BXBX NOVEL Chapter 117 Baron Xzavier
"Now some of you may have already heard the rumors, some of you may have dismissed them as exaggerated tales espousing the ego of a lucky hunter…"
He paused for dramatic effect. Drawing in the crowd's attention, harvesting their building tension and converting it to momentum. Xzavier who had been watching him couldn't help but be impressed. This man really knew how to work a crowd. His very smart dressing and well styled hair backed his flowery speech and smooth words. If he wasn't already a politician, he would have made for the perfect showman. In Xzavier's books, both professions were one and the same.
"So, I stand before you today, not just as your leader, but as your trusted confidant whom you have entrusted to give you nothing but the truth! Ladies and gentlemen, it is true! What you have heard is all true! And I am sure that you haven't heard half of it!"
Fake sighs of surprise went up from every corner of the auditorium, as if they didn't know this before.
"Yes!" He shot up his right forefinger in the air as he spoke;
"In one night! This gentleman slaughtered an entire band of goblins all by himself! With unique skills and mysterious powers, he walked right into their midst and delivered righteous judgment on them for their collective wickedness! Oh, how they fled before him! But alas, not one of them escaped! The earth opened up its mouth that day and swallowed their blood!"
Quaid spoke like he had been there when it all happened. But the crowd didn't care. They simply loved a good show, and Quaid was giving them just what they wanted! The younger nobles who were still driven and moved by what they see and hear, rose up on their feet enthusiastically, and roared in symphony with Quaid's infective narration.
"Oh wait, that's not all!"
Wait for it, he thought. This was the news everyone was waiting for. The reason a lot of them were here.
Assuming a more somber tone, Quaid delved into the next part;
" I am sure you have all heard about the orcs…"
A cold silence now engulfed the room. Of course they had heard chilling, nerve wracking stories about that breed of creatures. They were monsters, capable of the most heinous crimes. Because a lot of the people in the room were nobles with vast business interests, a lot of their trading caravans had encountered these blood thirsty creatures.
There were tales of orcs splitting live, human women in half with their huge organs. There were tales of orcs devouring humans whole without even needing to chew on their bones. Of course, these stories were greatly exaggerated. But as nobles who had never been outside the comfort of their walls before, they were quick to believe whatever they heard.
Quaid continued his narration;
"I do not need to go into the details of their callousness and vile nature. One regular orc is bad enough, but this gentleman whom I speak of not only obliterated a good number of them at once, alone, he single handedly took down the notoriously dangerous orc leader of the southern tribe!"
This time, even the older folk joined in on the roaring.
"Nobles of Victoria City and the Quincy state at large, how do we reward such a person?" he cried.
Glad that the crowd was all hyped, Quaid finally made the introduction;
"Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for our very own angel of death, Hunter extraordinaire; Xzavier Mace!"
He could have simply called his name like the normal person that he was, but nobles sure loved their titles.
The formal occasion couldn't help but make Xzavier become more serious. It was clear that this was obviously a big deal to this people. So, as he stood up, and marched with a military stride towards the smiling governor, a round of applause erupted from the auditorium. The deafening sound all around him made Xzavier take this even more seriously. Adalia clapped the loudest, and in the sea of numerous pairs of hands clapping against each other, Xzavier could only hear Adalia's clap.
As Xzavier ascended the stage, he noticed that Silver Knight Dale had emerged from nowhere, and was handing over a gold medal and a gold crown resting on a velvet pillow to the governor. Both objects were of very significant value. They both represented the two sweet honorary titles, that were to be awarded to Xzavier in that moment.
Quaid collected them carefully, as he held them, he acted like they were so precious, even the slightest breeze could besmirch them. This further sold the illusion to the crowd that this was in fact a huge deal.
"Hunter Xzavier Mace, I Quaid Princy, Governor of Princy state hereby crown you hero, Xzavier the Order of Victoria!"
