Chapter 67. Academy Information

Chapter 67: 67. Academy Information

Kael crossed the main floor of the guild hall and stopped beside the table where the three of them sat.

Lily’s voice remained calm and practical as she spoke to Seraphine.

"If you plan to fight in the coming war, I can train you for the next few days. Even a short period of focused work could help before thry reaches the walls."

Seraphine listened without answering right away, crimson eyes steady.

Eira kept her gaze lowered toward the table, fingers resting lightly against the edge of her seat.

The black hair fell forward, partially hiding her face.

Kael pulled out the empty chair beside Eira and sat down.

The movement finally drew their attention.

Eira lifted her head.

The moment her black eyes met his, a small, quiet light appeared in her expression.

The nervous tension in her shoulders eased a little.

Kael rested his hand gently on her head and gave her hair a light pat.

"How are you, Eira? Did you eat something?"

Eira nodded once, the corners of her mouth softening.

Seraphine’s eyes shifted to him with clear annoyance.

She turned back to Lily and spoke in a flat, decisive tone.

"I’ll fight. But I don’t need any training from you."

Kael glanced at Lily and offered a mild, almost apologetic look.

"Don’t mind her. She just has too much pride. Otherwise she’s a really good girl."

He leaned back slightly in the chair and turned his attention fully to Lily.

"I’ve heard people mention the Royal Academy in the central empire a few times. What is it actually like?"

Both Seraphine and Eira looked toward Lily as well, quiet curiosity showing on their faces.

Lily folded her hands on the table and answered in the same even tone she always used.

"Its full name is the Frostveil Royal Academy of Aetherion. It is considered one of the strongest academies on the continent.

Students from almost every major race are accepted there like elves, vampires, dwarves, snake-folk, merfolk, beastfolk, and others.

As long as an applicant can pass the entrance trials and falls between the ages of eighteen and thirty, race is not a barrier."

She glanced briefly at Seraphine before continuing.

"The academy sits in the capital region of the Aetherion Empire and receives direct support from the imperial court. That is why the resources and the instructors are far above what most border towns will ever see."

Lily paused for a moment, then added one more detail.

"The name Frostveil was given in honor of one of the Twelve Sovereigns of the World, the Frost Queen. She is the current principal of the academy."

Kael’s expression shifted with quiet surprise.

’The Twelve Sovereigns...’

He had heard fragments about them through mana broadcasts and the occasional newspaper that reached Grayhollow, but only as distant names spoken with heavy respect.

He had never known that one of those twelve stood as the principal of the very academy where two of his daughters were already studying.

The realization settled slowly.

He was twenty-seven.

The admission age ran from eighteen to thirty.

That meant even he still fell inside the window and could, in theory, apply as a student himself.

Kael looked at Lily again.

"When did the Frost Queen become the principal?"

Lily shook her head slightly.

"She has always been the principal. She simply never revealed herself to the public. Only recently did she step forward and declare that a storm is brewing and that a war between continents is about to begin very soon which might break the balance of the world."

?’Wait... is she about to pull a Whitebeard and yell that the One Piece is real next?’ Kael thought, half-expecting her to announce a grand pirate era right then and there.

Eira’s shoulders tensed at the words.

Kael felt the shift immediately and placed his hand back on her hair, stroking the strands in a slow, steady motion until some of the stiffness left her posture.

Seraphine leaned forward a little.

"I plan to take the academy admission trials in about a month. Do you think I would qualify?"

Lily’s expression softened into a small, gentle smile.

"I don’t know yet. Why don’t we find out together? Or I could train you myself if you would like that."

Kael turned to Seraphine before she could refuse on pride alone.

"Sera, you should practice with her from tomorrow. I’ll book a room here for Eira so she doesn’t have to stay far from us."

Seraphine’s lips pressed together, but she did not argue further.

The discussion wound down after that.

The four of them ordered a simple meal from the guild kitchen and ate at the same table while the evening crowd slowly thinned around them.

When the plates were cleared Kael stood and walked over to the reception counter.

