Page 66 of The Night Prince

“Hold up a moment, I would talk with you, Declan, outside of the hubbub in the Dawn,” Rhalyf said, allowing some of the old Kindreth command come back into his voice.

Declan stopped, but didn’t turn around.The two Aravae had gotten to their feet.Both were bleeding and bruised.There was a distinctly sullen quality to their silence.They’d been so eager to tell him about Declan’s “dangerousness” to the king before, but now they clearly felt the wounds he had dealt them.

“But first, I would hear what you two have to say.What is so objectionable about this young man you intended to beat him senseless?”Rhalyf demanded of the two Aravae.

The female Aravae studied him from under her golden lashes.“You’re… you’re Lord RhalyfNeres?”

“Yes, Master Mage and best friend of the Sun King, at your service,” Rhalyf’s smile was tight.There was something in the way she said his name that he was pretty sure he didn’t like. A brief glance at Declan showed the young man had half turned to observe the confrontation.He turned back to the female Aravae.“Well?I’m waiting.My wine is waiting too.”

“He killed a Leviathan,” she finally said.“NoVulluincan do that.”

“Really?”He arched an eyebrow.“You saw him do this, did you?”

He knew she had not.No one had.It was all rumor and innuendo. It was undoubtedly true, but that was beside the point as to what she knew.

She shifted from foot to foot uncertainly.“N-no, but he survived the initial Leviathan assault.”

“Did the other two survivors kill Leviathan, too? There werethree, weren’t there? I believe one was a child. Did the child also kill a Leviathan as well?”Rhalyf demanded to know. “Maybe she took out two or three Leviathan.Please, let me know.”

She jerked back at his words.“No, of course not, that’s absurd–”

“Yes, isisabsurd.”

“But he–”

“Is that youronlyproof that Declan killed a Leviathan that he survived?”Rhalyf asked.She said nothing.So, of course, it was.“Declan survived just like those two others did.But we’ve just established that you don’t believe, at least, that thechildkilled Leviathan, too, so I’m not really following your logic here.”

“He took out five orcs in a fight.I saw him do that.”She lifted her chin.

Rhalyf let out a delighted laugh, which had Declan frowning.

“Why are you laughing at her, Neres?”The male Aravae hissed, balling his left hand into a fist and advancing towards Rhalyf. He spat blood at the end of it and his words were a little sloppy.The bitten tongue was still bleeding and painful.

Good.

“Are you sure of what you saw?”Rhalyf asked her.

She frowned.“Yes, I–”

“A fight?Arealfight?Not something carefully choreographed and paid for?”Rhalyf suggested.

Understanding started to tug at her small brain.“Are you saying that the fight wasn’t real?”

“Yes.”

“But why would he do that?”The male Aravae pointed at Declan.

“Oh, I’m surehedidn’t set it up,” Rhalyf chuckled.

“But then–”

“Helgrom,” Rhalyf lied.“Good old Helgrom!I can’t believe he pulled that trick again.And that it wasbelieved!”He slapped Declan on the shoulder.“I mean one human against five orcs and he had youwin?Goodness!It should have beenoneorc who was heavily inebriated and that maybe you brained him with something.Butfive?Totally unbelievable!”Rhalyf shook his head and tutted.“But, then again, I suppose these two believed it so I guess you can fool some of the people all of the time.”

“What do you mean?”the female Aravae snapped, her cheeks a hectic red of embarrassment. All of the sudden, her proof of Declan’s specialness was crumbling before her eyes.

Rhalyf let out another warm chuckle as he elaborated on the lie, “It’s very hard to keep order in a dwarven tavern at the best of times.Helgrom needs people to fear his bartenders so he occasionally stages fights for them to win.Five orcs though!What a riot!And people still believe it when one orc still hangs out with you, Declan?Well, well, well.”

The female Aravae’s cheeks flushed a darker red and her jaw was now set.She was doubting everything she thought she knew. She felt like a fool and her back was up.So she countered, “But you saw what he did tous!He can fight!”

---