The days passed. Arthur began to recover and feel better. Luana often accompanied him for walks in the rose garden to breathe fresh air and to get used to walking again.

Once fully healed, he decided to reunite his faithful servants in the great hall.

He was sitting at the end of the big table. Sitting to his left were Luana, Azusa, Rachel, Mina and her mother. And sitting to his right were Angus, Lucas, Eric, Matthew and Edgar.

"My dear friends, I've gathered you together today to thank you for your hard work at managing the palace in my absence. I'm very proud and grateful to have you," Arthur said, a soft smile on his lips.

"We've only done our duties, Your Majesty," Angus replied.

"It's always a pleasure to serve you, Your Majesty," added Edgar.

The emperor nodded.

"As all of you know, we are far from having finished with the danger. Very far even. We must stay awake because the enemy will try to do everything to get to us. We all know that after trying to kill me, they wanted us to believe that Duke Lobelia was a traitor."

"What ?!" Azusa exclaimed in shock.

"Calm down, Darling," Rachel whispered.

"B-but... When did that happen ?! Why didn't anyone tell me ?!"

"We didn't mean to alarm you, Azusa. But it's okay now. Sir Carter has interrogated the bandits' leader and it turns out that an imposter has pretended to be me," Angus replied.

"An impostor ?" Luana asked, confused.

"Yes. And we still haven't discovered his identity," Arthur replied.

"All we know is that he's a young man with white hair and red eyes," Matthew said.

"I don't remember having met anyone with these characteristics," retorted the emperor.

"We think that he may be a foreigner. After all, the bandit group is. It's very likely that they are from the same kingdom," Eric remarked.

"It's very possible, yeah," Matthew added.

Arthur sighed heavily.

"For now, that's not our priority. We'll find him sooner or later."

"Yeah, that's true."

"Okay. Back to the most important thing. I decided to organise a ball where I will invite all the noble families of the empire. It's a way of showing the enemy that their plan has failed and that the emperor is still alive."

"As you wish, Your Majesty," said Angus.

"For the event, we will have to strengthen the surveillance. We never know if the enemy decides to attack again. So, stay vigilant."

"Understood, Your Majesty," they replied in unison.

"Good. With that, I declare this meeting over. Thank you for coming."

The emperor got up from his seat.

"Sir Koraxos and Luana," he called out.

"Yes, Your Majesty ?" asked the young captain.

"Meet me at my office. I need you both," he ordered.

"As you wish, Your Majesty."

With that, Arthur left the great hall.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Arrived at his office, the emperor asked the princess and her bodyguard to sit on the armchairs in front of him to talk.

"I've asked you to come here to give you a mission," he said.

"A mission ?" asked Luana, puzzled.

"Yeah. I would like you, after the ball, to try to find out the identity of this so-called foreigner with white hair and red eyes."

"You're not convinced that he is a foreigner," Lucas deducted.

"Not at bit," Arthur replied.

"Why is that ?" Luana asked.

"Auvrovaria is, speaking of the area, the largest empire in the world. It's impossible for an outsider to know some hidden places that maybe even the inhabitants of the empire are unaware of," Arthur explained.

"I agree with you, Your Majesty. Besides, to take the risk of impersonating Duke Lobelia, this impostor has to know him at least a little bit," Lucas added.

"That's right. But I don't deny the possibility that he is a foreigner working for someone in the empire. But of course, not just anyone can afford to hire a foreigner to work for him. Especially not for a job as dangerous as this one."

"That's why you invited all the noble families to the ball," Luana deducted.

"Exactly. It will allow us to detect who is in our camp and who is in the enemy's."

With that, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," Arthur ordered.

It was Gardner who entered the room.

"Good morning, Your Majesty. Your Highness. Sir Koraxos," he greeted, bowing.

"What's the matter, Gardner ?" Arthur asked.

"Your Majesty, Sir Andvari has arrived at the palace and he asked to see you."

"Elion ? He's back ?" Arthur asked, surprised.

"Azusa told me that he wrote me a letter in my absence announcing his return," Luana replied.

"This is very good news," Arthur said, a smile on his face.

He turned around to Gardner.

"Bring him here," he ordered.

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Gardner replied, bowing.

A few minutes later, a young man about the same age, height and build as Lucas entered the room. He was handsome with slightly tanned skin, dirty blonde hair and green eyes. He was wearing a black jacket, pants, cape and boots.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," he greeted, bowing.

"Elion," Arthur called softly.

He approached the young man and put his hand on his shoulder.

"It feels so good to see you again safe and sound," he said, smiling slightly.

"I too, Your Majesty, am very happy to see you in good health. I was very concerned for you when I heard the news of your illness," he replied worriedly.

"Don't worry. I'm much better now."

Elion turned to Luana and showed her a big smile.

"Your Highness," he greeted, bowing.

"No need to be formal with me, Elion," the princess said, chuckling slightly.

"Thank you, Luana," the young man replied, smiling.

After that, Elion turned his gaze to Lucas who had a neutral expression on his face.

"And you are ?" he asked hesitantly.

Arthur approached him.

"Elion, this is Sir Koraxos. He is the new captain of the Imperial Army and the princess' personal bodyguard," he introduced.

"Oh, yeah. I've heard a lot about you, Captain. It's good to finally meet you," he said, smiling slightly.

"The pleasure is shared," the young captain replied coldly.

