Three carriages moved one after another across a stretched-out black metallic bridge that connected the mainland to a massive, sky-touching white limestone castle that stood in the center.

Each carriage had the same patterns and size, marked with a large golden crest resembling a thorny crown with a golden eye at the top.

House Valentine's carriage entered Liora Castle. The moon above gleamed with a white shine, casting the shadow of the huge structure to the left.

The guards stationed at the gates straightened instantly when they spotted the Valentine crest. The carriage halted at the entrance, and the door opened as Leon stepped out.

Leon adjusted his neckband, rested one hand on Moonblade's hilt, then fixed his coat collar before looking forward.

He ran his eyes over the towering castle and could not help but admire its architecture. Under the moonlight, the white castle appeared even more astonishing.

It was the very definition of monumental beauty beyond comparison.

Behind his carriage, the other two stopped, and the maids and butlers assigned to Leon stepped out.

Among nobles, it was common to bring trusted servants along. After all, they were the ones who knew their master well and understood what they required at all times.

Still…

'That many.' Leon counted them silently.

Along with Myra, he had been assigned two more maids, one butler, and seven knights. For a meeting with their own kingdom's king, this much security indeed created suspicion.

It was as if the Duke believed something would happen to his son. And by providing so many guards, he was not even trying to hide it. He was openly challenging them at this point.

His father was not with him. The Duke was supposed to attend this meeting as well. As one of the Royal Council Circle's members, it was strange for him to be absent.

'The maid said he left urgently for some task.' Leon narrowed his eyes. 'Could it be that this urgent task is part of the king's plan to leave me alone.'

It was entirely possible. As a king, and as someone Leon's house served, the Valentine family had duties they needed to fulfill, especially those assigned directly by the royal council that must be completed with absolute priority.

'The Duke is not the type who agrees to sudden tasks. Not before an important event like this.' Leon clicked his tongue lightly. 'If he went despite that, then the urgent task must be something big.'

Leon wondered, his gaze remained unfazed even after thinking this.

The presence of his father would have made certain things easier, but it was not a problem even if he was not here. Leon simply needed to make a few slight adjustments to his approach.

"Young master?" Myra stepped out from the group of maids and stood beside Leon. "What's on your mind?"

Leon glanced at her slightly. Veronica must have figured out the situation already, so she likely asked Myra to accompany him. Although, even without being told, Myra would have followed him.

Either way, with her here, Leon had at least one person he could trust.

"Nothing. Let's go."

He commanded calmly. The maids formed a line behind him while his knights surrounded them, each holding one hand near their weapon or shield.

They walked down the path leading straight to the main entrance of the castle. The full moon above gave Leon a strange form of confidence.

"Halt!"

Two spears crossed in front of him. Leon's boots halted with a sharp thud that echoed across the stone floor, but his expression remained dull and uninterested at the pointed weapons.

Leon did not speak. He allowed his butler to step forward instead.

The butler moved with perfect etiquette and addressed the guards politely.

"The king has requested the young master of House Valentine for a meeting. You must have already been informed. I ask you two to kindly refrain from any disrespect."

Everyone thought the guards would step aside.

Instead, out of nowhere, the two bulky-looking guards burst into loud laughter.

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! OOOOHHAHAHAHA!! Jack, did you hear that! They are saying the 'king'... the 'king' REQUESTED them! HAHAHAHA!!"

"Young master, they say… Hah! I never once heard of Valentine having a young master. Hahahaha!"

They laughed shamelessly. The butler's face twisted in shock. Even the Valentine knights exchanged confused looks.

They were all clearly thinking,

Are they serious? Did they lose their minds?

The guards definitely knew Leon was supposed to arrive tonight.

The laughing guards stared at Leon with bold smirks. One of them even added, "If the king truly 'requested' you, then you should wait right here until he himself comes down to take you in."

"BAHAHAHA!! Indeed, that is better!"

"Haaah…" Leon exhaled deeply and removed his glasses.

'Bad timing to fuck with me.'

He slipped the glasses into his chest pocket and rolled his neck before yawning lazily.

