Chapter 602

602.

A warp gate located midway up the mountain.

As soon as they stepped out of the entrance, a viewing platform came into sight, offering an immediate panoramic view of the city below.

Chelsea rushed to the platform and gripped the railing.

“Wow! This is Retin, the central city of the Resenteng region, isn’t it!”

Chelsea sighed in awe as she gazed at the city.

Hwoooooo!

A cold winter wind, riding an updraft, tousled Chelsea’s hair.

“Refreshing!”

Despite the biting chill, Chelsea giggled brightly.

To the wind wizard Chelsea, this winter breeze seemed more than pleasant.

“Lalala~ Lal~”

A cheerful tune escaped Chelsea’s lips.

“Hey! Leo! What’s going on? Why is that irritating Chelsea LeWalyn here?”

“Since we’re all spending our winter break in the same country, why not spend it together?”

Celia grabbed Leo and shook him vigorously.

“Even if we’re in the same country, do you know how vast our imperial territory is?! And what’s good about this?”

Overhearing the conversation, Chelsea quickly turned her head towards them.

Their gazes met instantly.

Chelsea pulled at the corner of her right eye with her right index finger and stuck out her tongue.

“How dare I keep seeing this face even during the break!”

Abad, standing beside Celia, watched her strong refusal with a smile.

“You two get along well.”

“Does this really look like we’re getting along to you?!”

While Celia fumed, Abad just kept smiling.

” miss, please calm down. There are many observers right now.”

Realizing this, Celia quickly glanced around.

The puzzled gazes of the warp gate passengers were all directed at her.

Upon noticing, Celia cleared her throat and straightened her clothes.

In the blink of an eye, Celia transformed back into the perfect daughter of a distinguished family and addressed Niel.

“Thank you, Sister Niel.”

“As a knight of the Zerdinger family and as your personal guard, it’s only natural that I assist you, miss.”

Unlike Celia, Niel, dressed in heavy armor, punched her chest with her fists.

“Because the Rod family always thinks of the honor of the Zerdinger.”

At this trustworthy figure, Celia smiled.

Celia and Niel’s relationship was not merely a simple master-servant bond; they had grown up together like real sisters since childhood.

Though Celia always strived for perfection in everything, she occasionally showed some cracks in her armor during moments of excitement, like just a moment ago.

During those times, Niel would always step in to look after her like an older sister.

‘It feels so reassuring to be with Sister Niel.’

“Master Abad. I bought a travel guidebook for travelers that’s sold here at the warp gate.”

“Eh? Marchel Luzia, what are you doing here?”

“As a wizard of the LeWalyn family, it’s my duty to assist Master Abad and Lady Chelsea.”

“Who likes duties? You have no right to just show up wherever you want!”

“Hmm. This place will belong to Master Leo’s estate soon.”

“I didn’t understand this before, but why do you call him ‘Master Leo’? Sir Abad comes from the direct line of the Zerdinger family!”

“Before that, he’s the heir of the Flove family! Best friend to Master Abad and Lady Chelsea! That alone seems sufficient reason for me to call him Master, don’t you think?”

“Haha, very funny!”

Niel and Marchel began arguing, their foreheads almost touching.

Compared to the commotion Celia had caused earlier, this was several times more intense, drawing the attention of everyone nearby.

“Huh? Why are they fighting?”

“Oh, those must be from the Zerdinger and LeWalyn families, right?”

“Aah, two prestigious families known for their heroes in Rodren?”

“They say relations between them aren’t good, and it looks like it’s true.”

“The knight seems like she might win.”

“No, I think the male wizard might come out on top.”

The murmurs of the people coming and going through the warp gate began.

With all eyes suddenly on them, Celia covered her face in embarrassment while Abad wore a troubled smile.

At this point, it was hard for Celia and Abad to intervene.

“Leo, try to calm them down.”

Celia hurriedly said in a low voice, but there was no response.

“Leo?”

Celia looked sideways, having moved her hand from her face.

Leo, who had been there a moment ago, was nowhere to be seen.

“Se, Lady Celia, Master Leo… he’s over there…”

Martina, who had accompanied Leo, subtly pointed a direction.

There, Leo stood on the viewing platform with Chelsea, looking out at the scenery of Retin.

