The day of the crowning ceremony loomed closer.
Using what remaining time he had, Lark started assigning more key personnel to various management positions in Blackstone Town.
A year ago, taking Gaston with him to the capital would have crippled the administrative strength of his territory. But with the establishment of the town hall and the various ministries, Lark was confident that the town would do well even in the butler's absence.
Although the current ministers were still lacking in experience, they were no longer the same illiterate men who scavenged for tree roots just to survive the winter.
Moreover, the soldiers guarding the town had become well versed in battle. According to Anandra, some of them were even capable of holding their ground against the humanoids of the Training Hall.
Lark, along with Anandra, Austen, and George, were at the Training Hall. Gathered before them were over a hundred Blackstone Soldiers, more than half of them wielding the magic spear Lark had given.
"Listen up!" said Commander Qarat. "The lord will be picking fifteen soldiers to accompany him to the capital of the kingdom!"
The soldiers were thrilled upon hearing this. Although it wasn't clearly stated by the commander, they knew that the soldiers picked here today would become the personal guards of the lord—a man who would soon become the king of this nation.
"We'll be holding a competition to see who will accompany the lord to the capital!" said Commander Qarat. "The rules are simple! Just like in training, fight with the humanoids and show the lord your worth!"
Becoming the personal guard of the king was vastly different from being the soldier of this town. The title alone would give them a status far exceeding what they currently had. Moreover, the soldiers picked here today would be able to personally serve the Lord of Blackstone Town.
Everyone felt that there was no honor greater than that. With heated gazes, they glanced at the lord then at the commander.
"The soldiers in front! The five of you!" said Commander Qarat. "Step inside the arena!"
"Yes!" the five soldiers said in unison.
All five of them were 'veteran' soldiers. They were among those who'd survived the invasion of the United Grakas Alliance almost two years ago.
They were among those who'd been granted authority to wield the magic spears personally crafted by the lord.
With firm determination, the five soldiers entered the small arena in the Training Hall and faced five humanoids. The moment the commander gave his signal, they activated the magic spears and charged straight toward their opponents.
Metal clanked as the soldiers and the humanoids clashed.
"Do we really have to do this?" said George while watching the battle.
"Do what?" said Austen.
Along with Lark and Anandra, the brothers watched the battle in the arena.
"Can't we just take everyone with us to the capital?" said George. He gasped out loud when one of the five soldiers managed to land a hit on one of the humanoids. "Wow! I never knew our soldiers are this strong!"
"Of course, they're strong," said Austen, as though it was obvious.
"Those men have been sparring with those metallic monsters every day.
They can probably win against those corrupt patrols in Lion City without breaking much sweat."
One of the five soldiers ran out of mana and failed to block a kick from one of the humanoids. He flew and stumbled several times in the arena, before passing out unconscious on the ground.
Seeing this, the brothers flinched.
"That looks painful," muttered George. He was reminded of that time when the Master of the City of Magic beat them to a pulp.
"Although the soldiers clearly want to accompany our master to the capital, it's not like we can take all of them," said Austen. "If all the soldiers leave, who will protect the town?"
"The next five, get ready for battle!" shouted Commander Qarat.
As expected, the five soldiers who entered the arena first failed to defeat the humanoids. Although the soldiers now carried greater power with the help of the magic spears, they still couldn't properly hit the humanoids made from the essence of a basilisk.
"My Lord," said Anandra.
Lark looked at him and wordlessly urged him to continue speaking.
"Maybe it's too early to give the soldiers the magic spears," said Anandra. "Some of them have become too reliant them. Although they've greatly improved their skills, they still lack the basics."
Lark shook his head. "It's not like we have a choice. This is much better than them fumbling around, not knowing how to use the magic spears, once they confront the demons in battle."
Under normal circumstances, Lark would have waited at least a year more before handing them the magic spears. But with the current state of things—with the threat of demons invading the kingdom looming —he no longer had such leeway.
While Lark was watching the soldiers' heated battle against the humanoids of the Training Hall, he noticed Mikael Garios approaching their group.
After King Alvis visited the Lord of Blackstone Town a few weeks ago, the observer knight no longer pretended to be a mere coachman.
Mikael walked toward Lark and greeted him in his usual stoic manner, "It's been a while, Lord Lark."
"Sir Mikael," said Lark. "What brings you here today?"
"I hope I'm not bothering with the training of the soldiers," said Mikael as he cast a glance at the soldiers fighting against the metallic humanoids in the arena. "But I would like to make a request."
"A request?" repeated Lark.
"Yes, Lord," said Mikael. "I heard that you'll be leaving for the capital tomorrow morning."
