When it was time to return, Grigori had a uniquely curious expression on her face as she returned to the Palantír Hall. Her gaze moved, passing over every guest as they took their seats around the hall.
"Goddess-nim? Is everything alright?" TCF!Tasha asked in concern when Grigori folded her arms and pensively hummed to herself.
"Yes... I'm just noticing that many among you are showing great improvements to your dissonance even without me having to directly heal you. I'm most impressed." Grigori answered with a fondly affectionate smile gently taking form across her features.
While the guests of the TCF!World and TBOAH!World blink in surprise and then look around at their counterparts and others from their respective timelines, Grigori turned toward the Palantír and tilted her head.
"Well, let's begin... Crown Prince Valentino, it will be your turn today..." Grigori reassured, and TBOAH!Valentino stared first at the Goddess and then turned toward his counterpart. Seeing TCF!Valentino nod at Grigori, TBOAH!Valentino inclined his head toward the Goddess, granting her his consent to begin revealing the records pertaining to his counterpart.
Grigori turned toward the Palantír and called out to Naur. While the Goddess and her First Apostle, Naur, went about preparing to begin the records. TBOAH!Valentino moved to take a seat beside his counterpart, TCF!Valentino. He appraised his counterpart and then allowed his mind to jog back to his own past self. As someone who was the esteemed Crown Prince of Caro Kingdom, at the end of his life and after watching so many of his loyal subjects and the people who depended and trusted him die in that final battle, TBOAH!Valentino had many regrets. Part of him was eager to see how much his counterpart had changed and grown, but an even greater part was fearing to witness how his people in the TCF!World had suffered against the calamities that Arm and Adin had unleashed.
As the Caro Kingdom, crown prince Valentino was famous for not caring much about positions and etiquette. And as such he considered Adin a longtime friend. TBOAH!Valentino considered himself as someone who cherishes his friendship. That's why he never suspected that Mogoru Empire's Imperial Prince Adin of being insincere in befriending him.
So, to hear the truth from his counterpart and to witness the sincere and genuine anger and shame TCF!Valentino shows toward his past naive self who considered Adin a true friend - it makes TBOAH!Valentino doubts the memories of his friendship with the Adin of his world. He's not angry anymore, he's just disappointed.
"Alright everyone, we're ready to begin." Grigori announced with a light clap of her hands to get everyone's attention. All chatter among the guests of the hall fell away and the lighting in the Palantír Hall turned dim as the Palantír gradually lit up to reveal a somewhat familiar scene for those who knew this.
The audience in the hall recognized the faces of Cale Henituse and also the face of the Mogoru Empire's Adin.
<Chapter 213: Now Do You Get It? (4)>
He could hear Imperial Prince Adin’s calm voice.
“Yes, you should relax after a victory. You need a long break.”
Cale’s expression turned oddly blank.
You need a long break.
Someone might think that he was being nice, but Cale was thinking that this two-faced man was telling him to die so that he could get a long break.
Many people of the TCF!World bristled at this insinuation, it made their hatred and animosity toward Adin stir within them, but since they knew Cale was never one to let such things go, they decided to hold their tongues and continue observing this scene.
Imperial Prince Adin was pretending to be a good person.
Cale peeked at Adin while observing the others at the same time. He saw a few guard knights behind the Imperial Prince, as well as some of the Caro Kingdom’s people with awkward expressions.
‘I guess they weren’t expecting the Imperial Prince to show up.’
It was obvious if he thought about it.
If Imperial Prince Adin was the one who was bringing the reinforcements, the Caro Kingdom would have informed crown prince Alberu.
TCF!Valentino nodded immediately and the other representatives from the various different kingdoms around the Western and Eastern continent also nodded. They all knew that although Crown Prince Valentino wasn't one for strict performances and etiquette, he still would carry himself with proper decorum especially when dealing with alliances during the war - everyone knew that Crown Prince Valentino regardless of which timeline he came from would not disgrace Caro Kingdom by behaving in anyway that would sully the reputation of his beloved Caro Kingdom.
Cale quietly watched Imperial Prince Adin take a step toward him. The Imperial Prince approached him before quiet speaking as if he was trying to whisper.
“That is why I was shocked that you responded to this request. I thought that you would be resting.”
Adin didn’t expect Cale to personally come to the Caro Kingdom. He expected him to relax after his victory.
The Imperial Prince was speaking as if he was wary of the Caro Kingdom, and Cale responded back in a similar way.
TCF!Valentino clenched his fists and grit his teeth. He criticized himself harshly for his obliviousness and his naivety in the past, especially because it almost caused the deaths of many of his people. Beside him TBOAH!Valentino exhaled slowly.
