Just outside the inn, Shakti struggled as she was held back by Julius to stop her from outright attacking the knights just doing their job. “Shakti, stop it!” Julius urged, tightening his hold when she tried lunging forward

  Her face twisted with annoyance as she gritted her teeth. “Why should I?!” she snapped, pushing against him. “These knights are unlawfully kicking us out!”

  Yoshi, leaning against the wall and hidden from view by her open window, lets out a frustrated sigh. “What now?” she mutters to herself

  A knight clad in green reptile skin-like steel armor was stopping others from intervening. He was equipped with a boar spear. The area where his eyes would be was glowing a bright yellow. “We are here on the orders sent by Queen Elara!” the snake knight said, holding his spear defensively. “You mustn’t be hostile!”

  Shakti’s anger spikes with enrage. “I’m going to shove my blade so far down your throat–”

  “Who’s Queen Elara?” Julius interrupted, seeing an opening

  The snake knight tilted his head toward Julius, seeking the peace he was emitting. “Her majesty is the current governor of our city,” the snake knight answered. “She is nothing but a clever woman who manages this city with the utmost finesse–like a master chef crafting a delightful dish.”

  Julius was momentarily shocked, blinking in surprise. There was a queen in this city? It seemed like it was just governed by the people. “I see,” he said calmly. “So… are we allowed to see her?”

  “I regret to inform you that I simply cannot allow that,” the snake knight replied sharply, shaking his head. “Until the Creation Anomaly is captured and in our grasp, Her Majesty will not see any guests.”

  From above, a certain Irishman called out to them. “You don’t have to look for long,”

  Fionn glides down slowly while stuffing his hands in the pockets of his coat. The snake knight tenses as he raises his spear. “You–utter scoundrel!” the snake knight snapped, raising his voice. “You are confronted with fraud for denying your kin!”

  Fionn lets out a frustrated sigh. “If I could change my genetic code, I would if it wasn’t so cursed everywhere I go.” he said, rolling his eyes. His sarcastic tone was almost like he was dismissing what the knight had said. “What’s the issue now?”

  “Queen Elara demands your presence!” the snake knight said. “She sanctioned brute force if necessary.”

  “Wow, not the first time a queen wanted me,” he quipped, a small grin flashing for a second

  “Show your respect when addressing our liege!” the snake knight growled, but Fionn shrugs casually, as if that had no meaning to him

  He straightens up his posture, addressing the knight properly. “Okay, okay. Jokes aside,” he said, his tone suddenly hardening. “What’s the real issue?”

  The snake knight, sensing his now formal tone, relaxed his stance as well. “I was under orders to seek out your presence, in the event you needed to be contained. Many of our champions have suggested you are as wicked and dangerous as a tyrant, yet the citizens referred to you as a knight in the making,” the snake knight explained, his voice slightly hesitant to say too much. “I do implore your forgiveness of my earlier intuition if I was mistaken. I will overlook your mistake of deception if you agree to comply and accompany me to visit our Queen.”

  Fionn crosses his arms, acting as if he was thinking it over. He gives a nod of approval. “Alright, fine,” he agreed. Shakti lets out an exaggerated low growl. “Oh come on!” she groaned. “Again, why does the rookie get to do cool things?”

  Fionn’s eyes glanced over at her, a slow smirk forming from the corner of his lips. “You can wait your turn,” he teased, his voice swinging back to carelessness. “You’ll get your chance. Eventually.”

  She lets out another growl, while both Fionn and Julius share a cheap laugh at her expense. Yoshi, watching the interaction from above, chooses to not say anything. After all, her master clearly had the situation under control

  A cute smile plastered her face, seeing that Fionn was getting along with Julius and Shakti. “Master really is crazy,” she mused, letting a quiet chuckle escape her throat. “Ann must be really proud.”

