I Hate Systems
chapter-14

Compass Carburettor smiled wryly, taking a seat opposite to the Queen. Once he sat down, she looked at him with a deep gaze, "I'm interested in knowing more about you."

"Your Majesty, as long as it isn't something too personal, I will talk." He smiled, thinking it was better to proceed in such a way so that he might be able to bargain with her for some help in learning about her world's power.

The Queen then waved the servant that was lighting a pair of candles to leave them alone. Followed by a bow, the servant left. Now, there were only the two of them in the place.

Compass Carburettor noticed that the lighting source wasn't candle-based, but of an instrument embedded with a stone of sorts that emitted light on its own. It seemed the candles were lit for aesthetic purposes.

"Aromatic Candles, helps in calming the mind and learning," The Queen smiled upon seeing him look at the candles. "I always use them while surfing through books."

"Speaking of books," She pointed at the watch, "This…timer, was it created in your Kingdom?"

"We don't specialise in such products." Compass Carburettor shook his head, saying, "It was a gift from my father. I don't know from exactly where he bought it."

He said it like that in case the Queen wished to establish a trade for the watches. He wouldn't be able to comply since Plottopia didn't exist in reality after all.

"Where exactly is your Kingdom located?" The Queen asked.

Until now, she hadn't expressed any notion of expression against him that would put him under pressure. But, that only made him appreciate her intelligence and cunning. Whether or not he was telling the truth, she was being careful so that her actions would only benefit her in the future and not cause harm to her or her kingdom.

"Is there any scenic landmark in this place? Either here or in this region?" Compass Carburettor asked.

"Do you know about Pickchuki mountain?" She asked.

"What is it famous for?" Compass Carburettor acted like he was trying to think hard about its name, seemingly like he might have heard it or something similar before.

"Darble," The Queen said with a solemn tone, frowning immediately when Compass Carburettor looked like he didn't know anything about it. She didn't frown because he was ignorant about the mountain, but because he was ignorant about Darble, the primary material that was used everywhere in their world.

It was the material used to power a Puppet or condense weapons in an Armament. So, even the poorest of the poor would know about the word Darble. And to think the man before her seemed oblivious to such a simple fact caused her to feel suspicious about him.

"How did your Kingdom function? What kind of power did they harness?" The Queen asked next.

Her question immediately made him realise that he might have given away his ignorance before. So, without any hesitation, he iterated another response he had planned for such a situation, "I don't exactly know how it functioned before my grandfather's time. But during his reign, too many assassins tried to assassinate him. And, they were all from commoners who were dissatisfied with his rule."

With a sigh, he shrugged, "As the commoners could grow strong enough to threaten him, he passed down a rule to never train one's body in the art of battle. After that, all weaponry and any means to gain power were banned from our kingdom. Any problems had to be solved using pure fists alone. It was easy to implement since ours was a secluded Kingdom and didn't have any enemies."

'Is that why he was staring at the soldiers training in interest for almost the entire time?' The Queen thought, amused for a moment before her tone turned serious as she asked, "For what reason have you arrived here?"

"I was transported to this place." Compass Carburettor replied naturally.

Upon seeing his spontaneous action and noticing zero differences in his facial expression, the Queen was mentally caught off guard, 'The truth serum should have already kicked its effect by now. It's a new dose, so there shouldn't be anyone that would have immunity against it. That means…he is now speaking the truth?'

"Will you pose any harm to this place?" She asked next.

"Nope," Compass Carburettor replied as a matter of fact.

"Do you wish to return to your kingdom?" She asked.

"Of course," Compass Carburettor nodded.

"Why?" She asked.

"To save my daughter?" Compass Carburettor replied when his eyes widened in surprise, for a moment thinking why he had answered as such.

'I see, so it indeed kicked in. He was just speaking the truth spontaneously and hadn't realised it. It seems this man really has been transported here through some mystical means.' The Queen then looked at him, staring hard at him, asking, "If given a choice, will you be my ally or enemy?"

"An ally, of course." He replied spontaneously, now realising something was indeed amiss as he stood up in alarm. In truth, if he was asked such a question, he wanted to answer in such a way as to maintain a neutral stance. That way, he would be able to reap enough benefits while not be dragged into the kingdom's politics.

"It's alright," The Queen laughed a little as she waved her hand relaxedly, "I was testing you by using some truth serum. I hope to have your understanding. My position is like that. And you were indeed suspicious."

"As long as I don't have to engage in a survival run from this place, it's fine." Compass Carburettor sighed as he judged that the Queen showed no signs of suspicion against him now, at least to a cordial extent, slumping back on the chair, "I'm not a fan of fights, to be frank with you."

"It's fine," The Queen chuckled, "The both of us can only be frank in such a situation."

'So, she too is affected by it?' Upon thinking as such, Compass Carburettor asked immediately, "Am I still under suspicion?"

"Definitely," The Queen smiled, "But, I won't surround you with guards constantly like today."

She then got up and headed to the other side, snuffing out the candles as she took two glasses, pouring in a drink as she brought them, offering one to Compass Carburettor, "Here, have a taste of this. This is a speciality of our region. Consider this a hospitality from my side since I hadn't treated you properly until now."

"Thank you," Compass Carburettor took the glass, gazing at the lavender coloured liquid inside, taking a sniff of its aroma as he spoke, "Sweet, fragrant, the culture of a foreign land."

The Queen was just about to say something when she noticed his face flushed red, as if he was intoxicated by alcohol, causing her to stare at him with a dumbfounded expression as her eyebrows twitched.