The three of them did not stop even for a moment because of the Crown Prince's call.
Albany could only stand there blankly and watch the three gradually walk away before disappearing into the crowd of students.
He stared in the direction where they vanished, lost in thought.
His mouth opened, and he blinked, but not a single word came out.
'Could that woman in the robe be Saphiroth?'
Looking at the direction where the robed woman disappeared, a familiar feeling rose in the Crown Prince's heart.
But familiar as it was, he still instinctively believed he had mistaken her for someone else.
That mysterious woman was wrapped tightly in a robe, making it impossible to tell anything about her.
She only gave Albany a slight sense of familiarity, and he had called out without thinking.
Besides, Saphiroth had wings.
But the woman in the robe just now had a flat back with no bulges. She only looked like a woman dressed a bit unusually.
In the prosperous royal capital, such clothes were nothing strange.
Moreover, he had only taken a casual glance.
Without seeing Saphiroth's silver-white hair and black-and-white wings, those unmistakable features,
guessing someone's identity without any basis really wasn't reasonable.
"Maybe I've become too sensitive lately."
The Crown Prince let out a light sigh.
He raised his head and looked at the clear sky.
After all, he had been troubled by the southern front lately, and even sleep had become a luxury.
His mind was probably too exhausted and needed some rest.
He often wondered whether things would be different now if Saphiroth had never gone missing, or if he had discovered her disappearance sooner.
In such a tired state, mistaking someone was perfectly normal.
And instinctively, he didn't want to believe it.
The southern front was so far from the royal capital. How could Saphiroth suddenly appear here?
She was a weapon, not a human.
The Crown Prince shook his head and gave a bitter smile.
Turning around, he saw many students still gathered inside the Arcane Hall, looking in his direction.
After some thought, Albany decided to leave.
Today was still a school day, and he didn't want to cause too much of a disturbance.
He absolutely couldn't let his appearance interfere with their studies.
After all, these students were the future foundation of the Empire.
"I'll go visit Mother."
The golden armor he wore reflected a dazzling light under the sun as he quietly left the entrance of the Arcane Hall.
———
Erika walked absentmindedly and suddenly froze slightly.
She realized that she had unknowingly fallen several steps behind Henny.
Coming back to herself a little, Erika thought carefully.
She recalled that when she entered the Arcane Hall earlier, she had been distracted.
After all, her mind was full of thoughts about finding the professor as soon as possible and telling him several things.
So she hadn't paid attention to her surroundings.
At the time, it seemed that a flash of dazzling gold had passed before her eyes.
At first, Erika thought it was sunlight reflecting off her own golden hair.
After all, her waist-length hair had fooled her with reflected light before.
But now that she thought about it, that light didn't seem so simple.
Because that dazzling gold had been a little too brilliant.
After thinking about it, she remembered hearing that students had gathered at the academy entrance today to welcome the Crown Prince.
A trace of doubt suddenly flashed through her mind, and she realized something seemed off.
'That wasn't the Crown Prince just now, was it?'
'Uh?'
Well, if it really was the Crown Prince, then she had been rather rude.
After all, as a member of the du Croy family, not greeting the prince was somewhat improper.
Although imperial law didn't require it, once such behavior spread, people would easily criticize the du Croy family for being arrogant and disrespecting the royal family.
That was also why Erika hadn't joined the students waiting at the academy entrance today.
She worried that meeting the prince would lead to a lot of trouble.
She definitely didn't want to spend the entire day following him around.
"What's wrong, Erika?"
Henny turned around and noticed Erika seemed to be thinking about something and had fallen a few steps behind.
So she slowed down and looked at Erika, who was deep in thought.
Hearing Henny's question, Erika snapped back to reality, shook her head, and quickly caught up.
"No, it's nothing."
"Let's find Professor Viktor first."
Henny nodded.
Though earlier, she seemed to have heard something vague.
It sounded like someone had called out Saphiroth's name.
That was rather strange.
After thinking for a moment, Henny glanced at Saphiroth behind her, whose expression was as calm as ever.
Aside from herself, the only person who should know Saphiroth's name was Professor Viktor.
And with so many students inside the Arcane Hall and all the noise around them, hearing things by mistake wasn't impossible.
So she didn't think much of it.
However, Henny didn't notice that the robe-dragging Saphiroth seemed to sense something.
Her gaze looked far toward the entrance of the Arcane Hall.
Then her emerald-like eyes slightly contracted.
[Whitelist detected: Albany Sol]
[Whitelisted individual poses no threat to life. Following unnecessary]
Her gaze gradually returned to normal and slowly became calm again.
She continued following behind Henny, lowering her head and remaining silent, like a bodyguard staying close to her side.
