Restart:Untalented Man-Chapter 487: Invitation

"His Majesty, the King, wishes to meet you."

"Who are you?" Percival asked.

"I am no more than a humble servant of His Majesty," the man replied. "Please do not be alarmed. The King merely wishes to extend his welcome."

Sarika stands uneasily beside her father. "Why would the King be interested in us?"

"How could I know what His Majesty is thinking?"

"Do we have a choice?" Percival inquired.

"You don't."

Sarika looked at her father worriedly.

Truthfully, she doesn't want to get involved with anything. She longed for a simple and ordinary life, far from the intrigues that had filled her life before.

A true fresh start.

But she guesses that might be too much to ask. She's too high profile to be ignored.

After a moment, Percival agrees. "Very well. Lead the way."

The man smiled. He gestured for them to follow him.

"This way. We have prepared a carriage for you."

"It seems as if you already know we'll come here." Percival eyed the man suspiciously.

The man, however, maintained his polite smile and said nothing in response.

"Tsk," Percival clicked his tongue. "I really hate people with that smile. I feel like dealing with a snake."

Shortly after walking, they arrived at the designated area where carriages were parked.

At first glance, Percival immediately knew which one they were to ride in.

It stood out among the rest. The emblem of the royal family at the door strengthens his guess.

It surprised him that it didn't get stolen.

"To think you're not even hiding it. Does His Majesty want to announce our presence to the public?" Percival asked.

The carriage garners a lot of unnecessary attention.

"Using a shabby carriage on His Majesty's guests would tarnish his reputation."

The coachman stepped forward and opened the door for them.

Percival and Sarika stepped inside and settled onto the plush seats.

"I hope you have a comfortable journey. The distance isn't far, but it may take some time due to the traffic." the man said as he closed the door. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"Wait! You're not coming with us?"

"A humble servant like me doesn't dare to sit inside that carriage. Have a safe journey."

As the carriage set off, the man glanced over his shoulder.

Another figure emerged from the shadows nearby.

"I'm glad we managed to arrange everything in time. Next time, report to us earlier once you determined their destination, No. 54. Don't wait until the last moment."

"I'll keep that in mind," No. 54 nods. "I didn't know His Majesty wished to meet them."

"We didn't know either. It worked out because His Majesty freed a lot of his schedule these days. Otherwise, you could be in trouble."

....

Meanwhile, inside the carriage, both Percival and Sarika put all their attention to the scenery outside.

Their curiosity about Bideford didn't diminish even after having the uncomfortable conversation earlier.

"There are so many people on the streets. More than Thyrate."

"Not surprising. The population here is several times bigger," Percival leans slightly to the side to get a better view of the pedestrians.

As they moved toward the city centre, its pace slowed considerably. The road becomes increasingly crowded with carriages.

The sheer number of carriages surprised them.

"Are carriages that common here?"

As far as she knows, owning one was a luxury, given the cost of both the vehicle and the horses needed to pull it.

"I guess it's common here. Weird stuff happens a lot in this kingdom."

Percival gazes outside.

While there were many carriages on the road, most of them looked plain. They appear to be made for the sole purpose of functionality.

"Sarika, look over there!"

Following her father's direction, Sarika's eyes landed on massive buildings across the Givry River.

"The government complex..." she muttered.

Everyone who ever visited Bideford knows about this cluster of white buildings. It's a well-known landmark that is hard to ignore.

"Yes, it's where the political power of this kingdom is concentrated."

From his tone, Percival appears to hold admiration toward this place.

He previously wishes to visit this place but has to bury it due to the sour relationship between Ryntum and Barlia, which he's bound to.

To be honest, the buildings themselves were not extraordinary in terms of design.

Every kingdom had its political centre, after all.

Yet, what set the government complex in Ryntum apart was its representation of the kingdom's effort toward centralization.

Unlike other nations where power was often scattered among a multitude of noble houses, Ryntum had managed to consolidate its authority within these walls.

The vast area of the complex housed not only the royal office but also various ministries, administrative departments, judicial courts, and legislative bodies.

It was the heart of governance.

A place where decisions affecting the entire kingdom were made.

The sense of awe everyone is feeling is caused by this fact.

It gave an illusion of the building being a more cohesive and powerful entity.

"Looks like centralization is a better way of doing things."

"Apparently so. I heard several monarchs wish to replicate Ryntum's ways but it didn't go well."

"Let me guess. The nobles oppose it, right?"

"Exactly," Percival confirmed. "It'll strip a lot of their power and privileges. The idea of giving commoners a place in governance repulsed them.

"Ryntum is lucky for not having this problem."

"It's nothing to do with luck. The current king killed and destroyed many of his vassals before implementing it."

"You say he's been aiming for this all along?! But... that doesn't make any sense. He was just a teenager back then. Just a few years younger than me."

"And he's twenty this year."

Their conversation fell into silence when both of them realised that they were ascending the hill.

"What's going on?"

Percival asked the coachman at the front through the gap, "I thought we were going to meet the king."

"You're right, Sir. I'm taking you to the king's residence. You're arranged to meet him there."