“Big brother Leo, why are you bothering with binoculars by inserting coins? You can easily see better using magic, right?”

“This has its own charm, I think.”

“Is that so?”

It seemed to Celia as if they were deliberately setting themselves apart from the turmoil, ignoring her completely and treating it as none of their business, making her bl**d boil.

“You two! Try to stop them!”

Approaching the two, Celia ground her teeth as she spoke.

“Do I know you? Are you someone who knows Big Brother Leo?”

“Never seen you before, are you?”

Hearing this, Chelsea’s red eyes flashed.

Upon seeing this, Leo muttered under his breath.

‘If I keep teasing her, she might explode.’

Chelsea also appeared to sense this and flicked her tongue.

“I don’t want to get involved in their fight.”

“What?”

“You don’t know yet, huh?”

At that moment, Chelsea’s expression became a little somber.

“Lady Chelsea is much prettier than Lady Celia Zerdinger!”

“Don’t joke around! Lady Celia is prettier! Men prefer someone as beautiful and admirable as Lady Celia! They find the proud and composed type more attractive!”

“Not being a man, you sure have a lot to say! Lady Chelsea is more like a delicate flower…”

“Lady Celia is like a rose too!”

As the two voices shouted, Celia clenched her jaw.

“What… what is this supposed to be?”

“Those two! They always drag us into their fights!”

Chelsea also shouted in exasperation.

Chelsea had once encountered Niel with Marchel on the school grounds while walking.

They inevitably quarrelled, growling at each other until they ended up boasting about who was more amazing: Celia or Chelsea, alongside their respective masters.

These two, though they belong to different departments and avoid crossing paths due to their longstanding feud, occasionally bump into each other and are famed among the senior students for such quarrels.

Needless to say, Chelsea was utterly mortified by this incident.

At the sight of these two, Celia suddenly remembered something — those times when the seniors would make remarks she didn’t quite understand.

“Oh my… there’s a single rose.”

“The strongest lady in the world is passing by.”

“Was it all about this?”

“If Lady Celia decides, seducing your masters is as easy as pie!”

“Haha! Master Abad would never be into someone like that…”

“Keeeearrrrrrrrkkkkkk!”

With her face turning red, Celia let out a piercing scream and charged full speed towards Niel.

Even Abad, usually calm, looked flustered and rushed to cover Marchel’s mouth.

At that moment, Leo’s Slayer Order knights approached.

“Master, what shall we do?”

Austin cautiously inquired, and Leo smiled.

“I’m not acquainted with those two.”

“Same here.”

Chelsea agreed with Leo’s statement.

At this, Carin carefully spoke.

“Master.”

“What?”

“Can we pretend to be part of your group too?”

Leo gestured backwards with his chin.

“Stick close.”

“Yes.”

Hearing Carin’s comment, Leo’s other knights lined up neatly behind him.

Chelsea was impressed.

“Your judgment is quick.”

“We’ve learned from Master Leo the importance of standing firm in a line.”

The other knights nodded in agreement with Carin’s statement.

Watching this, Chelsea shook her head.

*

“I’m so sorry, Lady Celia!”

“I’m so sorry, Master Abad!”

Niel and Marchel bowed deeply, at ninety degrees, to their respective masters.

Celia smiled awkwardly at Niel and shook her head.

“It’s okay, Sister Niel. I also often behave like this with Chelsea.”

“We’ve been bickering since we were young, you know? So you don’t need to apologize too much. Marchel.”

Abad also consoled Marchel.

With a sharp eye, Chelsea casually threw in her two cents.

“But we don’t embarrass our families like this.”

Hearing this, the two looked dejected.

Celia and Abad glanced at Chelsea with a side-eye.

Realizing her mistake, Chelsea quickly hid behind Leo and peeked out.

By now, the group had moved to a café not far from the warp gate to warm up.

No matter how well-trained the knights and wizards were, being exposed to cold wind in the dead of winter wasn’t conducive to their well-being.

Especially since the Resenteng region was geographically close to the continent’s northernmost region, a land of extreme cold.

While warming up with hot drinks, Abad asked casually.

“Speaking of which, Celia, haven’t you mentioned seniors from the Zerdinger family?”

“Yeah, Lady Samua, Lady Toluah, and Senior Ulta are here.”

