Once we arrived at the Palace, unsurprisingly, there were seven other carriages present near the stables, and of course, they belonged to the parents of the seven nobles that were involved in the fight earlier. I'm sure they're currently getting yelled at by Mother in the throne room.
"Want to go see something interesting?" Asked Elif with a mischievous smirk.
"Of course, does it involve the nobles?" Replied Elaine as her face looked like an exact copy of Elif's.
"Hehe, you'll see." Answered Elif as they got out of the carriage and headed toward the palace with Elif in the lead while an angry Marley trailed behind.
When we arrived at the entrance to the throne, I motioned everyone to be quiet as I carefully opened the doors to the throne room, and the moment I did so, mothers angry voice was the first thing we heard.
"Does anyone care to explain why your children were fighting above the Elven Cuisine Pagoda!? It seems like none of you have a clue as to why. Thanks to your children's antics, we're going to have citizens leaving and the world thinking that the Nobles of the Elven Empire don't teach their children, and in turn, it will turn my Empire into a laughing stock!" Exclaimed Maria, feeling angry and slightly embarrassed at what happened, as a noble's behavior would reflect on the Empire's image.
"I've never seen Mother so angry before." Commented Elaine as she peeked through the door with Elif, both of them enjoying the sight of the throne room.
"This is nothing; I've seen Mother far angrier than this before." Said Elif as he once again remembered the punishment from four years ago, which still haunts him to this day.
"Don't you think we should go, your Highnesses? We might get caught by their Majesties." Whispered Sarah nervously, though she also couldn't resist the urge to peek; however, what she saw caused her to squeal in fright.
"Hmm, yeah, about that, Sarah, I think it's too late for that." Said Elif as he and Elaine stared at Marcus, who was looking directly at them.
"Brother, we're not in trouble, are we?" Asked Elaine nervously, not daring to make a move under Marcus's watch.
"No, well, at least you're not in trouble. Do you think I would risk taking on Mother's wrath if I knew I wasn't also getting punished? I thought of this idea only because I knew I was getting punished, so I decided to get it over with quickly." Answered Elif calmly, though when he turned around, he noticed Elaine, Sarah, and Maxim were quickly walking away.
"That's good to know, Brother; I'll see you later then." Said Elaine in the distance as she walked off, wanting to get as far away from the throne room as possible.
"I-I'm going to help her Highness with something!" Said Sarah with an apologetic expression as she quickly followed behind Elaine.
'Did those two really just abandon me? I was even nice enough to let them eat some of my lightning cherries.' Thought Elif, feeling as if he had just got betrayed in a desperate situation.
"Well, at least I still have my trusted servant, Illumia." Muttered Elif, though he only now noticed that she had disappeared, leaving just Marley and him.
"How long do you plan on standing there, Elif?" Said Marcus as he waved his hands, causing the doors to fully open, revealing Elif and Marley to everyone in the throne room.
"I was just waiting for the both of you to finish; that's all, Father." Replied Elif as he ignored the disappearance of Illumia and confidently walked towards Maria and Marcus, Marley following closely behind.
Once I arrived before mother and father, Marley, who was following me, silently kneeled beside Nordan, though for some reason, Nordan seemed to ignore her presence altogether. However, I only thought a little bit about it and focused back on the problem at hand.
"Anything to say, Elif? You were there, after all." Questioned Marcus, adorning an unamused expression.
"Is there anything I could say that would allow me to escape punishment?" Asked Elif, though he got his answer when he saw how neither of his parents bothered responding to his question.
"No, Father." Added Elif as he quietly sighed.
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"Tch, you seven can leave, and don't make the same mistake again!" Said Maria, waving her hand in irritation.
With the three-hour lecture finally over, the dispirited nobles quickly left the throne room, leaving just Marley, me, father, and mother.
"Can I leave now, Mother? It's been nearly three hours." Asked Elif in a defeated voice, all the confidence from earlier nowhere to be seen.
"Yes, you can leave Elif, but you're forbidden to leave the Royal grounds for three months, understand?" Said Maria, finally declaring Elif's punishment.
