Royal Dining Area…
"Even though they were powerful, I didn't back away and faced those powerful Rankers from Twilight Rain with a fearless gaze… Um, are you not eating that pancake? If so, can I have it?"
Cai, who was narrating its story of bravery, was currently dining with the Dwarf King, Queen, his other wives, and his children, who were currently in the Royal Palace.
"Of course, Cai," Princess Anastasia replied with a smile. "You can have it."
The Dwarf Princess unceremoniously handed her plate of pancakes to the Boar that was eating across from her.
The corner of the Dwarf King's lips twitched because he was half-regretting inviting the boar to join them for breakfast as a way to repay it for its help in saving his daughter.
Cai ate with gusto before continuing its tale.
"Where was I? Oh yeah! I was facing off against that Ranker with reddish-brown hair, who had taken the Princess captive," Cai said with a solemn look on its face. "Truth be told, I was so scared that I wanted to run away, but in that situation, I just couldn't leave the princess behind and escape. I thought that since the Dwarves took great care of me in Leaf Village, I needed to repay the favor.
"Unfortunately, I was too weak. Instead of saving the Princess, I was beaten black and blue by those Rankers, and was kidnapped by them as well. Fortunately, My Daddy saved me and the rest is history. Um… are there any more pancakes? I got so engrossed in my story that I didn't notice that I ate them all."
Keane, who was seated beside Cai, kept his silence and pretended that he didn't know who the shameless Boar was.
He found it quite surprising that the Boar treated the Royal Family so casually as it fearlessly chatted with them as though they were its long time friends.
Robin, who was also present at the dining table, also pretended that he didn't know the boar and ate with an elegance befitting a member of the Royal Family.
After hearing Nevreal's report, Robin felt worried about his sister's safety and tasked his retainer to do everything in his power to help with the rescue operations.
Although they were all competitors for the position of Crown Prince or Crown Princess, that didn't change the fact that the members of the Royal Family truly cared for each other.
"On behalf of my family, I would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to you, Cai and Keane," King Uther said. "Without your help, the Dark Guild might have succeeded in their evil plans. Tell me, what do you want as a reward? As long as it is within my ability, I will grant it without fail."
Cai quieted down and looked at King Uther with sparkling eyes.
Keane, who knew how shameless that Boar could be, immediately tensed because he had a feeling that Cai would ask for something very unreasonable.
"Can I ask for anything?" Cai inquired.
"Yes," King Uther replied. "As long as I can grant it, I will give it to you."
Cai, who felt that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, decided to go all out. However, before it could voice its wish, Lux arrived at the scene and cut it off with his words.
"Ten Million Gold Coins!"
The King, as well as the rest of the Royal Family, shifted their attention to the Half-Elf who was panting for breath. His hair was still wet, and it was quite obvious that he had just gotten out of the bath.
After remembering that the troublemaker, Cai, was also in the Royal Palace, the Half-Elf hurriedly left the room and sprinted toward the Dining Area to prevent it from doing something that would put them all in jeopardy.
However, when he realized that the King was asking Cai what it for a reward, the Half-Elf immediately shouted the first thing that came to his mind, to prevent the Boar from speaking up.
"Okay," King Uther nodded. "As a reward for everything you have done for the Kingdom, I will reward you with ten million gold coins."
Cai, who had lost the opportunity to tell the Dwarf King that it wanted a Legendary Item, stood rooted in place.
Lux sent the Boar a message using their Guild Chat, telling it not to say anything or he would kick it out of the Guild.
Fearing that its future prospects were on the line, the shameless Boar had no choice but to cry crocodile tears and bid its wish for a Legendary Item goodbye.
—----
"How shameless can you get?" Keane looked at the boar who was still crying crocodile tears in the corner of the room in disdain. "You actually wanted to ask for a Legendary Item? Don't you know that those are like National Treasures?"
"But, Little Swordy, he told me that I can ask for anything I wanted," Cai replied.
"That's because the King was being polite and considerate. That doesn't mean that you can get away with asking for just anything!"
"Booo hooo! If only I'd known that the King of this country was a cheapskate, I would have asked for money instead!"
While Keane was nagging at the Boar for being shameless, they heard a knock on the door, which made them stop their conversation.
"It is me, Robin," Robin announced his presence. "Can I come in?"
Lux gave Cai a warning gaze before opening the door to let his employer enter the room.
Just like he expected, Nevreal came with Robin. The middle-aged dwarf smiled and patted Lux in the waist and told him that even though what happened to the Wolfpine Barony was regrettable, Robin still managed to get some Merit Points because Lux was temporarily under his employ when the incident happened.
"You've done well," Nevreal said. "As promised, I will pay for the creation of your Guild Headquarters. How much is it?"
Lux smiled and whispered the amount that he needed in the middle-aged Dwarf's ear.
A moment later, loud noises, the sound of several things breaking, and profane curses were heard inside the guest room, making the guards that were stationed outside its doors wonder what was currently happening inside.
The Royal Guards weren't aware that Robin, Cai, and Keane were all doing their best to hold the middle-aged Dwarf in order to keep him from chopping the shameless Half-Elf to pieces with the War Axe that he was currently holding with both hands.
