I have something, I can ask the Magic Tower for help."
Kael would have to be discreet.
There were a lot of high-ranking people who would not welcome the idea of free information sharing. So Kael would have to launch his project before they noticed what was happening.
He knew he could do it.
It was only a matter of how long it would take.
...
Kael had received that letter late at night.
He had not wanted to wake up the trio and inform them about their upcoming visit during such late hours. So he decided to tell them about the meeting the next day during breakfast.
"I am afraid that we will have to cancel today’s training session. We have been called in for a meeting today. Be ready to head out before 02:00 PM."
Three faces tensed as soon as they heard Kael’s words.
He had kept his voice neutral and spoken in a calm manner.
He had not wanted to startle anyone, but it was clear that he had failed in that endeavor.
"Is this meeting...because of me? Do they want me to go back to the temple?"
Seraphina asked in a worried voice.
Her anxiety surprised Kael because he had not expected Seraphina to be this concerned about her position in the temple.
In fact, it was not a topic she had even brought up until now.
"It’s nothing like that, Seraphina. I doubt this meeting is about you. I recently sent a letter requesting permission to allow Leon to join a monster-hunting team. It’s regarding that issue."
Kael tried his best not to look at Iris when he spoke, but his instincts betrayed him.
Iris was also perceptive enough to realize that this issue involved her, and she immediately looked away.
"Why would anyone have a problem with Leon hunting monsters? Isn’t that what he’s training for? Or are they afraid he’s too young and might get injured? Aren’t injuries a normal part of a Hero’s training?"
Iris asked in a tense voice.
She had already gotten the message that half of this mess was because of her, but she pretended it did not bother her.
Kael sighed at the question and wondered how he should answer it. freeweɓnovel.cøm
There was a simple answer he could give, but saying those words left a bitter taste in his mouth.
’I don’t want Leon to hear those outdated temple beliefs. But not saying them out loud would be like admitting that I’m afraid of the temple.’
"Those people at the temple believe that the Hero exists for everyone’s sake. And since he belongs to no one, he cannot make any decisions without public input. Even the decision to begin training and go on expeditions needs to be made for the public’s sake."
Kael ultimately decided to say those cursed words.
But Leon beat him to it.
There was no expression on Leon’s face when he spoke them, and Kael felt sorry for him.
No kid should have to go through the kind of brainwashing that told them to live for someone else’s sake.
Luckily, Leon did not seem to be as affected as he had been in their past life.
’Getting Leon out of the temple’s influence was the right decision. I don’t think Leon will make the same choices he did in his previous life, but you can never be completely sure. I should keep an eye on him just in case.’
Kael calmed himself down quickly, but Iris did not show the same restraint.
Instead, she slammed her hand down on the table with an enraged look on her face.
"Those bastards! Are they even human? Do they have any regard for your life?"
Iris complained, and Kael sighed.
"To them, all lives are nothing more than tools to gain an advantage. It will be better for your mental health if you stop thinking of them as human."