Mira was still there.

Lina sat on a stool nearby with her arms crossed, white hair falling across one side of her face, clearly still sulking from earlier.

"Hi, Mira," Kael said.

"Did you manage to catch up with Lina? And I’m sorry our arrangement got delayed. We’ll make a new arrangement after we deal with those demons."

Mira’s cheeks turned a soft red as she understood exactly what he meant by arrangement. The planned date hung unspoken between them for a second.

Lina’s head snapped up.

"You perv. Don’t look at my mom like that."

Kael met her golden eyes without flinching.

"Well, your mom is more beautiful and mature than you, airhead. Of course I’ll look at her."

Lina’s face flushed with anger.

She started to push off the stool as if she meant to jump at him. Mira caught her by the shoulder and held her firmly in place.

"Enough, Lina."

Kael left them there and arranged two rooms on the second floor for the night.

He had no desire to walk back to the house as he has training in the morning at 5.

Once the keys were in hand he returned to the table, took Eira and Sera before leading them upstairs.

?He had deliberately rented only two rooms for the night, intending for Eira to sleep safely in one while he and Seraphine took the other.

?’I only booked two rooms so I could finally get some proper alone time with Sera tonight,’ Kael thought, watching her walk ahead of them down the dimly lit hallway.

’Looks like she already knows what I have in mind.’

?Before entering her room, Seraphine turned back to Kael, her voice flat and dismissive.

?"Hmph."

?With that, she went in alone into the room.

While Kael guided Eira to the bed, helped her settle under the blanket, and sat on the edge for a moment.

His hand moved through her hair in the same slow rhythm he had used downstairs.

"Get some sleep. I’m right next door if you need anything."

Eira’s fingers curled lightly into the blanket. Her voice came out small.

"Can I stay with you? I’m still a little afraid."

Kael looked down at Eira’s expectant face, then at the wall that separated the two rooms. Outside, the guild had grown quiet.

Kael guided Eira into the simple clean room on the second floor and helped her settle under the blanket.

The guild hall outside had grown quiet after the evening meal.

Soft light from a single mana crystal lantern filled the space.

Eira’s hair spilled across the pillow, pure white on the left and pure black on the right. Her eyes watched him with open worry.

She spoke in a small scared voice.

"Dad, do you really have to fight those demons? Can’t you stay with me instead?"

Kael smiled at the cute expression on her face.

He sat on the edge of the bed and ruffled her hair with one hand before caressing her soft cheek with the other.

"Of course I have to fight those demons. Or who’s gonna save my little demon?"

Eira’s eyes brightened at once. Joy replaced the fear.

She leaned into his touch like a child receiving care she had rarely known.

Kael kept his hand moving slowly through her hair while they talked about small things.

He asked if the flower tree in the yard had shown any new thorns yet.

She answered in soft short sentences that the thorns were still hard but she checked them every morning.

He told her the training with Amber would make him stronger so he could protect both her and the house.

She listened with quiet attention and nodded at the right moments.

After a while her eyelids grew heavy.

The steady motion of his hand and the calm sound of his voice pulled the last of her tension away.

Her breathing evened out.

She fell asleep with her fingers still curled lightly into the blanket.

Kael leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

"Good night, Eira."

He stood, extinguished the lantern, and stepped outside.

The hallway was empty and dim.

He closed her door carefully and moved to the next room.

When he knocked the door gave under his hand. It had been left open on purpose.

’I thought I had to convince her about sleeping with her but it seems she thought the same as me.’

Kael pushed it wider and stepped inside as he was met with a scene that made him pause at the door.

Seraphine lay on the bed fully naked.

Her clothes were scattered on the floor. Her legs were spread open.

The reddish-pink lips of her bare pussy were on full display along with the soft curves of her breasts and the tight pink nipples that stood out against pale skin.

The sight hit him like a switch. His cock hardened instantly inside his pants.

’She really was waiting for me, it seems.’

He closed the door behind him and stood there for a long moment, blue eyes fixed on the open invitation of her body.