Immortal Swordslinger 3

by Dante King

  As I approached, they all stood and started to applaud. The noise spread out through the square as other partygoers realized that the Immortal Swordslinger, this figure out of legend, was among them.

  I made my way up onto the platform. Another chair appeared from somewhere and was placed between Ganyir and Mahrai. Kegohr heaped a plate high with food and put it down in front of me. My mouth watered at the smell.

  “Speech!” someone shouted.

  “Speech!” the cry continued along the table.

  “Speech!” the shout went up from all around the square.

  I looked down at my food and felt my stomach rumble. But then, I looked up at Tahlis and saw amusement in his eyes.

  “I’m not going to get away without this, am I?” I asked.

  “Not if you wait all night,” he said. “Fame and adulation are among the onerous duties of the Swordslinger.”

  With a sigh, I accepted the inevitable. I raised my hands and waited as the crowd slowly fell silent.

  “Thank you for your praise,” I said. “And for your generous hospitality. Today was a victory for all of us, and you should be celebrating yourselves as much as me. I did what I could with my powers, and you did what you could with yours. No one can ever ask for more than that. The time for struggle is over, but there’s hard work still ahead as we rebuild what has been destroyed.”

  The crowd cheered, and I removed my warhammer and let it rest against my chair. I took a seat between Ganyir and Mahrai.

  The lord’s eyes flickered to the weapon, and he suddenly dropped his fork.

  “That hammer. . .” he trailed off. “Its power is familiar. And it carries the threads of earth magic.”

  “That’s because I used your Earth Core to forge it,” I said, unsure how Ganyir would react. I’d passed out before I’d had the chance to explain how I’d defeated Saruqin in the temple, but now I filled in the lord, the guildmaster, and Mahrai.

  “I’ve called her Choshi,” I explained after I’d finished.

  Ganyir looked up from the warhammer, which he’d stood up to inspect while I’d recounted the events inside the palace.

  “After the initiate?” he asked.

  I nodded. “She gave her life for the cause.”

  “So, the Earth Core is born anew,” Ganyir said as he chewed on a mouthful of food. It seemed a difficult task while grinning from ear to ear. “You have saved Hyng’ohr in more ways than one. I feared Saruqin had already destroyed the core beyond use.”

  “Wouldn’t a new core have been birthed?”

  Ganyir looked at me in surprise. “You know far more than the average outer disciple.”

  “Perhaps when you return to Radiant Dragon, Xilarion will make you an inner disciple?” Tahlis butted into the conversation. “Or, more appropriately, you could become a master. Master of Slinging Swords and Bedding Women. Sound about right, eh?” He flashed a grin at Mahrai, who wilted under the attention.

  “You’ve inspired me, Swordslinger,” Ganyir said. “One day, I’ll find the Forgotten Memory and return it to its rightful place.”

  “Maybe you could go look for it once you’re done cleaning up the city,” I said. “Lords do take vacations, right?”

  “I don’t know what vacations are,” the lord replied, “but I do know a savior when I see one. You have saved our land.” He grabbed a goblet from his table and stood. “We celebrate, so raise your cups. To the defeat of the Unswerving Shadows and the victory of Hyng’ohr!”

  “To the defeat of the Unswerving Shadows!” the crowd echoed. “The victory of Hyng’ohr!”

  When the clapping and cheers died down, I grabbed my plate of food and excused myself.

  “Mahrai,” I said. “Come with me.”

  She looked a little unsure, but she heaped spoonfuls of a glazed fruit platter into a bowl before she followed after me.

  I took a seat at the table with Kumi, Vesma, and Kegohr while Mahrai filled an empty chair. They all looked at me with smiles as we began to eat. None of us spoke; we simply enjoyed the company while we filled our bellies.

  Once our meal was finished, I explained what had happened in the temple.

  “What a bloody magnificent weapon,” Kegohr said as he admired my warhammer.

  “Hands off, buddy. You want something like this, you’ll have to forge your own.” I gave him a wink.

  I’d acquired the weapon through a gift of circumstance, but then finding Nydarth could be seen as equally fortuitous. Even being brought here, to this world, was very much a result of chance.

  Perhaps not. Maybe there were powers operating in the background, orchestrating events and bringing me to this world for a reason. I wasn’t sure who or why, but I was on the Path of the Sworslinger, and that was enough for now.

  “In a few days,” I said to my friends, “we’ll return to Radiant Dragon. Master Xilarion will want to know how things went, and I’d prefer delivering the results of our mission to him personally.” I thought about what Saruqin had said about the Path of Peace. His words were probably lies, but I figured I didn’t know Xilarion all that well, so I wanted to question him more about it.

  “And you’ll be wanting to see Master Faryn, too, I imagine.” Vesma smiled at me, but there was no hiding the mischief in her eyes.

  “Master Faryn?” Mahrai asked before I could respond. “She another one of your wives?”

  “Yes,” Kumi answered. I must have had a confused expression, because Kumi sighed before explaining herself. “I might have mentioned to Mahrai that she’s also one of your wives now.”

  “Is that right?” I asked.

  Mahrai’s expression faltered. “As long as that’s—”

  “I’d be more than happy to have you. I’m collecting weapons and wives wherever I go.” I laughed. “It’ll be good to just let things settle for a while at Radiant Dragon.”

  “You truly think we won’t get into trouble there?” Vesma asked me. “There is still Clan Wysaro. And the cultists are clearly moving. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think there might even be some in our province.”

  “If that’s the case, then we’ll weed them out and deal with them like we did in the Diamond Coast and Hyng’ohr.”

  End of Book 3

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  About the Author

  Dante King is an author of Men’s Adventure fiction in various flavors. His books involve strong male protagonists who know what they want and do what’s required to get it.

  You can connect with him at DanteKingAuthor.com