Leon and his companions spent the rest of the day simply looking around the Imperial Kingdom to pass the time, wandering through the bustling streets and enjoying the relative peace after the chaos of the excursion.
"No point in going to the [Training Grounds] any more, right?" Leon grinned, stretching his arms as they walked, "After all, we can defeat anything there without breaking a sweat now."
"Speak for yourself?" Celeste sighed.
The monsters from the [Excursion] were directly taken from the same database as the training grounds, meaning he had already faced the strongest ones the kingdom had to offer during the event.
This meant that Leon was far too strong for any of them now.
Leon also noticed that his [Celestial’s Might] didn’t activate against any of the mana monsters during the event, which was an interesting observation that had puzzled him.
Perhaps it was because they were not really real, they gave neither items nor experience points after all, so the system treated them differently from actual monsters.
Or the reason why it didn’t activate was simply because the system itself believed that both he and the monsters were on equal fighting terms, negating the need for the debuff.
In comparison to the previous opponents which were impossible to defeat without [Celestial’s Might], Leon had actually managed to kill them all on his own, proving his growth and increasing strength.
Regardless, night came quickly as the sun dipped below the horizon, and immediately, the letter that Leon received from Iris began to glow with a soft warm light that pulsed gently.
[Please head to the Imperial Castle.]
And just like that, it disintegrated into flames, leaving nothing but ash behind that scattered on the wind.
"Alright, let’s go," Leon spoke, gesturing for the others to follow him as he began walking toward the castle.
He could invite up to five people to the castle, but he decided to only invite Emilia, Celeste and Violet as they were the only people he really knew and trusted in this domain.
The only other friends he had were Eleonore, David, Alice and Aaron, who were in another [Higher Domain] and couldn’t make it to this party.
And finally, BladeOfSorrow, the man he met while heading to the [Time Tower] in the mountains, though he was still in the [Hollow Plains], and even if he wasn’t, Leon saw no reason to invite him since he didn’t know him that well.
After around thirty minutes of walking through the illuminated streets, Leon and the others reached the Imperial Castle once more, its towering walls looming above them in the darkness.
And... it seemed much more festive than before, with colorful banners hanging from the walls and lights illuminating every corner of the grand structure.
There were much more guards as before, who still looked at Leon with disdain in their gaze, their reptilian eyes following his every move with barely concealed hostility.
But from the imperial castle several lights could be seen, and he even saw many players and lizard-race people, possibly nobles, here as well, all dressed in their finest attire for the occasion.
’Did she invite a lot of people for this? Maybe its some kind of party or celebration?’ Leon wondered.
Leon marched toward the garden’s gate, and as soon as they noticed him, the guards let him pass through without any resistance, stepping aside.
"They’re my guests," Leon pointed at the girls, "Let them in."
They reluctantly did so, and after a few seconds, all of them were now inside the garden, walking across the manicured grass.
Leon noticed several butlers and maids bringing food to the people around, trays filled with exotic dishes and drinks, and more interestingly, the entrance to the castle was wide open, inviting them inside.
They stepped forward, entering the giant Imperial Castle in all its glory.
The grand hall stretched before them with high ceilings adorned with chandeliers that cast a warm golden light across the marble floors, intricate tapestries hanging from the walls depicting scenes of battle and triumph, and dozens of elegantly dressed guests mingling and chatting among themselves.
Eventually, while following the people and arrows that pointed the way through the winding corridors, they reached the main chamber where the heart of the party was being held.
It was massive, easily the size of a small courtyard, and as Iris promised, there was a LOT of food arranged across several long tables covered in white cloth, the aroma of delicious dishes filling the air.
Celeste immediately rushed toward one of the tables and summoned Pyra, the two phoenixes starting to eat.
Many people, especially the nobles, looked at them with weird looks, but the two didn’t seem to care at all about the stares.
They were "guests" as they were directly invited by Leon, who was the guest of honor, so they could do as they pleased.
More than anything though, Leon noticed that there were giant banners on the walls, which displayed Leon’s face and the following text:
[Celestial: Top 1 in Excursion]
[Broke the record for the highest amount of Mana Points obtained.]
As soon as he arrived, many people immediately recognized him and tried to approach him, eager to speak with the legendary player who had achieved such a feat.
Especially some of the noble ladies, who were interested in his status and strength, their eyes gleaming with ambition and curiosity.
"He’s not interested," Emilia quickly positioned herself between them, her voice firm and protective, "Also h-he’s ours..."
Her face turned red at that last part, and Leon couldn’t help but laugh, finding it endearing.
They thankfully left, although they all seemed pretty annoyed by Emilia’s intervention, shooting her dirty looks as they walked away to find other targets.
The following hour passed without much happening, Leon simply stayed with the group and spoke with some people who came to him to offer their congratulations and praise.
Surprisingly, or to be honest Leon shouldn’t be surprised, not everyone seemed to hate him in this place.
Many people actually shook his hand and congratulated him, or even asked for advice on how to grow stronger and achieve similar feats.
Leon obliged as long as it wasn’t too personal or if it related to the future, keeping his answers vague but helpful, sharing what he could without giving away too much.
But eventually, as the party reached its peak and the guests were enjoying themselves, something unexpected happened that changed everything.
Bam!
The lights went out in the chamber, plunging everything into darkness, and from a balcony in the chamber, Iris appeared in all her glory, illuminated by a single spotlight that followed her movements.
She wasn’t sitting on Zarek’s shoulder this time, instead looking down at everyone from above with a regal presence that commanded attention.
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