Arthur Leywin POV
" That was exhausting..." I complained as Alea and I walked through the portal that led us to the flying castle
Today we were announced to the whole continent as Lances, the strongest mages in the world. Needless to say, as both Alea and I were commoners we got some nasty looks from humans and dwarves, the two races that are hell-bent on the caste system that is in place. For them, the fact that we, the lower bloods, were declared as the strongest mages is like an insult
The looks Blaine gave me were the worst of all. It seemed like the fact that I became elven rather than human Lance hurt his mountain-like pride, and it was obvious that he had a thing or two against me. Thankfully, Queen Priscilla was always there to stop him when he had a fit of rage or some plan to plot against me
' I'll have to thank her later ' I thought while slowly making my way to where the party for the most influential nobles of Dicathen will take its place
Once inside, I realized that all attention was on me, the youngest Lance among the seven of them. Many were skeptical when they found out that I am only thirteen, but they didn't dare to challenge me, knowing that it's the same as challenging the council itself
" Lance Arthur, it's nice to finally meet you" said a fat, human man that was accompanied by a lady that wore a sly smirk, even winking at me while looking over my body " I am count of Sapin, Andria von Asswiper" he introduced himself
' Pft! Come on! Princess, can I come out to say a word or two about his surname? ' Regis begged, his malicious intent all too evident
' Don't 'I scolded ' Even though I reached white core and you don't have to stabilize my core anymore, I don't want you to come out and make chaos ' I said and cut off the communication, sending him just a bit more aether to prevent his complains
" It's nice to meet you, mister and miss Asswiper" I said with an elegant bow, barely holding back a laugh that threatened to emerge at any given moment " I hope that we will have more chances to meet in the future" and just like that, with the minimal amount of courtesy, I was able to avoid painfully long conversation
The music in the hall was nice, perfectly fitting for an occasion like this. People around me danced and chatted. I even spotted some races talking among each other, proving that the unification of the continent is starting to take its place even out of formalities
It was very fascinating to see the part of the process I couldn't in the original timeline. Even if those parts were the dirty looks some of the human nobles gave to the dwarves
The rest of the Lances were all busy in their own way. Olfred was talking with Radeas and some of his acquaintances, while the other dwarven Lance, Mica, seemed exhausted from keeping it all formal for the entire day
' I will have to talk with her later' I thought while moving my attention elsewhere
Back when she was imprisoned, and even during our mission I formed a very strong friendship with Mica. Even though she doesn't remember any of it, I plan on rebuilding it, not willing to lose my best friend among the Lances
Bairon was with his family, talking with the rest of high ranked nobles and fighting his own battle. The battle nobles are famous for, battle of mind. It was just his poor luck that Bairon is extremely weak when it comes to it
Varay stood alone, excluding her cold aura- even without using any mana- and making others too afraid to approach. Her face at first glance seemed expressionless, but after getting to know her better I could see a hint of sadness on her face, showing just how depressed she is because no one is approaching her
Aya was surrounded by people, man to be exact. They were all over her, hoping that they could be the lucky man to whom she will give the pleasure of sharing her mattress. But as she was on duty right now, Aya had to keep herself together. Well, even if that's the case, her biting her lip in excitement definitely didn't help
Next, I looked and made my way toward Alea. Who was just standing and talking with a... man. Don't get me wrong, I am not jealous, but that guy was clearly flirting with her, and by the expression she made, she didn't like it
' Use the destruction ' Regis said, his voice resembling the devil
' Papa don't! There are too many witnesses ' Sylvie reminded me, afraid that I might be caught this time, unlike back with Pier
' Master, I want to slice him! ' and yet another devil whispered
' Oh shut up! I am not some kind of animal you know?! '
'...'
'...'
'...'
