"Well, that sure was something," Alaric, the Crown Prince of the Zelan Dynasty, said with a smile. "Aren't you happy? You don't have to marry a barbarian anymore."
Princess Aila, who was seated opposite him, had a calm expression on her face as she drank her tea. They were currently inside the tent where they stayed after arriving at the Third Peak of Chivalry.
William's appearance had put a stop to their plans to use the Northern Tribes as the hammer that would hit the Hellan Kingdom from behind, while the Two Dynasties faced them on the frontlines.
"Ah, right, your ex-husband candidate said that he's giving you to the Knight Commander of the Hellan Kingdom," Prince Alaric teased her half sister. "Do you want to go with him? I personally don't mind if you do that."
Princess Aila placed the teacup on the table before looking at her elder brother. "Surely you jest, Big Brother. Our father is going to attack the Hellan Kingdom soon, why should I stay behind enemy lines?"
"If you go back, you will definitely suffer. You also understand that, don't you?" Prince Alaric propped his chin up using his fist and smiled at his little sister. "Since your purpose for coming here was in vain, Father might get angry and marry you off to the son of the Minister of War that you hate so much."
Princess Aila's hands trembled as she thought about marrying the most notorious womanizer in their dynasty. That man was three years older than her and had the body size of a pig. The only reason why he was able to have his way was due to his father's influence.
The Second Princess would rather die than marry the bastard pig that had ruined the lives of countless women in the Zelan Dynasty.
Princess Aila looked at her Big Brother and saw that the smile had disappeared from his face and was now replaced by a serious expression.
"Aila, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to protect you if we return to the palace," Prince Alaric said. "Someone is whispering in Father's ears and is urging him to go to war. Right now, the Zelan Dynasty is not a safe place for you to stay."
"So you're telling me that the most dangerous place is the safest place, Big Brother?"
"That's right. Also, I can write a letter to that person and ask him to take care of you. In a way, that Knight Commander is a distant relative of mine."
"Distant relative?" Princess Aila asked in confusion. "What do you mean?"
The smile on Prince Alaric's face returned as he thought of the uncanny work of Fate that brought him to the Kyrintor Mountains and personally saw a distant cousin of his that was staying in the Hellan Kingdom.
"My grandmother and the Knight Commander's grandmother were twins. Lord Ainsworth fell in love with her when she went to the Hellan Kingdom to meet the previous King for a missionary mission." Alaric shared his story. "Back then, Lady Erza was the foreign ambassador for our dynasty.
"The two of them hit it off pretty quickly and became lovers for a few years before finally deciding to settle down and marry. I'm sure that the esteemed Lord Ainsworth, who crushed all of Lady Erza's suitors back in the Zelan Dynasty, wouldn't mind this small favor of mine."
Princess Aila's eyes widened in surprise when she discovered this unbelievable backstory. Who would have thought that the current Crown Prince of a Dynasty, and the Knight Commander of the Hellan Kingdom were distant relatives?
"Big Brother, please, be honest with me," Princess Aila pleaded. "Is there really no chance of turning the situation around? I don't mind marrying a barbarian as long as our father will be happy. After all, this is for the sake of our homeland."
Prince Alaric shook his head, "Nothing will change even if you marry Connal. The Zeke family is in a precarious situation right now. Great Chief Evander might lose his position and, even if he remains as the Great Chief, the Northern Tribes expedition towards the South is over.
"I don't see any value in marrying you off to a faction that can only stand on the sidelines while we wage war on the frontlines. Also, I am not too keen on this war. I feel like we are merely puppets being played by a puppeteer from behind. This leaves a very bad aftertaste in my mouth."
Prince Alaric had already discovered that there was an organization inside their domain that had been pushing for this war to happen. At first, they were only whispering in the ears of the Minister of War. Now, they were the advisors of the King. He found all of this very fishy and he didn't like it one bit.
The Crown Prince extended his hand and held Princess Aila's trembling hand in a firm grip. "Hide in the Hellan Kingdom for the time being. At least, that way, you will not be immediately married to that pig. Once we win the war, I will come and find you."
"And if we lose?" Princess Aila inquired. She was loyal to her homeland, but after seeing William's performance, she was having second guesses whether they would succeed in the upcoming war.
"If we lose then we lose," Prince Alaric said casually. "To be honest. I hope that we will lose this war. Maybe that is what Father needs to wake up from his delusions."
"Big Brother!"
"Listen, Aila, and listen well. Remember, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Everything has a price. I'm afraid that the price we paid for getting a share of the Hellan Kingdom was something that we will regret in the future."
Prince Alaric was an ambitious person, but he was not stupid and short sighted. War would cause many of their people to die. This was an inevitable thing. However, dying for a greater cause and dying as chess pieces were two different things.
Prince Alaric would not mind dying for his homeland, but he would never accept dying as a pawn to help someone else achieve their goals.
'Once I return, I will get to the bottom of this,' Prince Alaric swore in his heart. 'Father, I hope that you know what you're doing.'
------
Meanwhile, somewhere on the Third Peak of Chivalry…
The Chiefs of each tribe were currently discussing important matters. The "Bride Selection Ceremony" had already become a farce, and the other Chiefs were no longer interested in presenting their young ladies to become Connal's brides.
The Second Warrior was put under house arrest by Great Chief Evander in order to prevent him from doing something stupid due to anger. Liam, the First Warrior, was currently guarding him and making sure that he stayed inside the main residence of the Great Chief.
Although none of the other Tribal Chiefs were telling Great Chief Evander to step down, they had already told him that they were not satisfied with his unilateral decision to cooperate and angering their God in the process.
Great Chief Evander cursed them in his heart because these same men were those who had supported him wholeheartedly when he told them that they would expand their territories by joining the Two Dynasties in a pincer attack.
He swore that after he managed to keep his position, he would ensure to deal with each and every one of them!
While they were in the middle of their talks, a beautiful lady, who seemed to be in her late twenties, suddenly appeared before them.
The Great Chief and the Tribal Chiefs immediately knelt and bowed their heads to pay homage.
""We greet you, Great Oracle!""
"Raise your heads."
All the men raised their heads and looked at the Holy Maiden that resided on the First Peak of Divinity. She was the one and only messenger of their God. Seeing her here right now could only mean one thing and that was…
"Did His Excellency say anything, Oh, Holy One?" Great Chief Evander asked. He was feeling very anxious right now because he was afraid that their God would punish him for his actions.
"Yes, The Great One wants to talk to the… interesting boy who made all of you look like clowns in a circus. His Excellency is very, very, displeased right now. Ah, he also said that the new Great Chief of the Tribe will be chosen by the boy as well. But that will have to wait until the two of them have talked. Now, pass on my orders and escort him to the First Peak of Divinity. Don't keep His Excellency waiting."
After saying her words, she vanished and turned into an icy mist that flew towards the First Peak of Divinity.
The Tribal Chiefs glanced at each other before hurrying to find William. All of them were thinking the same thing. This was the opportunity that they were waiting for.
As long as they managed to make a good first impression on the boy, and agree to his demands, the position as the Great Chief of the Tribe was as good as theirs!
Great Chief Evander looked bitterly at the group of old men who had already had a head start. He never dreamed that he would have to curry for the favor of the same person who had brought him to his knees. Fortunately, there was one more card that he could play, and that was none other than pairing him with his granddaughter, Brianna.
Since the Half-Elf already "owned" her, he couldn't possibly return her like some used thing. This was the law of their domain.Even their God recognized it. He hoped that, with his granddaughter's help, he would be able to keep his position and ride out the storm that had befallen their family.