  As they made their way out of the city, Fionn gazed up at the people and buildings again, letting his mind drift with dream scenarios. “It doesn’t take much to start a discord,” he thought to himself, his lips curling up as a small smirk appeared on his face. “With Gi and that woman out of my way, Shakti can help the villagers whenever that false king strikes. Helio really didn’t hold back on killing those two.”

  The familiar voice of a woman called out to Fionn from behind, interrupting his thoughts. “Fionn!” she shouted, rushing over to him

  Fionn and the snake knight turned to their left, seeing Sana catching up with them. Fionn’s smirk evolved into a wide smile. “Sana!” he replied, his voice just as bright. A joyful smile brightens her face as well, clasping her hands behind her back

  “I heard the commotion and had to come find you,” she said, rocking back and forth on her toes

  “Really? I thought you’d be more worried about the shop,” he teased

  Sana lets out a small giggle, covering her mouth with a hand. “You saved me and Mr. Masamune. I owe you a lot,” she said, her eyes sparkling as they looked into his. “He wanted me to tell you that he finished your gift. I pitched in to help too.”

  Fionn’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “I hope you didn’t make the blade,” he joked

  Sana lets out a scoff that had no mocking tone in it. “Oh, shut up,” she said, stepping closer to him. “I helped make a second gift for you. Mr. Masamune made the first one.”

  “I’ll be sure to stop by soon then,” he said, holding out his pinky. Sana’s cheeks brighten slightly, but she locks her pinky with his. “You better, Fionn,” she said softly, looking at his eyes again with a more gentle tone in them. “I worked hard to make it special.”

  The snake knight watched the interaction with a smirk under his helmet. He could see it clear–young love. He chuckles inside his helmet, shaking his head slowly. “You two are adorable,” he commented. “Young romance at its finest.” Both Fionn’s and Sana’s cheeks flushed after his remark. “W-well, he did save my life after all,” she said quickly, fanning her face with a hand. “King Brennen would’ve killed me if he wasn’t there.”

  The knight nods his head. “Ah, I see,” the snake knight said. “Then I wish you two the best. Once you’re done, we’ll get going.”

  Sana’s eyebrows shot up in realization. “Oh! I didn’t mean to interrupt you two!” she exclaimed, flailing her hands slightly. With a polite bow, Sana takes her leave and waves goodbye as the knight and Fionn continued walking

  “Charming young maiden,” the snake knight murmured. “She clearly values you.”

  Fionn’s cheeks flash a glowing pink flush–something he doesn’t do normally. “Stop brainwashing me,” he muttered, avoiding the knight’s gaze. “If she has feelings for me, then she’ll admit to them whenever she’s ready.”

  The knight lets out a light laugh, almost breaking character. “Oh, you’re so much fun to pester with romance.”

  “I’m not!” he blurted out, almost too fast

  The walk to Queen Elara’s castle was quite interesting as the snake knight shared stories of Elara’s greatest achievements. Some were lighthearted and filled with jokes, others were helping Fionn learn more about the Kingdom of Arkwright and its history. “Queen Elara is an intelligent young lady,” he said, smiling as his memories of her surfaced. “At the very young age of two, she was able to expand on her magic. Did you know, just before she could stand on her own two feet, she was already performing spells?”

  Fionn’s eyes widened slightly, blinking rapidly as he continues

  “By the time she was ready for primary school, she was outshining secondary school students. Maybe ranging in university-level if I recall.” he continued. “She was bestowed the throne while still in secondary school. Elara graduated very early and moved forward in her precious life fast. Her extreme control of mana was arguably the most impressive capability she possessed–her flow was always a spectacle to witness.”

  Fionn raises an eyebrow now, curious about something. “Honestly… that’s really impressive,” he said, hushing his thoughts to not blurt something out. “She sounds like a true miracle.”

  The knight gives a nod. “She is, indeed,”

  Queen Elara, according to the knight, was said to be very young–eleven years of age–as well. She would often wear her famous white-and-blue lolita dress with a soft and cute white bonnet around her head. She would often style her copper brown hair tied back into a french braid, framed by the bonnet. The lower half of her dress was baby blue colored and puffy and long white frill sleeves. Sometimes she would be seen twirling a very light blue parasol in her hands, other times wearing a simple cross body purse in a more casual attire.

