The atmosphere inside the Flamort Kingdom's main dining room now felt incredibly heavy and suffocating, filled with sparks of tension from the open conflict occurring between the Fourth Prince and the Fifth Prince.
Kylen and Cylenciel were still exchanging intensely hostile glares, as if both were ready to fight and ignore the fact that they were born from the same womb.
Seeing the situation growing increasingly heated and out of control in front of their foreign guests, King Galeo finally lost his patience.
Bam!
The ruler of the Flamort Kingdom slammed the table with one hand. He glared fiercely at his two sons.
"Stop this commotion right now!" King Galeo snapped, his voice booming with the absolute fury of a father. "Don't ever dare to bicker like uneducated children in front of me and our guests! The two of you have truly besmirched the etiquette and dignity of a royal family member!"
The harsh reprimand instinctively made Kylen and Cylenciel flinch. Their bodies tensed. Their instincts, both as sons and as princes, instantly forced them to cease their dispute and bow their heads.
An awkward silence once again enveloped the dining room. Cylenciel took a deep breath, trying to stabilize his emotions before looking at his father with an expression laden with rejection.
"Forgive my insolence, Father." Cylenciel said politely, returning his tone to a formal one. "But... I stand by my position. I will never agree to this absurd marriage of theirs! If you still insist on giving your blessing and marrying them, then expel him from this palace right now so as not to further tarnish the royal family's good name in the eyes of the public!"
The Fourth Prince's demand was like a spark igniting a fuse. In an instant, other voices of dissent began to emerge from around the table.
As it turned out, Cylenciel was not the only one who objected. Prince Ashlandio, Prince Lucasion, Princess Helena, Princess Nataliane, and even Prince Gilbert took turns voicing their disagreement. Even Queen Fentiloa, who had maintained her elegance all this time, now nodded slowly, implying that she too could not bear the burden of the social scandal stemming from this same-sex marriage.
They all seemed to have reached an unspoken consensus. Without hesitation, the King's children began to pressure King Galeo to immediately expel Kylen from the palace if their father truly insisted on approving the Vedegra family's proposal.
Among all those dissenting voices, Prince Ashlandio and Prince Lucasion were the most vocal. As the First Prince and Second Prince, they were both highly ambitious to become the next king.
Behind the guise of 'protecting the kingdom's good name' lay a massive political fear within the chests of the two princes. They were acutely aware that the Vedegra family was a force not to be underestimated. If this marriage were allowed to happen, Kylen would automatically gain the backing of the Astoria Kingdom, specifically from the Vedegra family.
The two of them were terrified that support from another kingdom would cause Kylen to gain massive backing from the nobles of the Flamort Kingdom, which would turn the Fifth Prince into a strong candidate for the next king.
To Ashlandio and Lucasion, getting rid of Kylen right now was an absolute necessity.
In his seat, King Galeo found himself cornered in a dilemma due to the fierce wave of rejection coming from his wife and nearly all of his children.
On one hand, as a king, he deeply desired a strategic alliance and diplomatic relations with the Vedegra family. But on the other hand, as the head of the family, he did not want to trigger a civil war that would destroy his family's harmony from within. If he forced this marriage and kept Kylen in the palace, his court would never know peace. His children would constantly be at each other's throats.
In his silence, King Galeo's mind continued to weigh the decision he had to make, acutely aware that each path carried equally massive risks.
After remaining silent in thought for quite some time, the King finally reached a decision. To prevent the hostility from sparking an even greater family feud, he had no other choice.
King Galeo looked at Kylen with softened eyes, implying a profound regret.
"I'm sorry... I'm forced to reject the marriage between the two of you, Kylenciel." the King declared, his voice sounding heavy and exhausted, feeling backed into a corner with no other options. "But... if you still insist on marrying him and following your heart, you must leave this palace and relinquish all your rights here."
Those words were a form of banishment disguised as a father's tenderness. The King was essentially granting his blessing, but on the condition that Kylen be exiled from the lineage to quell his siblings' anger.
Hearing that decision and the indirect rejection from his family, Kylen felt as though his heart had just been squeezed tightly. A deeply concentrated sense of disappointment enveloped his heart. The prince's eyes welled with tears, wounded by the fact that not a single one of his siblings was willing to accept the marriage.
With a facial expression filled with sorrow and heavy frustration, Kylen turned and immediately grabbed Arvin's hand tightly with a trembling grip. He pulled his husband's hand, intending to immediately stride out of the palace that no longer desired his presence.
However, Arvin's body did not budge in the slightest.
Even though Kylen continued to pull his hand, Arvin remained sitting upright. He stroked the back of his spouse's hand with his thumb to calm him, then looked straight into King Galeo's face, ignoring the cynical stares from the other royal family members.
"Are you truly certain of this decision, Your Majesty?" Arvin asked, his voice flowing calmly, confirming the King's resolve.
King Galeo stared back at Arvin. In a fraction of a second, an invisible communication occurred through the gazes of the two men.
"Yes, I am absolutely certain!" King Galeo answered without a shred of hesitation. Yet, behind his firm voice, the expression in his eyes said it all. There was a hidden plea lingering there. "I entrust my son to you, Young Master Arvin. Please, take good care of him."
Hearing that final sentence, Arvin became fully convinced that King Galeo had actually resigned himself and was forced to take this middle path simply because he had no better options to prevent a major family feud.
This king truly loves his family, exactly like his original character in the game. Arvin thought, feeling amazed by the depth of his father-in-law's character. To avoid a massive conflict that could lead to bloodshed within his family, he is even willing to extinguish his political ambitions and let go of his youngest son.
After receiving that veiled blessing, Arvin finally rose from his chair. He bowed in respect to the members of the royal family, then left the dining room with Kylen.
The same went for Vian, Tania, Ziona, and Anna. The four academy students offered their respectful greetings to all the royal family members in the room, then departed from the dining room to immediately return to the academy dormitories.