***

(Third Person)

As the night dominated the starry sky above the completely exposed kingdom of Erela, the lights all over the kingdom shone throughout the place and filled it with life. Inside the throne room of the kingdom of Erela.

"We are expecting them to arrive in a few days, Your Majesty." Said the elven knight kneeling in front of the two people sitting on their respective thrones.

"Approximately 200,000 warriors. Indeed, this is not the largest army we have fought, but the great danger that we are about to face is undeniable." King Asmit leaned his head forward while sitting on his throne. "What about the kingdom that was responsible for the collapse of the barrier? The kingdom of Nardia? Are there any signs of their appearance? Or any of the main kingdoms of humanity?"

The knight slowly shook his head making his beautiful blonde hair move gracefully. "Strangely enough, there is not even a small hint of the kingdom of Nardia or even any of the three main kingdoms of humanity. The forces that we are about to face just consist of the inferior kingdoms of humanity."

King Asmit leaned his back to the backrest of his throne. "You are right, it's quite strange. They are about to achieve the very thing they have been aiming for for years, but not even one of the main kingdoms shows up. Humanity... what are they planning to do?"

"What should we do, Your Majesty?"

"We can't do anything about it. All we can do is wait until everything is conveyed. However, with all the things considered, we should prepare for the worst. After all, this war is different from the other wars we had fought before. We should be prepared for whatever their forces have been preparing to throw on us. We will never make the same mistake we did back in the recent battle."

The knight stood up and walked out of the room with such grace in his every step, leaving King Asmit staring at nothingness while gently rubbing his red lips with his index finger.

On the other hand, the other person sitting on the throne next to him stared at him with tenderness in her beautiful jade green eyes. She stood up and gently rubbed her hand on King Asmit's shoulder. "Everything will be fine, My love."

King Asmit slowly exhaled before raising his head and expressing a gentle smile on his beautiful face. "Of course, it will be fine, My love. I will make sure it will."

"Perhaps to lessen your worries, should the queen of Erela spoil her valiant king tonight?" Queen Ayani asked while expressing a playful smile on her extremely attractive face.

King Asmit immediately stood up and walked far away from Queen Ayani, he repeatedly inhaled and exhaled but his red face remained. He covered his face with his palm before facing the queen while making a tough expression. "The knights could hear you, Ayani." He said while pointing his hand towards the knights stationed at the corners of the throne room trying their best not to react to what they just heard.

Queen Ayani slightly pouted her lips and put her right hand on her hips. "Is that a no?"

For a few seconds, King Asmit paused. "I... I didn't say no." King Asmit said in almost a whisper voice while scratching the back of his head and staring at the knights with great embarrassment written all over his face.

What he received next was a warm hug coming from his queen wrapping on his back. "My gallant king."

They remained in that position until King Asmit cleared his throat and gently walked out from Queen Ayani. "Anyway, I- I heard that you privately talked to Warlord Casimir? Would you mind telling me what the two of you discussed?"

Queen Ayani slowly nodded. "Nothing special, I just asked them about Leal and Lei's life while they were away from us. I heard that both of them have been having a wonderful life in the town of Agrona, and have been doing great on their own."

"I see. I am glad to hear that." King Asmit narrowed his eyes. "Although I am surprised that Warlord Casimir condoned your odd request to talk about such a trivial topic for him."

Queen Ayani gently shook her head. "Surprisingly, he was quite a welcoming person, he didn't show any signs of resentment towards me, despite what happened in the past..." Her smile widened. "Moreover, he has a very cheerful friend, her name is Karoon. She is a beastkin who loves to talk about a lot of things, she's quite entertaining to be with, and... she also happens to be Tanya's daughter figure. Tanya has been living a wonderful life now, with her newfound home and family."

Upon hearing the familiar name, King Asmit turned his back to Queen Ayani and walked towards the window at the corner of the room. "I see. I am glad to hear that she is doing fine... despite what happened."

The next thing King Asmit felt was the head of her beautiful queen on his shoulder while holding his hand. "She's quite a strong girl, she's just the same age as Hien, right?"

King Asmit held her hands tighter and very gentle as he leaned his head on her. "No. She's five years younger than Hien."

"Really? I hope I meet her someday. What does she look like, My Love? I bet she's extremely beautiful."

***

Inside one of the rooms of the castle of Erela, a white room filled with beautiful types of furniture made of expensive minerals and meticulously carved woods that were hidden in the shades of the darkness. In front of the window where the gentle wind was coming in, a certain person was standing while facing the window and watching the starry night sky outside. His elegant long blonde hair slowly swayed, slightly pronouncing his beautiful face.

"The Elder council has finally decided to make their move." Prince Alric said with a voice filled with authority and without facing the five people kneeling before him.

Each of the five people was wearing black clothing, hiding their entire body and their blonde hair.

"Her room is just right next to Leal's, make sure no one will notice you until the right time comes. Do not fail me."

With synchronization and swiftness, all five of them stood up with such grace and bowed their heads to Prince Alric. "Consider it done, Your Highness." And without a delay, all five of them jumped out from the balcony of the room. With such speed and stealth, they traveled toward the location of their mission.

On the other hand, Prince Alric remained silent while staring at the sky outside. He closed his eyes as he felt the gentle touch of the wind. After some time, he raised his black metallic right hand and closed and opened it. "This time, I won't end up making the same mistake." He looked back and pointed his gaze towards the person leaning against the wall of his dark room. "No risk is greater than my resolve."

Prince Hien who was just silently staring at him did not say anything and just expressed a gentle smile upon hearing what his older brother just declared.