Chapter 598 (1/2)

Two weeks later, about a week and a half before the time that Randidly planned to head back to Shal’s world, a group set out from the now bustling headquarters of Erickson Steel to head towards the Ogre Ridge. It included Randidly, Neveah, Tykes, Dinesh, Tatiana, and also Hank and Thaddeus.

Hank had spent the last few weeks with his family after Alan was forced to retire as the president of the UHF after his heart was removed by Father Foster. It was difficult, Randidly surmised, to live without a heart. He was somewhat shocked to find out that Arbor had set up shop with the monster people in the Northeast of Zone 1, and had saved Alan’s life with a strange ritual magic.

It had intrigued him enough to visit, which had sent Arbor into a flurry of dancing. But even Nevaeh was stumped by the strange magic that the tree explained to them. Ultimately, Randidly simply wished Arbor good luck and departed. After all, the monster people and their presence was a source of constant tension, for all that Tessa had included them in one of her speeches.

In his spare time, Randidly listened to all of Tessa’s speeches as she traveled around Zone 1 campaigning for the adoption of the Chivalric Orders. And she was winning; public opinion was slowly turning towards the orders as a way to restrain rogue elements within the world that possessed power with any legal justification.

Randidly was well aware that these speeches, purposefully or not, were aimed at limiting the ability of a person to do exactly what he had been doing in Zone 1. Perhaps he should have felt threatened, but the process of running a company and training employees, even if it was only for two months, had done a lot to get rid of Randidly’s jitteriness when it came to public interactions. Where he was unsure of himself before, he now had found confidence.

Besides, fighting against the idea would just drive it out of the open and into darker places. Randidly was prepared to fulfill his responsibilities as king after claiming this area. But now was not the time.

The Crown of Silence and Upheaval.

If we didn’t believe this, people would just believe in something else.

Apparently, Hank hadn’t told Thaddeus exactly what they would be doing, so the man literally jumped when he spotted Randidly. Afterward, he had explained that although he looked different, Thaddeus would have recognized those emerald eyes anywhere. They had left a lasting impression on him at the height of his arrogance which had driven him to work on the basics.

Without fanfare, as the factory was waking around them, the group left and boarded a train. The closest stop was also the stop near the monster area, so they were immediately greeted with tired and tense eyes when they departed from the train. At this point, both Randidly and Thaddeus’ clout helped move things along much more quickly than the average person.

‘There are benefits to this,’ Randidly reflected, watching the creeping flush in the young man’s face as he realized he was in the face of some of the most powerful people in the Zone. ‘Like it or not, people respond to power.’

Before they left, Dinesh touched Randidly’s shoulder. “You know… that press conference is today. It will be held in a few hours. I believe that the bishop of the Unity Church will be here, to participate in the founding of the orders. Paolo and Kayle as well. Should we not wait for this?”

“I believe we will finish with time to spare,” Randidly said calmly, and he truly believed it. In the past, it had taken him almost twelve hours to move through the Danger Zone and reach the boss. But this time, not only was he stronger, but he was surrounded by capable people. Randidly fully expected to make the trip in four or so hours. “And also…”

And also Randidly did not want to see this particular speech. Not only because he expected the content of it to be disappointing to him, who might need to act to prevent the Orders from causing damage to the Zone, but also because Mrs. Hamilton had tipped him off that she had heard the speeches would address him directly.

It would be better for all involved that no one would be around to see what his reaction was. So Randidly planned on attacking the Danger Zone in this window. He would likely be down before the speech had actually begun, but it would give him a palpable excuse as to why he didn’t respond immediately.

Not that Randidly really needed one.

On foot, the group made slightly less good time because neither Thaddeus nor Tatiana were quite up to speed when it came to physical fitness. Their running speed burned too much of their Stamina, and their trotting speed was insufficient for Randidly’s needs. So the group kept shifting speeds, to give those two the chance to recover. Of the two, Thaddeus honestly seemed the most out of breath.