While the two of them were putting on a performance of a loyal subject and wise ruler, with the king entrusting his final wishes to his successor...
The representatives from various countries who had been invited as witnesses, along with the nobles, officials, and several guild mages attending the banquet, were all completely dumbfounded.
Were they simply too old-fashioned, or had the world become too crazy?
The king, who was still in his prime, was actually already thinking about stepping down.
And he was even planning to make a young man who was not yet twenty years old the Regent Prince, allowing him to assist the future queen after her ascension.
Among the nobles and officials, some were shocked, some were envious, and there was no shortage of those who were secretly jealous.
However, not a single one of them dared to show their dissatisfaction at this moment.
After all, that prince possessed strength that could easily crush them with a single hand.
The many guild mages who were also attending the banquet were even more surprised.
They knew that the king valued Kabe greatly and understood that he was unwilling, and would not, marry his only daughter off to him.
But valuing him and making him the regent were two completely different matters.
For most mages who came from ordinary backgrounds, this was simply unbelievable.
Watching the old king personally help Kabe up from the ground, Goldmine spoke with a tone that was almost filled with envy.
"Now this is truly unexpected. Old man, I think you should hand the guild over to Kabe as soon as possible."
"That way, when he becomes a prince, perhaps Fairy Tail might even become a royal guild."
Hearing that, Makarov had to admit that the idea of their guild name gaining royal recognition did sound rather tempting.
But that was only a thought.
Being tied too closely to the royal family without careful consideration was not necessarily a good thing.
"You should worry about your own guild first, Dead Last."
"You don't need to bother yourself with Fairy Tail's affairs."
The words "Dead Last" struck Goldmine right in the heart.
Looking at Kabe, who was so young yet had already reached the peak of life, and then looking at his own brats who had only managed to get one point...
Goldmine immediately felt a wave of irritation.
He decided that after returning, he would train them brutally and make sure they reclaimed their honor next time.
"Hahaha! Thank you all for witnessing this for me. Come, come, everyone, let's drink together!"
Under Thomas's call, everyone suppressed their own thoughts and raised their wine glasses with smiles, loudly agreeing.
Kabe followed along and took a sip of wine.
Just as he placed the cup down, someone stepped forward and filled it for him.
At first, he thought it was one of the banquet servants.
But when he saw those small, fair hands as delicate as green onions, he realized the person pouring his wine was none other than the little princess, Hisui.
Looking at this future wife whom he had not built much of a relationship with yet, Kabe thought for a moment before raising his glass.
"Tonight, ask His Majesty for permission to take a leave. Tomorrow, come home with me."
Hisui blinked her beautiful eyes in surprise, unable to react for a moment.
"If you don't say anything, I'll take it as you agreed."
Seeing that she remained silent, Kabe made the decision on his own.
After lightly clinking glasses with her, he took the girl's hand and gently pulled her to hook her arm around his.
Only then did Hisui finally react.
With a faint smile on her face, she softly replied, "Mm."
Then she tightened her hold on his arm, pressing her entire body closer to him.
...
The next day, the various guilds bid farewell to the king, who came to see them off, and began their journeys back home.
Since Fairy Tail had so many members, Makarov simply booked an entire fleet of carriages.
The largest carriage was occupied by Kabe and the guild girls.
Compared to when they came, the carriage now had one more important passenger.
Since this was not their first meeting, everyone was much less reserved.
Not long after getting into the carriage, Lucky, Sorano, and Levy had already become close with Hisui, chatting enthusiastically.
They were extremely interested in the little princess's daily life and surrounded her, curiously asking about all kinds of things related to the royal family.
Listening to them talk about these meaningless topics from the moment they got on the carriage until now, Kabe helplessly turned his head away and began asking Selene about what had happened.
"Where did you run off to these past few days? You didn't even attend the banquet held in the palace last night."
Ever since Kabe met Selene on the night after the qualifiers ended, he had not seen her for the next two days.
Even Irene did not know where she had gone.
It was only this morning that she finally returned to the main group.
"Don't make it sound so bad. I simply accepted invitations from a few noble friends and stayed at their homes for two days."
Selene twirled her hair around her finger, seemingly not caring at all about disappearing for those two days.
"Noble friends? You have only been in Fiore for a few days, and you already have noble friends you are familiar with?"
"Familiar might be an exaggeration. They are simply a few duchesses and countesses who share similar interests with me."
Selene casually listed several names.
Other than Hisui, who looked at her in surprise, everyone else inside the carriage wore expressions of complete calm.