The Prince turned out to be quite capable. With a brave charge, he faced the monster straight ahead. It nearly ate the young Prince a couple of times, but thanks to the man’s talents in both magic and combat, he was able to survive and take down the beast after exchanging a few blows with it.

Right now, the army was surrounding the fallen beast while chanting the name of the Prince and cheering. The Prince confidently smiled with his chest puffed out as he stood on top of the split corpse of the monster. Quite the outstanding man it seemed.

“Oh! I can already feel my body getting stronger from defeating that Demon!” exclaimed a young knight that stood close to the Prince.

As for why he would say that, in this world, beings could get stronger by defeating other beings that had magic power and strength. How much stronger someone—or something—could get depended on how powerful the defeated foe was. Once they managed to defeat their foe, that power would transfer to those who defeated it, spreading amongst them depending on how much they interacted with their foe.

For the monster they defeated… Well, the monster itself didn’t carry a lot of magic power. It was physically strong, but just that, so the power spread among the army wasn’t nearly as much to say that they got stronger—especially not the silly little knights surrounding the one who did most of the job, the Prince.

One could tell just by looking at the Prince’s forced soft smile that threatened to break that he also knew that, but he also knew that it wasn’t good to demoralize the army by telling them they were useless, so he just smiled and nodded when they approached with their praises.

“Now that this zone has been cleared, I think it’s time to go back to town and have the word spread!” the Prince proclaimed once the praises were enough. “Soon, our people will populate this place, and a plentiful harvest for the Empire shall be had!”

The knights in the army cheered, raising their weapons in the air.

The Prince easily jumped down from the fallen beast and walked away from the corpse. The couple of knights that were with him followed after. One of them, the younger one, approached the Prince from the side.

“Your Highness. We shall go ahead and get things ready for your return in town,” he said, a serious look of discipline in his face.

Another knight, older from the wrinkles in his face, approached from the other side. “We shall spread the word about your accomplishments as well. I’m sure the Duke’s daughter is going to be more than pleased about it.”

The Prince softly smiled once he heard that second bit. I couldn’t be sure about what he was thinking because most Gods couldn’t read sentient beings’ thoughts easily, but I could guess that he was expecting something from that young woman.

But it could all just be an act as well. Such were the ways that powerful people in these worlds usually were. It was sometimes difficult to know what they were thinking regarding the interactions between each other. The same could be said about the Gods, which is why some say that we came from common, mortal beings just the same.

“Go on, then,” the Prince commanded, and the couple of knights returned a salute as they rushed ahead.

Once they were some distance away, the Prince returned to look at the army. “Men!” he shouted and everyone turned to look at him. “We return to town!”

* * *

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I had seen more than enough from that Prince. The action was over, and he was returning to his normal life, but I still wanted to see how that interaction with the Duke’s daughter would go, so I decided to keep my attention on him and follow him as he made his way to the town.

It was a rather nice place, with a tall mountain close to it where mining operations were done regularly—usually by slaves, prisoners, and people of lower classes—and opposite to the mountains were open fields, where people worked on them to prepare for the winter seasons. Currently, there were plenty of fields ready to be harvested.

The Prince arrived to the town after a few days of marching, and when he did, the town’s people gathered by the gates and the roads that led to the Duke’s estate to welcome the young man in his triumphant return. People were cheering and chanting his name, while young maidens threw scented pieces of clothes at the young Prince.

He grabbed a few of them from time to time and returned a pleasant smile to whatever woman did so, causing them to usually bashfully blush as their hopes to be with the dashing young Prince were raised even higher.

Soon enough, they were by the gates of the Duke’s estate. His army stood in attention, keeping away the commoners as he gracefully jumped off the horse. The gates of the place were opened by the Duke’s knights, and at the front he was welcomed by an elegant butler, dressed in black and white clothes.

“Welcome, Your Highness,” the butler said with a respectful tone. “His Lordship is already waiting at the hall, and everything that you need has already been prepared.”

“Ah, I’m ever so grateful,” the Prince said with a nod. “I shall go ahead and enjoy your hospitality.”

Following after the Prince were the same knights from a few days ago and a group of maids, all ready to do whatever he asked, but all he did was walk by the colorful gardens of the estate and into the building.

“Ah! Your Highness!” a young-looking Duke exclaimed once the Prince was past the building’s door. “It truly is a pleasure to receive you in my home!”

“Duke Wither, it’s good to be here, more so after a successful hunt,” the Prince replied with a warm smile.

Neither men approached each other, as there was still some social distance between them, but it appeared like their relationship wasn’t bad either.

From behind the Duke, a young woman approached, dressed in a pale blue dress that went to the floor. This was the Duke’s daughter, and she was considered a beauty among the nobility. She had yet to marry, but just by looking at the half-exposed chest of her dress that accentuated her body; the complicated braids on her dark black hair; the expensive jewelry on her body; and the carefully applied make-up; one could easily tell that she was trying to seduce the young Prince.

“I am most pleased to see you once more, Your Highness,” she said with a pleasant tone of voice, a soft smile, and a delicate curtsy.

The prince returned the smile, nodding as he did. “Please, the pleasure is mine.”

The young woman blushed and turned her head to the side, trying to act shily from the Prince’s response. The Duke noticed the interaction and nodded in satisfaction, but he appeared to not want to allow the interaction to turn awkward, so after clearing his throat, he spread his arms wide and gestured with one of his hands to a place deeper in the building.

“Come, Your Highness, we’ve prepared everything that you need for the evening, and I’m sure you’re tired, so go on and enjoy your stay,” he said, urging with his hand in the direction that the prince should go.

“I would love to spend more time with Your Highness…” the young lady said. “Please come find tonight at the feast.”

“That I will,” the Prince said with a nod and a smile as he went somewhere else in the house.

* * *

Night fell on the town quickly enough, and all the important knights, lords, and people that were close to it had gathered to celebrate the Prince’s return. He was, after all, quite the accomplished young man, with plenty of power and status to display to the masses, so everyone wanted to find a way to get closer to him.

Any young lord that wanted to achieve greatness in the battlefield and the fight against monsters and demons was trying his best to display his talents so the young Prince would take notice of him, while any young lady that was yet to be married was trying her best to display her charms so the Prince would take her with him.

Of course, the Duke’s daughter was no exception, and being the daughter of the most powerful man of the region gave her all the advantages that she could wish for, so right now, she was at the center of attention, with as many young ladies as there could be around her, trying not to miss their opportunities to at least be on the good side of the Duke by keeping her happy.

That was… until a fair young maiden walked into the party.