“I also did not expect to see you here, your highness.”
Why are you here?
What are you scheming and what are you trying to prevent?
That was what was on Cale’s mind.
TBOAH!Valentino sat back and schooled his expression into a neutral mask of concentration. He knew above all else that he could learn and see, he knew that coming to terms with the side of Adin that he had never seen before was vitally as important as fixing the damage done to himself and his counterpart by the despair that tainted their souls.
Someone walked into the teleportation room at that moment.
“Oh, you’re here!”
Cale had never seen him before, but he had heard enough descriptions about this person that he was able to recognize him.
Valentino. The Caro Kingdom’s crown prince.
“I heard that you were in the office, but why are you here?”
Also, Imperial Prince Adin’s longtime friend. Valentino patted Imperial Prince Adin on the shoulder as he casually continued to speak. Although there was a significant difference between an Imperial Prince and a crown prince, the two seemed very casual with each other.
TCF!Valentino scowled and then sat back as well, brushing his hands over his face and sighing heavily. There were still so many things he regrets about his past self and his actions, but even still he reminds himself that the wisest decision he had ever made was not becoming the Roan Empire's enemy. He also recalls how the priest from the Church of Sun God had antagonized Cale at the meeting later that day, TCF!Valentino was immediately reminded of what Cale had done in the Empire and to the Church of the Sun God - he shuddered in silence and resolutely avoided his TBOAH!World counterpart's questioning gaze.
“I am here because I heard that our Empire’s hero was showing up.” The Imperial Prince smiled and pointed to Cale just as Valentino reached his hand out toward Cale.
“Nice to meet you. Thank you for coming to help our Caro Kingdom. I was coming to greet you, but it seems this friend beat me to the punch.”
Crown prince Valentino was famous for not caring much about positions and etiquette. That was why he was able to extend his hand out first to a foreign nation’s commander.
“It is an honor to meet you.”
Cale shook Valentino’s hand and showed him just enough respect, as deserving of a crown prince. Valentino smiled at Cale’s response.
“My type of person. I prefer it like this. I prefer people who are not overly respectful.”
“Is that so?”
Cale let go of Valentino’s hand as Valentino looked him over.
Cale noticed this, but pretended as if he had not. Instead, he was curious about something else.
‘Does crown prince Valentino really trust the Empire and the Imperial Prince as his close friend?’
Cale had heard a good amount about the Indomitable Alliance from that slightly crazy bastard, Clopeh. The Caro Kingdom was not included in the Alliance.
TBOAH!World's people still winced and flinched when the North's Guardian Knight Clopeh Sekka was unexpectedly mentioned, however no matter how much they stared at the back of the red-haired former Supreme Commander's head, he still refused to speak up and say what they had done to get Clopeh Sekka to switch sides, and since Cale wouldn't say anything, those of his timeline also secretively refused to speak about what had happened and how it all went down.
The Northern Alliance, Arm, and the Mogoru Empire.
The Caro Kingdom did not know about their relationship. If they did, there was no way that they would have sought reinforcements from the Empire.
‘However, they may not know all of the sides of the Empire.’
The Empire had purchased many slaves for the Alchemists’ Bell Tower to experiment on.
TBOAH!Valentino flinched and his eyes went wide, his head snapped toward his counterpart and then saw the burning anger in TCF!Valentino's eyes as well as in the eyes of many others, especially the male that sat beside TCF!Litana. This man was a stranger to TBOAH!Valentino. However, he could tell he was someone important by the way TCF!Litana, TCF!Harol, and even TCF!Valentino treated him. He had red hair and freckles. His TBOAH!World counterpart looked nothing like him. Where he was confident and sat regally with his back straight, his TBOAH!World counterpart slouched and stared mournfully at the Palantír with a haunted expression on his face at the truth being revealed upon Palantír.
TBOAH!Valentino didn't want to see the moment that TBOAH!Rex gave into his urge to cry, so he gulped and returned his attention to the Palantír to concentrate and fully grasp the true extent of his own incompetence.
Was it possible that the Caro Kingdom did not know about the Empire’s evil-doings?
‘I guess that I’ll find out eventually.’
Cale did not think much about it. The Caro Kingdom would lean toward one side or the other soon enough.
TCF!Valentino spoke up, his voice merely a soft whisper as if to warn his counterpart as well as remind himself.
"I would never have sided with the enemy... it would've meant making Cale Henituse my enemy..."
"Yes, and even the God's know not to make an enemy of our Young Master-nim!" TCF!Rex, who had been sitting in complete silence since they'd returned to the hall, spoke up from his place beside the Jungle Queen TCF!Litana.