Sildargrade, the gleaming capital of the Silvia Kingdom, was situated farther north from the central location of the Kingdom's geography. It was surrounded by majestic forests and mountain ranges.
The city was a marvel of architecture, a harmonious blend of ethereal grace design and stoic grandeur craftsmanship. The buildings were largely constructed from gleaming silver and white marble.
The streets of Sildargrade were wide and well-maintained, lined with cobblestones and had street lamps surrounding them, which had been enchanted to glow at night, casting a gentle luminescence that guided the city's inhabitants safely through the hours of darkness.
The air was always fresh with the scent of blooming flowers, which were meticulously integrated into the urban landscape. Canals of crystal-clear water wove through the city, reflecting the beauty of the buildings and carrying the melodies of the city's many fountains.
The citizens of Sildargrade moved with a certain poise and elegance, their clothing a tapestry of silks and fine fabrics in shades of silver, gold, and green that mirrored the colors of the surrounding forest.
Sildargrade was not just a capital; it was a bastion of culture, knowledge, wealth, and power, a place that inspired awe and wonder.
It was currently nighttime. The King's Palace was brightly lit, and cheerful noises could be heard from inside. A celebratory party was currently in progress.
The Sildargrade's Eighth Master Rank had been born!
All the nobles, important leaders, or individuals within Sildargrade had been invited. They had all just witnessed Vilok Lopez, the new Rank 4 and the new star of the capital, being conferred as Sildargrade's Fifth High Noble by the Royal King Basil Silvia.
Sildargrade originally had nine Master Ranks residing. Three belonged to the Royal Family—the current reigning King Basil Silvia, Queen Illiana Silvia, and finally their ancestor Alonzo Silvia, who was the sole Rank 5 within the entire Silvia Kingdom. Then there were four other Master Ranks who were also the Four High Nobles of Sildargrade.
Other than them, there were two more—the Guild Leaders of both the Adventurers and Mercenary Guilds of the Sildargrade City Branch.
Both Guild Masters were not from the Silvia Kingdom and were just the branch leaders of two of the most recognized guilds, which were spread across almost all cities throughout the world.
Guilds didn't interfere with political matters of any kingdom, and the royal families also didn't have the right to order the two guilds, so they were not counted as a kingdom's power. However, the royal family or anyone could hire them for various tasks that didn't go beyond their set rules.
Guilds were most welcomed in almost all kingdoms across the world, as they could complete various tasks that were troublesome or too risky for the kingdom, such as killing Mana Beasts or even just helping with agriculture and so on. As long as money was paid and the mission request didn't break their rules, they could take on any assignment. Both guilds had many teams that could accept these tasks according to their Grades.
Although both guilds seemed like they did the same thing, they were also fundamentally different.
Currently, within the huge hall, various nobles and wealthy people from throughout Sildargrade city had gathered. The celebration was ongoing, with various handsome men and beautiful women partaking in refreshments while chatting and socializing with each other. Occasionally, these people would glance toward two seats at the top, where both the King and Queen of the Silvia Kingdom were seated on their thrones.
King Basil Silvia was a handsome middle-aged man and had a kind and welcoming expression. He had a pair of deep brown eyes, broad shoulders, and was moderately well-built.
Queen Illiana Silvia, seated beside King Basil, was an extremely beautiful woman with gorgeous long white hair and a pair of bright red eyes. She had a beautiful smile on her face as she sat elegantly.
But for tonight's celebration, these two were not the main stars.
On another side of the hall, above a slightly raised stage, sat seven people. In front of them was a long white table with various high-quality dishes and refreshments placed on it.
The Four High Nobles of Sildargrade, along with the two Guild Leaders, were currently seated at this table, chatting among themselves while drinking and occasionally receiving gifts from various nobles in the hall.
Among these six people was another person, and he was the reason for tonight's celebration—the new Fifth High Noble of Sildargrade, Lord Vilok Lopez.
Vilok Lopez was a very handsome, young-looking man with dark hair and a lean, fit body. He was currently wearing a clean and expensive noble's dress and had a gentle, polite smile on his face.
Vilok had received the most gifts, but it was inevitable, as he was the new Master Rank and the new High Noble of the Silvia Kingdom. Creating a good first impression toward such a powerful person was very important for the other residing powers, such as nobles or any business groups within Sildargrade.
"Congratulations, Vilok. I had always known that you would one day successfully break through to this Rank," said the Guild Leader of the Adventure Guild, Cole Murdoch, who was seated at the right end of the seven seats, congratulating Vilok with an approving smile. He was a handsome middle-aged man, clean-shaven, with black hair.
