From the dash that the bandit leader made, a trail of dust followed in his path. From a distance, Alex and Raymond's call for their liege can be heard. As the distance of the bandit leader from Aeon decreased rapidly, and with no time to cast a normal defensive spell, a light suddenly emerged from the mana crystal in Aeon's artifact, the family heirloom he received from his father.
"My word, my vassals have forgotten about my abilities.." Aeon muttered while raising his hand with a mana circle for a Mana Shield, a variant of the Barrier spell, in front of it, which blocked the hammer of the bandit leader.
After blocking the attack, Aeon repelled the bandit leader by pushing the mana shield towards him, and this was followed by a lightning spell that landed a direct hit on the bandit leader. The shock from the spell managed to deal with him and made him blackout from the shock.
Alex and Raymond were stunned by their lord's display of prowess, as were the other bandits, but it only took a few seconds for the two to regain their composure and continue to subdue the remnants of the bandits.
The battle took no less than 7 minutes, as the bandits were disoriented by the defeat of their leader.
While clapping, Aeon approached his vassals and then said, "Well done, you two. I expected no less from you two. But I must say, it saddens me to have heard that you doubted my skill." Aeon smirked after his remark after saying the last part with a sarcastic tone. "I know that this was my first actual battle outside of training, but you of all people should know that I would be able to handle at least this much! I haven't been studying the records and learning from you two for no reason, you know?"
"Is it wrong for us to worry about our liege whom we watched over the years, my liege?" Raymond had said while giving a chuckle, and Alex nodded in agreement.
In awe of what just happened, Alex asked, "But seriously, that was amazing, my lord, that was amazing. How did you manage to instantly cast those spells?"
Aeon smirked and pointed at his monocle glass. "It was all thanks to my family heirloom. It has the ability to store spells of the caster, but it is only limited to spells around 40% of the caster's current circle. As I'm currently a 5 Circle Mage, I can store spells up to the 2nd Circle. It also has the ability to amplify my magic power. The only real drawback of it is that it doesn't really require the caster's direct mana but the mana crystal attached to it."
Alex, not understanding a single thing about it, said, "So basically.. it's all thanks to that artifact? Man, artifacts sure are amazing." Raymond retorted, "It may have been thanks to the artifact, but our liege's skill was also extraordinary. Was it by any chance a situation that the heroes of old in the records have come across?" Aeon nodded.
While they were busy talking among themselves, a few of the guards approached them while some of them were tying up the other bandits that were still alive, and the rest were tending to the civilians. "If you would please excuse me, I would like to give my gratitude to our savior, but we must hasten our leave as we have wounded. Please head back to the train and we'll proceed with moving to the nearest stop for the injured and then depart for the capital." The knights and mages bowed then went to help with their co-workers.
Aeon and the rest of the passengers entered the cars while the wounded were assisted and tended to. The train departed from their abrupt stop and headed to the nearest town. The ride was smoother and the train arrived a few hours after the incident. The injured was transported to the town's church and medical center via the ambulances sent by the town after being called. Moments later, the train departed once again for the capital.
A night has passed and the Royal Capital is now in view.
The royal capital of the Kingdom of Oswald, Celestia, said to be a city blessed by the celestials, was the city where both magic and technology prospered. Celestia was a bustling city full of magic and technology, and it had a mixture of a medieval style and a modern look. The buildings were made of bricks, some with concrete, and some towered over the others, scraping the view of the sky. The streets were made of asphalt, the streets were filled with people that were enjoying the street performances of some magicians, dancers, and the like, and even if night came, the streets were still full of life as they were lit up by lamps. Celestia City was where most of the old modern technology had survived against the end of its era and was improved with the help of magic. Celestia City is home to the Kingdom's Castle, the Celestia Academy, Mage's Tower, and the main churches of the gods.
At the train station, the passengers of the train from the Viscounty of Accasha had departed from the train they were in. Some of the train's staff and guards went to the police station and turned in the bandits. The train's guards and staff, as well as the other passengers, expressed their gratitude to Aeon and his vassals, the people who made it possible for them to reach their destination and protected them from the bandits.
Waving the other passengers goodbye, Aeon walked towards Alex and Raymond. "Now that we have arrived, albeit a little late than scheduled, the ceremony is two days from now. Let's head to my estate here in the capital for now. You two are free to explore the city if you'd like. Just make sure you're ready for the ceremony and keep an eye for the saint."
"Affirmative." Raymond agreed, and he bowed his head a little while saying so.
"Yes, m'lord." Alex, with a smile, agreed.
And so, all three of them set off for the Accasha estate in Celestia City. Upon arrival, they were greeted by a man in the uniform of a butler, along with some of the maids and knights of the estate. "Welcome back, young master!" All of them, with a bow, greeted Aeon. "We have prepared for your stay here; might we be allowed to guide you to your respective rooms, or did you plan to do something else?" the butler asked.
"It's been a while, Wilheim; has it been 5 years since we last saw each other?" Aeon smiled. "It has, young master. We were worried about our young master being alone, but my guess is that our worries were unfounded as you have grown into a fine young man. I know that if sir and madam were here, they would also be proud." Wilheim said so while wiping a tear from his eye. "Well now, enough about me. You and your companions might be exhausted from your travel. We will prepare for your meal. Please enjoy your stay here." Wilheim bowed and then turned to the other maids to instruct them to tend to their master and his companions.
Aeon turned towards his companions, "Well, like I said earlier, after you have settled in your rooms, come to the dining room once the food has been prepared. After that, you may now use your time as you see fit."
The maids guided Alex and Raymond to the room they prepared for them while Wilheim lead Aeon to the master bedroom.
"Young master, will you be visiting the records later? Although most of them are copies of the records at the Viscounty, the records hold some of the notes of the previous lords." Wilheim asked as they walked towards the hallway to the master bedroom.
Aeon pondered for a moment before giving an answer. "I might as well check it later, as I don't have much planned aside from the ceremony that is to be conducted at a later date."
"Then we will have a select few to clean the room as it has been a few days since it was last dusted and cleaned. We rarely clean the room as most servants aren't allowed entry to it and only a select few may enter it—aside from the lord of the house, of course, who in their right mind would dare to restrict their lord's entry." Wilheim chuckled.
Wilheim and Aeon have now arrived in front of the room. "Now then, my young master, I hope you'll find your stay comfortable. If you need anything, just call and we will be right there." Wilheim bowed. "Of course, I'll do just that then. You may now excuse yourself, Wilheim. It was nice to see you again." Aeon said with a smile before entering the room.
"How nostalgic this room is... I can still remember my father sitting on the couch by the coffee table and my mother drinking tea by the window... How I miss those times..." Aeon silently said to himself with a wistful smile as he remembered his memories. "Now's not the time for this... Let's just unpack for now."
Aeon and his vassals, Alex Reinhardt and Raymond Montera, settled down in their rooms and then ate their lunch once it was prepared. After the dining, Alex set off to the training grounds, where the knights of the Accasha estate trained, to spar with them, while Raymond decided to scout the city for any gun stores and firing range while keeping an eye out for the saint. Aeon then went to the Akashic Records of the Accasha Estate in Celestia.
Two days have passed, and it is now time for the ceremony at the palace to begin.