525 Minister Mistral
After reaching the palace, Vaan and Astoria arranged the new living quarters for the group of homeless and jobless Darkans they had helped along the way. Later, they would be assigned jobs in the palace according to their skills and talents.
In the history of the Holy Knight Empire, no Darkan had set foot in the palace, which had been built and ruled by the Solarans.
As such, the Darkans felt overwhelming honor and misgivings to be the first Darkans granted such an opportunity.
The Darkan group all had similar situations, like the first mother-son pair who received help.
Although not all of them were parents like the young mother, some of them were once little children like the three-year-old boy. The only difference was they had already lost the protection of their mother and grew up as orphans.
Even so, this group of children between twelve and sixteen years of age could survive on their own until now because they developed their fighting skills and street smarts.
They might seem wild and untamed, but Vaan still took them in because he believed otherwise. They could be trained.
After all, even though they had stolen from others to survive, they still had their principles. They didn't steal more than needed and only took the minimum required to keep living.
Evidently, their mothers raised them well despite the cruelty of their circumstances.
"Do you have a name?" Vaan asked the young mother.
"I do, but it's a name given by the man who abandoned us," the young mother admitted before pleading, "Please give us new names, Your Divinity!"
"Then I will call you and your son Asfiya and Hector," Vaan casually named them.
When the young mother heard the new names, her body trembled as tears full of emotions filled her eyes again.
Despite what she had suffered in the past several years, she endured it all without shedding tears. But she had been crying nonstop since meeting the Sun God due to happiness she could not put into words.
However, she couldn't help it. She understood the meaning of the two names.
Asfiya carried the meaning of pure and clean, while Hector was tenacious and resilient. She understood the Sun God's intentions well. Her body was filthy and tainted, but the Sun God still acknowledged her as pure and clean.
How could she not feel overwhelmed with gratefulness?
"The world had wronged all of you. But since none of you abandoned the world, the world will also not abandon you," Vaan casually stated to the Darkan group.
"Where there is life, there is hope. You may rejoice. Today, your suffering ends. Since you believe in me, I will give you all opportunities to change your destinies. However, that also means you may face untold hardships unlike anything you have faced before."
"Are you still willing?" Vaan asked.
"For the Sun God, we are willing!" Asfiya and the rest of the Darkan people firmly replied with all their strength.
Vaan's soul continued to be nourished by the faith energy he received from the Darkan group. The collective power of faith lifted his mood and made him feel pleasant.
It was only a group of a hundred Darkan people, but their faith was far stronger than a million half-believers.
'The effect is definitely, but I still can't tell how much is needed to advance my soul to the divine rank. It seems it's not that easy to enter the divine rank, Vaan briefly mused.
Shortly after, he returned his attention to the Darkan group.
"There will be a feast for you to fill your bellies to your heart's content tonight. You all deserve it. But tomorrow, your duties will be assigned. So rest well until then," Vaan casually announced.
Shortly after the palace servants arrived to guide the Darkan people to their living quarters, Vaan and Astoria left the happy group behind.
However, a few breaths after stepping into the inner courtyard, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, Mistral Tombend, immediately appeared before them.
The person was a Solaran old man nearing a hundred years of age with short blonde hair and dragon whisker-like long blonde mustache. He wore a white minister robe with some golden markings and patterns that differentiated him from the people of the Sun God Temple.
Although the person was only a Mid-stage Aura Grandmaster, he seemed to possess worldly wisdom and intelligence, reflected in his gentle aura.
"Your Divinity. Your Imperial Majesty. It's great that you are finally both back," Minister Mistral rejoiced as he greeted the two with relief. "The envoys from the Great Ratholos Empire arrived two days ago and have been waiting for an audience with you since."
"Two days ago?' Vaan glanced at Astoria.
He may have been gone from the Holy Knight Empire for over three days, but Astoria should have been around during this time after her recovery.
"The envoys of the Great Ratholos Empire express their wish to establish a friendly relationship with our empire and negotiate a trade for some dragon blood from the Red Dragon Clan. You weren't here, and I couldn't arbitrarily make the decision on my own, either. So I haven't met with them yet," Astoria explained.
"Where are they now?" Vaan furrowed his brows before turning back to Minister Mistral.
"They are currently staying in the foreign guest building outside the palace," Minister Mistral answered before excitedly suggesting, "Should I quickly arrange a meeting for you, Your Divinity?"
"No, let them keep waiting," Vaan coolly stated.
"T-This..."
Vaan's unexpected response made Minister Mistral stunned for words. He didn't know how to think or respond.
But after a moment, he calmly accepted it.
"Understood, Your Divinity," Minister Mistral complied, bowing with one fist over his chest. A short moment later, he inquired, "Then, should I ask the Minister of Defense to send over a report on what the envoys had done during their stay in our empire?"
"Oh?" Vaan immediately gave Minister Mistral a second glance with interest as he reevaluated the old man. "That would be appreciated."
"I understand, Your Divinity. Then, I will ask the Minister of Defense to send the information to you right away," Minister Mistral acknowledged.
Evidently, they all understood the Great Ratholos Empire had hidden intentions for sending their envoys over during such a sensitive time.
As such, they had assigned people to monitor the envoys secretly throughout the duration of their stay.
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