With great enthusiasm Rowena added, "You can ask him for advice. I'm sure he'll be able to help us."The girl's face even looked radiant, but Riley shook her head."Why? You don't want to?" Rowena asked with a confused expression.Riley sighed, "My father ... he's been in that field, risked his life and has done a lot for this kingdom. And right now he's living his life like an ordinary person."He then turned to the princess and continued, "I don't want to see him thinking hard about the war anymore. I want my father to just relax into his current life with my mother without thinking about things like this anymore, Your Highness."Rowena was silent.The girl was instantly reminded of her meeting with William Mackenzie some time ago. If Riley wanted his father not to worry about the kingdom, his father, the most powerful general ever, did the same.The god of war also did not want his son to know of his arrival. He also wanted his son to not worry about anything and focus on his goal.
Alen shook his head and then replied, "It's possible that the design of this shirt is old, only the name is designed suddenly."James immediately scowled. "Damn you, Smith, why do you always enjoy destroying people's imaginations?"Alen chuckled, "Oh, that's not it. I just knew what you were going to say so I wanted to make you realize and remember the reality first."James did not reply again because he was still annoyed, while Riley just appeared with a clean face, "What's wrong?""Oh, you're so slow! Look at your uniform!" James said.Riley's reaction was more or less the same as Alen or James. However, the young man did not even hide his smile."Hey, are you so impressed with this outfit that you're smiling like that, Wood?" James said with a lopsided smile.Riley didn't take offense and instead said, "This is actually a battle suit for future soldiers like us. I wonder what the soldiers wear nowadays."Alen nodded and quickly took all the uniforms. Riley and James raised their ey
Not wanting to make James Gardner suspicious of him, Riley quickly replied, "Of course not. How could I be afraid of something like that?"James squinted, looked questioningly at his friend and then grinned as if he had caught his prey. "But, what I saw wasn't like that. You're ... scared. Come on, be honest with me, you're afraid of the camera, right?" James said with a lopsided smile still gracing his lips."It's obvious, Wood. Your expression says it all." James continued cheerfully.Riley immediately corrected his facial expression and replied in an exasperated tone, "Nonsense. My facial expression is flatter.""So?" James said while raising an eyebrow."I'm not scared, James. I just don't like it. Satisfied?" Riley replied, gritting his teeth in annoyance.James giggled, ignoring his annoyed friend. Unwilling to hear that annoying laughter, Riley chose to walk faster and left James who was forced to run after him.Oh my! Riley had almost forgotten what he was supposed to be thin
James Gardner let out another long sigh, "Oh, this is what happens when you choose to make out with the king's daughter over eating dinner on time."Riley really wanted to sew James' mouth shut for saying words that he thought were unimportant before getting to the point."Come on, don't play games, James!" Riley said as he bit his teeth.James grinned, "Fool, it's because there was a big war last night. The remaining soldiers were sent to the Fermoza Kingdom."Hearing that, of course Riley was very surprised, "What do you mean? Does that mean there are really only a few soldiers in this kingdom in total?""Yes, it does," James replied.Riley instantly fell silent, starting to panic. "What did they do? How could they do something like that? What if we get attacked? I mean, if the kingdom is abandoned by-""Calm down, Wood! There are still about twenty-five percent of the soldiers in the palace. That's still enough to protect this kingdom and the members of the royal family. So ... all
William Mackenzie looked surprised at his wife's agitation. It had been so long since the man had seen his wife so anxious.So, he chose to be more careful when responding to all his wife's words."Please, answer, Bill! Why are you silent? Is there a rule that prospective soldiers can be sent to the battlefield if there is an emergency?" Cassandra said fiercely once again.William grimaced and pulled his wife closer to him. Afterward, he hugged his wife while stroking her hair and slowly said, "I know you're worried. But, it's not just you who's worried, dear. Riley is also my son. I was the one who gave him permission and I was even the one who helped him enter the palace. I'm fully responsible for everything, Cassie."Upon hearing her husband's words, Cassandra cried even more. In the beginning, she was the one who was the strongest when letting her son go for the selection, but now she was the one who was almost going crazy worrying about her son."Then ... what should we do, Bill?