' Why are you guys so silent!? ' I protested, but apparently, they didn't hear me
Deciding to ignore the three devils, I channeled the aether through my body and activated godstep, arriving just behind Alea and the pest
There was no purple lightning as I moved. I didn't spend the last year doing nothing. I finished conquering the Relictombs - even though I found out that one keystone is missing, and I even deepened my understanding of aether and my godrunes
Now I don't leave a lightning trace when I teleport, can summon up to three aether swords in the air, and can negate and manipulate my enemy's spells with aether. But the biggest progress I made is the fact that now I can use destruction as well as Regis can
Leaving my thoughts about the aether aside, I waved to Alea, and the smile blossomed on her face
" Hey there" I said and pulled her in for a kiss all the while giving the man a threatening look
" Hey Arty" she answered blushfully
" Then, shall we leave now?" I said as I took her hand and made my way toward the teleportation gate
Alice Leywin POV
After changing into some more comfortable clothes, I returned to the living room where Tabitha and Vincent were. Lilia and Ellie were outside training together with Rey and the rest of the auction house guards
Tabitha and Vincent were going through some papers regarding the next auction. The event in question is supposed to happen in about three weeks, so they were very busy these days. I could very often see dark circles under Tabitha's eyes, and she even fell asleep while eating the other day
I couldn't do much to help her, but that didn't mean I couldn't do anything. I would often use my healing magic to help her recover her stamina. Though you could say that it was just a devil in disguise, I hope that by doing this I can repay even a fragment of the favor I owe to my best friend
I sat at the other side of the table in silence and pulled some papers out of the dimensional ring Arthur gave me. It's been about six months since I started working as a doctor at Xyrus Hospital. The papers I was working on were reports about the patients I had in the last week
While I am glad that I can earn my own money and not be a burden anymore, I have to admit that I hate doing paperwork. Now I could understand why would Arthur always complains, and I am sure that the next time he does so I will be there to support him!
***
After the evening finally arrived we were seated around the dining table. Contrary to my expectations, the atmosphere was rather chill
I believed that everyone would be tense with Arthur's appointment as a Lance, so this situation was more than welcome
" Mom, when will big brother come?" Ellie asked with excitement in her eyes
" He promised that he will come for dinner tonight, but I don't know if he will make it" I answered and saw how the sadness slowly spread in my daughter's eyes
" Don't worry Ellie, I am sure Arthur will soon be there" Rey said with his unique smile
Even if it's just a tiny bit, a smile appeared on Ellie's face. Ever since she was young she was very attached to Arthur and loved spending as much time with him as possible
She really hoped that she could spend some time with him today, but there is nothing I can do if Arthur is busy with his duties as a Lance
" Ellie, now that your brother is a Lance he has even more responsibilities than before, so sometimes he might not be able to come even if he promises he will" I said with a sad yet understanding tone, trying to explain my once again young daughter that her brother might break his promise for the first time
" Bu-but he promised!" Eleanor said with teary eyes " Big brother promised... so he will come! I know he will!!!"
" Ellie..."
" I agree with her you know" the voice said from behind " Just what kind of piece of shit brother would break a promise with his adorable crybaby little sister"
Looking back, I saw a man that was about sixteen wearing a white military uniform adorned with a red cape over his right shoulder
Even though he looked older than he is, the voice belonged to my son, Arthur, who was now standing before us proudly as one of the continent's most powerful mages at the age of thirteen
" Brother!" Ellie shouted and basically jumped over the table to hug Arthur
" Hi Elle" Arthur returned and gently embraced her " I am sorry I am late"
I was really happy to see my two babies hugging each other like this, making me proud that I was able to lead them to the right path. Once that Rey and I are gone they will be each other's only family, so I was truly both happy and grateful that they have such a beautiful relationship like this
After a moment of pause, Ellie muttered with a muffled voice thanks to her burying her face in Arthur's chest " ...you are forgiven"
" Hahaha, I'm glad" he answered and patted her
" Arthur!" the next one to shout was Rey. Leaving his seat at the table much more politely than Ellie, he approached our son and gave him a tight hug
" Congratulations son, I'm really proud of you"
" Thanks, dad" Arthur said as he returned a hug
It took us about five minutes, but everyone was able to congratulate Arthur on his appointment. We even had to separate Vincent from Arthur so that he could take a seat to eat with us
As expected, Vincent and Ellie were the ones with the most questions they wanted to ask. After them there was Lillia, who even though not asking anything was listening to them carefully, absorbing everything they said with great interest like a sponge
Rey was trying to have Arthur spar with him, but Arthur refused due to the fact that a single spell casted by a Lance can change an entire landscape, and this time Vincent would be unable to fix the damage
Understanding that they couldn't fight, Rey backed down from his insistence regretfully
" I am glad that everyone seems so lively, but shouldn't we all sit to have dinner?" Tabitha said, reminding everyone of the original purpose of our gathering here
" I agree with mom" Lillia said "We should really eat now" she continued while looking at the roasted chicken and drooling
" We should indeed" Arthur said with a chuckle " But before that..." he said and turned his head toward the doors
" You can come in now" he said and a tall elven woman with tea-green hair and a white military uniform walked in. Her arctic blue eyes that earlier today shone with confidence looked at us shyly all the while slight blush appeared on her face
The girl walked closer and stopped next to Arthur as if trying to find comfort in his presence
" Mom, Dad, everyone," Arthur said while making contact with all of us " I want you to meet my girlfriend, Alea Triscan!" he declared proudly
"..."