Until the three of them stood together in the center of the Arcane Hall's magic circle, and Henny lightly pinched her fingers.
A blue light slowly rose from the formation in the center. Like a whirlpool in the ocean, it slowly rotated and gradually wrapped around them.
Under the effect of magic, the three gradually disappeared from the formation.
Only the many noisy students inside the Arcane Hall remained, each continuing with their own training.
———
Duke Levi lightly stepped to the entrance of the meeting room.
After straightening his clothes a little, he turned the handle and gently pushed the door open.
The moment he crossed the threshold, he raised his head and looked at the two people inside with slight surprise, his eyebrows lifting.
"What an unusual combination."
On the left side of the room, Zora bowed with a smile. Respect showed in her eyes, and her manner was polite.
"Miss Zora of the Cassidra Chamber of Commerce, and..."
Before Duke Levi finished speaking, he turned to the right.
There stood a man in a neat suit.
He wore a tall gentleman's hat and smiled calmly, giving off a steady and mysterious air.
With a smile on his face, he spoke gently, "It's been a long time, Levi."
"Indeed, it has."
Levi's eyes rested on him for a moment before he spoke calmly.
"Leopold."
After casually greeting each other, the three walked deeper into the room together.
Levi casually waved his hand and said warmly, "Please, sit wherever you like."
Zora and Leopold exchanged glances and sat side by side on a spacious sofa.
Meanwhile, Levi walked to the other side of the tea table and sat elegantly across from his two guests.
He noticed Leopold looking around at the room's decorations, and a trace of nostalgia seemed to appear in his eyes.
The room was filled with precious antiques, and masterpieces by famous painters hung on the walls.
Long silk curtains draped elegantly over the brown wool carpet, gently covering the huge spotless windows.
Nearby stood a tall grandfather clock. Its pendulum swung back and forth, producing clear ticking sounds.
Inside the brown stone fireplace, the flames burned quietly and gently, as if a sleeping spirit child was resting among the firewood.
"You're still the same. After all these years, your home hasn't changed at all. Even the servants are the same."
Hearing Leopold's words, Levi smiled faintly and casually replied, "Everyone in the family knows some magic. There's no need to replace servants often."
As soon as he finished speaking, a servant entered the meeting room.
He held a silver tray in his hand, his fingers floating slightly below the bottom of the tray.
As if by magic, the tray floated slightly in the air.
The servant skillfully picked up the teapot and filled three delicate cups with steaming tea.
Then an invisible force slowly lifted the cups and steadily placed them before the three people.
After finishing, the servant held the tray and bowed respectfully to them.
Then he gracefully left the room.
Levi politely nodded to Zora and spoke gently.
"Miss Zora, if the tea doesn't suit your taste, please tell me at any time."
Zora smiled slightly and replied, "Mr. Levi, I came today mainly to discuss those antiques you wanted appraised."
"It seems they had only recently been brought up from the sea, but their age is extremely ancient."
"If you intend to sell them, our chamber of commerce is still willing to help."
Levi nodded and raised his arm generously.
"No problem, but before that, I'd like to review the sales list."
"After all, some of them are treasures that I personally cherish."
"Naturally. That is your right."
Zora laughed softly. Then she deliberately looked around with curiosity.
"I'm very interested in the items in your home. May I take a look around?"
Levi smiled and nodded.
"Of course. I'll have a servant show you around."
He lightly tapped the table, and the servant who had poured tea earlier entered again.
Standing beside Duke Levi, he bowed slightly toward Zora and respectfully said, "Please follow me, honored guest."
Zora stood up gracefully, lightly adjusted her skirt, and followed the servant out of the meeting room.
Now only Levi and Leopold remained.
Everyone understood that Zora had deliberately left, giving the two men some privacy.
After Zora left, Leopold visibly relaxed.
Looking at Levi, he spoke casually, "How is Cassandra?"
Levi picked up his cup, took a sip of hot tea, and glanced at Leopold across from him.
His voice remained calm.
"I don't think you should be asking me that."
"As for you, you've been back for several days already. Don't tell me you still don't know your wife's condition?"
Leopold smiled slightly, his golden eyes meeting Levi's gaze.
It was as though flowing golden sand slowly moved within his pupils.
"But the one she always loved was you, Levi."
"Stop right there. I don't want to hear those old clichés. We're not acting in a play."
He set down his cup and folded his hands on the table.
"So what exactly do you want to tell me, Leopold Raiser?"
Staring straight at Leopold, he calmly continued, "Or should I call you by your other name..."
"The current president of the Cassidra Chamber of Commerce, Leopold Nannard?"