"I myself am an Imperial Knight. But I'm specialized in the Secret Services."

"Oh, I see. That's why I've never seen you before."

"Exactly."

A little moment of silence settled down.

"Okay, since you're back, I presume you have some information for me," said the emperor.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Very important information even."

"I'm listening to you."

"During my mission, I visited several villages in the empire and even in other kingdoms. There happen to be several groups of thugs who spread terror wherever they can."

"Groups of thugs ? I thought that the Imperial Knights were dealing with them," said Arthur, confused.

"This is where the question arises, Your Majesty. These groups are very well organized that it's almost impossible to get a hold of them."

"I see. They're very cunning."

"During my research and with the help of some villagers, I was able to obtain some information on the leaders of these groups."

"The leaders ?"

"Yeah. There are ten of them. Seven men and three women. Two of them have already died."

"Abras and Slater," Lucas said.

"Exactly," Arthur added.

"I came across some groups that we got rid of with the help of the guards who were in charge of the security of the area. We questioned their boss. He told us that he worked for one of these leaders. And he also told us that they were all under the command of a person that they call Grand Master. He didn't mention any names, unfortunately."

"That's okay. We'll find out their identities sooner or later. The most important thing right now is to protect ourself while carrying out our investigations."

"I agree with you, Your Majesty," replied the young man.

"Good. In two days, we're going to organise a ball. I wish you could be present, Elion."

"I will be there, Your Majesty."

"Alright. You must be very tired from your trip. You should go get some rest now."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," he replied, bowing before stepping out of the office.

Arthur sat down on his desk.

"We should go too, Dad," Luana said.

"Okay, Luana. See you tonight for dinner."

The young princess and her bodyguard stood up and left the room.

Once outside, she saw the young secret agent waiting for her. The latter approached her, smiling.

"Luana, if possible, I would like to talk to you later. I have something very important to tell you," he said, his cheeks slightly pink.

"Yeah, of course. I'll wait for you," replied the princess, smiling.

The young man smiled back at her.

On his side, Lucas felt his heart throb with jealousy. He clenched his fists tightly.

Elion turned to him and gave him a small smile.

"It was a great pleasure to meet you, Sir Koraxos," he said, holding out his hand.

"So do I, Sir Andvari," replied the young captain, shaking his hand.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

The day of the ball arrived. The main hall was beautifully decorated and the tables were filled with delicious food and succulent desserts.

All the imperial knights as well as the nobles wore their official outfits for the occasion.

The emperor was seating on his throne, accompanied by Duke Lobelia and Count Taliny.

Azusa was with her mother and Sir Carter. The girl was lovely, dressed in a nude-colored velvet dress with slightly puffed sleeves. She wore a pair of black high-heeled ankle boots and styled her hair in a pretty braid.

Eric accompanied Mina and Countess Taliny. The girl was dressed in a burgundy suede dress with bishops sleeves and a pair of brown high-heeled boots. She had gathered her hair into a nice low ponytail.

As for the princess and her bodyguard, they were standing in one of the corners of the main hall, observing their surroundings.

Luana was dressed in a gorgeous emerald green velvet dress with long, slightly puffed sleeves. She wore a pair of suede high-heeled ankle boots in the same color as the dress. She let her hair down freely.

"So far, everything is calm and peaceful. Everyone seems to be very happy that His Majesty is healthy and safe again," Lucas remarked.

"Yeah... I'm glad that everything is back to normal," the princess replied with a big smile.

"Me too."

A little moment of silence settled between them.

"Sir Andvari seems to be very close to you, Luana," began the young captain.

"Yeah. He's my childhood friend, after all," Luana replied, a big smile on her face.

"Oh, I see. You seem to be very happy ever since you saw each other," he remarked.

"Really ?" she asked, surprised.

"Yeah. You've had a big smile on your face since his return. So, I thought to that he must have told you something that made you happy."

"Yes, that's right," the young girl replied with a chuckle.

"Oh, I see," Lucas added, feeling a pang in his heart.

"He has finally decided to take the step and ask for the hand of the girl he's loved since he was young," she chuckled.

"Oh, really ?" He replied, feeling his heart tear to pieces.

"Yes. And he wanted me to be the first person to know that. Since he doesn't have any siblings, he considers me as his little sister. So it's only fitting that I'm the first person to know," she added, chuckling.

The young knight felt a huge weight lift from his chest. He sighed softly.

"Yeah, I understand," he replied, smiling.

"He's going to have an engagement ceremony in a few days. So he asked me for some help."

"This is very good news. I wish them a happy life."

"Me too."

A few minutes later, Marquis Dale Kalmiv made his entrance with his daughter Cecilia.

He was dressed in an official black outfit with silver details. As for his daughter, she wore a blue velvet dress with long sleeves and a pair of brown high-heeled boots. Her hair was pulled back into a half ponytail.

"After the ball, we should think of a strategy to find the identity of the impostor," Lucas said.

He got no answer.

"Luana ?" he called.

The young princess stared at the door of the main hall insistently.

A handsome young man that was a little smaller but of the same build as Lucas entered the room. He had pale skin, short snow-white hair, and ruby-red eyes.

He wore a simple outfit, consisting of a white shirt with a black jacket on top with gold details and pants of the same color with a pair of dark brown boots.

The young princess flashed a small smile that made the young knight next to her even more confused.

"We don't need to look for him anymore, Lucas... He came to us on his own..."