After ensuring that the five blades have been briefed properly and they were already clear on what they have to do, Leon, Blaze and Olivier set off to the capital.
"Milady, we'll do our best to guard you and the Young Prince on His Highness's behalf!" Neal, a tall bulky knight, led the other four to kneel and recommit themselves to Eli and Little Han.
"Please stand up! Welcome to our little cottage, I'm looking forward to working with you." Eli calmly accepted their commitment.
Although she felt like it was too much to have five guards, she couldn't reject the good will from Leon and the blades themselves. Rejecting them would only look down on their honor as knights.
"Please be at ease and treat this as your second home." She added with a comfortable tone.
"We thank Milady for your grace!" The blades were really happy that their future Madam was a warm and kind person.
Her way of interacting was hospitable and gentle, yet the aura she emits is akin to a shrewd and intelligent woman.
"Alright, I'll go and take care of Little Han. Please feel free to tell Rosea your needs." Eli then excused herself gracefully after introducing Rosea.
Rosea was a little dwarf with a bubbly attitude, thus when Eli introduced her again, she bowed her little body adorably with a determined expression on her face. Her bright sunny smile was saying, "Count on me! Count on me!"
As soon as she went inside the cottage, the blades and Rosea engaged in a passionate discussion while briskly doing their tasks.
"Our Madame is so beautiful! She and His Highness really look so good together!"
"They really were a match made in heaven!!"
"Madame cooks good food too!"
"Our young prince is so cute and adorable too!"
"I can't wait to see our young prince grow up!!!"
"Me too!"
Meanwhile, Leon, Blaze and Olivier immediately went to the Imperial Sky Knight's barracks, where they were set to meet with General Eugine and his older brothers.
The Imperial Sky Knights are the most elite corps in the Seirende Empire. Their main task is to ensure the safety of the Emperor and oversee the other knight corps, like the Crimson Blades, Viridescent Summoners and Amethyst Warlocks.
They directly report to the Emperor himself. It was said that every young knight dreamt of joining this prestigious knight corps as they were considered as the strongest in the whole Seirende.
They were led by none other than General Eugine Farauld, the strongest warrior alive in Seirende Empire. Known to all, he was also the teacher of Leon, the Barbaric Blood Prince.
Leon calmly entered the premises of the Imperial Sky Knights. He went an hour earlier than the set time.
When the knights saw Leon, they paused and gave a respectful salute, which Leon would immediately reciprocate.
The Imperial Sky Knights treat Leon respectfully and kindly because he basically grew up in this barracks before forming his own corps.
The senior knights who saw Leon even bear hugged him with a wide grin on their faces, to which Leon didn't mind. When he was a child, these knights, along with General Eugine, became his father figures in the battlefield.
They never treated Leon with contempt, unlike the noble officials in the palace, nor did they show pity on him either. They treated him fairly and warmly. They taught him the ways of war wholeheartedly. They trained him fiercely and cared for him properly.
Thus Leon would always treat them full of respect, despite the fact that he was a member of the imperial family.
After catching up a little with the senior knights, Leon quietly proceeded to General Eugine's office. He respectfully knocked before he entered the office.
"Come in!" A deep powerful voice rang behind the door. Leon immediately opened the door and entered.
General Eugine's office was quite spacious, yet its overall appearance was not busy. It was only plainly decorated with a set of lounge chairs and coffee table that were simple and low key.
His office table was quite spacious with just a pen holder and a document sorter on the side. No other clutters could be seen on his table top.
He only had one large bookshelf, with the subject areas on Military and Tactics as well as Imperial History.
The overall vibe of his office was as plain as General Eugine's personality. Quiet, neat and straightforward!
Leon looked at the man sitting on the chair behind the office table, he had just flipped his book and quietly placed it on top of his table. Just like a typical military man, he has a towering build.
His grey hair was cleanly cut along with his shaven beard, his bronze eyes were sharp and piercing.
Although he had already aged, his vitality was incredibly strong and he could even instill pressure on common people just by simply standing idly.
What more if he released his blood lust? Men will pee on their pants and fall on their knees!