  Tragically, at the age of six, her father died in war, leaving her and her mother alone in the palace. Her mother was said to search for a new king, but has not returned home since she was eight. Not even the lead knight, the most trusted escort, knows of her current whereabouts. Since then, Elara has taken it upon herself to rightfully lead this city and make her parents proud. She has studied endlessly with the help of her enhanced magic, often sleeping very late during off days and waking up to where she left off like nothing was amiss. As the heir to the throne, and expected to lead a city, Elara stood up to fit the bill and didn’t disappoint anyone, not even other kings and queens who worried for her out of pity

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  Upon seeing her residence, Fionn was expecting to see a giant palace–or at least, a huge mansion. His jaw hits the grass when he sees Elara’s residence

  “She lives inside a ziggurat?!”

  The ziggurat was made from stone and wood, tall enough to poke the clouds above. The craft looked as if it was constantly fixed–no cracks in the word nor chips in the stone. The outside was huge, feeling like he was gazing at the inside of a pyramid. The stairs looked as if someone would be making their way up a mountain. “Quite the sight, isn’t it?” the snake knight said, letting a small chuckle slip out

  Fionn, attempting to calm himself down from his amazement, titled his head to the snake knight. “You had to walk all the way from here to the city?” he asked, still not taking his eyes off the ziggurat

  The snake knight lets out a low chuckle. “It was quite a lengthy trek,” he admitted, but it didn’t sound like he was against it, “but it was for our queen, so I don’t complain.”

  Fionn, finally able to peel his eyes away, looks at the knight. He gives a small nod in agreement. “She must be a great queen if you willingly go through this each time,” he said, acknowledging his dedication

  “She is,” the knight replied softly. “Such a young woman, yet she lost and endured so much.”

  Fionn looks at the ziggurat again, this time a fond smile forming on his face. “We should get going then,” he mused, putting his hands in the pockets of his coat again

  The snake knight nods in agreement. “Agreed.”

  As they began walking up the steps, Fionn could feel Elara’s pulse of mana from way outside–he was only on the fifth step upwards. They could hear giggling and singing from inside. Trumpets and flutes played in unison to their ears, accompanied by the sound of a young woman enjoying her time. When they reached the front door, they got a better hearing of what’s going on inside

  Fionn’s thoughts raced again. “She seems pretty strong,” he thought, glancing up at the huge wooden gate, “but that pulse feels way too familiar.”

  The snake knight pushes open the door, allowing Fionn to enter first. Inside, Fionn was amazed yet again at just the structure. Spruce flooring with blue carpet on top, stone walls pleated with steel inside, three long tables with many chairs on both ends, and a private table with eight chairs with the head of animals–cat, snake, bull, bird, wolf, bear, lizard, and porcupine–etched into them. Many men were cheering as a jester was performing his delightful tricks–tossing rubber balls towards the ceiling, using magic to create imitations of the knights in an amusing manner, imitating Elara’s top knights, and singing to the queen herself. At the head of the room, seated upon a golden throne with bright baby blue carpet cushioning, was the queen herself

  Fionn’s eyes opened slightly, starstruck that he saw someone so young be in this state of power

  Queen Elara wore an off shoulder blue blouse with a black corset around her waist, white trousers, and brown heeled boots. Her brown hair was tied into a side ponytail, beautifully falling over her right shoulder, with a white lily behind her left ear. Fionn could see her sky blue colored eyes laugh in amusement at the jester’s antics. To say she looked stunning would be an understatement

  The snake knight announced his presence, standing straight while speaking. “I have returned, my Liege,” the snake knight called, interrupting the show. Eyes glanced over at the two, confused of who Fionn was. “The Creation Anomaly is here as well.”

