Ascension To Divine Throne - Chapter 136

Chapter 136: Chapter 136: Clash at the Royal Ball & An Interesting Proposal
Chapter 136: Clash at the Royal Ball

The next day at the Cain family estate.

Having received a signal from a major figure, William had planned to meet Marion today, but an unexpected situation arose.

The royal palace sent an invitation for Viscount Cain to attend tonight’s Holy Festival celebration held in the kingdom’s banquet hall.

This event, held annually before the Holy Festival in the name of His Majesty, the King of Fis, aims to host the titled nobles from across the nation who come to Canlight City to participate in the festival.

Indeed, all court nobles in Canlight City are expected to attend the Holy Festival ceremonies, and the kingdom also supports the participation of local lords and nobles from other regions.

After all, those who leave their domains to attend the festivities in Canlight City undoubtedly demonstrate their loyalty to the kingdom and the king, an allegiance the kingdom wishes to promote and encourage, showcasing its firm control over the regions.

With the Holy Festival approaching, hosting such an event is not unusual.

These large-scale royal receptions occur several times a year, and as a court viscount, William typically receives an invitation.

Previously, the original William rarely attended since, in others’ view, the Cain family’s power was just so-so, and their attendance or absence didn’t really matter.

However, in a scenario where families of similar stature to the Cains were eagerly networking, it highlighted the Cain family’s lack of conformity.

Initially, William intended to decline; he had no interest in attending these insignificant gatherings, preferring to wait until he had sufficient power to host his own.

However, this year’s invitation was different. Below the standard invitation, there was a handwritten note from Duke Harold, personally asking him to attend this royal gathering, as His Majesty the King wished to see this young talent again.

Now, William found it difficult to refuse, especially since the king had been quite favorable to him, having recently managed to procure a precious Trial Card from him. To decline the invitation to his first banquet seemed inappropriate.

After some thought, William decided to prepare and attend the evening’s event.

He initially wanted to bring Lisa along, but upon hearing about the large crowd and having to swap her cloak for an evening gown, she blushed and stubbornly refused, despite his persuasion.

With no other option, William took Mora along instead, allowing the current head of the White Dove Chamber of Commerce to properly introduce the guild’s enchanted goods to the nobility of Canlight City.

By the way, the research by Masters Dahr and Bernie was nearing completion, originally expected to take much longer.

However, Dahr once mentioned the issue while consulting with the legendary mage Apollo, who after some consideration, helped optimize the process, significantly saving time and reducing the complexity of inscribing the magical runes.

Truly worthy of being a legendary mage! The first product developed was a magical air conditioner. Dahr and Bernie were still researching additional features like a cleaning spell, expecting it to take a little more time, but that didn’t prevent Mora from starting to advertise and build a reputation.

William had even considered changing the name but decided that since it also adjusted air quality, it might as well be abbreviated as a magical air conditioner.

In the evening, at the royal banquet hall.

Many lesser nobles had arrived early, scouting the hall for influential figures worth engaging.

As for the elegantly dressed noble ladies, their intentions were less complicated, their eyes wandering among the gentlemen present.

Each royal banquet was their chance to find a suitor.

Many eyes were now on William and Mora.

Both dressed in sleek black suits for the evening, their handsome, spirited appearance caused the faces of these noble ladies to flush, murmuring to each other but too shy to approach.

“You’re quite popular, huh!” Mora elbowed William, whispering with a laugh.

As the second son of the Golden Vine Chamber of Commerce, Mora was naturally no slouch. Dressed up, he was just a pretty boy—no wonder his life had been so wild before.

As for William, his handsome features and naturally noble aura made him stand out among the nobles, so much so that the ladies hesitated to approach him.

Since transitioning to an Arcanist and continuously growing stronger, William naturally exuded such an aura.

Unless he used skills like “Aura Concealment” or “Transmutation” to blend in, but attending a banquet wasn’t worth the effort.

Besides, he was quite content with the situation, as he had no interest in the flirty young ladies.

“I bet if you took someone by the hand tonight, she wouldn’t refuse. Haven’t you seen how even those ladies who usually think highly of themselves can’t take their eyes off you?” Mora teased, noticing his friend’s increasingly powerful presence.

“Mind your own business, why else would I bring you?” William retorted without much patience. {Author: ahem-}

In such situations, Baron Karl typically brought his heir, Jon Karl, and Mora wouldn’t have the chance to attend.

But this time, it was fine for William to bring Mora along, providing him with an excellent opportunity to expand his network.

“Alright, alright, the boss has spoken, I’m on it.”

With a smile, Mora took a glass of wine from a nearby waiter and headed towards a group of conversing guests.

“Go ahead, look at him, how handsome.”

“I’m already engaged, why don’t you go? I saw you blushing, are you shy?”

“Ah, Mitna, stop teasing me. Help me ask first!”

“Who is he from? I can’t remember at all.”

“He was standing with the second son of the Karl family just now. Could it be that one?”

“Who? Stop speaking in riddles!”

“That’s the head of the Cain family, the one who seldom attends these events.”

“I think I remember now, does his family…?”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

Companion quickly stopped the person from speaking further, advising, “Don’t you know he’s been accepted as a disciple by Lord Flame of Judgment? Stop talking nonsense here.”

“Oh, is that so? Thank you, thank you!”

The person nodded with lingering fear, realizing they had spoken out of turn, hoping no one else had heard.

Cautiously glancing around, they spotted William holding a wine glass, staring at them. Feeling a chill in their heart, they quickly lowered their head, pulling their companion away from there.

