Under everyone's watchful eyes, Maria threw herself into Felix's arms. The gazes of several female executives sharpened instantly, but once they realized that Maria was simply being affectionate and expressing how much she had missed him, they relaxed, withdrew their attention, and returned to their drinks.
"Brother Felix, it's been so long! Did you read the letter I wrote to you?"
"Of course. Maria can forge her own armor now. That's truly impressive. It seems the old craftsman taught you well."
"Hmph." Hearing this, the old craftsman proudly puffed out his chest, and Maria laughed softly.
She leaned closer to Felix and whispered, "Brother Felix, will Sister come to the Kawalerielki to watch the competition this time?"
"Hm… I'll tell you quietly, as your big brother. But you can't tell anyone else, all right?"
Maria's eyes lit up as she carefully leaned in, bringing her ear close to Felix's lips.
"Margaret has already entered the Kawalerielki, but it's not convenient for her to appear publicly right now."
Maria was instantly overjoyed, but she quickly remembered that this was a secret she had to keep. Her expression twisted into a strange half-smile, as if she were on the verge of shouting out her happiness, or perhaps savoring the thrill of keeping it to herself. Seeing this, Zofia turned her head away. It was far too obvious.
Zofia sat at the bar, ordered a drink, and casually chatted with the executives, mainly to learn more about Tomorrow's Development. Although Młynar had joined Tomorrow's Development, he had not revealed much about the organization's internal affairs to her.
Because Margaret had been with Tomorrow's Development for so long, Zofia was eager to understand what kind of organization it truly was. At the same time, she was deeply concerned about Margaret's current situation within it.
Even though the two had been exchanging letters, Zofia still wanted to hear what Margaret was like now, through the descriptions given by the executives of Tomorrow's Development.
Just as the atmosphere at the Scarly Martin Bar grew livelier, the arrival of an unexpected guest shattered the harmony.
Bald Martin stood at the entrance with a displeased expression, staring at the impeccably dressed corporate lackeys of the Chamber of Commerce and frowning in disgust. "Corporate dogs, the whole place is booked today. We don't have seats for you."
"Bald Martin, you've misunderstood." The man in the suit showed no anger at being called a corporate dog. His tone was calm and earnest. "The Chamber of Commerce wishes to invite His Highness, the King of Liberation, to discuss business. Please inform His Highness."
This humble attitude made bald Martin uncomfortable. The man standing before him was clearly different.
The people usually sent by the Chamber of Commerce were not spokespersons or decision-makers, merely peripheral members acting as messengers. In other words, they were outsourced.
But this man was different. A nameplate hung on his chest, clearly marked with L56.
Level 56 was equivalent to the manager of a mobile city. The man before him appeared easygoing, but in reality, his word was law within the city under his jurisdiction.
They were the rule-makers, and also those who operated within the very rules they had set. And now, they stood before the doors of Scarly Martin, humbly inviting the King of Liberation of Kazdel.
Bald Martin had never seen anything like this. He scratched his bald head, returned to the bar, and whispered the situation into Felix's ear.
Felix drained the wine in his glass and nodded to Patriot and Hellagur beside him.
He put on his coat, pushed open the door of Scarly Martin, stepped into a black stretch Lincoln, and as the engine roared to life, the car disappeared into the night.
___
The young Feline girls and Kuranta attendants were dressed in outfits that looked revealing at first glance, yet exposed very little. Even in the chilly October wind, they wore thin black stockings. When they saw the black stretch Lincoln, they greeted it warmly without obsequiousness and politely opened the door.
This seemed to be standard practice for the Chamber of Commerce. Seeing that Felix showed no interest, the man in the suit gave a slight shake of his head. The girls who had intended to approach immediately bowed politely and stepped back.
"Your Highness, please forgive our lack of refinement."
"Lead the way."
The two entered the Chamber of Commerce building, and the man in the suit took his employee ID card.
He swiped his card at the elevator sensor, and the elevator shot upward.
"Your Highness, we invited you here to inquire about the overall direction of the Chamber of Commerce in the future. Your opinions and guidance would be of great value to us."
"I don't think I'm capable of giving the advice you're hoping for."
"Your Highness, the Chamber of Commerce's progress in recent years has been far from ideal." The man in the suit pressed his lips together. "Investors have withdrawn, competition in Kazimierz has intensified, and there is serious internal division and infighting within the Chamber of Commerce."
"Your Highness, this is a very difficult game to play."
Felix glanced at him in surprise, somewhat taken aback that the man would speak so frankly.
As the elevator came to a stop, the doors slowly opened, allowing Felix to clearly see the interior. The entire floor was filled with conference rooms, but unlike what he had imagined, the lighting was dim. Inside, young men and women in suits and uniforms sat quietly, wearing headsets and listening intently to voices coming from the other end.
Clearly, although their status was more than ten times higher than that of ordinary representatives, in moments like this, they were still merely mouthpieces for those above them.
One layer restrained another, while the one at the very top seemed to control everything from afar.
"Your Highness, please."
The young man in the suit gestured for him to enter. Felix stepped forward into the center. Although the glow of his halo and wings was bright, it still failed to dispel the darkness of this place.
"Your Highness, welcome to the Chamber of Commerce."
A man stood up and spoke calmly. "Please allow us a moment to introduce ourselves."
Felix nodded.
"The Frederick family was once responsible for maintaining the armor of the Kazimierz knights."
"Now, we are fully engaged in forging new and fashionable armor, expanding the knight arena industry, and ensuring that knight fans have sufficient merchandise to take home."
"The Fose family controls the food supply for the knights of Kazimierz. At present, we jointly manage food imports and exports with the Celine family."
"Our family sponsors the Knights' Major."