William shook his head firmly, "No. It's not. The problem of the two of them is still the same, there's nothing else yet. But ... it's about Riley and Princess Rowena."Cassandra raised an eyebrow, feeling both astonished and confused, "What is our son's relationship with the princess of Ans De Lou Kingdom?"William looked at his wife straight on, as if preparing to say an important thing that was difficult to say.Cassandra, who had known her husband for decades, could certainly sense how nervous he looked."Bill, say it! Why are you being so convoluted about it?" Cassandra protested.William bit his lower lip, "The problem is that this is too shocking for me. In fact, not once did this event ever cross my mind. To the point that I ....""You really made me impatient. Are you telling me or am I going to find out by calling Mary myself?" Cassandra said as she had lost her patience.William grimaced, "Riley is in a relationship with Princess Rowena.""Relationship? Princess Rowena made
Someone behind the young man immediately interjected, "Hey, we don't know the situation and condition of our royal troops yet. Don't speak carelessly!"Riley turned his head toward the source of the voice. The person speaking was Damian Irving, one of the sons of the senior soldier who had also been his father's subordinate.However, Riley did not know if Sean Irving, Damian's father was still a soldier in the palace. But, if that person was still in the palace, his position must have risen to a higher position.As Riley recalled, senior soldiers who had good skills and a lot of war experience were usually placed at level one. And as long as Riley set foot in the palace, he still could not find out about the level of the soldiers due to his busy schedule as a prospective soldier. "I'm not careless. You're not blind, right? You can see with your own eyes how damaged this area is!" the man said curtly, seemingly disagreeing with Damian Irving's words.Damian sighed irritably, "The si
Riley was well aware of the difficulties he might face. However, he still said, “No matter how difficult it is, I will still try to meet him.”James sighed irritably, “Well if you're still that determined, good luck.”Riley snorted, he thought James would help him. But, apparently he was just expecting too much from a James who was still selfish sometimes.As they continued walking, a senior soldier of the second level leading them suddenly raised his right hand and asked them to stop.One of the prospective soldiers asked, “Are we there yet?”The soldier with one of the pistols in his hand replied, “Where do you mean?”“At ... the battlefield,” the prospective soldier replied sounding so nervous.The leader snorted, “This is already a war zone. Can't you see your surroundings?”The would-be soldier who asked the question swallowed hard, a bit scared.Meanwhile, the squad leader put his weapon back in its original place and said, “There is a small battle not far from here. The command
Gary Davis replied with a serious expression, "Your Honor, I apologize if you find my words presumptuous, but ....""Just say it! Say everything you want to say!" Xylan commanded.From the tone of his voice, Xylan clearly sounded impatient. "I'm ready to listen! And ... I won't get mad at you, don't worry!" Xylan added after he saw the hesitant look on Gary's face.Xylan thought maybe Gary was afraid that he would be punished if he said what was in his head so the future king's salon had to reassure Gary for the young man to be braver.Gary nodded, looking relieved. At least he had an assurance that he would not be punished. "Your Highness, you ... will be made the new king of Ans De Lou Kingdom. You are still very young and you yourself must have guessed that ... that ... I am ...."Xylan clucked his tongue impatiently, "Just say it! I have no problem. Just take it easy!"Gary nodded again and continued, "There are some who don't like you. Although ... for now things aren't looking
Hearing Gary Davis' answer, Xylan Wellington frowned.Is this really the same young man who always gives me good solutions? Xylan wondered.The future king looked deeper and deeper at Gary and finally raised his right eyebrow when he realized he had thought something stupid.More and more Xylan realized that Gary Davis might indeed be smart and dexterous and quite knowledgeable. But, such an intelligent person could also have an innocent nature like the young man had just shown himself."Your Highness, why don't you answer my question? Am I-""Forget it!" Xylan cut in quickly.Gary scratched behind his ear in confusion.Xylan sighed and said, "Gary, are you anxiously awaiting the announcement of the changes in staff and palace officials later?"Gary frowned, quite surprised by Xylan's question.The young man opened his mouth and stammered, "Your Royal Highness, I ... I'm just ...."Just by looking at Gary's expression, Xylan instantly knew that his guess was correct. The young man di
"Of course it is. Otherwise, how could his café business be successful?" Diego said, who seemed to be satisfied with the results achieved by James, his best friend.Reiner became more interested, "How? I mean ... you know he's ... well, he can't be polite and he tends to annoy people. So, what did he change?"Diego looked like he was about to answer, but Shin suddenly said in an incredulous tone, "Oh, wait a minute. He manages the cafe business together with his mother, right? Uh, I'm sure the customers come to his place because of his nice mom."Ben nodded in agreement, "I've never met James' mother, but ... considering James is like that, I'll take Shin's word for it."Diego immediately put on a sour expression, looking rather annoyed. This was because his own friends apparently didn't know James very well.However, he was the one who was witness to how James had changed so much that he felt the need to set the record straight."Hey, I'm telling you seriously. James, who is the owne