William withdrew his gaze, feeling somewhat helpless. His agility had improved, not just in speed but also in perception. He had clearly heard the conversation around him earlier.

As William contemplated whether to change locations before the arrival of the king, the surrounding chatter suddenly intensified, and a handsome blond man approached.

Prince Julius of the Kingdom of Fis!

Is he here for me?

William curiously watched the prince approaching him. It was his first encounter with the prince since his rebirth.

“Viscount William Cain?”

Julius stopped in front of William, a rare smile appearing on his usually serious face.

“Yes, it’s an honor to meet you, Prince Julius,” William replied, maintaining eye contact without bowing.

Julius didn’t mind William’s slight rudeness. In fact, it added more weight to the situation in his mind.

“This is my first time meeting Viscount William. Indeed, being recognized as a disciple by the Lord Flame of Judgment, you are truly remarkable.”

Julius praised. Despite being the second prince and in his thirties, his tone implied no issue with commending William.

“I am grateful for the mentor’s favor, which has afforded me this opportunity to study under him.”

William replied casually, curious about Julius’s intentions.

Nearby nobles, upon hearing the news of William Cain being accepted as a disciple by a legendary mage, and his confirmation, were exceptionally shocked. Previous rumors were now validated by the person himself.

The Cain family was bound to rise higher than ever!

People cast envious glances at William, some even contemplating their daughters’ suitability.

Neither Julius nor William paid attention to the reactions around them. Julius continued:

“All thanks to Viscount William’s outstanding qualities. Lord Stephens’s discernment is indeed quite discerning.”

“Indeed.”

William simply agreed, offering no further response.

Julius’s reaction nearly threw William off guard. He took a deep breath and said:

“I wonder if after the banquet, I could have the opportunity for a private conversation with Viscount William?”

“I’m sorry, I have other engagements.”

With a blunt rejection, William’s eyes revealed a hint of amusement. He could guess what the second prince had in mind.

Want to reconcile?

William thought Julius was overestimating. He wasn’t exactly a forgiving person.

Regret it? Too late now.

Julius swallowed the rest of his words. William’s hostile attitude seemed to foreshadow something.

Though William had been accepted as a disciple by a legendary mage, he wasn’t one himself yet!

It seemed William already knew something, perhaps from Camus?

Julius barely had time to contemplate before realizing he was in trouble.

If William only knew about his covert probing, it would be manageable. But if William knew more of his plans, it would be tricky.

The opportunity to shut things down completely was slipping away. Julius took a deep breath, making one last effort:

“I don’t know if there’s been a misunderstanding between us, but I assure you, it wasn’t my intention.”

“If possible, I’m willing to make amends at any cost for your forgiveness?”

William was a bit bored. If that was all, there was no need to continue the conversation.

Although William hadn’t intended to continue in the first place, he shook his head and said:

“I have no misunderstandings. I’ve admired Prince Julius for a long time.”

Just as the second prince was about to say something, Duke Harold approached.

Cedric didn’t give Julius a friendly look and directly addressed William, saying, “Viscount Cain, let’s go. His Majesty is already waiting for you.”

Seeing Duke Harold, the leader of the court nobles, the slightly noisy crowd around them quieted down instantly, their gazes fixed on William and Julius.

They seemed to sense something amiss. Was this newcomer, Young Viscount Cain, at odds with the second prince?

William nodded and bowed to Duke Harold, following him to leave.

Before leaving, William seemed to remember something suddenly. He turned to Julius and said, “Goodbye, Prince Julius. I wish you all the best.”

Julius watched William’s retreating figure, his expression finally losing the previous composure. William’s ambiguous smile and meaningful words gave him a sense of foreboding.

Shaking his head, Julius forcibly suppressed the thought and turned to smile and converse with the surrounding nobles.

At this point, there was no use in saying more. All plans were in place, and he had no chance of turning back.

Julius steadied his mind. Since he had made that decision, he was prepared to face any consequences.

William didn’t care about Julius. Following Duke Harold, he entered a side reception room in the banquet hall, where the king, dressed in splendid attire, was already seated on the sofa, waiting.

“William is here, take a seat!”

Morton saw the two of them enter and smiled.

After William respectfully bowed, he sat on the sofa beside him.

“I heard you’ve been accepted by Lord Flame of Judgment, congratulations!”

King Morton’s tone was noticeably warmer than when he last saw William, kindly reminiscent of an elder towards William.

“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I’ve been studying under my teacher during this time.”

William replied politely. It seemed the kingdom didn’t know that Lisa had also been accepted as a disciple by Master Stephens.

But that made sense. Lisa had left the academy long ago, and her identity card should have been sealed.

The more Morton looked at William, the more satisfied he became. Being accepted as a disciple by Lord Flame of Judgment meant there was a chance for him to break through and become a legend. Such talent must be courted by the kingdom.

“Does our young Viscount Cain have someone in mind?”

Duke Harold suddenly asked beside him. Morton smiled and didn’t stop Cedric’s inquiry.

Huh? William looked up at the two of them, wondering what they were up to.

“Not at the moment.”

Cedric glanced at Morton, then continued, “William, you’re almost twenty years old now, it’s time for you to settle down.”

“As the head of the court nobles, should I introduce my daughter, Hilda, to you?”

Oh, this took a turn.

William was surprised. He had expected the kingdom to do something to win him over, but he hadn’t expected this approach.

Just as William was considering how to refuse, Morton spoke.

“No need to beat around the bush, Cedric.”

“Young Viscount Cain, what do you think of my daughter, Hilda?”

(End of this chapter)