At an unknown location hundreds of kilometers beneath Angaria's surface, the man shrouded in darkness had his eyes fixed on the Head, who was carressing the wine bottle that he had unearthed after great difficulty.
They were currently sitting in a large, open room with a high ceiling which was filled with bookshelves everywhere.
If anyone looked into this room, they would never be able to guess that it was underground.
That was because there were multiple, huge windows which showed different scenes around Angaria.
One showed the image of the Endless Sea, where the furious waves were crashing against the shore, warning all those who dared to enter that their only fate would be to be overwhelmed by the silent might of the water.
Another showed a forest much like The Valley of Mist, plete with trees which reached the skies and beasts that were going about their lives.
All of these were views from above, which was something that would shock all who viewed them except Mages.
A Mage would be able to tell that all of these were teleportation portals that were actively being maintained at the expense of Ether blocks.
Such extravagance…was only possible in the abode of a Hero.
After looking at the bottle from all sides, the Head expertly removed the seal, took away the cork, smelled the aroma that was peachy yet laced with a spicy scent, poured it into a glass and finally swirled it before taking a gulp and exclaiming in satisfaction.
Filling up the other glass on the table, he said, "Drink up."
Of course, currently, the man didn't care about the wine, or the fact that he was forcibly under house arrest.
Flashes of memories of his son kept revolving in his mind, fanning the flames of his fury which demanded blood.
However, he had already used a clone to scout Lanthanor. Just like the Head had said, there was a formation all around the Kingdom which would detect if any Hero-level individual or clone stepped foot inside.
All he could do was circle the Kingdom like a helpless, starving dog whose food had been placed behind an impassable cage.
At least, that was how he felt.
With a knowing smile, the Head poured himself another glass and said, "You can put those clones away, and relax! That kid definitely won't leave his Kingdom. Just take a sip, or it's all going to be over!"
With frustration, that was exactly what the man did.
He knew that the King wouldn't be foolish enough to appear outside even after being warned explicitly by the Head.
Even though the Head was powerful, it was impossible for him to constantly monitor large tracts of land for something specific like this. All he could do was lay down a formation the size of a Kingdom, and keep an eye on it while handling all the other responsibilities he had due to his role.
If the King put even a foot outside, the man was confident that he could end his puny Warrior life even though his main body was under lockdown.
Yet, it was ridiculous to hope for something like that to happen, unless one was suici-…Wh-what the f*ck?!
Choking on the mouthful of wine, the man watched as the King calmly appeared on the border wall of the Lanthanor Kingdom.
"What's wrong? Too bitter for you? Want me to break out some of my stock?"
The Head had too many things he was handling at once, so he wasn't paying any active attention to Lanthanor except for maintaining that formation. So, he wasn't seeing the same image that his 'panion' was gazing at with an incredulous expression on his hidden face.
Yet, the shock soon gave way to even more fury, as the King looked up to gaze at the stars casually.
This f*cker was taunting him after killing his son!
And to think that he had gotten all excited on seeing the King appear on the border…Of course he wouldn't be dumb enough to step outside!
Making elaborate plans about how he would torture this pompous runt when he got his hands on him, the man pletely dispelled the excitement and just shook his head before swallowing down the wine acpanied by a cough.
"All right. Have another, then."
Saying so, the Head refilled his glass, which the man took into his hands again while cursing under his breath.
However, when he threw this into his mouth, too, he couldn't help but choke again.
"Ok, really, Rayen? Don't waste this bottle because of your anger…let me get one which is dispensable."
This time, even the Head frowned and said this, as it obviously wasn't normal to choke not once, but twice on a swig of wine unless one was going crazy due to strong emotions like anger.
Understanding that that might be the case even though it was strange, the Head disappeared and reappeared with a silver-colored glass bottle.
Yet, the man was still in a daze.
"You look like you're seeing either your worst nightmare or your greatest hope appear in front of you. Surely, you can't still be thinking that you can reach that kid, right? If this daze is because you came up with something…"
Hearing this, Rayen, as he had been called, snapped out of the daze with a start and said, "No! No, its nothing like that."
He was trying hard to act normal, but his mind felt like it was being battered by those same waves of the Endless Sea which were visible in the window behind him.
That was because…the King, who had looked as if he would taunt Rayen and then leave, had just stepped out from his border and was now standing, unguarded, in an area which wasn't under the eye of the Head.
What the f*ck was going on?
Surely, he can't be looking for a way to reconcile things, right?
Even then, why would he give up the safety of his Kingdom and throw away all the chips he had?
It just didn't make sense, and this had been the reason why Rayen had had to fight to not let his jaw drop, lest he alert the Head.
That couldn't happen at any cost. So, after taking a sip of the second grade wine that the Head had brought, he came up with an excuse.
"I-I just remembered something I always wanted to tell my son before he died. Now, I no longer have the opportunity. Curse you, Head."
Yes, this was definitely a normal reaction.
Throwing back his head, the bearded man whose age couldn't be deciphered by any known means laughed uproariously.
"I've lost count of the people who said that. Curse me all you want, but you won't be getting your way. I'm bored. Wine should be enjoyed with tales of intrigue and mystery! Why don't you tell me about your son?"
This made red hot anger explode again inside Rayen, which wiped away all the disbelief and caution that he had felt after seeing something that was so absurd.
Screw all that. He would just kill him, and ask questions later.
So, gritting his teeth, Rayen split his consciousness. Most of it stayed in his main body so that the Head wouldn't be alerted- but the rest took active control of the clone.
While he began telling the story to the Head, the clone shot in the direction of the King like a et.
…
Meanwhile, Daneel was covering his mouth with one hand and yawning.
Where was this guy? He had more important things to do, but he was being held up by this vengeful Hero.
Your son was killed! Shouldn't you be abandoning all notions of being safe?
Well, this was really important, too, but currently, Daneel's main focus was to get out that highlight reel of the show as quickly as possible.
It would be replayed at night every day, so that those who might have missed it would get a chance to be influenced, too.
Besides, he was pretty damn confident in the plan he had made with which he would handle the conceited Hero that had threatened to kill him if he didn't do what he said.
Right when he started to wonder whether he really should shout out some inane things like "HAHA, I KILLED YOUR SON, BUT YOU'RE A SPINELESS FOOL WHO WON'T EVEN DARE TO ATTACK!
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