❖ FORMAL VISITORS ❖ (RK/DI)

Johann took a sip from the white teacup before him, his eyes, with quiet, yet focussed stoicism staring out of the window on one side of the large mess hall, centered on the boundless, azure sea in the distance that stretched as far as the horizon. Black tea with a little lime juice, his favorite. The dark, steaming liquid was invigorating, really, something he could really use, it seemed. Today had been a comparatively rather slow day in the offices of the Ambassador's of Dies Irae, the majority of it spent, as it was so often the case, endless amounts of official paperwork, a circumstance that would, much to the God of Ishgar's dismay, most likely never change. The small break in the other section of the West Wing was much needed, whether Johann was aware of that fact or not, these few minutes in between sessions of boring, dull work a remedy that he wasn't willing to give up.

At least, the one of the two Ambassador's of Dies Irae thought as he took another sip of his tea, at least he had his colleague to support him. Sivvy had really been of immense help so far, and without her, he assumed that he would've most likely lost his mind at this point. His thoughts centered on this, couldn't help but wonder where the girl was. Was she still in the office filling out the various forms, letters, and reports that would find their way to their desks each day? Or had she perhaps had the same thought as himself and took a break somewhere in the guild hall? The God of Ishgar hoped for the latter, though knowing the rose-haired Slayer, it would probably be the former. He decided to at least try to be of some help to her, his eyes on a table of various baked goods over by the buffet that had been set up for lunch, the blueberry-chocolate muffins in particular. Knowing his fellow Ambassador, he was sure that she would appreciate those, if she hadn't already devoured half of them without his knowledge, that was.

He emptied the last of his tea, clearing his throat before taking the hat that was part of his uniform, placing the item back on his silver hair with a practiced motion as he stood up, about to head over to the snacks he had seen earlier when a uniformed Soldier approached him, his pace hurried and his expression somewhat nervous. He gave the Ambassador a quick salute and stood to attention, Johann leisurely repeating the motion. "What's wrong, Soldier?", the man asked with expressionless face, his tone reflecting the fact that he wasn't too keen on being disturbed, at least at this moment. "Ambassador", the man greeted formally before loosening up a bit, taking a deep breath. "It seems that we have visitors, Sir". Johann instinctively raised an eyebrow. "Visitors?". The man's demeanor shifted in moments, his nonchalant attitude replaced with attention. "Visitors" never meant anything good, whether it was someone from the West Fiore Trading Company again or whoever else would make the long trip to Amber Island. Whatever it was, they never came to just talk and probably had some sort of business with the guild, which, of course, the man could neither confirm nor deny without knowing who had come or speaking to them.

"Yes, Sir. Rune Knights, two squadrons at the entrance to the guild hall". The Ambassador raised his other eyebrow as well. "Rune Knights?", the man repeated once more, surprised. It was a rare occurrence that people found their way to Dies Irae, and two full squadrons of Rune Knights was certainly far out of the ordinary. "Judging by their uniforms, yes, Sir", the man followed up dutifully. "How many?". "I didn't count, Ambassador, probably around a dozen". Johann nodded, lowering his gaze in thought for a few moments, attempting to come up with an explanation for himself as to why the Rune Knights would not only send someone to Dies Irae, no, they also showed up with some numbers. "Interesting ...", he murmured more to himself than anyone else before raising his gaze once more, a smirk spreading across his face, "... we will welcome them then, of course! Gather the other Soldiers at the entrance!". The Soldier of Dies Irae gave another salute before hurrying off, leaving the Ambassador standing there, still quite startled by this sudden change. However, a welcome he had promised, and a welcome he would give them.

Just a couple minutes later the Soldier's of Dies Irae already lined the steps up the hill to the guild grounds both to the left and the right of the portal that offered entry into the Throne Hall itself, waiting for their Ambassadors to arrive. Johann hoped that, within all of this sudden clutter, Sivvy had somehow found her way to the entrance of the Throne Hall where the God of Ishgar himself would wait for her. Undoubtedly, the woman would inquire about ... removing these unannounced elements that had entered the territory of Dies Irae on their own accord, the man unceremoniously denying the request with the justification that it wouldn't exactly reflect well on the guild. This, of course, didn't mean that they wouldn't do the same if they absolutely had to. For now, however, the Ambassador was set on keeping it civil. Stepping out of the entrance and towards the stairs, the rows of Soldiers and Officers that had gathered to the sides and formed a corridor for the Ambassadors saluted, the sound of dozens upon dozens of heels slamming together echoing across this side of the hill, then, as if this had never occurred, silence set in as the two Ambassadors made their way down the steps, towards the Rune Knights.

