The Angorian War Sovereign and the members of the Aerial Cavaliers of Freesia hit it off pretty well. Since they all had something in common, the young knights asked the veterans in the Aerial Cavalry for some pointers about how to take better care of their dependable mounts.
The Aerial Knights had years of experience when it came to handling Hipogriffs, and the wisdom they shared made the Young Knights look at them in admiration. William was quite happy because the veterans were sharing their information to the next generation without asking for anything in return.
Because of this, his impression of the representatives from Freesia was raised a few levels.
The night was still young and guests were still arriving. Half an hour after William arrived at the banquet, the King appeared with the other two princes. William found an adorable loli holding Prince Ernest's hand. It was none other than Brianna, the granddaughter of the Great Chief of the Northern Tribes.
When Brianna's wandering gaze found William, the little loli winked at him and blew him a kiss. This gesture of hers made the prince holding her hand, pout, but Prince Ernest didn't make a scene. Instead, he gave William the "Stay away from Brianna" glare which made the Half-Elf chuckle inside his heart.
'Silly little shrimp,' William mused as he returned Brianna's wink and flying kiss. 'I worry about your henpecked future.'
William laughed at the young henpecked Prince in his heart, not knowing that he would suffer the same Fate a few years from now.
Like always, King Noah made his speech for everyone to enjoy the banquet. His words were greeted by loud cheers from the commoner students of the Royal Academy, who were visiting the palace for the first time.
While Wendy and William were talking, the Crown Prince went to stand at the podium and gathered everyone's attention.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Prince Lionel said with a flawless smile that made the young ladies feel their heart flutter. "Tonight, our special guest from Freesia has a humble request. She has long heard of the valiant Knight Commander of the Angorian War Sovereign and wishes for him to entertain her with a performance."
Princess Sidonie, who was looking at William, suddenly turned her head to gaze at the Crown Prince.
She didn't mention anything about asking William to perform for her. All she wanted was for the Crown Prince to introduce William to her. However, a part of her was also interested in finding out whether or not William could show her something interesting.
Morgana who was watching everything from within Princess Sidonie's sea of consciousness curled her lips up in a sneer.
'Such a petty person, but this is also good,' Morgana thought. 'We'll, I'm looking forward to an entertaining performance. Do your best, pretty boy.'
William's smile stiffened as he looked at the Crown Prince then at the veiled Princess in the distance. After that, he gave Wendy a glance and whispered something in her ears.
"Told you the princess was going to fall in love with me at first sight,' William whispered.
Instead of answering him, Wendy pinched his waist with a sweet smile on her face. Feeling the pain of his lover's jealousy, William chuckled and gave her hand a light squeeze before standing up.
Since the Crown Prince decided to put him in the spotlight, the Half-Elf decided to humor him and make him regret his decision.
'It's times like this that make me glad I acquired the Bard Job Class,' William thought as he walked to the center of the hall and bowed to the Third Princess, who was looking at him from behind her veil with anticipation.
"I am honored that Princess Sidonie chose me to perform for her," William said with a smile. "Unfortunately, my skills are only subpar. I hope that her highness won't get offended if I don't meet her expectations."
Princess Sidonie was amused by William's introduction, so she decided to give him some encouragement.
"I've heard many things about Lord William even in our distant kingdom of Freesia," Princess Sidonie said with a voice that was akin to hearing an angel sing. "I look forward to your performance."
William smiled and nodded his head, "Since her highness wants to see me perform, this humble shepherd will sing you a song."
William summoned his Lute and strummed it a few times. At first, he just intended to sing the nursery song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, but decided against it. This was the first time Wendy was seeing him perform, so he decided to get a bit serious.
His eyes subtly scanned the crowd and found his music teacher, Feyright, smiling at him from the audience. William gave the handsome elf a gesture, which made the latter's lips curl up into a smile.
It was the gesture that the two of them had made in Lont. When Feyright was to do the gesture, it meant that he wanted William to play with him as support and vice versa.