“It would have been nice to pay them a visit.”

“They’re currently dealing with a rebellion alongside Brother Ris. They probably aren’t at home.”

Neither Leo nor Celia heard about the recent news of Ris and other graduates before coming to Resenteng.

“Big Brother Leo, are we heading straight to the Retin city hall?”

Chelsea asked while eating her ice cream.

The members of the LeWalyn family had come here upon invitation from Leo.

Since they came at his request, they had to go wherever he led.

“I wonder…”

Leo flipped through the travel guidebook for visitors.

Regas had meticulously prepared all the necessary documents to prove Leo’s rightful ownership of Resenteng.

These included land titles from Resenteng and the certificate proving that Naira Zerdinger, Leo’s grandmother, was of royal Tengkan bl**d.

On top of that, there were artifacts to back up these claims.

This city, Retin, used to be the capital of Tengkan.

Retin’s city hall was the central government that administered the entire Resenteng region.

Furthermore, the strongest power in this place was the leader of the Tuzen Knights, Sis Zigma.

“Hmm, even with the perfect documentation, will the Tuzen Knights willingly give up control of the entire region to Big Brother Leo?”

It had been several decades since the fall of Tengkan.

Many people had long forgotten the existence of that country.

Even those who lived on its lands now find the name “Tengkan” unfamiliar.

It would surely be questionable if someone claimed the old royal family had returned and could be readily reinstated as king.

“Grandfather said that only the worthy could extract Tengkan’s legacy, hidden here in Retin. The Tuzen Knights would require that legacy to regain their true power.”

“Ah. What then, is this legacy?”

“The patronage of the Great Spirit of Fire and the Purifying Spirit Ista.”

“Come to think of it, wasn’t the founder of Tengkan the Vow Keeper of the Purifying Spirit?”

Retin is the birthplace of the current Great Spirit of Fire and Ista. Long ago, it was an active volcano.

But when the Giant King from Tartarus attacked to eliminate the Purifying Spirit,

the founder of Tengkan, as Ista’s Vow Keeper, fought back.

In that process, all the volcanic power was consumed, turning Retin into an extinct volcano.

The Giant King ultimately failed to achieve his goal and retreated.

“As a result, Tengkan’s founder used up too much power in the battle and passed away. Ista bestowed a blessing on the Tengkan royal family in gratitude, right?”

Celia crossed her arms.

The Tuzen Knights were a once powerful order that dominated the whole continent.

But by now, they had weakened to the point where they could only manage the Resenteng region.

And the reason for that was the absence of the Tengkan bloodline.

Chelsea asked Celia.

“So is the ‘worthiness’ based on bloodline?”

“Being a Great Spirit, it’s unlikely that bloodline alone would suffice. There will surely be a test,” she said.

“Of course, Big Brother Leo will pass any test easily!”

Chelsea laughed mockingly.

Being the Hero of Beginning, Leo would definitely gain the recognition of the Great Spirits, even the one who’s considered a grandfather.

Upon hearing Chelsea’s words, Arti secretly muttered to Leo.

-Ista is famous for being capricious, Master. It won’t be easy.

Being a part of the Rodren Empire for centuries, Arti was naturally familiar with the Great Spirits of neighboring regions.

-If Leo doesn’t please this spirit, our situation might become a little difficult.

Elshi murmured worriedly, and the oldest existing Great Spirit, Rael, chuckled.

-Who is she to reject Lord Leo? All she needs to do is twist her wrist.

-P, twist her wrist…! Rael, can you do that to me? Ack! Ack!

Arti reacted strongly to Rael’s audacity.

At that moment, Leo, who had been reading the guidebook, spoke up.

“This city is famous for its hot springs.”

Confused by the sudden comment, Celia tilted her head.

“Of course. It’s the reason why this city is famed as a tourist destination.”

Leo looked up briefly and glanced to his right.

There sat Zerdinger’s retinue, ready to escort Leo and Celia.

Leo’s gaze then shifted to the left.

There were the people from the LeWalyn group, ready to assist Chelsea and Abad.

Leo was sitting right in the middle.

“Let’s visit the city hall tomorrow.”

“What? What are we doing then first?”

Watching Celia’s puzzled expression, Leo smiled.

“Let’s sightsee.”