The Moonlight Swordsman

"Congratulations, Miss Rosewell!"

"Congrats…"

"Another noble family destroyed. Tsk."

The nobles gathered around Yelena and Leah, offering their congratulations one by one, though not all of them seemed pleased with the outcome of the duel.

Some expressed their disappointment, believing that in these uncertain times, unity should be a priority over internal strife.

"Why has Alexander not come yet?" the queen asked.

"I think Grandfather must be resting, it seems the duel took a toll on him,"

"No, he is not in his tent," the Sword Emperor replied.

"What do you mean, then where did the father go?" Yelena asked.

"He vanished suddenly when I tried to sense him. It seems he used a magic circle."

"Magic circle? How did it appear here? Who inscribed it without my permission?" The queen asked, her eyes bulging with rage.

The Sword Emperor vanished without a trace and reappeared outside the tent, on its backside.

He spotted the magical circle inscriptions on the ground as he moved around, which appeared to be destroyed.

"One-time used inscription... hmm"

The Sword Emperor appeared back inside the castle, his presence commanding the attention of those around him.

"Either he has run away somewhere or someone has abducted him,"

"What!"

"What bullshit are you spouting…"

"Why would he run away after winning the duel?"

In the midst of the confusion, the nobles began to raise their voices and discuss among themselves.

Both Yelena and Leah were puzzled, unable to understand why Alexander would flee the scene after winning the duel.

They also couldn't fathom someone abducting him because he was a Grade V mage, and with so many high-ranking mages there, it seemed impossible for such an accomplishment to go unnoticed.

"Who were the ones who came with you?" The sword emperor asked, glancing toward Yelena.

"Father just brought some maids with him and no one else."

"They have also gone," he replied.

"I want to know where he went or what happened to him. Report to me in three days." The queen ordered and left with the prince.

The sword emperor nodded.

"I think we should leave; everyone gather around me." The headmaster spoke.

The institute mages departed with the headmaster, leaving the nobles alone. The confusion among the nobles was evident as they discussed and objected to the sudden disappearance of Alexander.

Meanwhile, the Sword Emperor walked out of the castle, his mind racing with thoughts. He gazed at the sky and murmured slowly, "Is it your doing Vespara? If it's really you, I hope you are ready for what's about to come next."

*****

Aizel entered his room, and he saw Daisy and Vespara sitting and sipping tea. He hurried to his bedroom and retrieved the black egg to show it to Vespara.

The children eagerly rushed over to join the group, intrigued by the mysterious egg.

"Now tell me what creature is inside." He asked.

Vespara tenderly cradled the black egg in her palms as Aizel handed it to her, feeling the subtle heat flowing from it.

She focused her mind on the egg with her eyes closed, and a swirl of black smoke emerged briefly before disappearing into thin air.

"It's a wolf,"

"Yeah…"

"Awesome…"

"We will be able to ride on him, right?"

Excitement spread through the boys when they heard the answer.

"But it's not any wolf; where did you get this?"

"I took the boys to a nearby forest; there we saw some wolves guarding this egg," Aizel replied.

"Interesting, even I can't correctly predict what type of wolf it is. Make sure to take care of it properly."

"Aizel, name the egg…"

"Yes, we should name…"

"How about we name her Alia…"

"It's not a girl; it's a boy,"

"How could you tell it's a boy?"

The kids began to discuss and come up with ideas for naming the wolf and determining its gender.

"It's a boy," Vespara replied.

"Nooo why?" Ruth said.

"Aizel, you should name it," Lilly said.

"Oh, okay let me think then."

Aizel's mind was racing with ideas for wolf names, but none of them seemed quite right. He furrowed his brow, deep in thought, until his thoughts abruptly came to a halt around Asgard.

"Fenrir."

"Woah..."

"So cool…"

"Grow up quickly, Fenrir..."

"It looks like you have a talent for naming things. I might just leave it up to you to name our future children." Vespara teased.

The kids erupted in giggles at her remark, joined by Daisy, while Aizel rolled his eyes away.

"So, who won the duel?"

"You don't know?"

"How would I know, I wasn't there, remember?"

"But given your status, I thought you would have known by now."

"If I wanted to," she replied.

"It's the Rosewell; damn it, that old man was really strong," Aizel replied.

"Hehe, as expected, Harold was strong but not enough. If he had mastered the metal properties, he might have had some chance against Alexander."

"That old man was really something else. I am thankful for my decision not to kill Leah that day, or I would have been haunted by that old man.

"Now you guys carry on. I'm going into hard training mode because I have to clear that damn mountain. See ya."

As Aizel left the room, the kids dashed down the hall, leaving Vespara and Daisy alone. Vespara shifted her gaze to Daisy, and her face became serious.

"Daisy, you need to train."

"Are we going now?"

"Not that training. This time, it's serious. It is an order from the princess to make you ready for the tournament."

"What!" Daisy glanced in confusion and was shocked. "Why me? I am only a Grade I mage. What can I even do there?"

"Because of your mana sense mastery, she wants you. I tried to convince her, but she wouldn't listen.

"Even the king doesn't have any objection to her choice."

"What if I don't want to take part?"

"I wish it was that easy. What will you do? Run away from here and expect they won't be able to find you?"

"Does Aizel know about this?"

"No, and don't tell him now. Don't worry, I will train you hard; at least you will be able to survive the tournament. And if you don't, then I will only pray for this kingdom."