'What the fuck is this? You told me you handled it.'
Eren said to Alephee with a gloomy expression on his face. He looked at the sky that still served as a canvas for his soul-stirring individuality and hoped it wouldn't get weirder than this.
Alephee knew Eren thought she had done a shoddy job on the medallion resting in his palm. She sighed and clarified.
'I DID. This is the best I could do given our time and environmental constraints. It could have been disastrous, Eren. Much worse.'
Eren pursed his lips and let the matter be. He then paid close attention to his audience who were busy looking at the dispersing scene in the sky. Nobody called out his title or name. Nobody cheered for him. It was as if everyone had signed an illusory agreement to maintain silence.
Unlike other title holders, Eren's individuality did not generate an externally suppressing atmosphere. Instead, it created a knot in their hearts and minds.
People in the audience felt that they didn't need any external stimulus to get intimidated by Eren's individuality. Rather, most of them subconsciously accepted being afraid of him as a natural state of mind.
Even the Sages and the current Edinburgh king were stumped. They witnessed events like these dozens of times in their lifetimes. But they had not seen an Expert ranker affect the world around him as Eren did. It was as if Anfang's consciousness reacted to Eren's individuality.
'Why did it feel more like an omen than the manifestation of individuality?'
Emil thought this as he looked at Eren's dispersed individuality. But then he remembered that he was Edinburgh's king and shouldn't be intimidated by an expert-ranked youngster's individuality. He had an event to run and the show must go on.
"Grimdawn!
Emil reiterated the title he subconsciously bestowed on Eren. He cleared his throat before coming up with words to justify the title.
"Henceforth, Eren is bestowed with the title of Grimdawn. And for the right reason. We hope that Eren will grow so much that he can cast a shadow of fear in Edinburgh's enemies' hearts.
May he become the dawn of grim news for the rotten rankers of Layos."
Emil waited for his audience to react to his speech. And thankfully, he heard a clap. Then another. By the 5th second, the entire audience clapped for Eren, applauding him for the title and fief.
Nina and Levine supported Eren vocally with their screams. Jiana Jihang, on the other hand, just smiled and clapped her hands. But one could tell by looking deep into her eyes that she was in awe of her guild master's potential.
Eren's army teammates were also in the audience. Altashia, Arjun, Lyon, Dianna, and the rest banded together to support Eren's achievements.
With Eren's groundbreaking individuality, his friends and enemies realized that he was one of the rare rankers among the participants who had the potential to become a Sage. So the applause Eren received was more for his potential rather than his individuality or his title.
One had to say that Emil was very creative with his words. He understood what kind of person Eren was by witnessing his individuality. Still, Emil used just the right set of words for Eren's individuality to influence the audience.
With his creative speech, Emil defused a tense situation. The other Sages supported him by clapping along with the audience.
Emil looked at Eren's back and thought of something. He then looked at his son Rodrick who knew the butcher well. The king asked Rodrick a few questions and received positive feedback from him. After coming to a decision, Emil contacted Eren using voice communication.
'Young man, your individuality is... something. You have the potential to break into the Sage rank if you keep progressing at this rate,' Emil said, his eyes scanning Eren's face.
Eren's ears perked up at Emil's voice. The king's words caught his attention, and he stood straight, looking at the man with an intense gaze. Emil's words had surprised him, and he was interested to hear what he had to say next.
'I know you have an entire city to yourself, so I won't force you to join right away. In fact, I'll not force you at all,' Emil continued. 'But let me know if you want to work for the royal court or as one of my men under my direct control.'
Working directly for the Edinburgh king. It would have been a tempting offer for any young ranker. Ivor Osan would have accepted it in a heartbeat if he was in Eren's shoes.
But Emil could clearly read in Eren's eyes that he was not impressed. The butcher was about to say something. But Emil cut him off immediately.
'Alright! Let me say a few things to make things clear for a young ranker like you,' Emil said as if reading Eren's thoughts.
'There is a lot Edinburgh can still offer you that you might not be able to get just because you have money. I don't want to sound king-like when I say this, but there are certain ranking resources in the land of Anfang that you can only get by being close to authorities like me. We have a monopoly on them.'
Eren listened intently to Emil's words. He knew that Anfang was full of opportunities for an Expert ranker like him. And he also knew that he was missing out on rare opportunities meant for elite rankers by not associating himself with a prominent establishment. But it didn't change anything for him.
'My king…' Eren began, about to politely decline the offer. But Emil interrupted him, sensing Eren's hesitation.
'Progressing in Expert rank is hard, Eren. But Master rank is where things get really difficult for rankers.
You won't progress without prominent backers. That's why there are not many Grandmaster rankers in this world not associated with prominent establishments.
Entering the Sage rank without a prominent force supporting you is even rarer to the point of impossible. But then again, even with the required support, the Sage rank might elude you.'
Emil sighed recalling his personal struggles. He then shook his head before speaking up to Eren again.
'The opportunity I offer you will definitely be worth your time. It will be there on the table for as long as you need it to be. You know how to find me if you ever want to accept it down the line.
Just promise me you will think about it, alright?'