Mikael lowered his head and earnestly said, "I apologize if I'm overstepping my bounds, but please allow me to come with you to the capital. Although you've already been chosen as the successor, my job as the observer is to—" "Sure, go ahead," said Lark, as though he found it natural for Mikael to accompany him to the capital. "An hour before dawn. Don't be late."
"Ah."
Mikael opened then closed his mouth. He stared at Lark for several seconds. Finally realizing that his worries had been for naught, he muttered, "Thank you, Lord Lark."
*** The next day, an hour before dawn, Mikael arrived at the forest edge near the mines. The sky was still dark, and the forest quiet.
Mikael thought that he would arrive earlier than everyone else, but to his surprise, Anandra was already there, silently leaning on a tree.
Anandra looked at Mikael as he approached the meeting spot, then lightly nodded his head once in acknowledgment. The two of them stood there silently and waited for everyone else to arrive.
Soon, the fifteen soldiers who'd won the little competition yesterday arrived. And they were followed by the princess and her knights.
"Ah, instructor!" said Parzival the moment he saw Mikael. "I should have known you'd be coming with us!"
The other knights also greeted Mikael respectfully. Despite his current shabby appearance, he was once one of the most-esteemed instructors of the knights in the kingdom.
While Mikael was exchanging greetings with Princess Esmeralda and the knights, Lark and the remaining members of his retinue arrived.
Big Mona, Chryselle, Austen, George, and Gaston followed right behind Lark. Moreover, several dozen large men with tinges of silver in their hair arrived alongside them. Peculiarly, their eyes were of different colors—one was blue, while the other was black. For a moment, Mikael wondered if the blood of the Marcuses flowed through the veins of all these people.
There were almost a hundred of them, and each of them was even taller and more muscular than Anandra. Their gazes were predatory, as though they would readily twist your neck without hesitation if Lark gave the order.
Mikael had been observing Lark Marcus for over a year now, and this was the first time he'd seen these people.
Who were they?
Where did they come from?
Mikael's instinct was telling him that each of those men was dangerous.
Although it sounded absurd, Mikael felt that even the weakest among them could cripple him with a single punch.
It was not only Mikael who looked warily at the men. The fifteen soldiers selected to accompany Lark and the knights of the princess fell silent.
They must have felt it too. The eerily dangerous aura those men exuded even from this distance.
"Is everyone here?" said Lark.
"I believe so, Master," said Anandra.
Lark nodded. "Good. Then, let's call Blackie over."
Mikael silently observed Lark as he channeled mana into the necklace he was wearing. Based on what King Alvis had told him, the same creature who nearly annihilated the royal knights was residing in the Endless Forest.
Moreover, it was subservient to the Lord of Blackstone Town.
Although several miners had already seen the creature, Mikael had yet to see for himself what it really looked like.
Minutes passed.
Soon, Mikael felt something colossal headed their way. Flocks of birds flew out of the trees and a loud whizzing sound was heard from the deeper parts of the forest.
Although everyone here was already aware of the presence of the monster, they still couldn't help but be nervous as it made its appearance before them.
A monster with seven heads, two pairs of bat-like wings, and black iridescent scales. Each flap of its wings created gusts of wind.
With wide eyes, Mikael Garios' stared at the creature for several seconds. This monster could probably destroy the entire kingdom on its own. It was surreal that it was subservient to the lord.
"I've come, God Evander," said the Scylla in a deep voice.
"It's time to leave for the capital," said Lark.
The Scylla scanned the faces of everyone below. Its predatory gaze visibly softened upon landing on Lark and his disciples.
"Of course, God Evander," said the Scylla.
The seven-headed monster slowly hovered down and landed on the ground, right in front of Lark. It lowered its body, making sure that Lark would have no problem mounting it.
Using a split-second burst of wind magic, Lark jumped on top of the Scylla's body. He said to everyone, "Climb up. We're flying straight to the capital."
Mikael swallowed the lump in his throat. After Anandra and the unknown large men climbed on top of the Scylla, he quickly followed suit.
For the former instructor of the knights, this was his first time riding such a large creature.
After everyone was finally onboard the Scylla's body, Lark gave his order, "To the capital."
"Yes, God Evander!"
The trees around them momentarily shook as the Scylla roared and unfolded its wings wide. It jumped up, flapped its wings, and flew toward the capital.
*** It was late evening when Lark and his retinue finally arrived at the capital.
In order to not cause unnecessary terror to the citizens of Behemoth City, they disembarked from the Scylla near the outskirts.
"Go back to Blackstone Town for now," Lark said to the Scylla.
"Protect the territory while I'm gone."
"As you command! I will make sure no harm comes to the town, God Evander!"
"Thank you." Lark smiled.
The Scylla flapped its wings and flew away, disappearing from sight.
