In a rush, she bowled him aside, and Nathan stepped over his head, dragging his water robe across his face.

A loud sputtering could be heard echoing across the walls, and the crowd stared with slack jaws.

Rudehn blinked a few times but stayed in place while the two nobles from the other houses stepped away. I didn't blame them. Anastasia still had her sword, and she had it swinging wildly in their direction.

Isaac was nearly on his knees from laughter while the others tried to stifle or hide it behind their hands.

When Rudehn spoke, it also echoed loudly, the pin on his immaculate robe shining with a crimson light. "And what exactly do the Lightcrests want with me?"

"Well, not you in particular. In truth, this is for your father, my apologies. But hello to you too, young man. Looking stiff as ever!"

His eye twitched, but he kept an indifferent smile plastered on. "You want contact with my father through me?"

Anastasia snorted. "Oh no, we already got his attention. We're just being polite.

She waved and then looked upward as a glowing gold crystal began to form. It grew to about the size of a man's head and gave off a cool blue light.

I could taste something from the mana it gave off, but I couldn't identify it. What I did know was that it stirred the demon inside its cage.

It made me want to summon Magnus, swallow it whole, and erase it from existence.

Everyone turned to look, and every noble's eyes widened in surprise—especially the prince's.

They all bowed, and Isaac's father scrambled to stand up and join them. Nathan and Anastasia joined in, but their bow was more superficial than the others.

The crystal flashed, and a calm and clear voice rang out in time with the pulses. "Anastasia, Nathan. You've gotten the crown's attention. State your reasoning."

Nathan raised his hand, and an orb of water shot out from his robe, engulfing the crystal.

The nobles backed away in disbelief while Rudehn openly gaped.

For a moment, it looked like the crystal tried to rush out of the orb, but Nathan tugged, and it slowly dragged through the air until it stopped at the man's eye level.

"Ho-how did you..." Isaac's father stuttered.

Anastasia turned around and addressed the crowd, her sword planted into the ground with a quick, clean stab through the tile.

"Dear people of Solunaria. We've come to make a couple of announcements to you, the people, the crown, and its houses."

Nathan stepped up to join her, and they shared a look before smiling wide and reaching behind their heads.

"We, too, have returned from an expedition, your majesty. And we've returned with gains of our own. Most notably is our official declaration to the kingdom that we've achieved the third ascension," Nathan shouted.

The blindfolds fell away and were swept up into his robe. The people on the ground floor nearly dropped, and even the nobles on the platform began to sink under the sudden pressure the two exuded.

With a snap, the orb released the crystal, but it stayed inert. The duo didn't care. Instead, they kept posing like bodybuilders and models, trying to show off.

"I think your parents came back even more insane than before," Igas cheered.

"They might have," Teddy muttered.

I kept an eye on Isaac, but he looked like a satisfied cat, sitting plump with his prize.

Finally, the crystal flared to life and held a seriousness that wasn't present before.

"The kingdom welcomes the addition of new monarchs," it announced. The colors turned into a deeper blue, almost cobalt in the shade. "Anastasia, Nathan. We will need to talk. Privately. And soon."

They kept grinning, and Nathan raised his hands to conjure a flat plane of solid water. Anastasia held her hand over the conjured table and made a familiar chest appear.

"And, but you see, that is not the only announcement we are here to make," they said together. "We've come show the kingdom just how generous we are!"

"What have you done..."

They reached down and flipped the lid open, revealing the three evolution stones in their full glory.

If the crowd could stand, I'm sure they would have, but only a select number of individuals managed to keep their wits and not spend time shaking in place near the floor.

The crystal went silent once more. Behind the two, everyone on the platform stared. Isaac's father's eyes grew furious, his sclera and pupils disappearing behind an inner light that lit up from within.

"It seems we really must have that talk," the crystal said after a minute. "For now, can you reign in your aura? The people have been sufficiently cowed. No need to continue crushing their faces into the floor."

At this, the duo looked sheepish. Instead of replying, Nathan spat out the blindfolds, and they recovered their eyes.

A collective intake of fresh air echoed throughout the room, and a few people collapsed entirely.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

I wonder if Sereza is okay. She'll probably have a million questions.

"I shall take my leave. Please be considerate and refrain from deepening my migraine."

Anastasia held up her sword and tapped the crystal by bonking it on one of the tips. "I didn't say we were done. That's all window dressing. We have one more thing to present. And this one will require lots of talking, between the crown and us."

The crystal flashed, but no words came out. The king's deep voice remained absent, and the duo broke out into laughter.

Nathan wiped away a tear, but he did so on his robe, so his face looked wetter than before. He eventually held up his hand and presented a silver chest wrapped with ethereal-looking chains made of shadows.

The king remained silent even as Anastasia summoned a small black-metal cube and slowly pushed it into the strange lock. Shadows swallowed the metal, and a loud click reeled the chains back into the lock.

With deliberate slowness they both took one side of the lid and pulled up, revealing.... nothing.

From my position, I couldn't see inside the chest, but there was a raised shelf with nothing on it.

Then, Anastasia waved her hand over the thing and revealed what looked like a single marble made of pink glass. People were back on their knees, and some struggled to breathe.

Around me, the others weathered the effects better than the average folk, but I didn't understand why they had faces of pure disbelief.

"What's going on?"

Isaac glared and made choking motions at me. "Screw you and your weird resistances! Aaagh! That stone... that's an ascendence marble."

I motioned for him to continue, but he flipped me the bird and crossed his arms while looking away.

Celanae summoned her journal and was already making an entry.

