"Sol, I am happy to present you, Clara, as you can see she is an elf. I brought her back because I thought she would do well as one of your retainers or perhaps a concubine."

"Heh!?"

Clara exclaimed loudly at those words.

"Wait, wait, wait. What do you mean by concubine?"

Lilin tilted her head, "You don't want to?" her eyes showed a profound confusion as if the very concept that someone would refuse such an offer was something she couldn't understand.

Clara wanted to scream her frustration and say of course not but rejecting the crown prince like that in his presence was out of the question. What's more, she clearly felt three pair of eyes lock on her at the same time. She didn't know why but she was sure that giving a firm rebuttal wouldn't result in a pretty result.

"Lilin. Stop it."

The voice of salvation came from the prince himself.

"But…"

"No buts. I am happy that you thought of me, but I refuse to force anyone to enter into relationships with me. So please, stop now or I am going to be angry."

He was talking with a calm and steady voice. Even though he didn't raise his voice, Clara could feel a certain majesty in his voice.

This raised the opinion of the prince in her mind. Elves were rather liberal when it came to love. This was mostly because of their high longevity and their low birth rate. For elves, sex wasn't something for pleasure and love was just a chemical reaction. They only believed in survival and giving birth to the next generation.

Still, as a woman, she also had dreams about her first time.

"Clara, was it? I hope that you forgive my cousin if her words were hurtful."

Looking at his dazzling smile as he apologized, she could feel her face burn and her heartbeat accelerate. This made her understand once again why her mother said that those with beautiful faces could control the world. It was cheating.

Milia, who was observing all this from the back, had to hold the urge to let out a snicker. She wasn't biased in saying that Sol had the potential to be one of the most handsome men in the world. This was even more so because he was blessed by the goddess Luxuria. If he really wanted, few girls could resist his charm.

'This Clara is suitable to become his highness retainer. Perhaps even a contracted partner. Elves are B+ at base with different variants such as Moon elves or high elves having the potential to reach A+.'

She was already beginning to assess the advantages of getting this woman as a retainer for her beloved master.

But,

'I need to search deeper into her background.'

Even now, even though she knew it wasn't her fault, she could never forgive herself for letting her previous master die because of something as stupid as a betrayal. She would never let any traitorous bastard come close to Sol. Even if it was at the price of her life.

Thinking about traitors, she remembered one particular old man that set her suspicion ablaze. She needed to do a new round of spying soon to refresh her information.

'Once I have enough proof to validate my theory, I will immediately inform his highness. Fufufu~ it seems like I will have to become active again after all those years. I hope I am not too rusty.'

Sol, after giving his apology to Clara, patted Lilin on the head before turning to face Lilith. His fist was slightly clenched in anticipation.

"So, how was it?"

Silence fell as all eyes gathered on Lilith who stayed silent. Sol couldn't help but feel a little nervous but this nervousness provided to be useless as a small smile formed on Lilith's face before long.

Standing up, she came close to Sol and took him in her arms as she murmured.

"Aside from you showing off a little too much, this was almost perfect. You still have so much to learn, but–Sol, I am very proud of you. Congratulations."

Those words struck home deeply and he could feel his eyes moisten a little before giving his all to not shed a tear. It would be truly lame of him to cry because of some little praise in front of everyone.

In his past life, Sol wasn't anyone special. Just a normal teen that could be found in the world. Just one out of 7 billion humans filled this world.

His life was neither particularly sad nor particularly incredible.

That's why he loved this world so much at first. Here he wasn't just a nobody. He was Sol Dragona Luxuria. The sole and unique Sol. Here he was special. He wasn't just someone who would die forgotten and ignored by the world. Even thousands of years after his death people would still remember him as the tenth king.

… This was what he thought initially.

Later, as he began to grow up and adapt to this world, he began to understand.

Being special means nothing.

Being unique means nothing.

Being remembered means absolutely nothing.

Those were the aspirations of people who wished to leave a mark on the world.

For him…Rather than being special. Rather than being unique, the simple fact that those close to him were proud of him was enough to send him to cloud nine.

This was the greatest form of happiness for him.

Some people might see this as incredibly childish. Others might see this as stupid or pitiful. Many would mock his lack of ambition. But–

But so what?

What did it matter to him?

He would become someone they could all be proud of.

He would become someone who could protect all of them.

He would become someone they could rely on.

That's why, while giving the brightest smile possible, he answered Lilith's praise.

"This is just the start."

Looking deep into her eyes, he swore inwardly.

Even though he didn't know her pain.

Even though he could never understand her pain.

Even though it might be his selfish wish.

He would save her no matter what.

Even if the one he had to save her from was herself.

After all, he was destined to be a selfish king, right?

Once the weird emotional and slightly embarrassing moment passed, Sol took a deep breath and began speaking,

"Setsuna is alright and I am already healed. So, what now?"