"Let's go," said Lark.
Their group started walking toward the capital. Even from here, they could see the large, translucent barrier enclosing the city, along with a small portion of the nearby forest.
Maybe it was due to the fact that a similar barrier was enclosing Blackstone Town, but for some reason, the scenery before them felt underwhelming. Even the walls enclosing the capital were smaller than those enclosing Lark's territory.
Their group entered the barrier.
As expected, with the help of the blood emeralds, even the pinnacle-grade barrier spell wasn't able to detect the demonic energy flowing inside the bodies of the Arzomos Tribe. They were considered humans by the barrier and permitted entry.
The barrier was strong, but it was not infallible.
"There's a lot of refugees," said Big Mona.
They saw the thousands of shacks haphazardly built right outside the walls of the capital.
It seemed that even after Lark annihilated the demons in the Kelvin Duchy and the nearby territories, the refugees still refused to leave the capital.
Well, it was understandable. After all, Blackstone Town aside, this was the only city protected by a pinnacle-grade barrier in the kingdom.
A group of beggars gazed at Lark's group, but did not even dare approach them, probably due to the presence of the Arzomos. The members of the Arzomos Tribe, whose human bodies were even larger than Anandra, looked terrifying even from a distance.
Soon, they reached the gates.
"Halt," said one of the soldiers. "We need to confirm your identities before you'll be given ent—" The soldier stopped midway through his speech. Upon seeing Lark, he immediately realized his identity.
Everyone had already heard that the second son of the Marcus family was going to ascend the throne. The characteristic silver hair and blue eyes of the young man in front of him were a dead giveaway that he was Lark Marcus.
"L-Lord Lark!" The soldier immediately made a snappy salute. He shouted at the soldiers on top of the walls. "Open the gates!"
"Open the gates!" the other soldiers echoed. They, too, immediately recognized someone from the Marcus family.
"Aren't you going to check our identities?" said Lark, not minding going through the procedures.
The soldiers shook his head several times. "N-No. Well… you see, there have been a lot of refugees lately. We had to restrict access to the capital, otherwise, it'll overcrowd the city. But there's no need for Lord Lark and his group to undergo such procedures."
Using exaggerated movements, the soldier pointed at the opened gate in a fluster. "Please go ahead and enter!"
They were only at the gates, but they were already seeing the tremendous influence the future king of the kingdom had over its citizens.
"I see," said Lark. "Thank you for the hard work."
"My Lord… ? Those people," the soldier carefully picked his words, afraid of offending the young noble.
Lark glanced over his shoulder. Although it was their meekest gaze, to other people, it looked like the Arzomos were glaring at them.
"They're with me," said Lark.
"Ah, of course," said the soldier. "The gates are open. Please enter, Lord Lark."
Even the members of the Arzomos Tribe no longer had to undergo the usual procedures and were given free passage through the capital.
This would have been a cumbersome process if Lark had not been proclaimed the next successor to the crown.
"The name Marcus really holds so much value these days." Big Mona clicked his tongue.
He seemed dissatisfied that the members of the Arzomos Tribe were easily granted entry to the capital. The fat merchant wanted to show his worth to Lark by negotiating with the soldiers, but it seemed that such trivial things were no longer needed as long as they used Lark's name.
"We should probably wait here, partner," said Big Mona.
Lark cast a quizzical gaze at the merchant.
Big Mona stared at the wide road ahead of them. "Remember, in a couple of days, you will be the king. There's no need to stoop so low as to check into an inn or personally go all the way to the king's castle."
Now that he'd become Lark's exclusive merchant, Big Mona vowed to protect Lark's prestige as a noble, no matter the cost. He would never let anyone sully the name of his precious gold mine.
"Remember this, partner," said Big Mona. "You are not just any noble.
You are not just any king. You are the greatest Arch Mage who has ever lived. It is only proper that we act accordingly to such title."
Big Mona confidently added, "And considering King Alvis' personality, it should arrive any moment now."
True to Big Mona's word, over a dozen carriages arrived at the city's entrance. The number of royal guards escorting it made all of the nearby residents halt and stare in awe. Although they'd been living in the capital for decades, this was their first time seeing so many carriages and soldiers come to escort someone.
Several high-ranking officers of the royal guards and the patrol disembarked and approached Lark's group.
"It is an honor to meet you, Lord Lark," greeted Danack, the Head of the Patrol. Next to him was the Grand Chamberlain, Viscount Lakian.
The Grand Chamberlain scanned the faces of everyone present, inwardly relieved they'd prepared enough carriages to accommodate everyone.
"We've prepared a sumptuous feast in anticipation of Lord Lark's arrival," said the Grand Chamberlain. "Please allow us to escort you to the king's castle."
