The Herb King

News about the defeat of the Ford Empire spread like wildfire and it caused many of its neighboring empires to feel afraid of the Leone Empire's might. Some of them even took the initiative to get close to the Leone Empire and offered them various gifts.

The members of the Leone Imperial Family happily took the gifts on behalf of the emperor who couldn't attend to the visitors because he was still busy in dealing with the aftermath of the battle.

Meanwhile, in the Reynolds Household, everyone was in a celebratory mood because King Aethelwolf asked for Samira's hand in marriage!

"Is this really happening?" Samira muttered to herself as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. Yesterday, Aethelwolf came to visit their estate and proposed to her. He even brought a lot of gifts, each being more valuable than the other.

She stared at the engagement ring on her finger with a look of bliss. It was a Unique-Rated item with a Defensive Rune inscribed on it. Upon activation, she could even block the attack of a Level 5 Esper once!

Standing behind her was her mother, Antonette Crossfield. She smiled gently at Samira as she combed her daughter's hair. "Are you happy?" She asked. She knew that her daughter had a secret crush on Aethelwolf. Although Samira didn't tell her about it, she could sense that the way she looked at him was different.

Samira smiled bashfully as she nodded her head. "I've been dreaming about this. I never thought that he would take the initiative to propose to me."

"Aethelwolf came here after knowing that you were engaged to Prince Jonas. I believed that the cancellation of the engagement between you two is also his doing. Maybe he already liked you a long time ago." Antonette chuckled.

Samira shook her head, but when she recalled her interactions with Aethelwolf, she realized that it might be possible. This thought made her cheeks turn red.

"After we are done here, we'll visit Miss Hyacinth's clothing shop and choose a perfect wedding gown for you." Antonette muttered with a smile.

"Alright." Samira nodded her head eagerly. She was also excited about this.

News about their engagement soon reached the ears of the nobility and many came to congratulate the Reynolds Household.

Later that night in the estate of the Urgel Household, Julie Irish sat on the balcony with a lost expression on her face. She also heard about the engagement of Samira and Aethelwolf. For some reason, she felt an explicable sadness enveloping her heart. "Why am I feeling like this?" She muttered to herself as she stared at the starry night sky.

At this moment, she realized that she might have taken a liking to Aethelwolf.

"Is it really like that? Do I actually like him?" Julie Irish muttered before downing a glass of wine.

Because her mind was so occupied by all sorts of thoughts, she didn't even notice that her sister, Grace, was already standing behind her.

"Sister, you only noticed now? I knew a long time ago that you like King Aethelwolf." Grace sighed as she walked closer to her sister.

Julie Irish was a bit startled when she heard Grace's words. She turned her gaze and stared at Grace in silence.

"I will join you." Grace grabbed the wine bottle from her hands and took out an empty glass. She then poured wine for herself and then for her sister.

Julie Irish took off her veil, revealing the face of a peerless beauty with long crimson hair. She was like a goddess, untainted by the mortal world. "If only I had shown him my true face..."

"Actually, it's not yet too late for you, sister. Who says he can only marry one woman? He is the King of Barden Territory! A peak expert with the strength of a Level 5 Esper! It's completely normal for a person as strong as him to have multiple women at his side, but are you prepared for that?" Grace muttered while looking at her sister. She was young and open-minded and she didn't have traditional thinking.

Hearing this, Julie's eyes flashed. "You're right. He is so outstanding and Samira wouldn't be able to hold him alone." Her lips curved upwards.

Meanwhile, the man in question was now in midair with his eyes shut tight, appearing to be in deep meditation.

Aethelwolf could sense that something was summoning him from afar. He opened his eyes and looked in a certain direction with a confused look on his face. "What is summoning me?" He muttered to himself.

He first noticed this feeling when he became a Level 5 Esper and it was becoming more frequent as time passed by.

After a moment of hesitation, Aethelwolf decided to take a look at what was calling him. He flew into the sky with his wings unfurled.

Aethelwolf flew for more than a few hours and he passed by many empires along the way. There wasn't a Level 5 Esper in any of those empires so he managed to pass through without alerting anyone.

Soon, he arrived on an island that had countless runes of all kinds scattered all over the place. The defense in this place was unlike anywhere he had been to. One single mistake and he would be a goner! That was how heavily fortified the island was.

"Where is this place?" He muttered in surprise. Suddenly, he noticed an aura sweeping in his direction. He immediately used a Concealment skill to hide his aura, preventing the other party from locating him.

He could sense that there were a lot of Level 5 Espers in the area and from his initial estimates, there were around five of them on the island!

"This aura... Eliazar? Could this be the territory of Mystic Island?" Aethelwolf was pleasantly surprised when he sensed Eliazar's aura. The guy was one of the Mystic Island's Holy Generals so Aethelwolf concluded that the island in front of him must be their headquarters.

Aethelwolf avoided the detection of the experts while finding a blindspot to bypass the Defensive Runes. It took him about an hour to finally reach a small pond. He could feel that the summoning was getting more intense.

He observed the area around the pond and he heaved a sigh of relief after seeing that there was no rune inscribed. He stared at the pond with a hesitant look and after a minute of struggle, he jumped into the pond.

Splash!

Aethelwolf was shocked when he discovered that the pond was actually so deep. He swam into the deepest part of the water and saw a rift that seemed to be leading to a different dimension. The calling also intensified and he discovered that it actually came from behind the rift.

Aethelwolf tried to escape from the captivating voice that was whispering in his mind. However, he had underestimated the enchanting power and it dragged him inside the rift.

He felt his consciousness slowly drifting and after a long time of struggle, his eyes slowly closed.

Cough! Cough! Cough!

Aethelwolf's eyes sprang open and he shivered from the coldness in the air. When his eyes regained focus, he discovered that he was lying in a snowy field and his body was covered in snow. It was so cold that even with the body of a Level 5 Esper, his body was still shivering from the coldness.

He summoned a fearsome flame that immediately made him feel warm. He also covered his body with a small layer of world essence before he surveyed the surroundings. There were no signs of life and he seemed to have traveled to another world. "Where am I?"

He felt a bit anxious after realizing that he might have traveled to a distant land.

***

The experts of the Mystic Island were soon alerted.

"Young Miss, something is happening to the Snowy Pond!" Eliazar reported to Nocturna with a solemn look on his face.

"What?! Take me there!" Nocturna furrowed her eyebrows as she followed Eliazar to the Snowy Pond. The headquarters of the Mystic Island is heavily protected by many peak experts and there were even hundreds of high-level Defensive Runes scattered all over the place. For this reason, they didn't bother to put any defense in the Snowy Pond.

When they arrived, Nocturna saw that the Snowy Pond was emitting a brilliant glow as if it was shining. "What's happening?!" She muttered in surprise. It was the first time she had seen the Snowy Pond emitting such brilliance.

Eliazar shook his head and answered. "I have no idea. I've already alerted the others and they told me that no one's been here. This Snowy Pond leads to the Frigid Snow Dimension. Perhaps something is happening in there."

"The portal leading to the Frigid Snow Dimension only opens once a year so we can't verify your conjecture. Sir Eliazar, please guard this area. We can only wait until my father returns." Nocturna muttered solemnly.