Chapter 3: The Banquet
As the doors to the Throne Room were closed, signalling Chieftess Sana's departure, the King immediately released hot a breath he didn't realise he was holding before he trained his gaze on Ariana.
Feeling her Fathers gaze, Ariana began to become nervous once again, only to have it fade as his expression morphed into a smile filled with love and pride.
"Come here, my Little Snowberry!"
Giggling in response to her father's words, Ariana bounded over to her Father, raising her arms as she jumped into his, allowing him to set her sideways on his knee, facing him and his wife.
"I heard about the ruckus you caused this morning, even the fact that you had Shirogane in your bed last night as well."
Freezing in place at her Fathers words, Ariana pulled her signature move of averting her eyes and giggling mischievously, while Shirogane, still seated on her shoulder, tilted his head to the side in a gesture of confusion, as if stating, 'Wait, I'm seriously not allowed to?!'.
Seeing his daughter's actions alongside her dragon's apparent confusion, Amarant burst out in laughter, accompanied by the soft giggle of his wife. Pulling Ariana in for a hug, Amarant rubbed his bearded face all over Ariana's cheek.
"Father! Hahaha, stop! It tickles!" Ariana exclaimed
Amarant had the same white hair that Ariana and her siblings shared, but he also shared another trait with Ariana. He had a set of deep, blood-red eyes that signified his large mana capacity as well.
Eleanora, however, had brown hair, brown eyes, and the delicate features one would usually find in a caring Japanese housewife rather than a queen. Yet, despite lacking the noble and exotic qualities of her husband and children, she was a divine beauty and also had a secret that very few were privy to.
She herself had a bloodline that was descended from ancient Spirits.
These came with many abilities that not all of those from her bloodline had access to, as it was considered very rare and rarely manifested due to its usual incompatibility with other bloodlines.
However, she was one of the rare few, making her a force to be reckoned with. One of her abilities allowed her to be able to communicate with anything that had sufficient enough sentience, making her the only one other than Ariana capable of communicating with Shirogane, something that both she and Shirogane, at the request of Eleanora, kept secret.
She had yet to see any of her bloodline abilities manifest in her children, so she assumed it had been overshadowed by their father's bloodline and was simply incompatible.
To those of the Arcadian Kingdom, she was the most beloved queen to have sat on the throne. The citizenry adored her for her charitable personality, and she could even be found cooking alongside the kitchen staff when it came to mealtimes, at times.
Interrupting their little moment, Eleanora cleared her throat rather loudly, causing both Amarant and Ariana to freeze, peering over at her as she stared pointedly at them.
"Now, now, this is no place for tomfoolery. You are both royalty, and you should act like it," she said in a chiding tone, which lacked the expected weight due to her gentle smile.
Despite understanding that practices of royal etiquette meant very little in private and having had her share of moments where she slipped into the old habits of her adventuring days, Eleanora still tried to discipline her children and raise them right.
Amarant rubbed the back of his head in an awkward motion, making a similarly awkward expression as he said meekly:
"Yes, of course, dear, I lost myself in the moment."
Supplying a knowing look that caused Amarant's wry smile to grow even wrier, Eleanora shifted her eyes to her youngest daughter, causing her to tense like a deer caught in headlights.
"What did I say about Shirogane sleeping in your bed?"
"Yes, mother. It won't happen again."
Shirogane looked at Ariana in shock, supplying the most betrayed expression anyone had ever seen on him. However, once he realised he could easily sneak into her bed of his own volition, he corrected his posture and sat quietly.
Despite Ariana saying so, Eleanora didn't believe a word. She simply sighed helplessly before looking over at her other children, supplying her textbook gentle smile, before noticing the subtle yet unsettling look that flashed past Adrian's eyes as he stared at Ariana.
Feeling his mothers gaze, Adrian tore his eyes away from his mortal enemy, quickly amending the slight slip up in his countenance to meet it, only to feel a shiver course through his spine and leaving him frozen when he saw her expression. While it was still the same gentle smile, it didn't quite reach her eyes, eyes that were now glowing a subtle magical hue that supplied a sufficient enough warning for Adrian's back to break out in cold sweat.
Ever since he was 5 years old, Adrian had slowly shifted his views of those around him, even his views on his own parents.
He slowly began treating his mother with less respect and love, spending less time with her due to how different she was to him. He knew she had been in his fathers adventuring party when they were younger, proving her strength. Still, he grew to develop a general disdain for all those he considered "inferior", based purely on their regular bloodline, unaware of his mother's secret and disdaining her all the same.
Adrian had believed his Fathers' meek attitude toward her was born out of love and found such acts to be pathetic and unbecoming of a king of his bloodline.
Adrian also abhorred Demi-humans, considering them a lesser species, thus leaving him secretly disgusted at the Kingdom his father had built.
Eleanora saw the state that her magical pressure had left Adrian in, snorting in disdain within her heart at how meek the boy had turned.
