Reinhardt nodded slowly.

With this, one of his greatest plans had finally been completed. The rebirth of the World Tree had begun.

Soon, its roots would spread across the world, purifying the corrupted mana veins. And its divine presence would gradually cleanse the poisonous energy that had plagued the land for centuries, especially the cursed territories known as the Tainted Lands.

The World Tree would slowly cleanse away the dense corruption covering those lands, allowing humans to venture into them once again.

Reinhardt’s golden eyes sharpened.

The time for merely defending the remaining human kingdoms was ending. Soon, it would be time to reclaim what was lost.

And more importantly, to discover what the demons were truly planning in the depths of the Tainted Lands.

Three days later, Reinhardt left Snowpoint City and arrived at the capital of Solaris.

Tomorrow was a big day. He would officially receive his peerage and become Viscount Reinhardt Arcknight.

Since it was a big day, he planned on having plenty of rest before tomorrow’s ceremony.

However, his family had different plans.

.

.

Inside the Arcknight manor, it was complete chaos. Servants ran everywhere carrying clothing racks.

Tailors urgently took measurements. Silk coats, velvet jackets, embroidered capes, and polished boots were piled everywhere.

Reinhardt stood in the middle of all this chaos with a tired look.

"Lord Reinhardt... please try this one."

Another tailor stepped forward nervously. The maids carefully helped him into a deep blue coat with silver threads. Reinhardt glanced at himself in the mirror.

But before he could even say anything...

"No."

A sharp voice came from behind. Everyone stiffened and looked at the beautiful blonde woman with glowing, creamy skin and a noble aura.

The voice earlier had come from her: Verdia Arcknight, the duchess of the family and Reinhardt’s stepmother.

She looked at the coat with her arms crossed and a disgruntled face.

"That one makes him look like a traveling merchant."

The tailor immediately bowed.

"My apologies, Lady Verdia!"

"Next."

Another coat was brought out, and the maids helped Reinhardt change. Then again, before he could say anything.

"No."

Another no.

Then again and again.

"No."

"No."

"No!!"

Reinhardt helplessly turned his head toward the couch. There, sitting calmly while drinking tea as if nothing strange was happening, was Raymond.

Seeing this, Reinhardt sighed.

"Do we really have to make such a big deal about this? I can just wear any one of my normal suits for tomorrow."

"Don’t say that. Your stepmother is just excited," Raymond chuckled. "She wants her son to appear perfect tomorrow."

"Brother, just give up."

The one to speak this time was his little brother, Arthur. The little guy sat on a chair, eating pastries like he was watching a stage play.

"I feel your pain. I really do. But there is nothing you can do."

He pointed at Reinhardt’s clothes and sighed dramatically.

"You went through this too?"

"Three hours."

Saying that, Arthur shivered, and Reinhardt felt a great headache coming.

At that moment, another coat was forced onto Reinhardt. Verdia inspected him carefully, walking around him as if to spot even the slightest flaw.

Just when it seemed like this one too would be rejected, Verdia suddenly nodded her head and spoke with a smile.

"Yes, this looks great on him."

Hearing this, all the servants nearly collapsed in relief.

Everyone looked at Reinhardt.

The outfit that was chosen for him looked elegant. A white suit with golden lining, perfectly tailored to Reinhardt’s tall frame. The fabric shimmered slightly in the light, giving him the noble look expected of a future viscount.

"Impressive."

Raymond and Arthur glanced his way, giving their approval.

Reinhardt stared at himself in the mirror.

"It’s just clothes..."

"Clothes are important."

Verdia pointed a finger at him and spoke.

"There is a saying that goes... clothes maketh the man."

With the clothing crisis finally over, Reinhardt escaped the manor. He stretched his arms while walking through the capital streets.

Even after arriving in the capital, he still had no time to relax. From morning until afternoon, he had been quite busy.

First, he was captured by Verdia and forced to go along with her antics.

In the afternoon, he had to train Arthur. The little man demanded it the moment he saw Reinhardt. Since he had made a promise to Verdia, he had to keep it.

