The succession ceremony for nobles is held at the royal palace if you're a high-ranking noble or if you have a significant reputation. Although the rank has fallen into a viscountcy, the Accasha family was once a marquess family. The Royal Family is also aware of the duty entrusted upon them, so it was still granted to them the succession ceremony that viscounts aren't normally part of. After the ceremony, a banquet is held to celebrate the succession.
It is now 11:00 AM, and in the Accasha Estate of Celestia's lobby area, Aeon and his vassals are now dressed in their formal attire. Aeon, clad in black and white but with a small cloak marked with the coat of arms of the Accasha family on his left chest that displays a library and a book. Alex and Raymond won't be accompanying Aeon at the ceremony, but they will be attending the banquet as Aeon's guests.
"My lord, the car is ready to depart at any moment. Please do take care on your way to the palace." Wilheim said and bowed. "Alright, we'll take our leave in a few minutes. Wilheim, do take care of the house while we're gone." Aeon replied and then smiled. "Of course my lord."
Aeon turned towards Alex and Raymond. "Well then, gentlemen, shall we?" Both Alex and Raymond agreed.
The Royal Palace is just half an hour away from the Accasha Estate by car. With the ceremony scheduled to take place in the afternoon, they would make it with half an hour left to prepare.
Aeon arrived at the palace gates with 27 minutes left before the ceremony. They exited the car and were greeted by a butler, along with a few maids and a knight. "Welcome, heir of Accasha; we have been expecting your arrival. I shall guide you to the drawing room." Aeon in turn replied to the butler with respect, "I appreciate the welcome. Please do guide us."
The butler led them to the drawing room. "Here we are; please prepare for the ceremony that will be happening in..." The butler checks his pocket watch. "-19 minutes. I will return once 14 minutes have passed." The butler bowed and left the room.
The three sat on the couch, and a maid served them drinks. "So... feeling nervous yet?" Alex smirked. "If I'm being honest, I've been nervous ever since we've arrived." Aeon and the other two laughed. "Well, that's most likely a normal thing to feel, my liege. Don't worry too much; we know that you will do just fine." Raymond said with a comforting tone. "My thanks Raymond, I appreciate your words."
14 minutes had passed while the three were chatting among themselves. The butler returned as soon as 14 minutes had passed. "Lord Accasha, it is almost time. Please follow me to the audience room." Aeon stood up from where he was sitting and then waved at his companions. "Well then, I'll go now. I'll see you two later at the party." Alex and Raymond stood up and bowed. "Yes, our liege, we await your return as the official Lord Accasha."
3 minutes have passed since leaving the drawing room, and Aeon is now in front of the doors of the audience room. Aeon took a few seconds to prepare before signaling the guard to announce his arrival.
"The heir of the Accasha viscountcy, Aeon Accasha, the 5-circle mage, has arrived!" The guard, after receiving the signal, announced his arrival.
The doors open and a red carpet towards the throne where the king is seated with his family at his side and the heads of prominent noble families at the side of the room is revealed. Aeon walked slowly towards the throne and gracefully knelt down in front of the royal family.
"I greet the sun of our kingdom, your majesty. May the kingdom of Oswald prosper under your rule." Aeon greeted the king. "You have arrived, heir of Accasha. I congratulate you for reaching a stage that most mages only reach when they are older. You achieved a feat that has only happened a few times in history." The ruler of the Kingdom of Oswald, Leon von Oswald, said to compliment Aeon with his achievement. "It is of great honor to receive such words from your majesty."
"Now then, let us proceed with the ceremony." A silence ensued after the king had declared to start the ceremony. "Aeon Accasha, son of the deceased viscount and viscountess Orion Accasha and Aria Accasha, we are gathered here for the succession of the title of the Accasha Viscountcy. You have reached the age of adulthood, where you can now inherit the title of viscount. With the Gods as the witnesses, do you, Aeon Accasha, swear to uphold the honor and duty of the Head of Accasha and serve the Kingdom of Oswald?"
"I swear upon my name as an Accasha, in the name of the Goddess Kronia, and upon my mana, to serve my kingdom and to uphold the honor and duty as the Head of Accasha. I swear to also fulfill the duty entrusted to us by the old king." Aeon made an oath of mana and an oath upon the goddess Kronia in front of the royal family.
Leon von Oswald stood up and declared, "Then it is done. From here on, you are now the head of the Accasha Viscountcy. I congratulate you. You may now take your leave and prepare for the banquet that will be held upon your honor." Applause can be heard from the heads of the other noble houses. The royal family departed from the room first, and then the rest of the nobles left.
The banquet is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., so Aeon and the rest of the nobles were guided to the guest rooms. The time was spent preparing for the banquet.
It is now 5:30 p.m., and almost all of the nobles are present aside from Aeon, the ducal families, and the royal family.
At 5:34 PM, Aeon's arrival was announced, along with the ducal families of Valahorn and Astora. "The guest in honor, the 5-circle mage and viscount of Accasha, Lord Aeon Accasha, has arrived! Followed by the head of the Valahorn ducal family, Duke Tyrone Valahorn, and the head of the Astora ducal family, Duchess Maria Astora, accompanied by her daughter, Lady Elizabeth Astora!"
Aeon Accasha entered first, followed by the other three. Whispers can be heard among the nobles. "So that is the rumored lord of Accasha, the 5-circle mage! My! Words can't express how charming he looks!" A lady among the crowd whispered to another lady.
Alex and Raymond approached Aeon after seeing him. "My liege, it is my honor to finally greet you as the official lord of Accasha." Raymond said with a smile and then bowed. This is followed by Alex. "It truly is an honor, my lord." The three began to converse among themselves.