  Fionn’s body wanted to explode in disgust. All their gazes directed towards him made his body the most uncomfortable it’s ever been in a while. “Why…,” he muttered quietly. In a flash, he creates a black cloth blindfold–taking inspiration from Julius–to cover his eyes. This way, he technically didn’t have to see everyone, only their silhouettes of aura. As the snake knight guides Fionn through the tables, he could sense the intentions people had by first glance

  He searched through their minds, fishing out thoughts as if he was selecting things to remember for later: “Why is he wearing that blindfold?”, “This is the Pseudo?”, “They said he was dangerous, but why does he look scrawny?”

  Although he was selecting what to hear, he ignored any comments about his appearance. After all, you’d naturally do that when faced with people disapproving of your attire. Once he stands before Elara’s aura, he takes off the blindfold to be formal. He looks up into her eyes, getting a strange feeling of who she really is. Her skills were unmatched–no doubt–in anything the knights could think of, but Fionn had a vibe that Elara wasn’t completely human like she seemed. “All kneel,” Elara commanded, her voice empty of a child-like tone. Each knight kneels to her command, resting an arm over their knee. She stands up, glancing down at him. “My, my,” she started, a small smirk forming on her face, “you’ve made quite a name for yourself so far, Anomaly.”

  At least it wasn’t Pseudo again

  “King Brennen has never looked so offended by something so humorous a day in his life,” she continued. “You’re a member of Chrona Riftworks Protocol, yes? Well, I must hear the reasoning on why you would go out of your way to cause such commotion.”

  Her voice nearly was identical to an adult woman, only set at a higher pitch than normal. “What the hell?!” Fionn thought

  He steps forward, keeping a focused voice. “One of your heroes was looking to murder an innocent blacksmith worker, so I intervened in the situation,” he said, shifting his stance

  Elara nods slowly, tapping a finger on her chin. “I see,” she mutters, glancing over at Fionn. A smirk forms on her face as she sees his physique. “King Brennen did strike me as the man who did not know how to handle a lady.”

  She covers her mouth with a hand, trying to keep her composure but a few giggles slip out. “I have to say, you’re less intimidating than the rumors I heard of your chivalry,” she teased, more giggles rushing out. “You look no younger than an innocent secondary student. Shouldn’t you be in class right about now?”

  He bites his tongue, debating between which was the worse of the two: an insult by a powerful eleven year old, or the fact she sounded close enough to an adult woman. “Ugh…,” he mutters to himself. “Why is every new woman I meet hostile? First that strict woman in Chrona, then Shakti, then Yoshi, and now a child empress.”

  He straightened his stance again, letting out a quiet sigh. “I advise you, appearances aren’t everything, Your Majesty,” he warned. That caught the knights and elites off guard slightly. Queen Elara raises an eyebrow, a smirk forming on her face. "Oh? Is that true?” she asked, standing up. “I have to say, Anomaly, you’re very entertaining. You’d make a very generous knight.”

  “No,” he denied immediately. Everyone’s jaw hits the floor. Elara's eyes looked shocked, startled by his immediate denial. “Y-you what?!” a knight exclaimed. “How dare you deny an honor!”

  “A knight under Queen Elara’s banner is the highest achievement ever! An even better one would be one of her elites,” another knight added

  Fionn looked at both knights like they were crazy. “...So?” he replies casually. “I don’t want to be a knight. I’m not chilvarious, just reacting on impulses.”

  Another knight joined the conversation. Then another, and another. The simple rejection blasts into a heated argument. To deny a queen’s word of making you her knight? Blasphemy! That’s what the knights’ thought. Queen Elara, having her staff fade in by her magic in a golden spark of light, slammed the end against the ground. “Silence!” she commanded. The room dies instantly. Every knight held their gaze on her, waiting for her to continue. “If the Anomaly doesn’t choose to be my knight, I will not force that upon him. It was merely a suggestion,” she said, looking at Fionn’s eyes, “however, I would like to offer that you’ll be my private guard. There was an attack by a duo that aimed to capture me. You can deny this if you choose to as well.”

