Chapter 268: A Brief Meeting

[Volume 3 Begins From This Chapter]

Two days had passed since Samael’s return to the world.

The King’s palace in Dragonhold was filled with so much tension.

Rulers from the nine kingdoms across the continent sat assembled around the table, with their expressions grave as they listened to the words being spoken.

King Oberon sat at the head of the table, as was his right as sovereign of Dragonhold and the continent itself.

But his presence felt secondary today. Everyone’s attention was focused on the figure standing near the center of the room.

Aiden.

He had both arms crossed, with his red eyes sweeping across the gathered rulers as he spoke with an air of authority. The discussion had actually been going on for some time now.

Lord Cedric Greystone of Xathia sat to Oberon’s right. To his left was Lady Selene of Zahka, the Warrior Kingdom.

Beside her was Lady Arnarra of Elandria.

Lady Sigrid of Skallgard sat further down. She had only recently been named interim ruler after Lord Ivar’s sons, who had killed their father while possessed by demons, were deemed unfit to lead.

Skallgard had chosen Ivar’s daughter instead, and now she sat among the other rulers, trying to prove herself worthy of the seat.

The rest were all In full attendance; Lady Thalyra of Yul’thera, the Amazon Kingdom.

Lord Ansel of Drakensporth, Lord Juvna of Jogunmount, Lady Seraph of Orathia, and finally, Lord Krelnor of Belforte.

The meeting had been called by Aiden himself.

“Aiden,” Lady Selene started. “You’ve told us that Samael has returned and that his forces would soon spread across Dellheim. What I need to know is this: when should we expect an invasion onto our lands?”

The question hung in the air for a moment as every ruler turned their gaze toward Aiden.

Aiden exhaled slowly and shook his head.

“I’m unsure,” he admitted honestly. “But it is best that you all prepare yourselves regardless.”

He paused, letting his words settle before continuing.

“The time may come when you will need to raise armies like your fathers or the ones before them once did.”

The rulers exchanged glances among themselves. Some looked troubled, others determined, but none of them disagreed with what Aiden had said.

Lord Ansel spoke up then, with his deep voice rumbling through the chamber.

“Then we prepare,” he said simply. “We fortify our borders, we train our soldiers, and we ready ourselves for war.”

One by one, the rulers voiced their agreement.

Then Aiden turned his attention briefly toward Thalyra and said, “Lady Thalyra, I ask again that you gather your people and leave Yul’thera. Your kingdom is too close to Dellheim.”

It was the umpteenth time he had made the request over the past few days.

Thalyra shook her head, declining once more.

“I understand your concern. Truly, I do. But Yul’thera can only be invaded by those we allow to see our kingdom. The gods themselves have also confirmed that we have nothing to fear.”

Aiden shook his head disappointedly. The gods? Those idiots with barely any control of their own selves?

Thalyra on her own end was either being unnecessarily prideful or just overconfident in the magic which put her Kingdom under an invisible veil.

Oberon remained silent throughout this exchange as he watched Aiden command the attention of every ruler in the room with ease.

Aiden sighed, then turned back to others. “We’re in agreement then.”

The meeting concluded shortly after that, and the rulers began rising from their seats one by one, preparing to leave Dragonhold to begin preparations for what was to come.

As they filed out of the chamber, each ruler stopped briefly as they passed Aiden on their way out. And each one inclined their head toward him in a gesture of respect.

Even Lady Arnarra paused beside him for just a moment longer than necessary before inclining her head and walking away without a word.

They had come to acknowledge him fully now.

Oberon watched this unfold from his seat at the head of the table with a deep frown etched across his face.

His hands gripped the armrests tightly as ruler after ruler paid their respects to Aiden instead of him.

When the last of them had left, Oberon stood slowly from his chair and walked past Aiden without saying a word or even glancing in his direction.

His expression was one of bitter disappointment as he exited the chamber.

Now only two people remained: Aiden and Lord Cedric Greystone.

Cedric had lingered behind deliberately, waiting until everyone else had left before approaching Aiden directly.

He walked over slowly.

“My Son…” Cedric began, with a little smile on his face. “How is my daughter doing?”

Aiden grew a smile as well at the question. “She’s fine,” he replied.

Cedric nodded again, satisfied with the answer. Then he reached out and placed one hand gently on Aiden’s shoulder, patting it lightly in an almost fatherly gesture.

“Keep protecting her for me,” Cedric said.

Aiden met his gaze and nodded back. “I will.”

Cedric turned and walked toward the chamber’s exit.

——

In an open field just outside Dragonhold’s main gates, four figures occupied the grassy expanse.

Aeris stood in one corner of the field, practicing with her twin blades some sort of silence.

Her movements were fluid and precise as she moved through a series of forms, with each strike cutting through the air with a sharp whistle.

She had grown noticeably closer to Arianna and Laela over the past few days, spending most of her time with them.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, Arianna and Laela stood together with Rin positioned between them.

Both women were focused intently on helping Rin achieve something she had been struggling with for hours now.

Which was, casting her first spell.

Rin had her eyes closed, with her hands raised slightly in front of her as she tried to concentrate and channel her mana.

“Alright,” Arianna said gently. “Remember what we told you. You need to focus your imagination first, then let your mana follow through with the creation.”

Rin nodded without opening her eyes. “I remember,” she muttered.

Laela added encouragingly, “You’re doing great so far, Rin. Just take it slow and don’t rush.”

Rin took a deep breath and tried again.

Not long ago, Thamoryn had evaluated Rin after officially making her a member of Ravens Grave.

And the results of that evaluation had come as a genuine surprise. Rin’s magic was Steel Magic, and the magic’s strength was at the SS rank

An SS-rank magic strength was impossiby rare, and the last person to have possessed such a rank during his own evaluation in Xathia, was Aiden himself.

But Rin was turning out to be just as much of an anomaly as he was.

As a half-demon, half-human hybrid, it made sense that Rin could harness normal human magic alongside her demonic abilities.

But the SS-rank? It made her wonder if it was somehow demon related or something else entirely.

The only problem was this: while Rin had perfect control over her demonic magic, which allowed her body to take on the properties of any magic it interacted with, she was somehow missing a few critical steps when it came to casting her first Steel Magic technique.

She always broke focus right in the middle of the process, right between focusing her imagination and letting her mana do the rest.

It had happened multiple times already today alone.

Rin’s hands trembled slightly as she concentrated harder. There was a faint glow of silver light began forming around her palms as her mana started responding to her will.

Arianna and Laela both leaned forward, watching with anticipation.

“That’s it,” Laela whispered. “You’re almost there.”

The silver light grew brighter, coalescing into something more solid—

And then, from across the field, Aeris let out a sharp yell as she swung one of her blades through the air in a particularly powerful strike.”Hya!”

Rin’s eyes snapped open immediately. The silver light around her hands flickered for just a moment before dissipating into nothing.

Arianna threw both hands up into the air in exasperation.

“Aeris!” she called out across the field, though there was no real anger in her voice, just frustration at yet another failed attempt.

Aeris paused mid-swing and turned toward them with a confused expression on her face. “What?” she called back innocently.

Laela shook her head and chuckled a bit. Then turned towards Rin supportively.

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