---3rd Person POV, Late Afternoon---
After the last student completed their physical exam, the Headmaster dismissed the first-years. Exhausted from the day's activities, most headed to the Entertainment District for food and merriment. While her peers meandered off, Angelica Rapha Redgrave sat on the steps of the Great Hall with a few of her followers.
“Lady Angelica, it is getting rather late. Shall I summon your carriage?” one of her female attendants asked, before noticing Angelica’s attention was elsewhere. “My lady, is something wrong?”
The words snapped Angelica out of her daze. “Yes… I am fine. Please proceed with calling the carriage to the main entrance.”
As the woman walked off toward the stables, Angelica returned her gaze to Julius and his friends. Unlike the others, who were eager to depart, the five men had hung back, waiting for the crowd to thin. Now, they were moving toward the main gate.
“Finally! We are freed from those dreadful exams,” the purple-haired Brad said, stretching his arms. “If you gents don’t have plans tonight, how about we sneak over to the Market District for dinner? It’s been ages since I tasted the cooking from those food stalls.”
“That is a wonderful idea,” the prince’s adoptive brother Jilk agreed, flipping his vivid green hair behind his shoulder. “I’ve been craving croquettes for a while now. What better way to celebrate our freedom?”
The others voiced their agreement, and the men scurried off toward the main entrance.
‘Hmm, so that is what Prince Julius does in his free time,’ Angelica thought, surprised to learn something new about her future husband. ‘That girl Leon warned me about hasn’t made a move on any of them all day. Maybe he was—‘
Before she could finish the thought, the girl in question ran out from behind a building near the gate. In her haste, Marie “accidentally” tripped over her own feet and tumbled to the ground.
“Ouch!” Marie yelped, loud enough that everyone in the vicinity could hear.
Despite their flaws, the five men were kindhearted. Unable to ignore a maiden in distress, Julius walked over to assist. As he bent over to help her stand, a fiendish smile briefly flashed across Marie’s face. In that instant, Angelica realized Leon had been telling the truth.
‘I must act before it’s too late!’ Angelica thought, leaping to her feet and running across the large courtyard. ‘You will not take Julius from me, thieving vixen.’
Unsure of what was happening, Angelica’s followers sprinted after her. When she was within earshot, she interjected herself.
“Prince… I mean Julius, please allow me to take care of this young woman.”
Startled by her abrupt arrival, Julius stood up and turned toward her. Seeing her there when she should have already departed, he immediately assumed the worst.
“Angelica, why are you still here?” Julius asked, his gaze heavy with disdain. “Don’t tell me you’re stalking me now. I told you this morning, our engagement—”
“I assure you, Julius, this has nothing to do with that,” Angelica interrupted, mentally kicking herself for acting without a plan. “You see… I wanted to apologize to you directly for my outburst this morning. I stayed back to speak privately, but then I noticed you were preoccupied. Allow me to handle this so you can carry on with your evening.”
Unlike their cunning parents, the five men could not see through deception. To Julius, it appeared Angelica was acting out of genuine remorse. Relieved to see her coming around to his point of view, he stepped aside.
“Very well. Thank you, Angelica,” Julius said, his expression softening. “I… I would also like to apologize for calling you out publicly. As much as it pains me to admit, Lord Aremus was correct. I should have kept my frustration in check and spoken to you privately. Please forgive me.”
Stunned, Angelica stared at him. Until now, Julius had never apologized for his temper.
‘It would appear I owe Lord Aremus a great debt now. He is the first to make him see reason,’ Angelica thought, stifling a smile. “I accept your apology, Julius. For the duration of our time at the Academy, I hope we can continue to be cordial with each other.”
“Likewise,” Julius said, turning to leave. “Have a good night, everyone.”
As the five men vanished from sight, Angelica’s wrathful gaze turned to the frustrated Marie.
‘What in the hell is going on!? Why are you here, you bitch? I had the Prince right where I wanted him!’ Marie thought as Angelica approached. “I… I thank you for the offer, Lady Angelica. My injury isn’t severe; you can head home. It would be improper for me to—”
“You can cut the crap,” Angelica snapped. “I know you only pretended to trip to get their attention.”