  Fionn raised an eyebrow. That same feeling came back about who she really was. It was hard to ignore this time, growing at his soul the more it lingered. “What attacked you?” he asked, his curiosity peaking for information

  “As you might know, I am a very powerful mage despite my age,” she started, sitting down again and crossing her legs. “But, while I was resting and off guard, a Tree Anomaly attacked me. My knights fought hard to save me while I was being watched by a woman with blue skin. She was quite beautiful, I will say, but she wasn't good at listening. Despite being scolded by an older woman, she wasn’t careful with me and I fled with my knights when she looked the other way.”

  Fionn’s eyes widened, realizing why she’s this incredible now–she’s the Trial Code. His breath hitches aloud, catching her attention, as well as the knights. “Are you alright?” she asked

  He shook his head to relieve his nerves. It all made sense to him now. “Yeah…,” he mutters, looking at her eyes. “I’m fine.”

  He clears his voice, masking his nervousness to not get anymore attention. “I’ll be your guard,” he said

  Queen Elara noticed the look in his eyes–he knew her secret. A soft smile lights up her face. “Excellent,” she said, standing up again. She descends down the stairs, creating a sword made from light in her hand as she crept closer. “My, it has been two fortnights since I have had the pleasure of making someone a knight–well, guard for this matter,” she said, her smile widening. She raises the blade, holding it at Fionn’s right shoulder. “Sir Fionn,” she started, retracting the blade to hold at his left shoulder, “I honor you as my private guard.” Despite her formal tone, Fionn could see the softness of her young eyes. “Please, keep me safe and sound to the best of your capabilities.”

  Fionn shakes his head again, letting a smile lighten up his face as well. “I’ll keep you safer than your guards,” he said, looking at her eyes. “That’s a promise.”

  After the introduction, the knights went back to being entertained by the jester, while Queen Elara ordered an animal knight to instruct Fionn to a private room. The knight, having a bull head design for his helmet–the horns were crafted and chiseled from black steel–and wore heavier armor, neither roamed nor strayed away from his task, but added to his personal tour by showing Fionn around. Thanks to him, he now knew where the bathroom was, where breakfast, lunch, dinner, and supper would be held, and where training sessions would be stationed. Fionn glanced over at the butlers and maids cleaning and straightening up parts of the ziggurat. The maids wore white aprons over black buttoned up shirts with white collars and white cuffs and black buckle shoes. The butlers wore black vests buttoned up half way over white collared uniform shirts with a black bowtie, black pants, white gloves, and dark brown leather shoes

  When he arrived at his room, his eyes widened slightly at how spacious it was–there was enough space to at least fit two classrooms full of elementary kids. The walls were painted a beautiful beige, oak wood flooring that ran underneath the walls, and a luxurious white bed off to the side that was hiding in the corner. It looked as if it was a recovery room rather than a room for guests. Fionn steps in, gazing all over the simplicity of his new room yet chuckling softly at the comfort he felt. “Are ziggurats really this big?” he asked himself

  The knight’s voice interrupts his thoughts, speaking calmly to Fionn. “You’ll be given a schedule that you must follow,” the bull knight started, his voice low and deep. “Queen Elara has recently fled from her previous captors when they attempted to take her.”

  The knight crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. “We all know how powerful she is, so you better keep your promise, Pseudo.” he said, staring at Fionn with his yellow eyes. He met his gaze, tilting his head with a small nod. “She’ll be fine,” he said simply, but his tone took on a more serious voice as he continued. “She’s going to smile as wide as she can after all of this is over. That’s a promise.”

  The knight nods his head, turning on his heel. “You better keep that promise.”

  When he closed the door, Fionn sat on the bed to process a plan. “So the lady is dead… and whatever she called her son…,” he said to himself, lying down on his back, “but what about that weird girl who stopped me? She clearly knew what she was doing, and that ugly bastard got away. Not only that, a chaotic ladyboy is on my ass, and the rest of those ‘Toys’ are trying to cause chaos.”