A few meters before the group of new arrivals, the man stopped, what he hoped would be a friendly smile curling up the corners of his mouth, and if no one else would take the word, he would, bowing forward slightly to greet the Knights before straightening his back. "Welcome, my friends", the greeting was formal, mimicking the man's official tone as he spoke, "Welcome to Amber Island. You should have let us know that you're coming and we would have prepared something more ... adequate to celebrate your visit". Johann couldn't help himself, the underlying tone seemingly clear. "I am Johann von Weiss, Ambassador of Dies Irae and God of Persistence. This to my side ...", he would point over to the young, rose-haired woman "... is Sivvy, my colleague, also Ambassador of Dies Irae". With the introduction out of the way, it was time for the reason why the Ambassadors had gathered here in the first place.

"So ... who might you be, and, if I may ask, what brings you to our peaceful island today? And in such great numbers as well ..."

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Word Count: 1,155
Word Count Total: 1,155

"Major Suzuki and Captain Stern, is it? A pleasure to make your acquaintance, truly", Johann responded to the redheads somewhat stoic, but nonetheless formal greeting. The slight hint of lingering tension in the air, however, seemed to fade away instantly when the Major revealed another facette of their business of Amber Island, one of his men promptly summoning a cascade of gifts in a display that, Ambassador von Weiss assumed, would demonstrate the visitors' inclanation for diplomacy. "My, my. An unexpected, but welcome surprise", the silver-haired Rune Mage responded, a warm smile spreading across his face. While he, of course, couldn't possibly have known the purpose of the Rune Knights' visit on Amber Island, the fact that they would come here for nothing but a bit of old-fashioned diplomacy was a relief. Who would willingly want to start a guild war, after all? "Of course we accept your gifts, Major Suzuki, Captain Stern, you have my thanks, although I am somewhat disappointed I cannot offer much in return ...", Johann spoke in a tone that seemed unsatisfied with that fact, though there was something he could do to change it, "... however, I am certain the voyage to Amber Island has been long and not without hardship. Your soldiers must be tired, Major, Captain. Please, the least I can offer you is entry into the Guild Hall of Dies Irae and adequate catering".

Acknowledging the gesture with a nod to both the Major and the Captain, the Ambassador turned around, motioning for the new arrivals to follow both Sivvy and himself up the stairs to the portal of polished, white granite that encircled the entry to the Throne Hall, banners of red and white to adorning it to both sides. The Soldiers of Dies Irae that lined the stairs maintained their salute as they would make their way up, and, on the Ambassador's signal upon reaching the portal, would lower their hands before beginning to disperse to return to their daily business. Now it would be on the two Guildmasters of Dies Irae to guide the Rune Knights to the Mess Hall for refreshment and, undoubtedly, conversation. Once in the Throne Hall, the man would gesture over to a hallway leading to the West Wing he had just come from, silently leading the way to the section of the HQ that served as the guild's kitchen and dining area, and once there, he would gesture for the Rune Knights to follow him.

"Please, place the gifts on one of the tables over there. We'll make sure to distribute them later", motioning over to an empty table near the brunch buffet while following up by talking about said buffet itself, "I'm sure you and your soldiers are hungry, thirsty, tired, Major, Captain. Please, feel free to eat, drink and enjoy what Dies Irae has to offer. Our humble kitchen is at your disposal". That said, the man began making his way over to one of the gift baskets that the Rune Knight visitors had brought, inspecting it with interested gaze before reaching in, pulling out a neatly packaged piece of chocolate cake. It was more than obvious that someone had put great care into making sure that this would be as presentable as possible. Unraveling it, the man took a bite of the treat, and truly, a treat it was. The not overly sweet chocolate with hints of almond was a delight, to say the least. The piece of cake still in hand, the man sat down at one of the empty tables. Perhaps the leaders of the little group would think it a good idea to join him, or his fellow Ambassador. In any case, the man, taking the occasional bite of chocolate cake and finishing it in no time, watched the newcomers with a warm smile on his face. What peculiar fellows. He had to admit, their uniforms were rather stylish, though.

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Word Count: 653
Word Count Total: 1,808