"Good morning, my dear queen," Allen greeted as he stepped into the office, closing the doors behind him.
"Speak," she said, lifting her head to address Allen.
"Queen Mother's assistant called this morning to inform us that the queen mother has appointed the great sword master, Tang, as a personal trainer for Princess Alina, as she has shown a keen interest in sword fighting," Allen reported.
Queen Elizabeth responded with a smile. "Mother dotes on her far too much. It's good to hear that she's taking an interest in something useful."
Allen smiled, thinking of the spirited princess.
“Continue,” the queen said after that.
Taking a deep breath, Allen continued in a serious tone, "The expert we invited to treat King Edward has says that there is nothing more he can do. We can only pray to the gods for his recovery."
Elizabeth let out a sigh, rising from her seat and approaching the window for some fresh air. "This is the third person this year stating the same words," she noted wearily.
Allen lowered his head slightly, then continued, speaking a bit hesitantly "And..."
Elizabeth inquired without turning around, "And what?"
"I have informed Alexander that you are summoning them all back for the Princess's death anniversary," Allen explained. "He has assured me that they will all return in time."
Hearing this Elizabeth became completely silent. No one could tell what she was feeling by looking at her expressionless face but if someone looked deeply at her eyes they could see the sadness and guilt lingering in them.
"Very well. Attend to the preparations," she finally uttered.
With a bow, Allen replied, "Yes, my Queen," before taking his leave. Left alone, the queen sank back into her leather chair, her gaze fixed on the ceiling lost in her thoughts.
In the land of humans...
"Have you finished all your admission paperwork?" Liam inquired Lea as they made their way back to class.
At the mention of paperwork, Lea halted in her tracks. "Oh, I completely forgot. I need to sign a few papers at the admin block today to get my ID."
"I'll join you in a bit. You go ahead," Lea attempted to head towards the admin block, but Liam intervened.
"Wait... The freshmen will have formed a long line by now. It'll take the whole day just for that one task," Liam reasoned. "I know someone there; we'll get it done quickly."
"But the class—" Lea began, but Liam cut her off.
"It's just the second day. Not much is happening in class, and this is the least I can do to show my gratitude for your help and for forgiving me," Liam insisted.
"Lea, let him come with you. It'll be faster," Rayan chimed in.
After a moment of consideration, Lea relented. Together, she and Liam headed towards the admin block, while the others returned to class.
At the admin block...
"Finally done. So exhausting! Now I won't have time for lunch, and class starts soon," a tired and irritated-looking guy exited the admission office, clearly a bookish type with his neatly pressed attire, buttoned-up shirt, transparent glasses, and meticulously combed hair.
Seeing him grumble to himself, Lea couldn't help but laugh.
Startled by her laughter, the guy turned towards her with surprise, and then approached. "Hey, Lea!" he greeted, adjusting his glasses with a broad smile.
"Hi, Will. Good to see you," Lea replied with a smile. "Looks like someone isn't thrilled about stepping out of their comfort zone."
"Not at all. Been in line since morning to get this paperwork done, and it took ages. I'm just annoyed thinking about how much I could've accomplished in that time," William vented.