‘How did she know that? Is she a mind reader?’ Marie thought, realizing her cover was blown. In a panic, she scrambled to her feet and sprinted away, vanishing down a nearby alleyway.
Confused, Angelica’s followers inquired about what they had just witnessed. They had not seen Marie’s true colors, so to them, it looked like Angelica was bullying Marie.
“Someone warned me this morning that she was after the Prince and his friends. I was skeptical of the validity, but now there is no room for doubt. Marie Fou Lafan is trying to lead them astray,” Angelica said, turning to her followers. “Send word to the other four fiancées. We need to meet immediately to discuss the threat to our engagements.”
“Of course, Lady Angelica!” they said in unison, promptly heading off to fulfill her command.
‘You have my utmost gratitude, Lord Aremus. I swear on the name of House Redgrave, I will do everything I can to repay your kindness,’ Angelica thought, clutching a hand to her chest. ‘Had I ignored your warning, things would have most certainly ended poorly for us. From now on, we must act proactively to prevent her from interacting with them.’
As she began formulating a plan, her carriage arrived at the gate. Angelica boarded and instructed the driver to return to the mansion with all due haste. Her serious tone was all the driver needed to hear to get the horses moving.
---Twenty Minutes Later---
When the carriage arrived outside Redgrave Manor, Duke Vince Rapha Redgrave and her brother, Gilbert, rushed out to meet her. Eager to ask about her day, they both stopped dead when they saw her furious expression.
“My dearest daughter, has something happened again with that fool Julius?” Vince asked, his blood already beginning to boil. ‘That damn brat is unworthy of my daughter. If she weren’t so smitten with him, I would call off this farce of an engagement myself.’
“Just say the word, and I’ll go have a friendly chat with him… man to man,” Gilbert added, gripping the hilt of his saber tightly.
“Julius berated me this morning for being upset about him standing me up, but that isn't why I’m angry,” Angelica replied, a blood vessel over her father’s temple bulging in rage. “Viscount Lafan’s daughter, Marie Fou Lafan, is actively working to seduce the Prince and his friends. That vixen attempted to cozy up to Julius right in front of me, and he blindly fell for it. Had Lord Aremus not warned me this morning, she would have already sunk her fangs into him.”
This information hit the two men hard. They both knew Julius was a fool, but to fall for such a transparent honey trap was ridiculous. With great effort, Vince suppressed his rage and ushered Angelica inside. Once they were seated at the dinner table, she brought both men up to speed on the day’s happenings.
When she finished, Vince sat back with a displeased look. “It appears I need to remind our vassal houses who supports them behind the scenes. The thought that none of our faction members came to your aid this morning is unforgivable. I will deal with that tomorrow. In the meantime, I want to hear more about Lord Aremus. What is your impression of him?”
“Well, I believe Lord Aremus is an honorable man with unshakeable morals. Though he is a mere honorary baron, he didn’t hesitate to scold the Prince and everyone present. It was honestly quite humorous to see everyone so dumbfounded,” Angelica said, laughing as she recalled their faces. “What surprised me most was the immense power I felt radiating from him. He made House Seberg’s heir retreat with just a glare. This may be rude, Father, but is Lord Aremus truly human?”
The Duke released a hearty chuckle. “I can assure you, dear, Lord Aremus is human. That said, what I am about to tell you is a national secret. Lord Aremus’s stats are all SS rank.”
Angelica and Gilbert froze. Both knew the highest recorded ranking was S rank. To hear that Leon's potential exceeded those limits left them in utter disbelief.
“Father, surely you jest,” Gilbert said, searching for any sign of a joke.
“At first, I thought so too. It was only after the Guildmaster showed the Palace and me his official rankings that I acknowledged it as fact,” Vince replied. “The Guild and Palace have taken an interest in him, as Lord Aremus may be our ticket to ending the hostilities with the Principality. With sufficient training, they believe he can strike down their Black Knight and shatter their spirit. If he can already silence that meathead Greg, their hopes for a peaceful future may not be so far-fetched.”
“Father, I would like to thank Lord Aremus for his help today. Can we do anything to assist him directly?” Angelica asked.