As he listened to these introductions, Felix felt that the Chamber of Commerce resembled a small, independent nation.
In truth, it was no different from a state. From the knight major to food, clothing, housing, and transportation, it managed nearly everything in Kazimierz.
The Chamber of Commerce had become a miniature society, composed of countless intertwined families, like a cake sliced into countless thin pieces, making it difficult to tell where one ended and another began.
This situation was extremely troublesome. Setting aside external threats, the fact that representatives from different families were already trading barbed remarks during their introductions showed just how severe the internal problems were.
Even though Tomorrow's Development was complex, it was still only divided among three major forces. The Chamber of Commerce, however, had long grown into a towering tree with countless branches.
When Felix walked out of the Chamber of Commerce building, his brows were slightly furrowed.
He had not offered many suggestions. With so many representatives present, he had not even mentioned the remarks he had prepared in advance.
There were simply too many families involved. No wonder the Chamber of Commerce was so constrained and had fallen into its current predicament.
They had already reached a near balance with the Adeptus Sprawiedliwi, something that would have been unimaginable in the past.
Standing on the street, Felix's gaze was calm and distant. This Chamber of Commerce, this overly complicated organization, felt like nothing but a burden.
A clean cut was indeed necessary.
"Your Highness, Lady Russell invites you to her office for a small gathering."
Felix turned and looked at the knight who had delivered the invitation. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly. "Please, lead the way."
___
The following day, the final round of the Kazimierz' Major preliminaries began. This battle would determine which knights qualified for the main tournament. As with previous tournaments, forty-eight knights would advance to the main event.
Felix arrived at the viewing venue early in the morning with his senior team. He looked refreshed and full of energy, which left W staring at him in disbelief.
Naturally, he had not forgotten that he was also a sponsor of a knight club. Before the competition began, he took a special passage to the rest area of the Fate Knight.
"Mr. Pioneer."
Hearing this long-forgotten title, Felix looked at the Blood Knight kneeling on one knee with a hand over his chest, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
"It's been four years, Blood Knight."
"Yes, my master."
"In four years, your martial prowess has improved even more than before."
"Master, I can no longer judge your strength," the Blood Knight replied stiffly, his tone so earnest that it sounded completely sincere.
Felix smiled and patted his shoulder. "After the competition ends, you and I can spar. I would also like to see the strength of the Blood Knight who has become famous far and wide."
"Yes." The Blood Knight rose and bowed. After a brief pause, he extended his hand toward the person beside him. "This is the former Knight Viviana. She has now earned the title of Candle Knight and has become a well-known competitive knight in the Kawalerielki."
"I wouldn't call myself a household name yet, but I will strive to carve the image of a knight into everyone's hearts," Viviana said with a gentle smile. Compared to four years ago, she had matured greatly. Every movement carried a refined yet natural grace. The longsword at her waist made it clear that she was not merely a beautiful figure, but a knight capable of standing on the battlefield.
Behind her came the Night Knight and several other knights who had joined the Fate Knight in recent years. Felix welcomed them one by one and once again explained the reward system of the Fate Knight. Simply put, as long as a knight achieved a certain ranking, the order would receive a larger share of the ticket revenue from that match.
Although such systems were not uncommon among Knight club, competitions in recent years had gradually lost their intensity. More than half of the participants could fight to a draw with wooden weapons, and only a handful of knights still possessed the appeal of "crossing levels" in battle.
In the current competitive knight rankings, only a few Knight club backed by Chamber of Commerce had the financial strength to maintain such standards.
After hearing about the rewards, the members of the Fate Knight were visibly stirred, eager to fight and impatient to achieve strong results in the main tournament.
In addition to non-infected knights, the Fate Knight had also recruited a group of infected knights. Many of them joined out of respect for the Blood Knight and a desire to follow in his footsteps. That motivation was easy enough to understand.
Among them, the one who left a deeper impression on Felix was the Flametail Knight, a Zalak with long, fiery red hair. Her real name was Sona, and she had met Felix once before.
Upon seeing Felix, the Flametail Knight stood up excitedly and waved at him. Aside from her, many other infected knights who followed the Blood Knight were also present. After recognizing Felix and learning his identity, they all rose and bowed.
They showed the utmost respect to the founder and owner of the Fate Knight.
Felix nodded in response. At the same time, he noticed that some of the infected knights were not in good physical condition. Visible Originium crystals, some of them quite large, had grown on their exposed skin. While this did not directly affect their daily lives or combat abilities, it reduced their stamina and prevented them from performing at their peak in knight major.
Moreover, prolonged matches could further accelerate the progression of their infection.
For the sake of chivalry, and for themselves, these infected knights had chosen to fight on, fully aware that they were burning through their own lives.
They deserved Felix's respect, and their resolve earned his sincere approval.
With that respect in mind, Felix summoned Clever and had it airlift two boxes of medicine for treating Oripathy to the venue. He distributed them free of charge to the infected knights who were fighting for their ideals.
After settling these matters, Felix headed toward the front rows of the spectator seats before entering the VIP box. There, he saw Młynar, calmly reading a newspaper.
Magic ZX continued to serve Młynar as attentively as ever. When he noticed Felix approaching, he immediately stood up in excitement and gave them space to speak.
Felix glanced at the overly enthusiastic Magic ZX. It seemed he had finally found his happiness. Magic ZX had once been his lapdog, but now he had clearly changed targets.
He catered to Młynar until the man was thoroughly satisfied.
"You're here to watch Maria's match as well?" Felix asked.
"…I'm here to confirm the situation with the Fate Knight." Młynar did not look up from his newspaper, his voice calm and steady. "As a knight order that claims to pioneer tomorrow, they have drawn far too much unnecessary attention."