'Since this is your first bardic performance, I will do my best to make you shine,' Feyright mused as he summoned a flute.
Seeing that his teacher was all set, William then looked at the Third Princess of the Kingdom of Freesia.
"I dedicate this song to all the young ladies that are present in this banquet tonight,' William said as he firmly held the Lute in his hand. "May all of you find courage even in your darkest hour. The title of this song is 'Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears'."
< Job Class successfully switched to Bard >
After hearing the system's notification, William took a deep breath and deftly strummed the strings of his instrument. The rich, and melodious sound of the lute, accompanied by the soft and gentle sounds of the flute reverberated within the hall.
William then started to sing. Everyone's eyes in the room widened, especially the First Years from the Martial Division. They were looking at the handsome Half-Elf as if seeing him for the first time.
They already knew that their Commander was a strong and brave person, but they didn't expect him to be a good singer as well.
William sang and serenaded everyone in the banquet hall and poured out his feelings to his song.
-----
"In a little bag she carried all her past and history.
And her dreams for the future, In the Land of Liberty~
And courage is the passport when your old world disappears.
But there's no future in the past when you're fifteen years~
-----
William's captivating voice and the melody of the instruments plucked the heartstrings of the ladies that were looking at him with infatuated gazes.
Princess Sidonie unconsciously placed her hand over her chest as she listened to the heart provoking song that William was singing.
Prince Lionel, who was paying close attention to Princess Sidonie's every action, cursed William internally and regretted his decision to ask him to perform. He thought that the Half-Elf was a crude person who only knew how to fight.
If the Crown Prince knew that William was also a good singer, he wouldn't have forced him to perform even if it killed him. However, it was now too late. Prince Lionel hoped and prayed that Princess Sidonie's expression behind her veil wasn't that of infatuation or admiration.
He was afraid that if he were to see her face right now, he might decide to ask The Organization to assassinate William in order to appease his jealousy.
William, who had immersed himself in the song, was not aware of what Prince Lionel, Princess Sidonie, and the rest of his audience were thinking. This was one of his favorite songs back on Earth, and the power of the Bard Class amplified his feelings of longing tenfold.
The result of this combination made those who were listening to him tear up. William continued to sing, and even though he was smiling, a tear still fell down on the side of his face as he sang the final lyrics of the song.
----
"Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears,
Isle of Freedom, Isle of Fears.
But it's not the Isle you left behind…"
-----
The Half-Elf's rendition had captured everyone's hearts, making his teacher, Feyright, very proud of him.
William stopped playing and allowed his own voice to finish the final verse of the song, giving it a more soulful ending.
The handsome Half-Elf closed his eyes as he released the emotions from his heart. There was a brief silence before it was broken by a clap that came from Princess Sidonie. She continued to clap and it broke everyone out of their daze.
Cheers and applause reverberated in the Banquet Hall as all of the guests showered William with their praises.
Prince Lionel reluctantly clapped his hand, while using all of his willpower to keep the smile on his handsome face. If there was a medicine for regret, he would have already bought it all.
The Crown Prince knew that the little "interest" that Princess Sidonie had for William a few minutes ago, had now grown exponentially after this single performance.
Meanwhile inside Princess Sidonie's Sea of Consciousness…
The smile on Morgana's face had disappeared long ago. She had been enraptured by the song, just like everyone else, and closed her eyes to listen to it intently. After William's song ended, she kept her eyes closed as she basked at the lingering afterglow of William's voice.
When she finally opened her eyes, she looked at William as if he was the only man on Earth. Morgana unconsciously muttered something as her gaze lingered on the handsome Half-Elf in the distance.
Princess Sidonie, who was also looking at William, heard the words that her other half had said and it made her face redden. Fortunately, there was a veil covering her face, so no one was able to see her current expression.
"I want to make babies with him."
Those were the words that Morgana said that made Princess Sidonie want to dig a hole and bury herself inside it due to embarrassment.