CHAPTER 247: MUTUAL HELP

Riven was stunned by the question. He looked at the Queen; she was looking right at him. He swallowed hard, her presence was suffocating.

"Uhm, I don’t understand, Your Majesty," he said. Her eyes closed into slits, as if she was staring right into his soul.

After a few seconds, she looked away, sipped her wine, and then spoke. "You are an anomaly," she stated. She twirled the wine around in her glass and then looked at him again. "I looked into you."

"Me?" Riven asked in shock.

"Yes, and honestly, nothing about you makes sense, and that’s why I asked the question. I wanted to know if you might be a spy sent by the other kingdoms, or even the Sapphire Kingdom." Her eyes went cold as she mentioned the Sapphire Kingdom.

Riven took a deep breath and then spoke. "I can understand why you would think that," he said. He looked at the wine in his hands and then took a deep breath.

"I’m not a spy. I’m not a demon," he stated.

’Hmm, smart kid, he answered me without even slipping up about his truth at all. I like him already,’ the Queen thought.

"I see. I can tell when a person lies, and I can tell that you aren’t lying. I also know that you have your secrets. I won’t pry deeper," she said and took a sip.

"But let me ask this, Riven, what are your goals?" she asked.

Riven looked at her and, without hesitation, he spoke. "Have a happy life where I can wake up and see my family and friends without the need to worry about their lives."

It had taken him months of searching himself to finally find his real desire and goal, and now he could finally say it without hesitation.

She smiled when she heard his goal and then looked at him. "Your goal is freedom," she stated.

"Uhm, how?" Riven asked, confused at what she said.

"You said you want to wake up in a day where those you love are free of any risk, and that’s called freedom. You want to be free, you want to create freedom for those you love.

So do you understand it now? In everything that you said, what stands out is your desire to be free from worry," she said.

"If you put it like that, then my goal is really freedom. I want to be free," Riven said.

"Then I guess you hate the demons," she said.

"A race that exists to destroy the other races, I hate them. The thought that they could destroy my family, and that they want to, makes me hate them more," Riven said.

"And what are you going to do about it?" she asked casually.

"Get stronger," Riven said.

"I see, that’s good. But Riven, it seems you are aiming for something grand, but you are neglecting the things that are on the side.

I’ll give you some inside information, the demons will not win. Not this year, not next year, and not for a very long time. This is a battle that has been ongoing for years longer than you could imagine.

So even as important as your goal is, making it your entire desire is stupid," she said.

"Huh? So what would you rather I focus on? My goal is what drives me," Riven said.

"You have a very narrow view of things, Riven. The demons are not the greatest risk your family faces; they are the least of your worries, to be honest.

And before you speak about how they attacked villages and actually got close, I’ll tell you that the demons were not the problem in that attack. It was the rats in this kingdom, they were the ones that created the opening for us to be infiltrated," she explained, sipping her wine again.

"Imagine this: if the demons could actually easily enter our kingdom the way they did, we would be dead already. So the only way it could have happened was through the help of insiders.

The risk your family faces will come from inside. You, for instance, are a rising star. Do you really believe that the nobles and big shots of the kingdom will allow your presence to slide?" she asked.

When Riven heard that, he finally understood what she was saying. He was ignoring the threats that existed all around.

"You see, this kingdom is a very large one. We have close to fifty barons, some larger than others. Some baron families consist of the main family and the side families, which are still considered nobles, your family doesn’t.

As you go up, you see this in more noble families: viscounts, counts, marquises, and dukes. That’s a lot of internal issues for you to handle.

Do you really think that a barony would want another barony to rise? I’m just giving you the idea of the risks that exist," she said.

"And why would the Royal Family not stop this?" Riven asked. He already knew what she was hinting at.

"Because that’s the circle of life, kid. As you rise to the limelight, be ready to face the risks. For us, the Royal Family, to be of assistance to you, you need to be of use to us.

And that brings me to what I want. I want to help you, a lot, because I see potential in you. But I also need to make sure you are worth it.

So I’ll be watching your actions while you wait for me to reach out to you. Now this is not me trying to control you. I can assure you that everything will be mutually beneficial," she said with a smile.

[..... ]

Riven was returned back to the estate after some more talking with the Queen. He headed straight for his room and collapsed on the bed while looking at the ceiling.

"Hmm, I guess she is right for the most part of it. Tsk, I shouldn’t worry about that for now. I have the system trial tonight."