They reached the Warp Gate leading outside the academy, where their chaperons were waiting for them. The girls would bring along their parents while Lith had asked to Marchioness Distar and Count Lark to be his escort.
Raaz and Elina were too busy with the newborn Aran, plus they were completely oblivious to Court etiquette. Bringing them along would be like inviting disaster to dinner.
“Thank you so much, dear Lith.” Count Lark didn’t seem to have aged a day. His black suit was brand new and so was the silk string preventing him losing his black rimmed monocle which kept jumping out of his eye socket from excitement.
“I’ve never attended a Royal Graduation ceremony before. I can never thank you enough for giving me this opportunity.”
“Don’t mention it, old friend.” Lith replied. “If it wasn’t for you, I would have never attended an academy. I’m glad to have you by my side today and to be able to call someone like you a friend.
“If you or your family ever need my help, you just have to ask.”
Lark had to fight back the tears. Lith’s words moved him deeply.
Lith turned around, needing but a glance to notice something was out of place. Marchioness Distar had the smug grin you would expect from someone accompanying the three highest rankers in all the Griffon Kingdom.
Jirni looked at the two youths with her usual eyes full of expectations, like she hoped Lith had already proposed to Phloria or was about to. The odd thing was that instead of the polite and detached attitude Orion usually gave Lith, he seemed to be as eager as Jirni if not more.
Lith shrugged it off as one of the many false flags his paranoia pointed out.
The Warp Gate led them directly inside the royal palace, just a few rooms away from the Banquet Hall. The Battle Mages and Mage Knights in charge of security didn’t care for Jirni’s Royal Constable badge.
Only after checking their IDs and communication amulets thoroughly the guards let them through. While waiting for the background checks to be over, Lith looked around the room.
‘Disgusting. Despite this place being just a waiting room it’s so full of gold and artworks to be tacky, at least by my standards.’ He thought.
‘That’s just because you’re stingy.’ Solus reproached him
‘The room is furnished tastefully. It resembles the royal palace of Versailles from your memories, not a rapper’s house. Royals have the duty to not only be powerful, but also to appear as such.’
The path towards the Banquet Hall was filled with marvels. Solus noticed at least fifty different arrays and countless magical treasures hidden inside the walls.
‘To think that Balkor could bypass all this and make attempts on the Royals’ lives five years in a row makes you understand how powerful he is.’ Lith and Solus thought as one.
The double doors leading inside were wide open. Before they could enter, a valet checked their IDs again before announcing their arrival, speaking with a magically enhanced voice.
The room was more than 40 meters (133 feet) long and over 30 meters (100 feet) wide. A single red carpet embroidered with gold edges went from the three meter (10 feet) door at the entrance to the stairs separating the royal family from the nobles. The final two steps were left unadorned of carpet which further emphasized the separation.
The raised platform, even while sitting, would allow the royals to look down on everyone present reaffirming their status and authority.
The whole room was lit by crystal chandeliers, fueled by magic, leaving no space for shadows or need for maintenance.
On the walls, magically enchanted tapestries would endlessly recount the great feats that the current King had accomplished to be deemed worthy of his power. Both the floor and the pillars of the room were crafted from gold veined marble, the most precious and robust material available in the Griffon Kingdom.
The room was filled with nobles of all ages and importance, who quickly swarmed the three youths like vultures after spotting a fresh corpse.
“How does it feel being blessed by the light?”
“Were you afraid while fighting the wyvern?”
“How did you survive a Valor on your own?”
“First Balkor, then Nalear. Did witnessing so much death change your attitude in life?”
Those were the questions he had to answer over and over again. He felt like a school shooting survivor forced to reply to the dumbest questions a reporter’s mind could come up with to boost their audience.
The evening was long and boring enough to make Lith wish to never attend such an event again.
‘I’d rather work the whole night as a clerk for the Association.’ He thought as he made small talk with the students from the other academies.
Only when the music started did Lith manage to get away with the excuse of dancing. He hated dancing, yet he had prepared for it with Phloria since the fourth year. To get what he wanted, Lith had to play by the rules. At least it had to appear so.
Lith had researched Nalear’s past. Despite being a talented Awakened one, despite having no bonds after abandoning her family, she had failed to even become an influential noble. The Griffon Kingdom, even with all of its faults, was too big to face alone.
He danced with Phloria first and then with other noble dames, trying to establish their worth as connections. Solus would jot down their names, titles, and everything relevant they said. Which usually amounted to very little.
After a while, Lith took a couple of drinks and made his way to a balcony with Phloria to get some fresh air. She seemed to be more annoyed than he was, if not even sad. Lith’s instinct raised another flag, this time too big to ignore.
“Cheer up. This nightmare will not last long. Worst case scenario we’ll be back home in two more hours.” He said.
“I’m sorry.” Lith knew Phloria enough to know that whatever she was talking about, she meant it.
“Sorry about what?”
“I wanted to wait until the gala ended before telling you, but I don’t want our last memory together to be us quarreling.” Her voice was sad. Only after taking a deep breath did she look Lith in the eyes.
“Okay, what the f*ck are you talking about?” He touched her arm while activating Invigoration. She was fit as a fiddle, just like the last time he checked. Her impurities were still so far from her core it was impossible for her to have Awakened and being turned by the Royals in some sort of secret weapon.
“We’re done with the academy. In less than two days I’m going back home. After that, I’ll start the army’s mandatory boot camp. It will last six months with no breaks nor leave. Then I’ll be dispatched where my talents are needed.
“I don’t know how long will it take for me to join the Knight’s Guard. It wouldn’t be fair on you pretending things are going to stay the same. I think it’s best if we break up before I leave the academy.”
Lith was speechless, feeling like a big chunk of his heart had just been ripped out from his chest.
