Chapter 472 The Royal Armoury



Unexpectedly, the person waiting to guide me to the armoury was not the old man from earlier but King Justinia herself.

"Fuuu... You will have to forgive me, Aster... But keeping the image of a King is quite tiring."

I shook my head, "Not at all. I know exactly what you mean."

Oh, I know full well how tiring it is to keep up a persona for so long.

I'm guessing she took over the role of guiding me as an excuse so that she could get a break from being King.

She then gestured down the hall, "Now, shall we?"

I nodded and let the King lead the way.

"Umm... Where are the guards?" I asked, just now noticing that there was a distinct lack of anyone following the King.

"They're still around but out of sight. You do not need to be concerned for your safety, Aster."

I wasn't concerned about my safety but more of yours... But since she said that there were still guards around but just not in sight, I dropped the question.

"So how does it feel to be the hero of the Kingdom?" The King asked, a slight tone of amusement in her voice.

"I'm... honestly not sure how to feel. What is expected of me for gaining this title?"

"Nothing, actually. I admit that it's pretty much an empty title at this point, no benefits actually come with the title since we kind of made it up only recently. Hmm... Though I suppose if you consider taking Tiara as part of your harem as a benefit, then that would be one of the benefits of the title."

I tilted my head, "Eh? Did I need to get that title in the first place? Actually, what is Tiara's real opinion about this?"

The King suddenly stopped in her tracks before turning to me with pursed lips. She looked like she really did not want to say the next words coming out of her mouth but was forced to do so.

"Actually... This whole idea about the engagement was Tiara's idea... I heard you already have a harem, so she said she could just join yours and then drop out of the competition for the throne that way... Forgive me for saying this but I never thought about letting our Tiara be engaged to anyone until she's older..."

Ah... I guess the Princess figured that out after my constant trysts with Delmare and Lisa...

The King continued, "I was truthfully at a loss on what to offer as a reward for rescuing Tiara. There's nothing that we can give that would serve as a sufficient reward for saving both our Tiara and the country while also being something that would qualify as a 'reward' for you."

"Eh? What do you mean by that?"

King Justinia turned around and continued to lead me down the hallway, "Aster... I know that you plan to head out on your own in the future and you currently don't have any intentions to inherit your birth rights, but do I need to remind you what your Family is and what Madam Nilm is capable of? What can I even give you that Madam Nilm can't?"

"Err... Different sweets?"

The King paused in her steps to turn back again, "Wait... Sweets? Are you also a sweet tooth like our little Tiara is?"

"Umm... Did you not know? Why do you think I have all those tea sessions with Tiara and take her out for sweets in those sweets shops?"

"I thought... You were just accompanying her... Wait... So... If I were to offer you a whole room full of exotic sweets from other countries..."

"Ohmygoshyesyesyesyes!" I cried out immediately.

I'll just say that if I had to pick between getting some legendary equipment or a room full of exotic sweets, I'll pick the latter one hands down.

Hey, if I wanted to find legendary equipment, I can just go to some Dungeon to find it. But to get those sweets, I would have to go to a lot of different places just to gather them!

Then again, if I could have both, I would not say no either.

The King chuckled, "I see, I shall keep that in mind for the future in that case. I think you would like to know that there are various sweets prepared in the banquet as well so you can look forward to that later."

I gasped, "Then what are we waiting for! Let's finish up this right now so I can eat my sweets!"

"Kuku, I see, I see. Here we are."

We came to a stairway that was leading downwards with a single guard watching over it. The guard immediately stepped aside when he saw who was walking towards him and gave a stiff salute.

The King waved in response and descended down the stairs with me following a step behind.

The stairs led to a featureless wall which the King walked straight through without hesitation, revealing the wall to be an illusion which I stepped through as well.

Behind the wall was what I presumed to be the Royal Armoury since it was filled with rows upon rows of armour, weapons, amulets and even clothing in display cases.

Honestly, it wasn't as big as I thought since this place was probably about the size of my bedroom.

"Pretty weak security to be honest..." I mumbled, looking back at the wall.

"Don't let that fool you. It's an actual physical wall reinforced with several defensive enchantments that can withstand physical blows and nullify all but the strongest magic spells. We only managed to walk through it because I have the key," The King explained, lifting up her hand to show a ring she wore on her index finger.

I nodded to show that I understood before turning my attention to the rest of the room, "So... I can take anything I want from this room?"

"One item, yes. I can give you some information about any of the items here that manage to catch your eye."

I immediately pointed to a black sword at the side that was displayed in a glass cabinet, "What's that?"

"Mmm... That's the Soulcleaver Sword. I do not really recommend that one though."

"Eh? Why?"

"It has an effect where you can steal the knowledge and skills of the person you kill, but you would also take on their deepest regret and their hate. The last person who wielded it went crazy and killed himself."

Oh.

I pointed to a red sword further down the hall, "What about that one?"

The King gave me a wry smile, "That one is known as the Sword of Eternal Flame."

Ok, that doesn't sound so bad?

As though reading my mind, the King continued her explanation, "That sword would continuously consume your mana to light itself on fire and you can't turn the effect off even if you let go of it. Not to mention the fact that you will not be immune to the sword's fire as well."

I blinked then pointed at a platemail hanging just to my left.

The King tactfully kept her face neutral, "That is the Everhard Plate Armour."

I continued to stare at her.

Her eyebrow twitched slightly, "It has the effect of turning itself completely solid and blocking any physical blow..."

I waited.

"... But that would also mean that you can't move when it has that effect and the effect only stops when it drains all your mana..."

"My apologies, Your Majesty... But are these all cursed items?"

"Some of the items kept here are indeed a little cursed, but there are others that are not cursed. It's just that all the things you've pointed out are cursed..."

Are my tastes really that bad? Or is it that my luck is bad?

"In that case... Could sister Justinia point out some of the better artefacts in here?"

She gestured towards a helmet in a glass display not far from us, "That helmet allows you to see in the dark and prevents any blindness status effects. Pretty useful in Dungeon dives if you ask me."

"Umm... That sounds good but I already have proficiency in Umbramancy..."

"Ah, that's right... Then how about that amulet? It prevents its wearer from being poisoned from food. I have the same type in the shape of a ring myself."

I scratched my cheek, "I... Umm... One of the abilities I received as an Off-Worlder is that exact same thing..."

"Hmm... Then how about this Ring of Fortitude over here? It strengthens your mind and pretty much keeps you calm under stressful situations and you would be able to make rational decisions even if there was someone pissing you off."

"I... Have another ability like that too..."

Granted, I don't have that boon yet, but it's something that I would get sooner or later which meant that ring would be useless to me sooner or later. If I wanted to take something from here then I at least want to take something that would be useful for me for a long time.

The King gave me a serious look, "Aster... Are you perhaps a legendary artefact yourself?"

What kind of question is that?n(-o)(V))e(.l)(b--1/)n

She then shook her head, "Oh what am I talking about? You're both an Off-Worlder and a child of Madam Nilm, of course you are. I suppose the artefacts here would be just mere trinkets to you so let's head deeper in. The ones with bigger curses and better enchantments are there. Hopefully there's something that would actually be useful for you."

Oh, there's a deeper area to the Armoury? You should have told me that earlier!

Hopefully there's one that gives infinite sweets or something~