Chapter 81 - Kilgon King Slayer

Meanwhile on the battlefields outside of the kingdom of Tarm, Kilgon and the others had been clearing the hordes of demons and turning the tide of battle. In the two weeks they had been there they had created a reputation for always coming out victorious no matter how many foes they faced.

Their efforts earned them a meeting with the leader of Tarm. They were now entering the throne room to meet him.

"Introducing to the chamber Master Kilgon, champion of the dwarves. Lady Samantha Princess of Kermonth, Lady Kaitlyn of the Forbidden Forest, and Lady Isabel of parts unknown." The advisor to the king shouted as the four entered.

All four of them entered and kneeled before the king as a sign of respect.

"You all have done well." The king said. "You have pushed back the demons and saved my kingdom from destruction. You did it as nonhumans as well, impressive accomplishments for the lesser races to be sure."

Kilgon stood up with a stern look on his face. "Now I put up with kneeling as a show of friendship." He said. "But I will not tolerate anyone, no matter who they are, call my companions and I lesser. We have fought and won more battles than your soldiers could count. We have bested demons so strong that your men wet themselves as they ran from them. We came here at the request of the lad, but if after all we've done you still feel us to be lesser… Then we wasted our time."

"Know your place, dwarf!" The king shouted in response. "This is my kingdom and I rule here! I will not be spoken down to in such a manner! Guards seize them!"

"You are welcome to try!" Kilgon laughed. "Ain't not one of you worth his weight in a fight. But if you want to give it a go, then by all means." Kilgon made a taunting motion with his hands, egging the guards on.

None of the guards moved into attack. They all just stood in fear of the dwarf. The stories of the battles on the front lines had reached the castle daily. Kilgon's heroic deeds and incredible accomplishments were the talk of all the knights in the castle. When the stronger monsters arrived, such as the ogres and high orcs, it was Kilgon and his party that stood against the entire army and won. The other soldiers could only look on as he slayed countless monsters far more powerful than they could ever dream of killing.

"I gave you lot an order!" The king shouted again. "Seize these lesser beings and lock them in the darkest dungeon! I will not be spoken to like that!"

"They are smarter than you." Kilgon laughed. "You are too blinded by your own hate to see what is clearly in front of your face. Even knowing all we have done, your racism keeps you from understanding it. We came here to get you to reject the bitch queen, and join the lad's alliance, but now I see that quest was folly. There is no way an old fool such as yourself has the capacity for such a thing."

"It is treason to disobey your king!" The king yelled; he was clearly getting worried as Kilgon started taking steps towards the throne.

"Now I give you the choice." Kilgon said. "Would you prefer to die by what you feel like is a lesser race or would you prefer to pledge your life to me?"

"I would never pledge myself!" The king yelled.

"I knew you'd say that." Kilgon said as he pulled the ax from his back and cleaved the king and his throne into two. "Well, that didn't go as planned."

The entire court was terrified and could not find the will within themselves to move.

Samantha sighed and stood up. "Good people of Tarm, I am sorry you have lost your king this day." She said to the court. "It was not our intention to become king slayers today, however we cannot allow the treatment of nonhumans to continue as they have. This war with the demons is the direct result of mistreating the other races. There is another way. A way of peace that all can live together and work with each other. A way that will combine all of our strengths and mitigate our weaknesses. It starts with ending the hate that has been passed down from generation to generation and embracing those who are different.

My kingdom is a shining beacon of what is possible. Nonhumans and humans live side by side, they work together and sometimes they even fall in love and produce offspring. I myself am the combination of elf and human. To live with such hate is not to live at all. We all must move past this and forward into a new age. That is how this war shall end once and for all. With no more fallen soldiers, or grieving widows. No more mothers crying themselves to sleep because their children were lost at war. Tarm can change! Tarm must change! The future is now!"

The court just looked on thinking and reflecting upon Samantha's words. One by one they understood her meaning. They had seen the acts of these four and her words were the last thing needed to change their hearts. They started to kneel down to her one after another.

"Looks like you impressed them princess." Kilgon laughed.

"I feel like if we waited for Zell, we wouldn't have had to kill the king." Kaitlyn said, sighing.

"I thought it was a moving speech." Isabel said. "Good job princess. So, who is going to lead Tarm now? Did the king have any heirs?"

"No." One of the advisors spoke up. "The prince lost his life in the war, shortly before you arrived. I would ask a favor of you princess. Would you consider becoming our queen? You are wise beyond your years and honestly it has been some time since Tarm had good leadership. Our previous king drained the kingdom's citizens through his high taxes, and he killed their spirit from his brutal punishments. I believe you will be able to change our kingdom for the better. Make us that shining beacon that you spoke of."

"I accept.." Samantha said with a smile.