For days, the Guildmaster had struggled to get the nobility to recognize Leon’s potential. Blinded by pride, they were actively working against him to ensure Leon wouldn’t outshine their own children. If House Redgrave backed the Guildmaster to bypass these hindrances, Leon could continue his career without interference.
“I believe there is something we can do to assist him, yes,” Vince said with a confident grin. “Leave it to me. By tomorrow afternoon, several nuisances that have been hindering his growth will be gone. If you would, please have one of your subordinates extend an invitation to him—ask him to join us for dinner during your first break.”
---Royal Palace---
Julius and his comrades silently slipped into the palace after enjoying their night of “commoner” food. As they snuck into Julius’s room, they found a furious Queen Mylene waiting on the edge of her son’s bed. The moment they saw her, the five men knew there was no escape.
“Good… good evening, Mother,” Julius said, his friends cowering behind him. “What brings you to my room tonight?”
“You know exactly why I’m here, Julius. Don’t play games with me!” Mylene said, rising to her feet.
Unsure which event had upset her more, Julius pivoted to what he thought was the worst offense. “Is this about the argument with Angelica this morning? If so, we’ve already patched things up. We both apologized and agreed to be—”
“I was referring to you picking a fight with Lord Aremus…” Mylene said, her right eye twitching with mounting fury. “You also did something to Angelica? It seems we are overdue for another long conversation about your behavior.”
Memories of the last lecture flooded Julius’s mind. Four hours of nonstop scolding while he cowered on his hands and knees. It was not an experience he cared to repeat.
“Queen Mylene, could you potentially spare His Highness a lecture just this once?” Jilk asked, attempting to cool her temper. “As Julius said, he has already sincerely apologized to Lady Angelica of his own accord. She accepted, and they seek to maintain a cordial relationship while at the Academy.”
“A cordial relationship… Julius, you are becoming more like your father every day, and it upsets me. Angelica is your fiancée, not some stranger,” Mylene said, her expression softening into sadness. “Do you truly find the thought of marrying her so awful? You understand she is madly in love with you and would do anything to make you happy, right?”
“I respectfully decline to answer your question, mother…” Julius said, not wanting to upset her further with his true feelings. ‘How am I supposed to love someone who was chosen for me? I wish her no ill will, but I cannot bring myself to love her. What I want is someone who sees me as Julius—not the Crown Prince.’
Try as he might, Julius’s true feelings reached Mylene. She pitied Angelica; the girl would end up in a loveless marriage, just like her. Roland and she had been wed to strengthen the bonds between the Holfort Kingdom and her homeland, the United Kingdom of Repard. From the very beginning, their relationship had been icy at best. The King had performed his duties, siring Julius and a daughter before leaving Mylene out in the cold. It had been years since they had last shared a meal or a bed; the arrangement weighed heavily on her heart.
“Julius, heed my words well. If you don’t love Angelica, break the engagement privately and walk away. Do not force her to endure decades of cold indifference,” Mylene said, her voice dropping to a serious, chilling tone. “As for Lord Aremus, I forbid you from antagonizing or sparking further conflict with him. Do not make an enemy of that man. The same goes for the four of you as well. As a parent, none of us want to have to bury you…”
“Are you saying Lord Aremus is truly stronger than us?” Jilk asked, his brow furrowing in doubt.
“It isn’t a suggestion; it’s a fact. He will massacre us if we take him on,” Greg said, his voice trembling from the back of the group. ‘They didn't see that titan standing behind him. I can still feel those bloodshot, slitted eyes crushing my soul...’
Shocked to see the normally arrogant Greg cowering like a child, Mylene realized he had experienced a close brush with death. She had heard rumors of the disruption Leon caused at the Guild, but she’d assumed people were exaggerating. Seeing the aftermath firsthand, Mylene wondered if he had been holding back at the Guild.
“I’ve said my piece. Hopefully, you will listen this time and act accordingly,” Mylene said, turning toward the door. She paused for a moment, her voice softening just enough to betray her concern. “Goodnight, Julius.”
The door clicked shut, leaving the room in a heavy, stifling silence.
Julius didn't move. He remained standing, staring at the spot where his mother had been, while his friends hovered in the shadows behind him.
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