' WHAT!? '
Arthur Leywin POV
I watched as everyone's faces, except Ellies, turned into those of shock
Mom's and dads eyes and mouths were wide open. Unlike Dad, Mom covered her mouth so she looked slightly less surprised, but I knew her long enough to know that she is probably far more shocked than dad
Lillia was just staring at us with her mouth open enough for a fly to fly in, which actually happened just now. And she is coughing while trying to take it out
Even though he looked like he wanted to say something the moment Alea walked in- probably something about bringing a Lance before telling him in advance- Vincent now looked even more surprised, his eyes looking like they will not only pop out of their sockets but from the glasses as well
" Alea!"
"Mama!"
Ellie and Sylvie shouted in unison and ran to hug Alea, breaking the awkward situation into pieces. Seemingly relaxed from the friendly gesture of the only two people she knew here beside me, Alea visibly relaxed and hugged two girls
" Hey guys! How have you been?" she said while patting their heads
" Ellie, you know Lance Alea?" Dad asked, curiosity getting the better of him
" Yeah! Brother sometimes takes Sylvie and me to hang out together. Oh! But he told me not to tell you guys!!!" she declared proudly
" Is that so?" Mom says while giving me a death glare
*Gulp*
I gulped, knowing fully well that that glare means I am in a big~ trouble
" Huh... Anyway, leaving aside Arthurs secrecy" Mom said and approached Alea after which she took hold of her hands " It's nice to meet you, Alea, I hope that you will take good care of Arthur from now on" she said with a smile
" Yeah, you can be sure I will" Alea said with an angelic smile all the while blushing
' Seriously, I am the one having the destruction rune but... Her destruction power should be illegal' I thought while my heart was melting at my girlfriend's smile
***
After we were all seated around the table, servants brought tableware set for Alea and we all started eating
The meal we had wasn't fancy by any means, but it possessed the warmth that you can't just find anywhere. It felt like home
I couldn't find much time to spend with my family recently. With this entire Lance announcement and our missions going on, finding even a single moment of peace like this has become a rarity
' Well, whose fault do you think it is? ' Regis asked sarcastically
' The only reason the number of your missions increases is because of the destruction your fight with Wraiths has caused ' he added, not only to finish his sentence but also to rub in some salt on that wound
' Ugh... I guess that it is my fault... But if I never did that we wouldn't get their horns that helped me to break into the white stage, right? ' I added, hoping to make the argument more favorable for myself
' And I wouldn't unlock my Vritra bloodline abilities without absorbing mana from them' Sylvie added next, taking a stance to protect my side in this
'Furthermore, we still have seven horns left, so they might prove useful in the future' I added while chewing some of my meat
Noticing the bell papers that I don't like on my plate, I picked them all and put them on Aleas plate. Realizing my intentions in advance, Alea picked out all of the beans - which she doesn't like- and placed them on my plate
This is a habit that we recently developed. As time went by we came to know what the other person likes or dislikes, so whenever we can, we helped each other by eating the food the other one doesn't like
Noticing our habits, Mom grinned while the rest of the table looked dumbfounded
" Seems like you two are already acting like a married couple" Mom teased, making both my and Alea's faces red while looking away
" That's... " I tried to say something to defend us, but I had nothing, fully aware that her comment was on the spot
" Dear you are amazing" Dad said while looking at Mom" You defeated two Lances with only a single sentence " he said with a grin while looking at us in all of our glorious embarrassment
" Hahahahaha, yeah" Tabitha said " It appears that my best friend is the strongest on the continent" she added playfully
' I can't believe it! ' Regis said through the mental connection ' Arthur Leywin, the youngest white core, and three layers aether mage has just been defeated by his mother! This is a story to be told ' he teased
' Oh shut it... ' I added while looking down and continuing my dinner