When Shirogane had approached her once around two years ago to relay the fact that Adrian had attempted to assassinate Ariana in her sleep, Eleanora had been shocked to her core.
She began her own investigation into the matter, keeping it secret, even from her husband, and discovered many of the evil deeds Adrian had committed in the past, all having been covered up by Duke Westin, Amarant's brother. His crimes ranged from physical assaults, destruction of property, kidnapping, and sexually abusing City Folk, all the way to murder.
Eleanora had known of the close relationship shared between her first son and his uncle, believing it to be something natural and never giving it much thought. But after discovering sufficient evidence, she used one of her bloodline abilities, Spirit Familiar, to create a tiny spirit to observe the interactions between uncle and nephew, gathering so much evidence of planned treason that she finally brought it to her husband's attention. They now had plans to deal with Duke Westin while also preparing themselves to deal with their son, something Amarant had been struggling with.
Amarant's inability to deliver the requisite punishment for the crimes his son had committed was the only reason why they'd not taken action yet.
After two years of investigating both the Duke and her son and their despicable actions done in secret, Eleanora had begun to no longer love her first-born son. She was the type of woman who had experienced hardships in life that many could never imagine, let alone survive, hardships that her son seemed to be causing others.
Due to her past experiences, Eleanora grew into a person who simply supplied her care to those who deserved it, while disdaining those who didn't. Evidently, this applied to her own children as well.
Adrian's mind spun in high gear, trying to understand his mothers reasons for her actions against him.
He was sure that he'd kept any signs of his true thoughts towards his youngest sister to a minimum, not understanding that someone as perceptive as Eleanora could read him like an open book.
He also had his uncle's assurances that discovery of his wrongdoings in the past and present were impossible. Thus, he began considering if their plans to overthrow his Father and claim the throne had been discovered.
Feeling even more nervous, Adrian had the desire to escape to his Uncle's manor growing within him like a volcanic eruption in order to relay his suspicions.
He also needed to let his Uncle know about the discovery he made in today's audience, something he was sure his Uncle had talked about briefly in the past...
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With Adrian being left frozen with his thoughts running wildly, Eleanora shifted her gaze to her eldest child.
"Adriana."
"Yes, mother?"
"How goes the preparations for tonight's banquet?"
"Everything is on schedule while also accounting for any… unexpected deviations that might occur," Adriana said while sneaking a slight glance towards both her Father and baby sister for the last part.
Understanding her eldest's insinuation, Eleanora returned a knowing smile with a subtle nod of both approval and understanding.
With that out of the way, she turned her gaze to her younger sons Aiden and Andrew, both of which were staring at her in admiration. At the same time, Andrew also stole subtle glances towards Ariana and Amarant, most of which contained a hint of jealousy. With what she'd discovered of Adrian, Eleanora began to fear that Andrew would turn out much like his elder brother.
However, after taking a closer look, Eleanora found that her fears were quelled almost immediately. She discovered that those subtle glances of jealousy were actually being directed at her husband rather than her youngest daughter, leaving her barely able to hold back a chuckle at how adorable it was to see Andrew wishing to dote on his younger sister.
Returning her gaze to Aiden, Eleanora felt a large amount of pride welling up within her. Aiden reminded her very much of herself when she was younger. Born with the lowest capacity for mana out of all his siblings, many believed Aiden to be fated for knightly practices, rather than anything arcane. However, despite such a situation he had found himself in, Aiden supplied an inordinate amount of effort into his studies in order to catch up with his siblings, so much so that his mana capacity had nearly reached a similar level to Adrian, the Crown Prince, through sheer effort alone.
Supplying one more smile towards her children, Eleanora cleared her throat once more to gather the attention of the whispering duo beside her.
Hearing silence reign within the Throne Room, Eleanora's smile grew marginally wider as she spoke:
"With preparations underway, I believe it wise to send the children off to prepare themselves, lest any unforeseen events delay the proceedings any further?"
With Amarant supplying a wry smile in response to his wife's words and Ariana averting her eyes and giggling nervously, Amarant spoke.
"Very well, my love. Children, you may return to your duties and prepare for tonight's banquet. You are dismissed."
With her siblings responding to their father's words with a succinct "Yes, Father", while Adrian's was more a mutter, Ariana attempted to free herself from her father's grasp, only to be held firm by his hands, indicating that she was not dismissed.
Watching her brothers and sister leave, with Adrian practically scurrying through the door, Ariana turned her eyes toward her parents, a confused expression plastered on her countenance.
Seeing her mother looking at her with a serious expression, Ariana held her breath, awaiting any further chastising she had in store for her.
"Ariana von Arcadia, I want you to be on your best behaviour tonight. We have guests travelling from far and wide to celebrate your Father's date of birth, and we cannot afford any mischief from your end, am I clear?"