And so, for two hours, he trained the boy, building his foundations and correcting his habits and mistakes.

Reinhardt was called a devil trainer for a good reason.

Arthur now lay somewhere in the manor garden, unable to move.

By the time he could free himself, evening had already arrived. That said, there was still one event he had to attend.

A celebration.

His colleagues had invited him for a drink. It appeared that they wanted to celebrate with him one last time before his status was elevated to viscount.

.

Reinhardt stopped in front of the most famous tavern in the capital. He opened the door and headed in.

The first floor was full of normal guests chatting and making merry. Though when they saw Reinhardt coming in, they all stood up in excitement and greeted him.

"Please calm down, everyone. I am here to meet my friends."

Not wanting to kill the mood, he swiftly followed the waiter who led him to another floor.

Reinhardt was just about to open the door to the second floor, but to his surprise, it opened on its own, and a big bear-like frame loomed over him.

"Oh? So you are finally here, huh. Quick, come in. Everyone’s been waiting for you."

The hulking, ahem, the huge man was none other than Brutus. He wore a tank top over his big, stone like muscles, shorts, and sandals. Looking at him, it gave others the vibe of someone who was enjoying summer.

The others were also in relaxed clothing.

Leona leaned back casually in her chair, one leg crossed over the other. She wore a relaxed crimson outfit that looked halfway between a knight’s uniform and a noble dress.

Beside her was Vanessa. She wore a soft white shirt with the first three buttons undone and a skirt. The relaxed fit hugged her waist and shoulders just enough to show her graceful figure without revealing too much.

Both women looked completely composed in the noisy tavern.

Reinhardt looked at them before slowly scanning the room.

Every seat at the table was filled.

This was unexpected.

When Brutus invited him for a drink earlier, Reinhardt had assumed it would only be a small gathering. Maybe Conrad too.

What he had not expected was for all the commanders of the Seven Great Knight Orders to be present.

Days like this were extremely rare. Normally, all of them were scattered across the kingdom, managing their own orders and territories.

"This is a surprise."

Reinhardt slowly walked toward the table.

HAHAHA...

Brutus laughed loudly and pointed a thumb at himself proudly.

"I called all of them. I tell you, it was not easy to bring everyone here."

"Bring? I would call that kidnapping."

The one to interject was Marquis Herman. He pointed at Brutus and Zargues accusingly.

"You two practically kidnapped me. If my absence causes any misunderstanding with my wife, you two had better be prepared."

"Hahaha, that’s why you shouldn’t marry and stay single like me."

Zargues made a gloating smile.

Then before things could escalate, Brutus raised his mug and attracted everyone’s attention.

"Enough about the problems. I gathered everyone here because I have something important to talk about."

He looked around the room, then burst out grinning.

"But important things can wait a little. First, let’s talk about Reinhardt’s achievements." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

All eyes gathered on Reinhardt, and everyone raised their mugs.

"I heard everything from the Queen herself. This is a special event. So tonight, in honor of Reinhardt... we make a toast!"

Every commander raised their mug.

"To Reinhardt!"

Clang!

Mugs collided loudly, and ale splashed. The atmosphere instantly grew lighter.

For the next hour, the room filled with casual talk and laughter.

All of them recounted their stories: battle memories, camaraderie, pointless arguments, family drama.

Zargues at some point fell off his chair laughing, or maybe it was the quiet doing of Marquis Herman.

Conrad and Brutus started an arm wrestling competition.

Maybe it was the atmosphere or the alcohol, but Leona boldly challenged Reinhardt to a drinking competition.

Vanessa quietly watched everything with an amused smile.

For the first time in a while, Reinhardt really felt relaxed.

Seeing that the timing was right, Brutus stood up, walked over to where Reinhardt was sitting, and hooked his arm around the latter.

This surprised Reinhardt, and he couldn’t help but look at Brutus, who smiled at him like a man who was about to stir up mischief.

Brutus eyed all the commander and then spoke in a serious voice.

"What do you all think... about venturing into the Tainted Lands?"

It was as if a sensitive topic had been raised; silence descended on the room.