Jacob left his professors office after a short while more. Jacob had gotten plenty of information that he was seeking about the true origin of powers. A chilling question crossed his mind.
'If the Sacred and Profane trio were the original power users, who gave them their powers?'
That was a question for another day. For now, Jacob was going to enjoy his day off to the fullest. He decided to take a trip into town and visit Sarah's place before seeing what other fun things his kingdom had to offer.
Going down the palace stairs with crutches was not easy for Jacob. He almost fell a few times trying to balance himself properly but eventually got the hang of it. Once he reached the bottom, he started his journey towards his favorite meat market.
Upon seeing the beautiful blonde hair woman behind the counter, Jacob smiled and lifted up his hand slightly to wave.
"Hey Sarah. It feels like it's been a bit. I hope you've been well."
Sarah seemed a bit shocked at his appearance at first.
"Young lord, are you okay? What happened to you?"
Jacob was confused for a moment but then remembered the wooden crutches holding him up under his arms.
"Oh, these? They are just temporary. I'll be as good as new by tomorrow."
"Could the palace doctor not heal your injury?"
Jacob's face dropped for a moment. He felt like he wanted to slap himself hard in the face.
'That damn old man. He was so elusive last time he healed me I forgot he existed.'
Jacob decided to come up with an awful lie.
"The doctor? I just forgot we had a doctor in the palace."
Sarah didn't say anything in response to that remark, but she could tell he was clearly lying and chuckled to herself a bit.
"What would you like from me today? I got this exotic sea food in stock today if you want some!"
"I actually don't want anything today. I just thought we would chat for a bit."
Sarah seemed even more surprised by this. Her face turned a little red.
"J-just the two of us? Alone? Where's that girl that you're always with?"
"You mean, Maria? She's a bit busy with other things at the moment but I have a weird suspicion we will be back here tomorrow. She really loves this place."
Sarah calmed herself a bit hearing that the prince wasn't trying anything weird and that he simply wanted to have a pleasant conversation.
'That's a relief... I thought he was trying to make a move on me. I mean, he's not even my type anyway. He's strong, very handsome, rich, kind, rich, has a lot of money... did I say rich? Wait, why am I thinking of him being so attractive?'
Sarah slapped herself before continuing. Jacob looked at her with a weirded-out smirk.
"So, what is it you want to talk about, young lord?"
"How's business coming along? Are you getting plenty of customers?"
"Actually, I've been busier than ever recently since that spectacle in the town happened. But I guess that can never be a bad thing if I want to make money."
Something connected and Sarah's head, prompting her to ask a question.
"By the way, did you say your friends name is Maria?"
"I did. She has brown hair, green eyes, very beau- I mean she sometimes has dirt on her outfits."
"It wouldn't happen to be the same Maria that the entire town is talking about right now, would it?"
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know the full story, but apparently some brunette made a big scene in the plaza the other day. Not in a bad way though. She supposedly carried a full crop wagon by herself from the fields all the way to the kingdom. She had a whole crowd cheering for her!"
Jacob was impressed. He knew it was Maria based off of the story of great strength alone, but he never took her to be a people-person before.
"That sounds like something Maria would do. I'm happy to hear that she is getting some love from the citizens."
"But that's not even the crazy part of the story."
Jacob looked at her confused.
"What do you mean?"
"Apparently, the leader of the Rose Clan took a liking to Maria when she was working under her and wanted to adopt her as a daughter."
Jacob's face froze with shock. Part of him was really happy for Maria for achieving all these amazing things in such a short time, but part of him was deeply worried about her after hearing his father's true purpose for creating the noble clans.
"Wow! That's truly impressive stuff! I'll have to make sure to congratulate her when I get the chance."
"I'm not done, my lord."
"Hm?"
"There's an 'inauguration' of sorts happening in town today for her official adoption! You can see the ceremony yourself if you would like!"
Jacob's heart started to race a bit. He needed to be there to support his closest ally for such an important event.
"Where is this ceremony being held? And what time should I be there?"
Sarah looked away embarrassingly.
"Well... funny you should ask."
She started twirling her blonde hair.
"It's actually being held on the palace steps you just left. I believe it starts in a few minutes."
"A few minutes?!"
Jacob quickly took his crutches and started throwing himself back toward the palace as fast as he could.
"Sorry, Sarah. I have to go!"
Sarah gave him a pleasant smile and waved him bye.
'What kind of bad luck is this?! As soon as I leave?!'
As Jacob arrived towards the palace, crowds of people were already starting to form around the steps. There was a line of 10 people already standing at the top, closer to the palace. In front of them, Lidia Rose stood tall wearing a red dress with short sleeves and a gown that went down to her feet. Her hair laid across her back instead of being put in a ponytail like it usually was. Next to Lidia was none other than...
'...Maria?'
Maria was an absolutely breathtaking sight to behold. Her skin seemed to be tanner, her hair was smooth and waved around her shoulders, her eyes glimmered in the sunlight as she looked around at the crowd, she had golden bracelets on her right hand and a shiny silver necklace around her neck. Jacob felt like he was staring at a goddess. He couldn't help but blush at the sight of her.
Something else that surprised Jacob was that she was wearing a dress. It was a dark green color that complimented her eyes. Her shoulders and arms poked through the top of it, but everything else was hugging her body. The skirt around her legs was wavy and held a slight golden hue to it.
'Is it just me or does she look... uncomfortable?'
Even though Maria looked divine, Jacob couldn't help but notice that there was a hint of discomfort in her expression. He couldn't tell if it was from wearing the dress or standing in front of the crowd of people. Lidia walked forward to address the people who gathered.
"Attention people of Iron Kingdom!"
The crowd immediately went silent as the roaring voice of Lidia fell on to them.
"It is with my great pleasure and honor that as of today, this young woman standing next to me shall be called my daughter going forward. Her strength rivals that of mountains, her spirit inspires those around her to better themselves, and her kindness can put a smile on the grumpiest of people. There is no one I can think of more fitting for this role than her."
The crowd erupted into applause and cheers.
"Maria Rose, huh? Sounds kind of catchy. I like it!"
"A commoner became a noble?! The world must be ending for something so unbelievable to happen!"
"Well, she deserves it! I saw how hard she was working in the fields myself. I heard that she even passed out but refused to give up until she finished her work!"
"All hail Lady Maria of Iron Kingdom!"
Lidia waited for the applause to die down before continuing.
"Now everyone, please remain silent while I swear Miss Maria here into the house officially!"
Maria walked up and bowed the crowd before facing Lidia.
"Do you, Maria Rose, solemnly swear to uphold the peace in the Iron Kingdom no matter the cost?"
"I swear."
"Do you swear to your family members that you will treat them with the utmost respect and dignity?"
"I swear."
"Do you swear that every action you do will be motivated with the intent to help others?"
"I swear."
"Finally, do you swear your heartfelt loyalty to the Crimson King?"
Maria didn't respond. Lidia started to panic a bit and coughed in her mouth.
"I'll ask once more. Do you swear your heartfelt loyalty to the Crimson King?"
Maria once again didn't respond right away. Then, she finally gave Lidia a response.
"I swear my loyalty to the Crimson Prince. Prince Jacob."