"Thank you, Guild Leader," Vilok replied with a humble smile.
"Sigh, the Adventure Guild was able to produce such a powerful Rank 4. But our Mercenary Guild also has a few Mystical Knights—though whether they can reach Rank 4 or not is still a question..." said a beautiful woman with short black hair, seated beside Cole, sighing with a depressed tone. She was the Guild Leader of the Mercenary Guild in Sildargrade—Louise Loy.
"Haha, it's not that easy to reach Master Rank while walking all the stages of the Apprentice Rank as a Mystical Knight. Vilok is a true genius!" remarked Aldo Duke, a Rank 4 and a High Noble. He was sitting beside Vilok and smiled at him warmly. He had a ducktail beard and short dark hair.
"Sigh... I truly envy the young and talented Vilok. In my younger days, I also wanted to take the Mystical Knight path, but my old man beat me up and forced me into becoming a Warrior," chuckled Langston Grevayne, another High Noble and Rank 4. He was seated on the other side of Vilok. He had a crew cut and a trimmed short beard.
"You should be grateful that your father did so, or else you wouldn't have reached Master Rank by now—or ever. It's truly not easy to walk such a precarious and tiring path all the way to Rank 4. Among Master Ranks all around the world, considering the numbers, just how many have reached Master Rank after going through Mystical Knight all the way? Maybe the percentage is less than 30!" said Lucia Wells, another High Noble, shaking her head. She then glanced at Vilok with admiration. She was sitting beside Langston and had blonde hair while wearing a gorgeous red dress.
Cole Murdoch nodded in agreement. Though he had no direct relationship with Vilok Lopez, Vilok was originally a member of the Adventurers Guild, while he was the leader of the Adventurers Guild in Sildargrade—so in that sense, Vilok was his junior.
Sadly, after reaching Master Rank, Vilok had retired from being an Adventurer. It was a pity but understandable.
The Silvia Kingdom didn't have enough Master Ranks, so each Rank 4 was highly sought after by the Silvia Royal Family.
Their own families also wouldn't want their Master Rank to continue involving themselves with either of the Guilds, as they could also die during missions. So, it was just better to retire, enjoy wealth, and protect their families and serve the Kingdom. Just having a single Master Rank in a family changed their entire fate and destiny, and so no family wished to lose that.
Winston Emberly, the last High Noble, shook his head and uttered with a dejected tone, "I was once stronger and a senior to Vilok and had met the promising young man a number of times, but now I am actually weaker than him! Do you guys understand my bitterness?" He drank the whole cup in one gulp just to show how depressed and lonely he was. He was the second youngest among the Rank 4s present at this table. He had short red hair and wore a classic noble outfit.
The others cackled upon hearing it. Yet all the High Nobles shared the same emotions as Winston.
The current Vilok Lopez could be considered the fourth strongest of all the Master Ranks within the entire Sildargrade, but he was the strongest when it came to the early stage of Master Rank. Both Guild Leaders were not at the early stage of Rank 4, and the living ancestor of the Silvia Royal Family—the current King Basil Silvia's great-grandfather, Alonzo Silvia—was at Rank 5.
A Mystical Knight who had become a Master Rank was naturally far stronger in terms of stats compared to the other two paths.
Though theoretically, it was possible for both Mages and Warriors to also reach the same stats through training, it was easier said than done.
Training didn't mean raising weights or doing silly exercises; it required constant striving and pushing oneself to the peak of exhaustion. It required extreme dedication and commitment, and even if people had them, it didn't mean they could go all the way or had the time, luck, patience, or resources to do so.
That was also why most Mana Wielders joined either of the Guilds—through those experiences or lucky encounters while completing missions, one could not only progress faster in their Ranks but also train their stats.
It was much smarter to train during Apprentice Ranks than to start from Master Rank, as the training required to progress in stats also drastically became harder with each higher Rank, not to mention each improvement resulted in such tiny progress compared to just breaking through to minor or major Ranks that most people lost interest in working that hard. Thus, in the end, they only trained occasionally or sought out treasures to become stronger while largely focusing on breaking through to the next minor Rank.
"It is thanks to everyone's support and blessings that I have successfully managed to reach Rank 4. I hope we can all continue to work together in the future for the betterment of the entire Sildargrade and Silvia Kingdom," Vilok said, raising his glass like a gentleman and politely smiling.
The other Master Ranks beside him also smiled and drank with him. They were very satisfied with Vilok, as he was a humble and good man, not an arrogant or overly prideful person, despite his astonishing achievements.
At this moment, a handsome young man and a gorgeous girl entered the hall from one side. Both had pure white hair and wore expensive, royal-like attire.