"Yes, Mother." Said Elif, wanting nothing more than to relax while taking a warm bath.
"Also, what do you plan to do with Nordan's child?" Asked Marcus, curious considering both Elaine and Elif dislike Marley.
"She made Elaine unhappy in the past, so I decided to punish her for that." Replied Elif as he eyed the kneeling Marley, who seemed to jolt when her name was mentioned.
"Alright, just don't make it something unreasonable; she is, after all, a noble." Said Marcus with a nod, while Maria didn't seem to be paying attention.
"Let's go, Marley; I want to quickly drop you off and take a bath." Ordered Elif as he and Marley left the throne room.
With Marley in tow, we navigated through the palace before eventually arriving outside; we then headed towards the mansion in the distance, where all the royal servants reside. Entering the mansion and briefly roaming the halls, we eventually spotted a chief servant.
"Prince Elif, what can I do for you?" Asked the chief servant respectfully and calmly when Elif stopped her.
"I'd like you to enroll her as a temporary servant for one month." Said Elif as he pushed Marley toward the chief servant while Marley looked like she was about to explode in anger.
"Don't worry about her status or identity as a noble; just make sure she is treated like any newly enrolled servant; I don't want her getting special treatment." Continued Elif, his mood slightly easing from seeing Marley's angry expression.
"I understand, Prince Elif; it shall be immediately done." Said the chief servant with a bow.
"This is your punishment Marley; for one month, you'll be a servant, and don't bother escaping; all servants must have a Divine cultivation base to be accepted as a servant; head servants and chief servants are even more powerful, so good luck." Said Elif with a smirk before turning around and leaving the infuriated Marley.
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"What a pleasant surprise. Have you been here this entire time, Illumia?" Asked Elif blandly, spotting Illumia standing just outside the entrance to his room.
"No, I had been relaxing for the past three hours and only recently arrived." Responded Illumia while sounding equally bland as Elif.
After having stood through that three-hour-long lecture, I wasn't even in the mood to feel annoyed at Illumia. Walking past her into my room, I started removing my clothes as I walked toward the bath.
"Well, I hope you enjoyed your break, Illumia; I'll be taking a bath, as I'm in need of some time to relax as well." Said Elif, standing just before the entrance to the bath in merely some pants, showing off the muscular physique of an eight-year-old.
"I did, your highness; since I won't get many chances like this in the future, I made sure to make the most of it, and I hope you have a pleasant time relaxing as well." Said Illumia with a light smile before bowing and leaving the room, closing the door behind her.
Arriving before the large steaming bath, I took off my last set of clothes before stepping into the bath, causing me to release an audible sigh of satisfaction.
"Is there any pleasure in this world superior to what I'm experiencing? I think not." Muttered Elif, not knowing that in several years to come, he would experience two things even more pleasurable, and yes, one of them is what you're thinking.
Once I got in the most comfortable position, I emptied my thoughts and just sat there while letting the warm water caress my body; only once I finally felt delighted did I open my eyes and exit the bath.
"Haa, that was wonderful; it feels like all of the irritation and frustration I've accumulated over the past six months has been washed away by the bath, leaving me in pristine condition." Said Elif as he arrived at his giant closet that housed all of his various garments.
After wearing a royal outfit, I immersed myself in my divine beauty as I looked in the mirror.
"Hmm, I seem to be even more charming than before?" Muttered Elif as he observed himself in the mirror while doing poses. However, what he didn't realize was over the past six months, his emotions had been primarily negative, and that had also affected his outward appearance; of course, only just slightly, and most wouldn't ever perceive the change, though, for someone narcissistic like Elif, such a minute change was instantly noticed.
Satisfied with my appearance, I left the closet before arriving in the main room, and the first thing I did was hover over my bed and begin cultivating as I didn't wish to speak with Elaine or Sarah, considering they abandoned me.
'Hmph, I'll get my revenge.' Thought Elif before diving into a deep state of cultivation.