The thundering applause came again, not stopping until Quaid had to signal them to quiet down. Then, he turned to Xzavier and presented him the crown.
Xzavier had been briefed already on what to do, so he went on his knees to receive the crown;
"Rise now as Baron Xzavier Mace!"
The applause came again, somehow, even louder than before. Quaid picked up the medal and pinned it to his chest on his military ceremonial wear;
"Receive the medal of merit, Baron Xzavier Mace!"
Xzavier didn't think he would ever get used to being addressed as 'Baron.' It sounded so flamboyant and so ostentatious. He had never received such a high ranking medal in his era, and now, they had been handed over to him so freely in this strange Isekai.
As Xzavier rose to his feet, he felt the full weight of the crown on his head. The title of Baron, along with all the authority vested upon him rested fully on his shoulders, weighing down on him, making him miss simpler times. His left hand reached to caress the medal that had been pinned on his chest and he was reminded yet again that this was all real.
His eyes wandered to the audience and their roaring applause. He saw Adalia in the crowd clapping vociferously with tears in her eyes. In that moment, Xzavier got a taste of part of the glory men clamored for all their lives. He saw just how intoxicating the feeling was, and right then, he understood why lesser men with smaller minds fixated the entirety of their dreams and ambitions on attaining honor. It was truly inebriating.
As the applause gradually died down, Dale, who had been by his side all this while, gently nudged Xzavier in the back and whispered in his ear;
"Go on champ, give the people what they want, it's time for your speech!"
Naturally, Xzavier wanted to protest, but he knew that it would be futile. There was some kind of magic all around the stage that enhanced the volume of the speaker's voice. So, Xzavier knew that he didn't have to worry about raising his voice in that regard.
It didn't matter either way. Xzavier had already prepared a very short speech, he wasn't going to allow the audience to suffer the way other politicians bored their listeners to death with long stretches of monologues espousing their own egos.
Clearing his voice, he spoke, filling the quiet space with his words;
"Thank you so much esteemed nobles of Princy State. It is with much gratitude that I accept the honor and title conferred on me by the magnanimous Governor."
He turned towards Quaid with an outstretched arm and continued;
Please, give a round of applause for the Governor of Princy State, Quaid Princy!!!"
Quaid who hadn't been expecting this in the least, flipped his eyes open in surprise as Xzavier returned the honor to him. Their eyes jammed, and a mutual understanding passed between them. Xzavier had subtly and cleverly glorified the governor as his patron in the midst of the elite of the elite. In one short sentence, Xzavier had exalted him, stripping himself of part of the honor. So, it wouldn't be said that Xzavier had greedily swallowed the whole fame. It was a brief power play.
While the crowd was still applauding, Quaid stepped forward to shake Xzavier, and with that Xzavier receded into the background, allowing Quaid to enjoy the fame he so loved.
The item on the program went on as planned. A string quartet, comprised of neatly dressed instrumentalists proceeded to the stage to entertain the crowd. Soon, they finished their set up, and the melody from their stringed musical instruments saturated the open space, relaxing the mood a little bit. Bit by bit, the general atmosphere in the auditorium began to liven up under the combined influence of liquor and good music. The socializing began. After speeches, this was the part that Xzavier hated the most.
The crowd began to form their groups as men and women jumped from table to table, visiting and revisiting topics. Taking their fill of the latest gossip, they shamelessly devoured the most recent news, and of course, with all this bickering came a fresh tide of malicious lies. From the back of the stage, Xzavier watched the whole thing unfold behind the curtain. He just couldn't wait to find a way out. But unfortunately, between him and the door stood an ocean of people he just had to navigate through.
As he stood gazing through the slit, a large hand tapped him on the shoulder from behind- it was the Silver Knight, Dale. Xzavier spun round, surprised that anyone would do that to him since he wasn't al too familiar with any of the strangers here. He turned, and what seemed like a look of disappointment washed over his face.