The Crown Prince of the Hellan Kingdom looked at the mirror with a serious expression. Behind him, several of his aides were holding different ceremonial clothes, all of which were made from the finest materials, and made by the best tailors of the Kingdom.
"Those clothes look perfect on you, Your Highness," Prince Lionel's right hand man said with admiration.
"Are you sure?" Prince Lionel turned his head in an anxious manner. "Will this really be good, or should I change clothes once again?"
"Your Highness, believe me when I say that your clothes are perfect. There's no need to change anything."
"Mmm."
Prince Lionel's right hand man was doing his best to keep the smile on his face from breaking. The Prince had already spent two hours in front of the mirror to find the most appropriate clothes he could wear in order to receive the special guests that would be arriving in a few hours.
The Crown Prince had always been confident in whatever he did. However, since the special guest that would be arriving was the love of his life, he wanted to look more presentable than he usually did in order to impress her.
"Just know that if you lied to me, I'll have your head cut off," Prince Lionel said in a serious manner. "Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-Yes, Your Highness," the man stuttered as he did his best to prevent his body from trembling all over.
After looking at the mirror one last time, Prince Lionel left his room to join the delegation that would be welcoming the Third Princess of the Kingdom of Freesia into the Hellan Kingdom.
----
"Huh? We are to mobilize and escort a VIP guest that just arrived at our border?" William asked with a frown. "Can't the other Knight Commander do it in our place? We also have the Gryphon Brigade. There's no need for my Knight Order to participate in this welcoming ceremony."
"Commander, this is an order from the King," the messenger from the castle stated. "The Knight Order of Gladiolus is more of a landbase unit, they only have a handful flying mounts at their disposal. Also, the Gryphon Brigade is the natural enemy of Hipogriffs. We can't possibly send them because it might cause unnecessary conflicts between the magical beasts."
William scratched his head because he had to admit that the messenger's words held some truth in them. In the end, he reluctantly agreed to the request and gathered the members of his Knight Order that were given flying mounts.
"Half an hour ago, the King gave me a direct order," William said as he faced his subordinates. "The Third Princess of Freesia has already entered our airspace and has requested an escort from our kingdom. Because of this, we will be leaving in an hour to meet them. Make your last minute preparations and meet me at the training field in less than an hour. Dismissed!"
The members of the Angorian War Sovereign hurriedly went to their mounts that were currently staying at the special stables that were awarded to them by the academy. All the magical beasts including the Gryphon, Lionheart, and Conrad's Wyvern, were stationed there.
Priscilla was surprised by William's announcement. Soon, a very sweet smile appeared on her face as she hurried back to the Solaris Dormitory to prepare for the escort mission.
"What a pain," William said as he scratched his head.
"Don't be like that," Wendy commented from the side. "Aren't you curious about the Third Princess of the Kingdom of Freesia? Many say that she is a peerless beauty."
"No matter how beautiful she is, I bet she won't be as beautiful as my Master," William replied with confidence.
"... I can't make a comeback if you put it that way." Wendy pouted.
Indeed, Celine was very beautiful and, as a girl, Wendy felt inferior to her. However, William had already told Wendy many times that she didn't need to compare herself to other beautiful women.
William would always say, "For me, you are already very beautiful. That's why, you don't need to feel insecure in regards to others. Even my Ex-Fiance, Rebecca, doesn't hold a candle against you."
Although Rebecca was more beautiful than her, Wendy could genuinely feel that, for William, she was really more beautiful than Rebecca, which made the blonde beauty overcome some of her insecurities.
However, when Wendy asked William what he thought of his Master, Celine, the Half-Elf would suddenly have a devilish look on his face and simply answer. "Someday, I will give my Master a good spanking. That will be repayment for all the suffering I've experienced under her hand."
Wendy tried to ask more about what these "sufferings" were, but William would silence her question with a hug, or a kiss. Clearly, the red-headed boy didn't want to share his experiences and Wendy decided not to pry any further.
Less than an hour later, William and the rest of his Knight Order had gathered in the training field.
William's personal flying carriage that held the insignia of the Angorian Knight Order was also there for him to ride in. Like always, the one that would be pulling the carriage was Dave and his partner, Lionheart.
This time, Priscilla summoned her Alpha Hippogriff and asked William to personally give her the honor of leading their Knight Order to meet their special guests.
The Half-Elf readily agreed because he wasn't too interested in meeting the Third Princess of their allied kingdom.
-----
"Commander, I can see them now," Dave reported.
"Carry on," William ordered.
Wendy was currently taking a nap, with her head on his lap. William looked at the scenery outside of the flying carriage, while firmly holding the girl's waist so that she wouldn't fall off of the couch.
Those accompanying him inside the carriage had already gotten used to this scene, and none of them said anything about it, including Ian, who was also looking outside the carriage window to prevent himself from feeling envious of the girl lying on William's lap.
After the Trial at the Peak of Enlightenment, Ian had unlocked the seal on his body to a certain extent that allowed him to harness the powers that had been sealed for just as long. He didn't say anything to Est and his brother because he was afraid that the two would get jealous of him.
'Still, what's the point of having this power if I can't use it out in the open?' Ian thought as the entourage from the Kingdom of Freesia appeared in front of them.
After sending their greeting, the members of the Angorian War Sovereign spread out and joined the flying formation towards the capital of the Hellan Kingdom.
The Aerial Cavaliers of the Kingdom of Freesia looked at these young knights with surprise and admiration.
They could tell that their escorts were still teenagers and it made them feel very complicated, seeing them riding Hipogriffs alongside them.
In their Kingdom, only those that had done great deeds for their homeland would gain the honor of riding on the backs of Hipogriffs. These magical beasts were the main fighting force of their Kingdom and not many were allowed to ride them willy-nilly.
There was even a teenager that was riding on top of a Wyvern!
'Looks like the Second Knight Commander of the Hellan Kingdom is not just for show,' The Knight Captain of the Aerial Cavaliers from the Kingdom of Freesia thought.
It was not only him. Almost every one of his subordinates was thinking the same thing.
"How rude," one of Princess Sidonie's attendants, who was riding inside her flying carriage complained. "Shouldn't that Knight Commander personally come to offer his greetings to our Princess? How come he's staying inside his flying carriage and not even making his presence known?"
"Hmp! I guess being a Knight Commander and being a gentleman are two different things," another attendant complained. "We came here to aid them in the war and yet they don't treat us like VIP guests!"
Princess Sidonie frowned when she heard her attendants, but she didn't say anything. Deep inside, she was looking forward to meeting the Knight Commander of the Angorian War Sovereign. The reports she received about him were all very interesting, and she wanted to catch a glimpse of the narcissistic Half-Elf that was said to have hair that resembled a blazing fire.
Unfortunately, the said Half-Elf had other things in his mind, and they were not even about the Third Princess.
'How come Carter still hasn't made a move in all this time?' William thought. 'He clearly knows that Wendy had been freed from his control, so why isn't he sending Charlotte to investigate? Something doesn't feel right.'
< The Professor had[s]n't done anything suspicious as of late. Most of the time, he just stays inside his room meditating. He even stopped making those candies, and simply does his duty as the teacher of the academy. >
'Perhaps he is waiting for something? What do you think?'
< I don't have sufficient data to answer the host's question. >
William sighed internally. Carter's silence was making him feel anxious. It was as if there was a sharp guillotine that was hanging over his head, waiting for the right time to end his life.
'I hope that I'm just being too paranoid.' William sighed in his heart. 'I have a nagging feeling that something very bad is going to happen inside the academy soon.'