Monts later...
BOOM...
Shattering the sound barrier, a figure descended upon the rooftop. The sheer impact of his speed caused the stone to explode, and spider-web-like cracks stretched everywhere.
Donning obsidian black armour that frad his large body, a raven black cape behind him, the figure had short black hair, a cold face, and sharp eyes that made him quite handso.
The figure was none other than one of the five, correction, four heroes of the Kingdom of Aetherion: Vaerion Duskclaw. The latter’s eyes swept the rooftop and the surrounding area. The air around him vibrated faintly with suppressed power, heavy enough to make any weak-levelled human collapse.
"...I could swear I felt a disturbance of mana here. Was I mistaken?" His voice was low and his eyes dark.
For a mont, the night held its breath.
.
.
Golden light washed over Reinhardt and Diana as the world around them shifted imdiately. They were back within the gazebo once more, surrounded by tall sunflowers swaying gently in the night breeze. The familiar scent of warm earth, flowers, and faint mana was evidence that they were back in Solaris once again.
"Are you alright?" The princess, who was resisting his touch, staggered back the mont he released her. With her face blushing red, she nodded her head, her heart beating loudly. The touch earlier was far too intimate for her comfort.
"Please forgive , Princess. The situation was such that I had to act imdiately."
At that mont, if he didn’t act hastily, Diana’s presence would have been found out by Vaerion. While Reinhardt did not possess any skill that could completely erase his presence, he had to admit one thing: the Dark Knight’s senses were frighteningly sharp.
Vaerion had not seen them, but he had felt it. The faint ripple of mana that leaked the instant Reinhardt invoked his skill had been enough to draw the man over. Well, given that they moved away from their location imdiately, the other party shouldn’t be able to guess anything.
"I see... Once again, thank you for indulging my selfishness." Reinhardt waved his hands and changed the topic. "Your Highness, although you inford your royal father and mother that you still need ti, what are your plans?"
Diana did not answer imdiately. Instead, she looked at the sunflower field around them. Though she was gazing at the flowers, her mind was sowhere else. In her head, the image of the Queen of Solaris standing in the assembly surfaced. The figure of her standing tall, her voice unwavering, nobles trembling from her glance, and knights bowing in respect was practically engraved in her mind.
"I will remain in Solaris, by the Queen’s side." She spoke after a while. "Oh?"
"I will continue to help her manage the state. Today... no, ever since I arrived here, I’ve seen what true authority looks like. The Queen of Solaris commands respect not through fear alone, but through resolve. The nobles fear her judgnt; the knights trust her decisions, and the people believe in her. One day, I want to beco soone like that. A ruler my people can rely on, not soone pushed around by others’ ambitions."
Diana firmly declared. Her eyes no longer held that weakness from before. Reinhardt studied her quietly before nodding his head.
"I see. That’s a good path." Saying that, he turned to leave.
Just as he exited the gazebo, his steps halted and he comnted without turning around. "A strong Princess Diana... that would indeed be a pleasant change for the world."
Saying that, the knight left. The night swallowed his retreating figure, his armour gleaming faintly under the moon before disappearing beyond the garden path. Diana remained where she was, watching the disappearing figure of the knight. She pressed a hand against her chest, feeling her heartbeat.
For reasons she couldn’t quite explain, hearing those words from him had eased sothing deep within her.
.
The next day arrived, and with it, the Magic Knight Entrance Exam, long postponed, finally began. It was spectacular, stringent, and filled with surprises. The capital’s grand colosseum overflowed with people. Nobles, commoners, rcenaries, veteran knights... every gaze inevitably drifted toward the seating stand where the Seven Great Knight Orders arrived one after another.
The atmosphere shifted the instant they appeared. Respect, awe, and unmistakable fear, they were showered with all kinds of gazes. Especially the Seven Great Commanders... the true monsters and heavy weights of Solaris.
The vision of the Grand Aegis shattered and that of the kingdom-wide crusade was still burned into the minds of everyone present. No one questioned the authority of the Seven anymore. No one dared compare themselves. The era of doubt was over.
Once the Seven Commanders took their seats, the exam officially began. Young bloods gathered from every corner of Solaris went up to the stage to showcase their skills. Steel clashed; mana flared, and skills erupted.
While the format of the exam was different from the previous year, it still provided a breathtaking display for the audience. Stats trial, swordsmanship test, fearlessness and endurance limits, combat simulations, each challenge pushed the candidates to their limits.
So shone brilliantly for monts before collapsing. Others endured quietly, grit outweighing talent. A few displayed flashes of terrifying potential that made even veteran knights raise their brows.
Half a day later, the exam was finally over. The stage that the participants went up to display their skills now lay scarred, marked by the battles and showmanship the participants displayed.
Everyone here had the sa dream: to enter one of the Seven Great Knight Orders. But dreams alone were not enough. Only a chosen few were deed worthy to enter the Seven.
Be that as it may, among the Seven, one order stood above the rest. The Temple of Light received the highest number of recruits. Drawn by Reinhardt’s charisma, power, and countless stories of valour, many candidates joined the order, wanting to follow in his footsteps to beco one of the heroes.
Of course, that was not the only reason. As the knight order which was previously regarded as the weakest and tail end of the Seven with a wobbly position, for three or four consecutive years after Reinhardt fell, their reputation had reached rock bottom. Needless to say, during those tis they received the least number of participants from the standards of the Seven Great Knight Orders.
Now all of that changed, and the citizens could see them charging up the ranks of the Seven in the near future. After them ca the Order of the Blazing Sun, followed by the remaining orders.
For many candidates, being rejected by the Seven entirely was not failure; the other knight orders were also solid choices.
Night fell. Arknight Mansion, Capital. Reinhardt stood before the overly excited new recruits and gave his speech, officially inaugurating them into his order. After the speech, it was obviously, food and drinks.
The Holy Knights and High Ranking Knights, being the persons that they were, enjoyed freely, getting drunk and making fools of themselves.
Though this ti, it was not just them. Many knights who were considered officially adults joined them, reliving the stress they had accumulated over the month. Just like last year, the scene was quite shocking for all the new recruits. All the preconceived misconceptions they had about knights and knight orders were blown away that day.
Gwen looked at their silly faces and couldn’t help but reminisce about her own ti. She reckoned that she was probably making the sa expression as them.
The next day, Royal Palace. Having stayed in the capital for quite long, it was ti for him and his order to return. However, before that, there was sothing he needed to do.
"My knight, why did you call over here?" The Queen questioned, arriving at one of the gardens of the palace.
There, standing like a drawn sword by the fountain with his back facing her, was Reinhardt. The latter did not turn around imdiately. Instead, he continued to stand in his place.
"You have done well. Return now, Karina." The shadow underneath the Queen quivered, and the figure of Karina, donned in tight, glossy leather armour, manifested. On his order, she returned by his side. Usually, she would instantly hide inside his shadow and continue to protect him covertly. However, this ti she did not do so.
The reason was simple and surprising.
"Your Majesty, please accept this gift from ." Finished preparing everything he needed to, Reinhardt turned around. The mont he did so, golden radiance erupted from his chest, intense enough to make the morning light pale in comparison.
That said, the golden light did not stay for long and soon dimd down to reveal an egg being held within the palms of the Divine Paladin. It was large, nearly the size of a football, with a rough shell. Veins of deep crimson and molten gold ran across its surface like runes, pulsing faintly, as though sothing within was breathing, waiting.
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