Chapter 4229: The Importance of Timing (Part 2)

The Divine Beasts’ beauty, clothes, jewels, and magical artifacts were a sight to behold.

Most noble guests were so enraptured by the spectacle that they wouldn’t have noticed the passage of time if not for the nagging of their stagecoach companions to pass the opera glasses.

Zekell had sent only one per invite, turning the initially useless gift into a prized possession that would remain etched in the memory of his future clients.

"This is one of those few times that being an important figure is annoying." Milea Genys, the Magic Empress of the Gorgon Empire, sighed. "Look at all those lizards entering before us while my bottom gets flatter by the second."

"That’s because they don’t care about getting announced by the valet and because keeping a bunch of Divine Beasts waiting in a long line is a recipe for disaster." Kelia Genys, Miela’s adoptive daughter and Horseman of Dusk, replied.

"If Dragons and Phoenixes start to squabble, this gala will go down in history for all the wrong reasons."

The soldiers of the honor guard patrolling the Mansion finally came to unseal the door of the Empress’s stagecoach, allowing her to stretch her slender legs.

"It’s already bad that I had to wait this long." She grunted. "Walking out of this wooden relic instead of a sparkly DoLorean makes it worse. The Royals entering after me just adds insult to the injury."

"Don’t think about it." Kelia replied as she descended from the stagecoach. "Come on, let’s not keep everyone waiting."

"You are right. I can’t let envy ruin the mood of this night. At least until I get my hands on Leegaain!" Milea still believed Lith to be one of the Guardian’s sons and resented Leegaain for not restricting his love affairs to the Empire.

"Attacking him in front of Shargein would be a bad idea." Kelia chuckled at the idea. "Even if he can’t put so much as a scratch on you, if you make him cry, your remains will fit in a bowl."

"Don’t remind me of that." Milea sighed. "Still, I feel sorry for the poor Raldarak."

"What do you mean?" Kelia had never thought she would hear the words "poor" and "Raldarak" in the same sentence.

"Well, his father is a Magus and the first of his species, while his sister is not only the firstborn, but she also has all elemental streaks in her hair. That poor boy will never escape their shadows."

"Oh, that." Kelia cleared her throat, avoiding Milea’s gaze.

She lived with the Verhens and played with the baby every day after she was done studying, but she had sworn never to disclose anything about his appearance or abilities.

"What do you mean, oh that?" The Empress asked. "Sure, Raldarak is born with six wings, but Elysia and Lith will soon develop them as well. As for the elemental eyes, they have no practical value.

"Raldarak will spend his life being compared to his father and sister, and unless he demonstrates a unique talent or genius, he will always be found wanting.

"When, in a few years, he realizes it, Raldarak might turn into a jerk if the issue isn’t handled properly."

"I guess you are right." Kelia could say nothing, so she said nothing.

’I wonder how Milea would react if I told her about the babies’ stable Mirror Magic.’ She thought.

After the Empress, it was the turn of the Royals. They came out of the DoLorean, nodding at the Divine Beasts of the honor guard as a thank you.

The first thing they noticed when they managed to lower their gaze to the floor was the change in the silk carpet. Golden embroideries had joined the black and red of Elysia’s first Gala, tracing lightning-like patterns.

"The black is to honor Verhen’s Dark Phoenix bloodline, and the red for the Fire Dragon bloodline." Sylpha pondered. "What’s the golden lightning about?"

"It should be a depiction of Vital Storm to represent his Indech bloodline." Meron replied. "Even though the full scope of the abilities of Verhen’s human side is still unknown, its potential is the most debated topic of this year."

"The seven colored eyes would indeed be a tacky motif, and the red of the Indech skin would easily be mistaken for the Dragon’s scales, but I would have opted for the white of the Indech wings. Vital Storm is just one ability, after all." Sylpha said.

"Indeed, but it’s the most renowned ability at the moment." Meron nodded. "Besides, the white of the wings is temporary. You’ve seen it during Verhen’s gala.

"An Awakened Indech is supposed to have six elemental wings, and weaving together so many colors would be as tacky as the eyes."

"I guess you are right." The Queen pondered. "There is no telling if even a Tiamat’s energy wings will remain white or become prismatic after Verhen fully develops his Indech side. That said, let’s hope that our dear subjects behave."

"They’d better." The King said. "We’ve sent them daily reminders for the past week. If anything happens, I’ll skin them alive."

Royal Galas were never intended as friendly reunions. They were merely gatherings of powerful people who would determine whether the Kingdom’s power balance would remain the same or be redefined.

No matter if you were the host or the guest, a Royal Gala wasn’t about inviting the people you liked, but those you couldn’t avoid.

The Royals always did their best to avoid frictions and keep old grudges from escalating, but the Gala for Lith’s children was in a league of its own.

Any noble who wasn’t renowned for their pleasant behavior or who didn’t have a cordial attitude towards beasts had been excluded from the guest list without possibility for an appeal.

A mean word about the kids or a not-too-kind touch while holding them was likely to ignite the undying rage of creatures whose greatest political achievement was not burning Mogar to the ground during their conflicts.

Offending one Divine Beast was always a bad idea. Offending a bloodline was akin to organizing your own funeral. Offending several bloodlines of Divine Beasts at once by insulting their Hatchlings was the stuff nightmares were made of.

No apology or appeal to reason would mean anything, and only the complete annihilation of the offender could end the conflict.

"Verhen has outdone himself once again." Sylpha pointed at the park and then at the sky.

Lith always prepared special attractions for his younger guests, knowing that kids had no interest in politics and would have no fun standing all night at attention like little soldiers.

It was the reason he had set up a Light Mastery version of laser tag rifles and armor along with a hard-light battleground.

For those more interested in speed, instead, go-kart versions of the DoLorean were lined up near the most external paths of the park after setting them up in a race track.

Karts and barriers were all made of hard-light, ensuring the safety of both the pilots and bystanders.

At the same time, colorful fireworks lit up the sky at regular intervals, drawing the shapes of Indeches, Dragons, and Phoenixes. The spells produced no noise to not disturb the quiet of the night or scare the babies.

The King nodded, staring at the young nobles with envy.

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