Alen did not immediately answer the question of his senior and good friend. He seemed to think for a moment before finally giving an answer, "It's like you don't know James.""What do you mean?" Shin replied while blinking.Alen snorted impatiently, "Shin, James is unpredictable. You must also know that sometimes he can do things that no one would ever think of. So, how can I guess what he might do?"Shin was stunned. The young man smiled wryly, "Damn, you're right about that. He is indeed unpredictable."In the end, the two people did not ask James any questions about what they discussed. When the funeral was over, they all returned to their respective places. However, not James Gardner. The young man who was the war general of Ans De Lou Kingdom at that time was seen walking towards Xylan Wellington's residence.Of course, this led to various speculations among most of the palace residents. It was not only the officials and staff of the palace who began to notice the irregularitie
"It will, Diego," James replied."He can wait," James repeated with emphasis.Diego didn't seem convinced by James' answer.James was usually reluctant to go into too much detail about what he was thinking. However, Diego was one of his best friends so he didn't want to confuse his best friend.So, James said, "He's not an easy guy to beat, Diego. And ... there's one thing you need to know.""What's that?" Diego asked with one eyebrow raised."His own father, I mean General Mackenzie told me that his son ... will not die easily," James explained.Diego was so dumbfounded that he didn't dare reply.James was sure his job of explaining was done, but he still added, "If the greatest and most powerful general the Ans De Lou Kingdom has ever seen said that, then there's a very good chance that Riley is still alive out there."Diego was silent for a few moments.But then he said, "If General Mackenzie believes that, we have no right to doubt him.""You're right, Diego. Therefore, we just ha
William's lips lifted upwards once again, forming a warm smile."James, without me explaining it, you ... must know it yourself, right?" William said softly.After that, the old man who was once the strongest soldier in the kingdom patted James on the back and then left James pensive.The young man swallowed hard. Suddenly he remembered all the things about Riley, more precisely their friendship that they had established since the beginning.All those memories came back. One of the memories that bothered him was when they were still not officially inducted into the army. At that time he was upset and made the stupid and desperate decision to attack the enemy as proof that he was different from his father. Then, the only person who really cared about him was Riley. He was the one who sacrificed himself to save him. At that time, he and Riley were both aspiring soldiers. Neither of them had the slightest experience on the battlefield. But, Riley was still looking for him.Uh, when he
James Gardner nodded, "Yes, Your Royal Highness. May I do so?"Xylan Wellington quickly nodded, "Go, General Gardner. You can talk to him."James was grateful that Xylan did not hold him back."Thank you, Your Highness," James said as he quickly left the crown prince along with three first-class soldiers to guard him.Indeed, the three soldiers were certainly no match for him. However, he chose to trust the three of them.Luckily, it turned out that William Mackenzie who looked much older by a few years was also looking for him so their meeting did not encounter any obstacles."General Mackenzie," James greeted the father of his best friend respectfully.William Mackenzie smiled faintly and replied, "General Gardner."James nodded, "You … are you alright, General?"William returned a smile and said in a low tone, "How can I be fine when I have some problems, General Gardner?"James frowned, looking rather confused.Not wanting to riddle and confuse James, William quickly explained wit
James suddenly gave Gardner a lopsided smile. He knew it was not easy being Xylan Wellington's shield. But, he really did not expect that the crown prince who he thought was so smart was also so innocent.His intelligence seemed to be inversely proportional to his knowledge in terms of understanding the world around him.However, he had already decided to replace Riley in order to make up for the few years of time he had wasted so he should try to be patient.Thus, he calmly replied, "You should start thinking about the matter of all of their opinions, Your Highness.""Why should I?" Xylan retorted, who did not seem to accept James' words.James bit his lower lip, feeling the need to suppress his irritation even more. Come on, James. Don't give up so easily! James thought to himself."Because you are the future king and will soon inherit the throne of this country. So, you should start thinking about what they think of you," James replied.Xylan was about to reply, but James was fas
The indecision on Xylan Wellington's face was evident. James Gardner, who felt that he had succeeded in making the crown prince realize the big mistake Xylan was about to make, called out, "Your Highness."Xylan flinched slightly when he heard his name being called by James.The young man turned to James, but still did not open his mouth.At that moment, James Gardner was certain that Xylan would change the decision they had just discussed.However, he suddenly saw Xylan smiling at him. That of course made James blink his eyes in confusion.But, within seconds, his confusion was answered. He heard Xylan say, "General Gardner, what you said is true. Everything is right. I ... might get some opposition for choosing Gary Davis as the king's advisor."He nodded. James immediately got a bad feeling that he didn't want to imagine."But, General Gardner. I have found no other good candidate than Gary Davis for that position. And ...."He paused for a moment, seemingly thinking about somethi