With her words leaving absolutely no room for argument, Ariana discarded any sign of her usual playfulness as Shirogane also hopped off her shoulder and landed on the floor.
Performing an action that left her parent's at a loss for words, Ariana's body suddenly became immaterial, allowing her to slip through her father's grasp like a spectre before appearing whole again once she stood before them.
Supplying the most perfect curtsey they had ever witnessed, Ariana, with an expression as cold as stone, replied:
"I shall heed your words, My Queen."
As both King and Queen stared at their youngest in shock, a heavy silence descended around them. An uncomfortable tension began to build as Amarant's expression morphed into one of worry as he had never seen his daughter act in such a way.
Eleanora herself found her thoughts racing at her youngest daughter's action. What Ariana had just done was one of Eleanora's bloodline abilities, shocking her to the core at the realisation that Ariana had access to both her parents' bloodline traits!
However, before either of them could come to any sort of conclusion within their minds, Ariana's facial expression finally showed a flaw, as she evidently struggled to hold back her laughter after seeing how her parents reacted.
With her finally breaking out into an unrestrained giggle, both Amarant and Eleanora released a sigh, for two very different reasons, before laughing along lightly with their daughter.
"Get out of here, you!" Amarant said with a broad smile on his face
Turning around and smiling toward Shirogane, who had been watching the proceedings from his position on the floor, Ariana mounted his back after he grew to his 6m length, zooming out of the Throne Room, laughing all the while.
Eleanora watched as Ariana's figure disappeared around a corner before turning to her husband.
"She has it..." she said with a worried yet obviously proud expression.
Hearing his wife's words, Amarant supplied a curt nod, replying,
"She does indeed."
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With the hours passing by in a flash, the banquet to celebrate the King's birthday was finally underway. Guests of all shapes and sizes arrived, wearing extravagant clothing and held themselves with pride, denoting their high standings in their respective societies.
There were guest nobles from other countries, important merchants that supplied goods to and from the surrounding nations and even various chieftains of the demi-human tribes that dotted the Arcadian Kingdom.
While the standing of demi-humans was lesser within other nations, ever since Amarant and Eleanora had taken the throne, Arcadia had become a bastion of equality that celebrated all walks of life and the various cultures other societies could offer.
This resulted in the Capital City of Arcadia, going by the same name as its nation, becoming a melting pot of cultural traditions and ethnicities.
While the situation had been unstable in the earlier stages of the integration, the one thing that everyone enjoyed straight away was the number of public holidays that came about due to the melding of each culture, primarily due to the royal decree of paid leave during such holidays.
With Amarant and Eleanora taking the Throne, quality of life within Arcadia had reached a level never before achieved by any nation in the known world.
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Sitting on a miniature throne alongside her siblings that had been provided and placed on either side of the Thrones of their parents, Ariana attempted to keep a posture befitting her position as a princess while different people approached her Father to say their well-wishes and other pleasantries that were slowly but surely boring her to death.
Due to her increasing boredom, Ariana had been having a telepathic conversation with Shirogane, complaining about the entire situation.
"I'm so bored!"
"Sigh, I heard you the first time, Ari, but it's not like either of us can leave."
"I know, but there are so many other things we could be doing right now! We could be studying magic or even training in swordsmanship!"
"You say that, but I'm sure you just wanna run around and play."
Realising she'd been called out, Ariana mentally pouted, saying,
"So what! It's not like you don't enjoy playing as much as I do!"
"Hey, I never denied it, nor did I try to use other activities as an excuse."
"Sigh, you're right, I'm just so boooooored!"
"Sigh…"
Watching as another person approached her father in an attempt to curry favour, Ariana's expression began to grow lifeless as she slowly zoned out her surroundings and began circulating her mana within her body in order to pass the time.
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After having the majority of the important guests come up to greet her and her husband, Eleanora began to scan the crowd, only to see Duke Westin currently having a conversation with dignitaries from a neighbouring country. Feeling suspicious, she turned her attention to her husband and created a telepathic link to him, one of her spirit bloodline abilities.
"I believe your brother is up to something."
Hearing his wife's words resonate within his mind, Amarant casually let his gaze wander over the banquet before sneaking glances in the direction of Duke Westin.
"Those dignitaries… they're from the Theocracy… Do you suspect they're involved?"
"I'm not sure. I'm going to have a listen." With her words ended, Eleanora circulated her mana to perform one of her bloodline abilities, [Iro Iyipada], an ability that allowed the user to alter the perception of others around them.
For as long as the user of this ability supplied mana, all those around them, besides those the user allows to see them, will not notice them. It also had the option to leave behind a lifelike illusion of the user in their previous position.
With the ability active, Eleanora rose from her Throne. She made her way over towards the Duke, with no one in the banquet able to perceive her, except for Amarant, who she had designated as someone allowed to see her, and one other person Eleanora should have expected but failed to recall in the moment.
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