Armand Region.

Armand Estate, Courtyard near the main grand hall.

Crowds of people were waiting for entry. The estate was under heavy guard. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Armand Elite Knights patrolled every path, Alf’s shadow assassins and intelligence units blended among the guests, and the battle maids moved about casually, working but never letting their vigilance drop.

Inside, King Lioness, King Veldrac, Queen Mylezra, and their escorts and high-ranking officers were already settled in. The staff and their officers were feasting, while Lioness, Veldrac, and Mylezra occupied the main table.

"Ohoho! Looks like we’ll be staying for a week." Lioness grinned, swirling his wine.

Veldrac chuckled and glanced at Mylezra. "I still can’t believe you insisted on Armand for the wedding instead of dragging Garius to the Elven Nation."

Mylezra lifted her glass with effortless grace, crossing her legs. "No~ The first wedding will be held here in Armand. Who knows how long Garius would postpone it if we waited for an elven ceremony. With him, it’s always one excuse after another."

"Oho~ How bold," Lioness smirked.

"Of course. If the first wedding happens here, Garius can’t delay it anymore. You both know how long I’ve waited for him. I had to wait until all his sons with Francesca grew up, can you believe it?"

Veldrac smirked. "Hard to believe our old friend’s marrying a 189-year-old elf."

Mylezra puffed her cheeks, pouting as she glared at them. "I may be nearly two hundred, but you know elves don’t age before a thousand. Besides, what about your little sister, Veldrac?"

Veldrac laughed heartily and shook his head. "Are you really sure about marrying a human? I don’t mean it badly, but humans... their lives are short. I respect Garius, he’s been my friend since he was a boy, asking for help to retake Armand after his family was killed by Klimar. But are you certain? Demonkin like me live for over a thousand years, beastkin like Lioness can reach five hundred, maybe seven at best. Dwarves like Gumarak last three or four centuries. Elves, and dragonkin like Eridith, have the longest lives of all."

Mylezra fell silent, her smile softening. "I know... but I’ve made up my mind. Maybe I’ll find a way to keep him healthy and young. I’ll ask the elder council about it. Who knows, maybe there’s hope."

Lioness shook his head, then narrowed his eyes. "Speaking of dwarves, where’s Gumarak? Haven’t seen him."

Veldrac sipped his wine and looked around. "Mmm... We should ask Garius later. For now, we wait for him to appear."

"He’ll be an official ruler soon, like us," Lioness said.

"He’s already the true ruler of Armand," Mylezra replied.

Veldrac nodded, smiling. "Yeah... I remember when Garius promised to be the buffer and negotiator between the Human Nation and my people, for peace. And he kept that promise. Now, my nation is at peace, trading openly, and our people can move, trade, and enjoy life freely. All the races, elves, beastkin, humans, even some dwarves can share knowledge, magic, goods, and culture. That’s why we’re thriving. Without Armand as the bridge, none of this would have been possible."

Lioness grinned, swirling his wine. "Couldn’t agree more. Garius shared his economic knowledge with us, fair trading, understanding supply and demand, setting up standardized markets, forming trade routes, improving logistics, even teaching our officials about transparent tax collection and resource management. He even showed us how to encourage competition between merchants, and how to set up local guilds for craftsmen and traders. All that changed the way we ran our kingdoms."

Mylezra nodded, smiling. "It’s true. He taught us the value of stable currency, how to regulate imports and exports, and why a fair market means a stronger nation. When Garius started sharing what he knew, our nations really began to thrive and grow wealthy. Well... not as rich as Armand, even though it’s a smaller nation compared to the Beastkin Kingdom."

"Hey, the Beastkin Kingdom may be the largest," Lioness grinned, "but not all of our lands are developed. We have vast wild regions and untamed borders."

"Imagine if every part of it was developed," Veldrac said, chuckling.

"Heh. Impossible in a hundred years," Lioness let out a loud laugh. "We don’t have Armand’s magic tech. Even if our infrastructure, buildings, and markets are better than the Human Nation now, we’re still far behind Armand. And I can’t blame Garius for keeping some secrets."

"Yeah. Even if he doesn’t share the most advanced magic tech, he’s always kept trading open, and he shares practical knowledge, especially with that genius blacksmith of his, Rasdingen, the giant dwarf." Mylezra chuckled.

"Isn’t Rasdingen Gumarak’s cousin?" Veldrac smirked.

"Yes, but who knows why he’s so loyal to Garius."

"Well, you can’t blame him. Rasdingen’s a genius, but the knowledge Garius’s youngest son has... it’s just on another level. Javier’s skills are beyond what anyone else in this world could make."

"And all of Garius’s sons are prodigies. Cedric’s the only Paladin in the world. Marcellus is a peerless wizard. Aelius and Athine, ell, they’re unmatched in trade and economics."

"Speaking of Athine, she’s the only flower among Garius’s children, right?"

"No, Garius has two more daughters. Heres’ youngest sister, and Eridith’s daughter."

"You two have sons. Why not ask Garius for his daughter’s hand, to strengthen your alliances?" Mylezra asked.

Lioness and Veldrac exchanged glances, then raised their hands in surrender.

"No way," Lioness grinned.

"Yep, not gonna happen!" Veldrac laughed.

Mylezra blinked, confused. "Why? Athine’s the most talented young woman I’ve seen, she’s a genius in economics, and she’s the most beautiful lady in Armand for her age."

"You think we never tried?" Lioness said, shaking his head.

"What do you mean?"

Veldrac chuckled. "Garius had no problem if my sister Delya married Javier."

"And he was all for Felicia and Mimi marrying Javier, too," Lioness added.

"But Athine?" Veldrac shrugged. "Garius made it very clear: Athine and Aelius are madly in love with each other. He warned everyone, no one’s to come between them. Those two are the only siblings Garius ever put off limits."

Mylezra smiled softly. "But... they’re siblings."

"Yeah, and Garius has the Eyes of Truth. He knows everything." Lioness let out a slow breath.

Mylezra just smiled, sipping her wine. "Now that you mention it... yes, that makes sense."

( End Of Chapter )