Hiro then stood up and said to the group. "I will go alone. The rest of you try to finish your meal in peace. I will handle them." The countenance of his wives indicated their worry and intent to join. But the husband of Mitsurugi shook his head and left.
Alan and Xing followed him out, when Hiro saw this he stopped and turned to them. "I did say that I will go alone did I not?" irritation obvious in his voice, the golden pair bowed as they answered. Alan step forward and shielded his wife.
"Master, It is very easy for me to stay behind, but I am your representative. To one such as yourself dealing with stupid matters is demeaning. Please let me go in your stead. One does not call out a king for trivial matters.
"Your time should be better spent on spoiling your family Master. Just listen in using your sense or the brand. I can serve as your mouthpiece if you have something you wish to say."
'Ho? Look at this glib-tongue bastard. You would think he took courses on kissing ass. Still, he is right. I intended to just pressure them all to leave. Going out after him would still be fine. Or I can just kill the annoying ones.'
The merchant then continued. "Master, I would like to remind you that you are not allowed to kill the ones that trespass. The BHR is officially sanctioned. Killing others here is not allowed. At least for now."
"How? Did you gain a mind-reading skill you bastard?" perplexed Hiro asked in irritation.
Xing chucked as she answered for her lover. "Master, your power may be unfathomable but your thoughts are not. I believe many would have already commented that your face shows even the words you have yet to say."
Hiro made a deep sigh as he responded. "You two are beyond rude you know that? One would think you are not my retainers."
Unable to hide her amusement, Xing covered her face with her fan as the woman giggled. "Master, it just shows how much we understand you. It is such times like these that I remember you are human like the rest of us. I agree with Alan. Please return, as your spymaster I will serve as your eyes and ears while Alan speaks to them."
The butcher then faced forward before he answered. "Your offer is indeed tempting. In the future, we will do that. But as Dylan invited me personally today I need to give him some face. I already checked the ones outside. They are from the ones we protected and ones we have yet to kill. I believe he intends to show them his power over me."
At Hiro's explanation, Alan and Xing followed Hiro as he went to the lobby. Inwardly they already knew how smart their master was. He seemed to be a brute, but his ability to see through truths and plots went beyond skill.
Hiro knew psychology and economics, as well as having political acumen. The only problem was that due to his strength and personality, he rarely used them. The man while having the ability to become a politician just solved most of his problems with a swing of his sword.
Upon entering the lobby Dylan, sat in one of the chairs while a large group of people stood up. There were men and women among them. Hiro used his AGI and noted a large number of normal humans in the group.
'Humans? Why are they not even system users? Are the participants sponsored by these people instead? I don't remember reading that among the information from Xing.'
Just as he started to doubt what his spy-master gave him a female voice echoed in his mind coming from the owner of the Arcus Kiss.
'Master, I am sure you are wondering, but the reason I did not bother listing the information about the battle harem sponsorships was due to their worth. The representatives here and the governments behind them had neither resources nor clout worthy of your attention.????????????ℯ????????????????.????????????
'When I added the fact that the battle harems they choose to back were scoundrels and trash, I found no purpose in sharing their info. I can tell you now which group handles which if you want the information now.'
Hearing the intent of the omission Hiro grew pleased. The main job of the secretary to most CEOs was not just to summarize but provide information of worth to maximize the CEO's time. While the dangers of manipulation are ever-present Hiro knew that Xing is trustworthy.
'No need Xing. I trust you. Continue like that, if I am going to kill their forces anyway I don't need to know their situations. Just make sure to keep me notified of the important matters.'I think you should take a look at
Ecstatic at the response she got, Madam Xing made a beautiful smile as she expressed her delight. "Yes Master, I will." Not only did Hiro not reprimand her, but he also reiterated his belief in her abilities and judgment. For one like her, no greater praise would be better than trust.
Alan who saw the happiness of his lover smiled. Such a reaction meant that Hiro must have approved of his woman's decisions. Unlike most people, Alan knew that the chances of Xing and Hiro having an affair would be impossible so the looks Xing gave Hiro or the smiles of the latter would most definitely be work-related.
After spending time with his Master Alan was sure. You could get a thousand naked women, dump them in front of Hiro and you would be getting a sword to the gut instead. He reached out took Xing's hand and gently squeezed. Xing naturally shared her bliss with a smile.
Most people just wanted to be appreciated. Whether in work, life, or love. Xing right now has somehow attained all three. Eventually, Hiro's party reached Dylan and the butcher bowed toward him.
"I greet the Crown Prince of the Dominii. May the lance never bend, may it never break. How may I be of service."
Whispers and murmurs erupted like wildfire at Hiro's greeting. Such respect would usually be absent from those with power. Thus in one line most of Dylan's claims had already been vindicated. Pleased at Hiro's demeanor the crown prince stood up and patted Hiro on the shoulder.
"Thank you for coming out Hiro I know you are tired. The people here wished to meet you largely in part to the overwhelming battle prowess of three swords. They wanted to speak a few words to you so I arranged the meeting."
Truthfully, Dylan, Alan, and Xing intentionally set up such a case. To prevent Hiro from murdering the nobles who would meet him, the security of Arcus Kiss was strengthened several times. Right now, the establishment did not take in any customers nor did it allow any visitors.
Seeing the terrifying performance of Hiro's battle harem a lot of groups were trying to investigate who they were and where they came from. With their arrangement like a King, to get to Hiro one needed to go pay through them first.
Hiro said nothing and looked towards the group with them. His eyes were like that of a lion studying its prey. The unseen pressure from this beast in human flesh silenced the entire lobby. In contrast to his normal countenance, the butcher's face now resembled one of a mannequin.
One of the ladies in the group stepped forward and bowed to him. "Sir Hiro, I thank you for sparing my husband and saving him during the competition. The Stonemaker family will never forget this favor." With her as the genesis, several other representatives all kneeled as they gave thanks.
When the ones who showed their gratitude finished, Hiro simply gave a quiet nod and directed them to the prince. "You are welcome, however, I did not save your people because I wanted to. I only did so at his instruction. The one who truly deserves your gratitude is the crown prince."
The families that heard his reply then looked at Dylan in reverence. Hiro knew this one line would give his friend some severely needed allies. Inwardly he thought 'Now we need to prevent these people from being assassinated. I really need more people.'
As the butcher already said as much the other families then kneeled towards Dylan as they pleaded. "Prince Dylan, please direct Sir Hiro to protect our battle harems, if we lose them we will be ravaged by neighboring kingdoms! We are ready to plead our allegiance for doing so."
Dylan looked towards Hiro in wonder. Hiro already had a list he intended to save, would he bend to allow these people to get their battle harems? The butcher aware of the prince's dilemma then spoke cryptic words next.
"You don't need to worry about that. In the next few weeks, no one is going to attack your kingdom."
"What? Why would that be the case Sir Hiro?"
Hiro replied with a small smile as he answered. "That is because everyone is going to be too busy putting out the fires in their own gardens."
