Outside on a dining table were two elegantly dressed men and waiting nearby was a knight. The two men sitting were Skira and Ritzy, and the knight waiting was Junger.
Skira had a white primary suit with red secondary color that outlined his suit. His suit had a bonus of reflective gems that gently shined in the night. Each movement he gave looked radiant.
Ritzy was in his yellow-colored suit that was outlined with crimson-red. The suit resembled fire which gave it a sense of a dangerous but beautiful might. Yellow usually would only be seen on a golden coin or the expensive wheat crop, so it gave an aura of superiority as well.
Junger was in his celebratory armor. The armor was a light clean gray. A fantasy kind of palette. The armor was perfect for an outside night celebration. The armor easily reflected the shine from the moon, giving a sense of Junger being a knight in shining armor. On his chest at the heart position was a royal red triangle flag the presented a golden phoenix holding a vigorous flame.
Skira was drinking his tea with Ritzy while ignoring Junger.
Skira,
"What do you think of the tea? I had it imported from the main kingdom of the elf territory. Supposedly the tea increases one connection with their environment, resulting in one's better understanding of the elements of the world".
Ritzy took a sip and thought,
'Magicians try their hardest to understand every little thing of the world around them so they can create higher-level magic, this tea must have cost him a fortune'.
Drinking the tea, Ritzy felt his inner organs feeling pleasantly warm. As he drank more, the warmness inside him spread out more and more throughout his body. Finishing his cup, his body felt calm and strangely harmonized. The wind of the night felt like a refreshing breeze, the smell of tea in the air gave a sweet pleasant smell. Looking around him, the world felt as if it paused.
Ritzy enjoyed the moment in bliss. Everything felt like it was in reach, that he was in control of this little part of the world.
After a couple a seconds, Ritzy noticed that the world truly did paused.
Ritzy's mind,
"What's happening!".
The moment he became terrified of the world freezing, the world went back to normal.
Skira was shocked at Ritzy's instantaneous movement.
Skira's mind,
'Wait, wasn't he slouching down in a relaxed position? I was looking at him this whole time, how is he suddenly in an upright position? No, I'm probably seeing things'.
Skira,
"Ritzy, are you okay? You suddenly jolted up".
Ritzy was still in a state of shock but Skira's words knocked him out of the shock. Back in the real world, Ritzy gave an excuse to Skira to not arouse suspicion or give a sense of a weird person.
Ritzy,
"Everything is fine, the tea just went down the wrong way. Sorry for suddenly spooking you".
Skira still had the thought of Ritzy suddenly moving from one position to another instantly but decided to ignore it.
Skira waved his hand and said,
"No, it's fine, these things happen".
Skira stopped waving his hand and changed the subject
"Wait, it seems like your tea is finished, sadly I don't have any more of this tea but I can give you something else. Is that fine?".
Junger didn't notice the whole ordeal because he was looking out at a nearby camp having dinner. The camp consisted of mercenaries so they were sharing with each other. It seemed like they were lucky and having hare for dinner. Junger was currently daydreaming about eating the grilled hare they were having.
...
Half an hour later of waiting around and have idle chatter, Benjamin finally arrived. Benjamin was being escorted by the same guard that brought Ritzy to Skira. Behind Benjamin was a valiant knight. wearing the same set as Junger but clearly newer and much more a lighter color, almost white.
Benjamin was wearing a brilliant suit. The shirt and pants were white while his jacket and shoes were a brown color. The color combination gave a wise but creative look. It was refreshing and gave a sense of elegance. Benjamin had his family emblem embroidered on the left side of his jacket. It was red embroidery in the shape of a shield with a white feather in the middle of it.
Skira quickly rose from his seat and approached Benjamin to bow, unlike the vastly different welcome he gave Ritzy.
Ritzy saw this and quickly copied.
Skira and Ritzy said in an attentive tone,
"Vice-Captain Benjamin!".
Benjamin had taught Ritzy that when a group welcomes someone, they just say their name while they bow and then let the highest-ranking person who bowed to continue the conversation.
Skira continued,
"I'm overjoyed that you arrived. I see that you are valiantly presenting your family emblem and colors. Every time I see the emblem, it reminds me of the story of how your noble lineage began which I'm very fond of".
Benjamin,
"Ahh yes, the Benedire's rise to fame story. Oh, how I enjoy my ancestors Roccia Benedire and Vento Aria rise to triumph story".
Benjamin taught Ritzy to always show respect, that one should try to involve oneself in the conversation so Ritzy said,
"Vice-Captain Benjamin, I believe I'm not familiar with that story. Would you please recount it for me".
Benjamin's thoughts,
'Good work Ritzy, it seems you paid attention to what I taught you earlier. It seems this assignment will be easier than I thought'.
Benjamin,
"Of course, seems like we still have time before we need to leave. The story commences with my magician ancestors Roccia and Vento. Roccia was a strong and powerful mineral magician. Supposedly she mastered all levels of mineral magic, allowing her to even control the mythical magma magic".
"Vento, on the other hand, was an efficient and elegant wind magician. He was also rumored to be a master in all kinds of wind magic. To the point that he was able to control space which allowed unique kinds of movement".
"The story goes that Vento and Benjamin were high-level blessed magicians for the Magrimid kingdom. During their time alive, there was a war, so they fought wherever they were needed".
"One day they were designated to work in the same area. Their task was to guard and protect the caravans that resupplied the main army. During their time together, they naturally fell in love".
"One day, the enemy who were dwarves, did a completely unexpected ambush. It's said that they were nearing their end so they decided to do a final push and sever all supply lines. Since it was nearing winter at the time, it was a perfect opportunity for them to take action on the plan".
"On the surprise attack, Roccia got severely injured on her right arm by an arrow, so any powerful two-handed magic couldn't be used".
Many mineral magic uses a replication of forceful movements so having an injured limb can drastically reduce the effectiveness of a spell.
"Unfortunately, Vento wasn't as good either. He recently drank from a replenished water pouch that one of the servants brought but it was poisoned. The poison paralyzed his whole body except his head".
"Vento was left on a carriage where Roccia and Vento were recently resting, and Roccia was desperately trying to protect him".
"Noticing that there was no chance of winning, Roccia grabbed the paralyzed Vento and ran for the main army camp which was hours away. As Roccia used her one good hand to carry Vento over her shoulder, Vento was using his wind magic to shoot down any pursuers. Unlike mineral magic, wind magic doesn't use drastic movements. With just his mouth, he could create wind magic spells".
"It's believed they fought and ran for a whole 12 hours before they arrived before any reinforcements. Their act of retreating and getting help was recognized by the king and in turn. The king gave them a grand wedding and noble title".
"As time went on, the family branched out to the Pheonix kingdom and became what you know today".
Skira clapped, startling Ritzy at first but then he joined in.
Skira,
"Marvelous story, you truly have a noble title befitting your heritage. You must be proud of being a Benedire".
Benjamin,
"Thank you for complimenting my family".
Ritzy saw his opportunity to try and give a proper noble thank you,
"Thank you for indulging in my curiosity. This was a very legendary story and it's a prime example of how every person must act for their kingdom".
Skira felt a little annoyed that Ritzy's compliment was better than his so he tried to change the subject,
"Here, here! Well look at the time, I believe we should head for the banquet before we're too late".
Benjamin,
"Ahh, yes. Let's head there right now".
Junger and Benjamin's knight saw that they were leaving for the Banquet so they closely followed behind.