This is General Farauld. The strongest knight alive, Leon's lifelong teacher.
Also, He was now Eli's godfather!
"Long time no see, teacher." Leon saluted with a calm and respectful expression.
Eugine didn't react excessively. He just looked at Leon for a good few seconds, without giving an inkling of what was on his mind. After a while, he gave a satisfied nod and said,
"Yes, long time no see. You brat really had a wife and son already!" He said with a helpless and amused tone.
"Your future wife... I'm very happy with my goddaughter. You have a good eye! Not bad…You brat, not bad!" The sharpness in General Eugine's eyes became more gentler as he uttered these words.
"Uhn.. I'm sorry for not telling you this matter in person, Teacher. I have no excuse…" Leon was happy to know that his teacher approved of Eli not only as his future wife but his very own goddaughter.
"Just be sure to tell me right away if you decide to finally marry her! Don't let me wait for too long!" He said in a tone that was more like giving an order.
"Yes, Teacher!" Leon nodded with determination in his eyes, 'I couldn't wait too..' he said in his heart.
"Hmm, good!" General Eugine finally let out a contented nod.
However it was only for a few seconds, he immediately came back to his strict demeanor and straightforwardly asked, "Then what made you meet me earlier than the appointed time. Get it straight."
Leon just nodded, he activated an isolation array and placed a recording crystal on top of General Eugine's table.
"This is a recording of our last encounter with the Spectre. This happened in the Silver Dew Forest as they attempted to look for Eli."
He then played the recording that Randel took before confronting the group of Spectres, where he witnessed the hell wolves destroying their human partners.
General Eugine quietly watched the entire scene with extreme focus. His piercing bronze eyes squinted and burned every detail he could find.
"Tell me the results." He then looked at Leon with a neutral expression, as if he was not shocked by the terrifying scene of the hell wolves going berserk, killing their handlers.
Leon briefly discussed the happenings and the outcome of their encounter, before finally saying, "I had Olivier keep the subdued wolves as well as the specimen that triggers their berserk."
"Uhn, Have you reported this to the Emperor?" With the recording and the information relayed by Leon, General Eugine nodded with understanding.
He also understood why Leon was telling this thing now, it was to ensure that the clean up operation plan will take into account the appearance of the hell wolves which could render an A class mage severely injured.
"He did know of the encounter with the Spectre and the hell wolves. However, I haven't discussed this matter in detail with him yet. I'm afraid that with the appearance of the Spectre, the oracle and my son, Father would not be able to sleep at night if I mercilessly added this to his troubles." Leon answered with a slight frown on his head.
True enough, the Emperor has been occupied with the matters in the capital, him knowing about the dangers of the hell wolves will cause him to stress out. The worst thing to happen was he will not be able to handle this matter properly and the information will fall into the wrong hands.
"Alright, I understand. I'll find time to tell this to him, however the clean up operation comes first." General Eugine calmly answered with a contemplative expression on his face.
"As to the wolves and the substances, once I receive the Emperor's permission, I'll have them sent to the Farauld Laboratory."
"Thank you teacher!" Leon expressed his gratitude. He knew that there was no other safer option than to let the Faraulds handle the matter about the hell wolves.
"No need to thank me. I thank you instead, with this information, I can properly plan the deployment of our forces in anticipation of the worst case." General Eugine replied.
"Besides, if it was an experimentation, it means that they have a limited number of hell wolves smuggled inside the Empire. The best thing we can do is make our teams prepared to handle them if this happens."
General Eugine squinted his bronze eyes with a scheming manner. He would always look like this whenever he plans his ways to the battlefield.
Leon nodded with understanding and gently reminded his teacher, "It's almost time."
"Alright, let's proceed." General Eugine immediately stood up, his tall stature actually created a big shadow in the room.
They walked briskly towards the meeting room which was already filled with the key people involved with the operations.
Upon entering, everyone quieted down and stood up with respect towards General Eugine.
"Settle down, we will immediately start our planning for the clean up operations!"
"Yes, General Farauld!" Everyone answered in chorus.