"Yaaaawwn~ Hmm… You know, it is already midnight," Leon said in a calm tone. "Why don't you drop this little act. I know the king told you to do this. But think about it…"

He paused and looked at both of them with his golden eyes.

Then he added slowly, "He is acting like a jealous child at this point."

Silence dropped instantly.

Not a single sound.

Even Leon's own knights went pale. They swallowed so loudly the noise echoed in the corridor. Myra turned her head toward him with wide eyes, stunned.

"Pardon?" one of the guards said. He refused to believe what he had just heard.

Leon stared at the guard blankly, as if the man were nothing more than background noise to him.

The guard's disbelief only made Leon tilt his head slightly, almost bored.

"Did I stutter?" Leon asked in a calm tone. "Your king is childish. Should I repeat it slower for you?"

"Y-Young master…" Myra muttered beside him.

The two guards stiffened for a moment, then their expressions twisted with anger.

"You bastard…!"

"You dare say that about His Majesty?!"

Their sneers disappeared. Both guards gripped their spears with force and raised them, pointing the sharp tips directly at Leon's throat.

The butler froze in shock, and the maids gasped behind him. Leon's knights tensed immediately, their hands already moving toward their swords, but Leon stopped them with nothing but his stillness.

He remained exactly where he stood, as if the spears meant nothing.

A calm thought crossed his mind. 'Today's moon would be perfect to test Silvermoon's given blessing.'

Leon opened his status window without moving a muscle. The translucent purple screen flickered briefly in his eyes, unknown by everyone else.

[Title Acquired]

[Heir of the Crimson Moon]

A faint glow passed through his golden eyes for a moment, like reflecting a celestial moonlight. The spears pointing at him trembled slightly, from the strange pressure that shifted around him.

The guards felt something was off. Not only the two royal guards, but even Leon's own knights and maid felt uneasy. Their instincts were screaming at them to step back.

Leon raised his chin and gave the two guards a small smile. It was a calm and innocent smile that made their gut wrench.

"Go on," Leon said again. "Try it."

His golden eyes were faintly glowing, while he simply stood there.

The guards froze. An instinctive fear crawled up their spines, and their arms began to tremble uncontrollably. The spear tips dropped by a fraction, as if their bodies refused to obey them.

Leon's knights watched in silence, stunned. They could feel it clearly. Their young master's aura had shifted into something entirely different, something which was much more terrifying.

'Wh-what.. What is this?' Myra's breath became heavy, she was standing still too, but she could feel as if she would not dare look at Leon right now.

'Don't look.' she repeated to herself.

'Don't look.' the knights repeated all at once.

The moonlight behind Leon cast a long shadow on him, even though the angle and position was unnatural and impossible, but it still made his shadow stretch beyond him, like an unparalleled infinite void stretching under his feet to bond boundaries.

Myra was able to take note of the shadow, 'What is that thing?' she inhaled sharply. Her eyes widened at the sudden change in him. It reminds her of a distant appearance from her centuries old memory.

'Ah… Lady Veronica.' She suddenly thought of her, her face appeared on her head. And the warmth spread over her body.

Crack.

Myra broke free. She raised her head, and looked at Leon this time, and he now looks no different from before. But he noticed that the two guards who were once standing before him were now on their knees, and head looking down at the ground.

Leon narrowed his eyes with mild amusement.

"Tell me," he said in a soft voice, "does a jealous king teach his dogs to bark, or do they bark on their own?"

The guards' faces broke into pure terror, it was something that they saw in Leon that made them act this pathetic.

"Why did you two go quiet all of a sudden?"

Leon tilted his head at them and looked down.

A foul stretch reached his and Myra's nose. "Hm?"

Myra glanced down slightly, and her face twisted in clear disgust when she noticed the state the two guards were in. Leon followed her gaze and raised an eyebrow before muttering, "Gross."

He dismissed the title in his mind, letting the atmosphere return to normal as if nothing had happened.

Leon looked at the guards once more and clicked his tongue lightly.

"Some royal guards you are. At this rate, even my household maids have more dignity."

Without sparing them another look, he stepped past them and addressed his knights.

"Let's go."

.

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[A/N: Bonus chapter will be up in an hour or two]

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