Someone's home

Chapter 19

The hall fills with cheers for the man at the center of the hall, and he takes the microphone handed to him.

“Thank you, thank you. Ah, it brings me great joy to see so many young and valiant warriors tonight. I thought we will train only few young Knights, but it looks like we will learn from each other after all,” he says with his thick Jaruna accent and a smile, as his gaze sweeps across the gathering. “But of course, before I forget, let me introduce myself first, for the young ones who might not know me.”

He walks back and jumps to the stage, joining the group of people there.

“I am the Sovereign of the Emerald Kingdom of Jaruna, Kaelen Tharros von Skalbjorn. And here beside me, my beloved wife and Matron of Jaruna, Nymera von Skalbjorn. Just call us King and Queen, ‘Sovereign’ and ‘Matron’ are both too long,” he says, holding his hand out to the lady who punched his statue earlier.

The entire hall bows to them in silence, after which he continues.

“These are my beloved daughters, Aurea and Alessia. Sadly, their youngest sister Anastacia is not here tonight, but I’m sure she’s safe out there, having fun on her own adventures,” the king says with a small sniff.

Naoya and his group quickly glance over at Ana, who was still hiding behind them.

“Anyway, no time for sappy sad sad tonight. Because tonight, we will party—aww, aww, I mean, tonight, we will… have formal and friendly welcome for our friends from Valebryn, yes,” he quickly changes his words after his wife pulls his ears.

A small glass of sweet, aromatic wine appears in front of everybody.

“Everyone, let us have toast. To the continued peace and prosperity of our kingdoms, and the strengthening of our camaraderie. To Jaruna!”

“To Jaruna!” everyone follows.

“And to Valebryn!”

“To Valebryn!”

With that, the banquet officially begins.

Naoya and his group were treated to a night filled with endless food choices and various activity stalls, which showcased a lot of Jaruna’s culture. Naoya and Clara were the most adventurous ones, eagerly trying out everything like curious, hyperactive children. Tessa and Lance were infected by their energy, and even Captain Bellan, seeing how much fun they were having, joined in as well.

Captain Eiren sighs. “Well, good thing you two are here. At least we still have some people to uphold the Knight’s image,” he says to Astrea and Greta.

They simply giggled and watched their friends run around the buffet and activity stalls, elegantly eating some large baked lobsters.

Ana, meanwhile, was quietly eating on the side. She tried her best not to get recognized when she got herself a few dishes, missing their familiar taste, but she ended up going back and forth from the buffet anyway, getting new food each time and trying to hold back her tears as she savors them. Astrea smiles and gives her a pat on her hooded head, trying to comfort her.

Eventually, they regroup on the open air half of the hall, happily eating dessert and telling stories about the people and things they experienced so far, under the starry night sky.

“So, ummm… Ana, I don’t wanna be too nosy, but I’m really curious why you left. It seems like they still care about you based on what His Majesty said earlier,” Naoya asks her as they gathered around a small table.

A cool, light breeze passes them by as Ana looks up at everyone. “I mean, they were never bad parents. It’s just… I felt really overwhelmed with being a princess. Everyday was the same routine, and there were so many expectations for you. Not just from my parents, but you know, from everyone. Especially when my sisters passed the Ascendant Tests… after watching the trial and seeing everyone’s reactions, I was so stressed since it was gonna be my turn soon, and… well, that’s how I got here,” she finishes her story, pulling down her hood back down.

“Ohhhh, so that’s why… yeah, I kind of get that…” Naoya softly replies, remembering his past life.

“But hey, it’s not an issue of bad parenting, right? At least they aren’t like mine,” Tessa comments.

“And they’re pretty funny too, especially your dad,” Lance says, trying to lighten the mood.

“What? No, it’s not funny! Well, maybe for you, but think about it from my perspective. He just never fails to give me and my sisters second-hand embarrassment from his theatrics!” Ana exclaims in disbelief.

Everyone’s eyes suddenly widen, staring at her as she continues her rant.

“Like there was this one time, for my 10th birthday, he literally performed clown tricks in front of everyone, balancing elephants on his arms and doing failed skydives through burning vines, making himself look stupid. I mean, what self-respecting king does that?!”

“Aww, you did not like spinning elephant tricks I did for you?”

A familiar deep voice with a thick Jaruna accent suddenly says from behind her, and Ana freezes up with a panicked expression.

“Uhhh, ehem.” She clears her throat and attempts a manlier voice. “G-greetings, your Majesty. I, uhhh, I was simply telling my Knight friends about a story your daughter… uhhh… your daughter’s friend… that was also my friend… yes, a mutual friend we had. A story that mutual friend of ours that the Princess told our mutual friend when she visited Valebryn in her adventures.”

“Ohhh, I see. So you and my daughter has mutual friend, and you heard it from them, yes? I was going around and greeting the guests when I heard you tell that story, so I was quite confused. Anyway, how are you all doing so far?” the king asks the group.

The two captains stand up and bow, and everyone else follows, except for Ana, who was still frozen.

“We had a lot of fun, Your Highness. Thank you very much for the hospitality,” Greta replies.

“And delicious food,” Astrea adds.

“Hahaha, of course. You all should have your fill tonight, so you have energy for training tomorrow.” He looks back down to his daughter. “And how about you, hooded Knight? Did you like the mushroom pie?”

Ana raises her head and looks at the plate of half-eaten mushroom pie she has in front of her, along with a stack of seven more plates beside it, all stained with the same brown sauce.

“Yes, sir…” she softly replies with a sniff.

“Haha! I knew it would be popular with you Knights. I made it myself for tonight, actually. It is my daughter Ana’s favorite dish after all,” he says as he pats her hooded head.

Overcome with emotion, the strong, brawny, and confident girl that was Ana stood from her seat and quickly embraced his father, burying her face in his chest as she started crying.

He simply smiled and hugged her, softly patting her head.

”Welcome home, Ana.”

Her friends watched the heartwarming reunion with varying intensities of reaction. The Captains simply smiled; Naoya and Astrea happily watched them with flowing tears, while Clara and Lance had more extreme reactions, ugly crying with tears and snot gushing down their faces. Tessa and Greta tells them to compose themselves as the rest of Ana’s family approach the group.

“Ahh, so there she is. I was starting to think Sir Valiansteel was just messing with us,” a tall, muscular woman with bear ears and short brown hair comments. She was one of Ana’s sisters, introduced earlier as Alessia.

“Now, now. Be nice to your sister, or you’re gonna make her run away again,” their mother says as Ana embraces her and cries into her chest as well.

“Ahh, such a happy day for family. Almost making me cry as well,” the king says as he turns back to the group, his tunic soaked with tears, forming a large blot on his chest. “Speaking as parent for now, and not as king; thank you for looking out after my daughter. I feel relieved she made such great friends as yourselves. Especially you, Captains. Thank you for guiding her as well.”

“It was our pleasure, Your Highness. Truthfully, she was quite a personality at first, haha…” Captain Eiren replies. “But over time she’s proven herself to be a reliable and trustworthy Knight. And I’m honored that she’s on my team.”

“Well, that just makes me proud. It seems letting her grow on her own was best choice after all,” he says as he glances back at his family, embracing the long-lost princess. “Ahh, let me introduce you all to some of my friends as well.”

Two more faunites approach the royal family, and Naoya’s heart skips a beat. One of them was the eagle-winged general that welcomed them earlier.

And the other one was a young fox faunite lady with silvery grey hair and a dark blue dress. The same one that had caught Naoya’s eye earlier.

She takes a small bow, and their gazes meet for less than a second, but it was already enough to send his mind into a panic.