Having someone like Milia helping him was a true godsend. There were so many things to do, and so many plans to make.

"I have already contacted the head butler of the Highland family. To warn them that they were the first chosen to host you. As of now, we just have to wait for the fight bellows to end before you give your speech. Since we finished way earlier than we thought, you still have a great buffer time before having to head to the Highland Manor."

Sol pondered a little before asking, facing his cousin whom he hadn't seen in years.

Many things could change because of time. Even one week was enough to observe incredible changes, not to speak of two years.

It would be stupid of him to assume the Lilin in front of him was still the same as she was back then. It was stupid and also very insulting for the person in question.

Then, "Let's get on with that speech fast. I want to spend some time with Lilin."

He was also very curious about the girl she came with. It wasn't the first elf he saw and such, Sol was sure that she wasn't a normal elf.

'I hope she isn't tricking her.'

Because if she was… Well, sooner or later he had to become accustomed to taking a life.

While Sol was contemplating the chance of him committing his first murder, the north side of the capital was bustling more than the other.

Here and there, soldiers could be seen walking and decorating the streets as well as some of the house.

"It seems like we will be the first one to be visited by his highness."

"But of course. Our Duke is without a doubt the most loyal one in the kingdom. It's very normal for him to be the first."

Here and there, such discussion could be heard from the soldiers. Being the first house chosen showed how much trust the royal family placed in the Duke of Highland. For those soldiers who were incredibly loyal and respectful to him, this was like the honor was on them.

This was even more so after they watched the display of the prince. It was clear that he was destined to be someone strong. They could already imagine the scene where they would fight against the Wratharis army with their flags fluttering high behind them.

While the common soldiers were basking in happiness, the upper echelon was rather somber.

In the manor belonging to the Highland family, a meeting was taking place.

"My lord. It seems like the queen wishes to pull us on her side. What should we do?"

The room where the meeting was taking place was a large room underground with barely any light. The sole decoration being a large rectangular desk.

At the head of the table, an old man, the Duke Highland pondered in silence.

On his right, a young red-haired woman decked in armor pounded her fist on the table.

"What should we do!? Of course, we should show our neutral stance! We are the Highland! The guardian of the kingdom! Why should we enter the game of politics of those stupid nobles!?"

Her last question seemed more like a roar than a scream. Despite that, many of the retainers present seemed to share in her opinion as they nodded their heads.

The first head of the Highland family was one of the most loyal Generals of the Conqueror King, Jupiter. This also made them the first and oldest noble family in the kingdom after the royal family.

Despite this position, the Highland family prided itself by never bothering with politics. Even when the Puppet King was being manipulated by the nobles, they never intervened be it for one side or another.

"Dear sister of mine. Are you perhaps stupid? Don't you see the trends? A war is coming. There's no way the Queen will let us in control of the military if we don't show our allegiance. Worse, I wouldn't be surprised if some of us were to be met with some deadly 'accidents' during the war or even before it."

The one who spoke this time was a slim young man who sat on the left of the Duke. His slim build and the round glasses he wore gave him a very intellectual look.

His words were also meet with nods from the retainers. From the look of it, it was clear that each of them enjoyed a certain influence in this room.

"Bullshit!! Why would she do that? We are always the first ones to jump in during the war. All our ancestors racked up so much military merit that some king didn't even know what they should reward us with. And you are saying that despite all that the queen would destroy us just because we won't enter this stupid game?"

"This is reality. Your opinion is irrelevant. Do you not know that a dog who loses his usefulness can be drowned? We have lost much of our influence over the years. It's clear that the queen did not appreciate our so-called neutrality during the Puppet King reign. Even now I think that this was a stupid decision."

All the people present inhaled deeply at those words. After all, the current Duke was the one who gave that order back then.

Despite their fear, the Duke Highland simply gave a bitter smile,

"Indeed. This might have been one of the most foolish decisions I have ever made."

He seemed to crumble a little bit, but this didn't last long. Straightening his back, he steeled his expression and scanned the room with a cold expression before looking at his two greatest sources of pride. His grandchildren, who respectively stood at his right and his left.

"Athena, Ares, this old man made a big mistake back then. I was too stubborn. I forgot that in a sense, being silent was also a form of choice. But–"

He put more strength in his words. "But–just because I made that mistake once doesn't mean that we must necessarily follow the crown prince to atone. What are we!?"

"WE ARE THE SHIELDS OF THE KINGDOM!!"

"What is our goal!?"

"BEING THE SWORD THAT PIERCE THE HEART OF OUR ENEMIES."

"This is so. We are the shield and we are the sword. We are tools to be used for a better future. But, not anyone has the right to wield us. The Puppet King was unworthy. The Hero King was more than worthy. Then, let's see if his highness will be worthy or not."