  He lets out an annoyed sigh, but freezes when an idea shoots through his head. “What am I complaining for? Division 2 and 5 can still work out things.” he said, a grin forming. He pressed two fingers against his forehead, searching for Julius’s or Shakti’s energy signals. “Where are you two…,” he mutters quietly. His senses pick up on a small woman’s energy wave–Shakti. She was carefully roaming around the city, looking for any heroes that were seen fighting Fionn just earlier. “That damn idiot…,” she huffed with frustration. “It hasn’t even been a week here and we’re already known by face.” She tugged on her hood, making sure it covered her face. “I’m not on a bounty list, but I don’t think I’m that far from getting featured in one.”

  Fionn’s voice cuts through her thoughts like a hot knife through butter. “Yo,” he said casually inside her head

  “AHHH!” Shakti shrieked aloud, freezing in place. The stares from bystanders made her feel embarrassed as she smacked her cheeks. Her face reddens immensely, streaking over her nose to her ears. The silence between her and Fionn’s telepathic voice was louder than her ears ringing right now

  "What the hell was that?” he asked confusingly

  “WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!” she shouted into the air. A man shields his child nearby, speed walking past her. “Stop shouting, jeez,” he said, letting out a low sigh, “I have a lot of information for you to write down.”

  Shakti grits her, holding off on saying a retort. “You better have a damn good explanation! You’re as chaotic as Julius was!” she demanded

  Beside her, a pencil and a pad float in the air. She takes them, ready to write down what’s needed. “Okay, so…,” he started, thinking about how to word his explanation. “At first, Julius and you were going to have to fight two separate enemies. Julius was able to easily overpower this blue ladyboy Anomaly, while you were killed by this giant Tree Anomaly. Originally, I was going to aid you and just counter the Tree Anomaly, but I ran into him earlier, so he’s dead now. The blue Anomaly is going to be accompanied by Toy Two and Toy Six, while someone named Sophie is going to be shielded by Toy One, Four, EIght, and Nine. On that note, the guy I fought with in the past is apparently called King Brennen, and he’ll be shielded by Toy Zero,” he explained, letting Shakti process the information–that is, if she even heard all of it. “You have all of that so far?”

  “Yeah. So keep watch for the women that King Brennen talks to, a blue ladyboy, and shady people.” she said simply. “Y-you actually wrote all of that?” he asked, baffled by her comprehension. “Did you paraphrase?”

  “Boy, I took notes like that in school. Nothing has changed since,” she taunted, the smugness in her voice hitting the surface

  “Fair enough,” he agreed

  “Anyway, don’t worry. I’ll inform Julius about what to do. Even though he’s blind, he can form an effortless plan,” Shakti said, smirking to herself. “What did you see about Yoshi? You didn’t mention anything about her.”

  Fionn goes momentarily quiet, making Shakti’s smirk falter. “What’s up?” she asked worryingly. “...I don’t know where she was in my vision. I only saw Division 5, Division 2, and the two enemies.” he answered finally, sounding almost saddened by that thought. “Not only that, I didn’t see whoever Sophie was either.”

  “Don’t worry, ugh,” she sighed, although her voice held none of her usual sass–just reassurance. “I’ll have Yoshi stick with me. Julius can handle his own, and my Division with Division 2 will comfort the people.”

  Fionn was surprised by Shakti’s incredible thought process. “How’d you think of something like that so fast?” he asked, astonished. “It comes with being a captain.” she answered, another smirk growing on her face

  There’s a peaceful silence between the two. For a couple of seconds, Fionn was comforted that his vision wasn’t going to play out the way it did. “Thanks, Shakti,” he said softly

  “No problem, you idiot,” Shakti responded, smiling up into the air. With that, Fionn ends his telepathic call to Shakti, turning over onto his stomach now. “We’re going to end those cowards,” he stated aloud. “Even if it’s destructive, I’ll show what an Anomaly can really do.”