"That crystal..." she said through gritted teeth. "It's more rare than any evolution stone. Depending on the tier, it will fully ascend you up to the tier of the marble once consumed, provided you have your skill slots filled out."

"Damn them, they held back that surprise," Igas growled.

"This will change a lot of things by next year," Teddy added.

I can see how. Damn, that thing would be handy. I wonder if I can loot one of them.

A second king's crystal formed, followed by a third, fourth, and fifth crystal. They connected and extended their points like a messed-up pentagram.

They surrounded the two, and Nathan quickly sucked in the chests before a flash of blue light whisked the crystals and the duo away.

People began to breathe easily again, but not before they looked at the platform where Isaac's father raged with shining fists made of light.

He snapped his head toward the Rudehn, and then the ship slowly sank to the ground as the magic water began to disappear.

Panicked bodies began to scramble out of the way, and luckily, the ship managed to come to rest on the ground without harming a soul.

Gossip roared through the crowd, and I stretched my arms and popped my back. "Well, I think they successfully managed to upstage your family, Isaac."

"Yes, they did!" he laughed.

Less like a pleased cat and more like a gleeful gremlin, he practically hopped in place.

"Right. I'm going to raid the snack table, find Sereza, and then head back to the house. Anyone in?"

Teddy glanced toward the ship and then dragged a hand down his face. "Yeah, I'm in. Let's fill our supplies."

Isaac was the first to run off, gliding through like a hummingbird as he escaped into the side hall.

I guess we follow him.

With one last glance toward the platform, I didn't miss the longing look on the prince's face as he stared at where the shadow chest had been.

----------

Serena glared for the hundredth, and I sighed. "Okay, seriously, I didn't know they were going to do that. I only vaguely knew they had plans for something."

"Don't think I didn't miss how completely unbothered you were standing there. Do you even realize how much you stood out? The other felkins asked me a hundred questions, especially Fuldro," Sereza accused. "Also, I think Myleen likes you."

"She seems intense. Maybe I should meet the other felkins first, know which tails I'm stepping on before I do anything drastic."

With a shake of her head, she turned and waved. "I'll see you in a couple of days. I already know I'll be busy with the tournament and auction announcement. Not to mention the insanity Teddy's parents inflicted."

"Bye!"

When she disappeared down the road, I turned and entered the opened gate. Everyone else was already inside, so I walked into the manor without the usual chimes.

No butler again. He probably has the night off.

I debated returning to my room, but I decided more practice with the tentacle spear would be better time spent. Plus, I could burn off some of the calories from all the snacking.

Without missing a beat, I flexed my abs. After chuckling to myself, I made my way throughout the house and down the stairs.

The training hall was empty, so I closed the door behind me and tore off the hoodie. It was nice, but unneeded.

I approached the mirror in the corner and stared at the rainbow tattoo on my chest. The tattoo brightened with a flex of will, glaring back at me. After a second, I dimmed it and rubbed at the spot, my fingers coming away clean.

My smile dimmed, and I shut them, letting the flash of images from the memory play in my head.

It played out until I got to the moment I looked away from Sam's face, only for it to boot me out with what sounded like a faint ding of a bell.

Sighing, I summoned my spear and moved to the center of the room.

Before starting, I began to summon my familiars, and they appeared, each taking a second to comfort me in their own way before moving to the far wall so they could watch.

"Everyone doing okay? I have some snacks for you all whenever you want."

"Yes!" Sturmrorex and Zharia roared.

Magnus yawned and tapped the floor while Áine nodded once.

I laughed, walked out of the center ring, and conjured food in little bowls. Áine got a thimble of tart fruit juice while Zharia lit her weird coal-like snack on fire. Magnus got to eat some shiny crystals I pilfered off a decorated pillow, and Sturmrorex had fun eating meat that tasted like metal.

"Okay. Now it's time for me to train. Enjoy!"

Returning to the center, I got into a low stance and gripped my spear toward the side of my chest.

Before I could thrust, I felt my familiars react in surprise and begin charging up their skills, only for Zharia to trill out.

"Grandpa?!"

"Hello to you too, little one. Is everything okay?" Cal asked as Zharia flew up to land on his shoulder.

He reached up and stroked her feathers while Áine joined the other. Only Sturmrorex and Magnus hesitated.

I watched as Cal floated over, extended his arm for Sturmrorex to wrap around, and then bent down to pick up Magnus.

The little cub looked up and snuggled into his chest, dipping his head behind his paws.

"Cal?" I asked as he floated back toward the center of the room.

He looked up and searched my face. "Something happened. Can I search your memories?"

I tensed but nodded.

He briefly closed his eyes, and my familiars looked up, concerned.

A wave of energy blanketed the room, and the enchantment runes began to flicker. With a sigh, Cal breathed in and the energy stopped. The runes flashed for a dozen seconds before fading and returning to normal.

"You haven't talked to the others."

"I haven't," I admitted.

"Cyrus..." he shook his head. "Please do. That memory, you already guess at what it is."

I didn't respond, and he sighed for the second time.

"Why are you here, Cal? Don't get me wrong, it's nice to see you. But I thought you were in hiding? Everything okay?"

He stroked Sturmrorex's scales, and the damn dragonling purred through the thought-speech.

"I'm still hiding, do not worry. My mana signature is being obfuscated by Ysanna's. If any gods check, they'll know she visited you. Surprising, but not overly so, considering you wear her necklace."

"Okay? Not sure I like the idea of gods randomly trying to check up on me, but alright. You okay then?"

He smiled. "I am. You're not, but that's for another time. I'm unfortunately here to break some rules that you may be able to benefit from."

I tucked my spear into my armpit and crossed my arms. "What's up?"

"I need you to leave the city."