A lady from the crowd had approached Aeon. "It is an honor to meet you, Lord Aeon Accasha. I am Mary Rose of the Rose Barony." Aeon's attention was diverted away from Alex and Raymond to Mary Rose. "It is a pleasure to meet you too, Lady Mary Rose." Aeon greeted her with a smile, which resulted in the lady being flustered and deciding to flee. "P-please excuse me!"
"Well, that was strange.." Aeon muttered to himself. Alex said with a smile, "What a charmer you are, my lord!" Alex laughed after teasing Aeon. "What do you mean by that?" Aeon tilted his head slightly after questioning Alex. "It's of no use, Alex; our liege has spent 5 years alone and with no experience in that regard." Raymond grinned. "Seriously, what do you mean by that?" the two laughed.
Another woman approached Aeon. It is the duchess of Astora, Duchess Maria Astora. "Greetings, Lord Accasha, I congratulate you on your achievement of reaching the 5th Circle and becoming the official head of your house." Maria Astora gracefully raised the side of the hem of her dress slightly and bowed as a greeting made by nobles.
Aeon immediately turned toward her grace and bowed elegantly. "It is an honor to meet you too, Duchess Astora. Your words are too kind; your grace—to what do I owe the honor?"
Maria Astora beckoned her daughter who was standing from a distance. Elizabeth Astora elegantly made her way towards them. "Greetings, Lord Accasha. I am the daughter of Maria Astora, Elizabeth Astora." she introduced herself while doing a courtesy greeting bow.
"I am honored to greet you, Lady Elizabeth Astora. I have heard of your beauty and grace from rumors but words can't express just how stunning you are." Aeon bowed and smiled.
Alex from the back whispered to Raymond. "Are you sure that he has no experience? From how I see it, he's a natural at it." Raymond whispered back, "I'm not too sure either. Are there books in the records that make you like that?"
Elizabeth Astora blushed a little at the words she heard from Aeon. "Y-you flatter me, Lord Accasha." Her mother let out a small laugh while covering her mouth. "Now now, Lord Aeon, I have come to greet you in hopes of forming a connection between you and my family through a proposal of an engagement."
The other two were surprised by what the duchess had just said. An engagement with a viscount and a duchy isn't common. Aeon calmly declined and stated his reason for it. "It would be my greatest honor to accept it, but I would have to sincerely apologize. I have been entrusted with a duty by the old king of Oswald where I might lose my life while doing so and would also require me to leave more often. I wouldn't want to leave such a beautiful lady such as her waiting for my return. I once again thank you for your offer, and I apologize for not being able to accept it." Aeon bowed, waiting for a response before standing back up.
Maria Astora was a little stunned by Aeon's refusal of her proposal. In hopes of convincing Aeon to consider it, she said, "Won't you reconsider it once more, Lord Accasha? Surely a 5th Circle mage such as you won't perish so easily."
"I once again apologize, but my answer won't change for as long as I am still bound to my duty as an Accasha. I sincerely apologize, your grace."
"To refuse it for a second time, you are quite the unrelenting man, Lord Accasha."
"I once again apologize and request your forgiveness, your grace."
"Well it is fine, I am the one who offered and you also have the right to refuse. I commend your dedication to your duty, Lord Accasha."
"I thank you for your kindness and understanding, your grace." Aeon took a few seconds before raising his head once again.
"I do feel regretful not being able to accept such an offer, especially the offer to be engaged to a beautiful lady such as Lady Elizabeth Astora. I do hope that you will find a more suitable man that you'll be happy with, Lady Elizabeth Astora."
"It is also a shame, considering you are quite an attractive bachelor. I do appreciate your words, Lord Accasha. We shall take our leave and let you enjoy your banquet. Until we meet again, Lord Accasha." They did another courtesy bow to each other before they left Aeon.
Alex put his arm around Aeon's shoulder. "Look at you, mister attractive bachelor." Alex teased. Raymond patted Aeon's back. "I was stunned by what just happened, my liege." Raymond chuckled. "I am indeed surprised with the offer made by the duchess, but both of you know that I don't have the time for it." Aeon pushed Alex's hand off of his shoulder.
"How about you two? Do you have any plans to marry yet?"
"I do, but only aft-" Alex was cut off by the announcement of a guard.
"The Royal Family, his majesty, Leon von Oswald, her majesty, Raya von Oswald, the crown prince, Polaris von Oswald, and the princess, Clara von Oswald, have arrived!"
All the attendees bowed towards them as they entered the royal ballroom. Duke Tyrone Valahorn and Duchess Maria Astora stepped forward from the crowd. "We greet the royal family; may the Kingdom of Oswald prosper under the rule of your majesties!" The other nobles followed them and greeted them as well. "We greet the royal family!"
The king stepped forward from the stairs and said, "You may raise your heads. We are gathered here in honor of Lord Accasha, who has succeeded the title of viscount and has reached the 5th circle at a young age. Lord Accasha, will you step forward and give a speech to the other guests that attended the banquet?" Aeon walked towards the front. "It would be my honor, your majesty."
Aeon turned around towards the other nobles. "First things first, I thank the Royal Family for granting me this honor. I also thank you for attending the banquet. I am honored to be in front of respectable gentlemen and ladies. I am the Lord of the Accasha Viscountcy, Aeon Accasha. I have sworn in front of the royal family, the gods, the heads of prominent noble families, and upon my mana earlier to uphold the honor and duty as an Accasha and serve the Kingdom of Oswald. In my honor, I hope that all of you will enjoy the banquet that his majesty, the king, has granted to us." Aeon then bowed, and an applause followed.
The king then declared the start of the banquet. The sound of music began to play, and as the guest of honor, Aeon started the dance with Lady Elizabeth Astora. After they danced, the royal family had their turn, followed by the other nobles. The banquet ended after a few hours, and all of the guests returned to their respective homes.