The dinner was held in a hall full of night pearls. There were not many people participating. Only five people attended: a young elven couple, Loraine's sister, Loraine, and Abel
"First, let me introduce myself. My name is Edwina Doyle, Loraine's mother, Grand Duke of the elves, and the Lord of Angstrom City!" The female elf of the couple bowed slightly when she introduced herself.
"Your excellency, Grand Duke Edwina. I, the roaming elf Bennett, show my regards to you!" Abel instinctively stood up and bowed after hearing such an important title being called out.
"Mr. Bennett. Please, let me call you that from now on, no matter what your status is. You've saved my dear little daughter. She is the apple of Duke Albert's and my eyes."
The male elf standing next to Grand Duke Edwina bowed and smiled. Grand Duke Edwina continued, "You have our thanks for your heroic deed!"
After speaking, both Grand Duke Edwina and Duke Albert stood up and bowed to Abel, and Abel responded with his own bow.
"My name is Carrie, Loraine's sister. Thanks for saving my little sister!" Loraine's sister also stood up and bowed.
"It was only a coincidence! Please, you are all being too kind here!" Abel said hastily.
"Let's skip the formality, then, Mr. Bennett! Why don't we talk about your identity, then?" Grand Duke Edwina said with a smile.
Abel couldn't help but feel startled. He turned back to look at Lorraine. He thought that Loraine told her family who he actually was. Yet, Loraine looked just as confused as him.
Grand Duke Edwina asked, "Mr. Bennett, Loraine didn't tell me anything about you. Your transformation was flawless. Except for a few elves in our elves' royal family, I assure you, no one could see through it. I couldn't see through all of your disguises, though. If I may ask, are you a human or an orc?"
"Your excellency, Grand Duke Edwina, since you already knew, I will no longer conceal the fact that I'm a human. My name is Abel Harry. Due to some problems with my identity, combined with the fact that elves do not want to be in contact with humans, I decided to hide my true identity whilst coming to Angstrom City. Again, I apologize for lying to all of you," Abel said and bowed.
"Human?" Grand Duke Edwina frowned slightly, "I thought the last transformation necklace was in the hands of the orcs!"
"Your excellency, Grand Duke Edwina. Do you know about the transformation necklace?" Abel asked surprisingly.
The transformation necklace has always been Abel's deepest secret. It was one of the few escape tools he had. If Grand Duke Edwina could see through, he couldn't really leave Angstrom City without leaving any trace.
"The transformation necklace was originally owned by the elves and by the moon goddess. There were five in total. As countless years have passed, three of these five transformation necklaces have been damaged. One went missing, and one was stored in the secret royal chamber. The body of the elf you've turned into was a real elf that existed. If there's no moon goddess' qi comes from yourself, I would've not been able to see through your disguise," Grand Duke Edwina explained.
"Abel, Harry. This name is really familiar," Duke Albert commented, "Master Abel, the youngest blacksmith master of the humans, am I correct?"
"Your excellency, Duke Albert, you are absolutely correct on that one!" Abel nodded and admitted.
Abel didn't dare to undo his transformation. If he did, the clothes he was wearing would be ripped off. He didn't want to show off his naked muscles in public.
"Edwina, I like this guy. He's kind of like me when I was younger!" said Duke Albert to Grand Duke Edwina with a big smile. Duke Albert came here because he heard about Abel's deeds. What Abel achieved in the human's world was very significant.
"You mean the part where you keep getting into trouble?!" said Grand Duke Edwina with a glance at Duke Albert.
Grand Duke Edwina turned back and said to Abel, "Loraine's identity is very special. She has been marked by the moon goddess from birth. We call her the Chosen One. Apart from basic mandatory education, her growth must be in accordance with nature's course. Thus, we have no way to stop Loraine if she becomes fond of you."
"Mother!" Loraine whispered bashfully.
"Abel," Grand Duke said solemnly, "no matter what your identity is, I have a few questions to ask you. If your answer dissatisfies me, I will still stop your relationship with my daughter even if it means offending the gods."
"Yes, your excellency!" Abel said earnestly.
"First of all, do you know how old Loraine is? Age works every differently for humans and elves. Humans become an adult at the age of eighteen, but elves become adults when they are eighty. Loraine is fifty years old now, are you fine with that?" Grand Duke Edwina looked at Abel's eyes and asked.
"Your excellency, Grand Duke Edwina, age is not a problem!" Abel answered this question with a smile on his face. Apart from Loraine here, the other three elves here were all strong enough enough to tell if he was lying or not.
Abel was honest. He figured it out a while ago. Technically, his mental age was similar to Loraine's, which actually made them a good match.
Grand Duke Edwina nodded, then asked, "Loraine will have a minimum life span of six hundred years. Are you confident that you can stay with her forever?"
"Your excellency, my training gives me a lot more years to live than most humans. At least for humans my age, there are not many people who can surpass my current levels. I'm sure that I'll have enough time to continue progressing."
"Yes, yes! You are a third-level wizard, Abel. 14-year-old third-level wizards are very rare these days! Actually, there hasn't been one around before!" said Duke Albert.
"Duke Albert, I'm also a knight," Abel said with a flash of golden light, and a golden combat qi armor appeared around his body.
"Dear Spirit, what am I looking at!" Duke Elbert screamed. He couldn't believe it when he saw at the combat qi armor around Abel.
"Abel, you are a prodigy. No one has made the accomplishment that you have at age fourteen. You have passed this question!" Grand Duke Edwina nodded with a smile.
"The last question is that Loraine will be locked up for her training for about twenty years. Can you wait that long for her?" asked Grand Duke Edwina with a smile.
In fact, up until now, Grand Duke Edwina was very satisfied with Abel (she would've preferred an actual elf, but still) She really liked him. With the confidence and skills that he had, he might just become the supreme ruler of the Holy Continent.
"Yes, I can wait!" Abel said in an affirmative tone. He was surprised that Loraine would have to undergo a 20-year closed up training.
He certainly did not expect it when she just came back home. Actually, the 20-year grounding might just be her punishment for running away from home. After all, twenty years was not a lot of time for elves.
Twenty years was longer than what Abel expected, but he could focus on his training during this time. On a positive note, he wouldn't have to worry about Loraine being kidnapped while he was busy improving himself.
"Loraine is going to have her closed-up practice after dinner. Something serious happened during the time she left. The elders in the royal family were very angry. They asked Loraine to have her closed-up practice immediately. They didn't want her to come out until she was old enough to protect herself, apparently," Duke Albert explained.
"Could I talk to Loraine for a while?" Abel asked.
"Of course. You can go now," Duke Elbert waved to Abel before Grand Duke Edwina could say anything to him.
Abel bowed, then came to Loraine. Loraine was also very reluctant to be separated from him, but right now, the elders were extremely angered because the Chosen One was almost sold off as a slave. While no one was allowed to interfere with the life of the Chosen One, they could have her locked in a room for the purpose of having her undergo training