Cold mist and silence lingered in the hall. A lone child stood alone surrounded by ice blocks.
No one could comprehend what just happened. A small child had attacked multiple nobles with one of them a marquess at that and defeated the guards instantly.
Back at the table, Merlin was on his feet.
"H-how could this be?" The man who was the most shocked inside this hall was undoubtedly this man, Merlin. As someone who had tutored Earl alongside the princess, what was shown here was far above what he had seen. "Since when did he reach this level? Ari!"
"Fufu, don't be so surprised, old man." Ari chuckled while giving the old man a sideways glance. "He is my son after all. Shall we go take a closer look?"
Clack.
Clack.
Clack.
The sound of Ari's footsteps broke the silence that permeated throughout the hall. One by one, the eyes of the surrounding nobles were drawn to the source of the footstep.
When all eyes were on Ari, she had already arrived behind Earl with Merlin.
"The number one genius of Ablax... produced a monster." Someone from the crowd muttered. It was a common sentiment that was going through the mind of all the nobles at the scene right now.
There were so many things that could be said, but the most shocking elements could be narrowed to 2 things. One, the instant defeat of the guards. These guards were not some random picked off the streets. They were trained Adept that were paid fairly for their service. Most Adventurers would not be able to defeat them at all.
And secondly, the use of Frostfire Magic. It was no secret that Ari Roth, the youngest Court Mage of the Ablax Kingdom and greatest genius invented Frostfire Magic. Because it was such widespread news, it was no surprise that people would try to imitate her signature magic.
The fact that within the entire kingdom, before this day, the only person who can use this magic was the creator herself despite all the attempts by other mages was a testament to how difficult it was to learn this magic.
Ari wore a light smirk as she scanned the crowd with her eyes. Their reactions pleased her.
"Let me make it known that it was these people who started this mess. Ultimately, it was just a small quarrel between children. There was no need for Marquess Lee to be acting so brashly. He can contemplate his actions and parenting inside the ice." Ari said softly to the crowd. Strangely, everyone was able to hear her clearly despite how soft her voice was.
But of course, nobles will always be nobles. Some immediately protested. "This is unprecedented! How is he allowed to do this without any consequences!?"
The particular noble pointed his finger at Earl.
"Don't be pointing fingers now, do you want to be turned into an ice cube too?" Earl smiled innocently as he said.
"This! This is exactly what I'm talking about!" The noble raged on.
"That's enough!" Merlin interjected. "There's no point in pursuing this matter further."
"..."
The words of another Court Mage was enough to extinguish the flames. The nobles would not be so stupid to not follow the words of the pillar of the kingdom.
Earl gave another last look through the crowd before calling out to his girls. "Lily, Aria. Let's go home."
The trio soon disappeared out the door of the hall.
Before following Earl, Ari went up to the ice blocks that Earl made and checked the quality by knocking it with the back of her hand. After she finished checking, she smiled and left the hall.
The departing figure of Earl would be remembered by the nobles at the scene.
Shane looked deeply to the entrance.
"So that's your mentee you told me about, father?"
Merlin nodded. "Yes, but he's not usually this provocative and aggressive..."
"He's not? I would assume he takes after his mother. Lady Ari does have a strange temper."
"He's usually very calm and well-mannered. Those nobles must've done something to provoke him." Merlin sighed. "The heart of Ablax lies in unity in the people. Once the nobles fully lose sight of that, I can't imagine what would happen. This is only the beginning."
Shane took the words of his father to heart. In the end, the birthday party of the crown prince came to an unexpected end.
Inside the white carriage of Ari.
"You really made a mess there. How do you feel?" Ari inquired as she leaned into the wall.
Earl looked out the window to see the bustling night time of Ablax. "It was exhilarating. I felt powerful."
He recalled the feeling of freezing those nobles who were in his way. As someone who was from civilized Earth, he never had the privilege of having such a straightforward way to handle his foes. He always had to go through various hoops and hurdles. To be able to handle those who held ill intent towards his girls in such a way, he could not be happier.
"Don't let that power get to your head. Magic has no room for that." She reminded. Her purple eyes met with his. It was as though she could read every thought of his with that simple glance.
"I understand."
"Do you really understand? Come here." Ari said sternly.
Earl took in her emotions and made his way over to his mother. He knew his actions back at the hall was not exactly the best course of action but his bottom line was touched. His bottom line was nothing out of the ordinary, it was the simple desire to protect his family and loved ones.
For those noble children to have ideas toward Lily and Aria...
Boink!
Ari grabbed Earl into a hug. An immediate sense of comfort swallowed him whole, breaking him out of his thoughts.
"Do you think I'm mad? Are you trying to justify your actions?" She softly said.
Before he could say anything in response, she hugged him tighter.
"You don't need to. I'm not mad... I was just worried."
At that moment, Earl fully understood everything. However strange their relationship was, they were ultimately family. And family cared for one another. Like he did for Lily and Aria, or right now, his mother for him.