George and Austen stared at the luxurious-looking carriages in awe.
Their exteriors were embedded with silver and golden patterns. Even the horses looked majestic, as though they'd been fed nothing but high-quality hay.
The royal guards opened the doors to the carriages and respectfully ushered everyone in.
Lark and Big Mona entered the first carriage, along with the Grand Chamberlain and Danack.
"His Majesty wished to come and escort you personally, My Lord," said the Grand Chamberlain. "But I vehemently objected against it. His Majesty is old, and the recent gathering of nobles has taken its toll on his health. I sincerely hope for Lord Lark's understanding."
Big Mona seemed dissatisfied, but decided to remain silent for now.
"It's fine," said Lark. "You mentioned a recent gathering of nobles?"
The Grand Chamberlain slowly nodded his head. He wryly smiled.
"All of the nobles summoned by the crown for the coronation ceremony arrived at the capital, two days ago," said the Grand Chamberlain. "I'm sure Lord Lark already knows of this…" he carefully said his next words, "but you're not exactly popular among the other nobles."
Big Mona scoffed. "The Kelvins?"
The Grand Chamberlain said, "Yes."
"I heard that their Duchy was overrun by the demons," Big Mona sneered. "And they still dare bare their fangs against us?"
The Vont Family was the greatest supplier of arms for the Kelvins.
Back then, when he heard that the Duchy was destroyed by the demons, Big Mona squeaked with glee.
"The other nobles are protesting about the sudden decision of His Majesty, King Alvis. It's two years earlier than the promised time of succession, after all. Although they would have probably kept their mouths shut if the successor to the throne belonged to their faction…" Big Mona leaned back. As expected of a carriage meant for royalty, even he found the carriage more comfortable than usual.
"How foolish," said Big Mona. "Even after what happened to the Kelvins, they still can't see the bigger picture of what's going to come, huh?
Not only this kingdom, but the entire continent will be soon engulfed in war."
The Grand Chamberlain slowly nodded his head. As one of the close aids of the king, he understood what the merchant was trying to say. With the threat of the demons looming in, now was not the time for petty squabbles among nobles.
Along the way to the castle, they passed a large, five-storey building with a three-meter-tall stone statue of a merchant at the entrance. It looked so luxurious, even compared to the mansions in the Inner District of the Capital.
The Merchants Guild of Behemoth City.
The 'castle' of the Vont Family, one of the most influential families of the kingdom.
Seeing the familiar building, Big Mona's brows twitched. He could still remember the day, several decades ago, when his father knelt and begged before those scum. Big Mona would never forget those arrogant expressions, looking at his father as though he was nothing but an insect they could squash with their feet.
Noticing Big Mona's gaze, the Grand Chamberlain said, "The capital's Merchant Guild. It's so beautiful that it looks like a palace, doesn't it?"
Big Mona wryly smiled. In a sarcastic voice, he uttered, "It sure is."
Lark sat silently as he listened to their exchange. He observed Big Mona's expression. Unlike the Grand Chamberlain, he knew of Big Mona's desire to overthrow the current rulers of the Merchant Guild of the capital.
A desire driven not only by greed, but by spite.
Soon, they arrived at the castle.
The moment Lark disembarked from the carriage, he was immediately greeted by King Alvis.
"Lord Lark, it's a great honor to have you here!" the king respectfully ushered Lark and his retinue into the castle. "Hopefully, the feast we've prepared will suit your taste."
Princess Esmeralda looked uncomfortable with her father being inordinately polite to Lark. Even the royal guards escorting them looked conflicted.
"I heard that your health is failing," said Lark. "It's fine if we have our conversation tomorrow morning."
King Alvis shook his head. "This is nothing compared to when I collapsed from the curse. I'm… just tired of dealing with those nobles from the Noble Factions. Some of them still hold key positions in the kingdom, you see. It's hard, even for me, to simply dismiss their words."
Lark nodded but didn't utter a word.
He understood clearly the struggles King Alvis was going through.
Although the king held the greatest power in this kingdom, his power was not absolute.
Some lower-ranked nobles held enough power to threaten even higher-ranking nobles. A good example of this was the Aria Family from Wizzert and the Boris Family who served as the guardians of the kingdom against the monsters of the Forbidden Region.
The Aria Family, despite being low-ranking nobles, was the absolute ruler of Wizzert and the Magic Academy. The Boris Family, on the other hand, controlled the large city of Daxton and its surrounding towns and territories. They also had a significant number of soldiers under their command.
Even the low-ranking nobles under the Kelvin Faction held significant positions within the kingdom. This was why King Alvis couldn't simply brush off their complaints. They all held enough authority to sway the current flow of the kingdom.