As Tarek put down the hookah pipe and spoke irritably, Hades stretched leisurely and stood up.

Then he shouted loudly to the crowd gathered in the stadium.

“It’s already this late. Is everyone tired? I hope the food and drinks are to your liking. It’s an honor bestowed by the Sultan, so how could it not be delicious?! Hahaha! Ah, if by chance it’s not to your taste, don’t complain to me, but run to the palace and express your dissatisfaction to the Sultan.”

The relaxed and tipsy guests applauded, praising the efforts of the host of Caleb’s estate who organized the banquet.

“Now, you must be curious. What will the universally acknowledged mad dog Hades, who is at the center of all sorts of scandals or good deeds in this Grand Bazaar, appoint as his Frau!”

People laughed and cheered at the playful introduction of himself as a mad dog. Hades continued with a bright smile, seemingly enjoying their reaction.

Although Hades was certainly a fearsome mad dog, he was undoubtedly a person overflowing with charm and charisma that captivated people.

“A Frau appointment ceremony is not originally such a childish event where one showcases tricks with puppies of famous dogs or famous horses from the northern regions. I express my sincere gratitude to my guests who have endured the humiliation of attending such a place.”

“You talk too much.”

Tarek grumbled beside him. Hades then turned his head towards Tarek, rolling his eyes slightly.

“Obvious and old-fashioned? Those are adjectives that absolutely do not suit Hades Caleb Ignite. That might be the taste of royals like our Prince Tarek here beside me, but. Hahaha!”

“Hades…!”

Tarek frowned deeply and gripped his golden wine glass tightly.

As the fruit wine in the golden glass spilled slightly, unable to withstand the ripples, Hades apologized slyly.

“Surely the little flame, Prince Tarek, famous for his hot temper, wouldn’t be angered by such words?”

As the words became increasingly provocative, finally Serja Dain, who was next to Tarek, stepped in to mediate. Serja Dain was one of the supporters of Tarek.

“Grand General Hades. Your words are witty, but we all didn’t come here today to listen to your eloquence, nor to enjoy a banquet, but to see your Frau. Look at people’s faces, everyone is expecting, aren’t they?”

At those words, Hades’s eyes curved pleasantly into crescents.

“Oh. Serja Dain is quite impatient too. Very well. Now, I’ll present to you all what you’ve been eagerly waiting for. My-.”

Before Hades could finish his words, a loud and resonant roar was heard from the stadium below.

-Grooooar!

Soon, a thick golden-brown mane appeared from below, and a lion that looked fierce even at first glance began to walk out slowly.

“It’s a lion!”

“My goodness, guardians of the desert! It’s a golden lion!”

“Isn’t a golden lion the largest and fiercest breed of lions?!”

Hades’s pupils turned quickly as he looked around rapidly.

The lion coming out to the stadium was not part of the plan. Moreover, that lion had neither a cage nor a chain around its neck.

“Ha! You boasted so much just to bring out a lion?! It’s called a lion, but isn’t it just a big house cat?”

Tarek snorted loudly and giggled beside him.

“It’s a bit disappointing. The food and drinks bestowed by the Sultan seem better, Grand General Hades.”

Serja Dain also clapped politely, but sided with Tarek’s words.

Hades looked around sharply, rolling his eyes.

The fortunate thing was that the stadium where the lion was located was quite low, so there was some distance from the people, and the lion didn’t look hungry.

He couldn’t understand why the lion that was supposed to be sent back to the livestock market was now wandering in the stadium, but he didn’t show any sign of panic.

However, there was just one thing that bothered him.

“Where is Latifa now…”

Hades bit his lower lip and rolled his eyes back and forth.

But then Tarek threw a chicken leg at the lion with all his might.

-Thud.

The chicken leg hit the lion’s back precisely and bounced off to the ground.

-Grooooar!

The lion roared loudly as if angered, but Tarek mocked it thoroughly.

“Haha! Looking closely, it’s an old lion that’s lost its strength! I had high expectations when you said Frau! Well, it’s cute, Grand General Hades! Puhahaha!”

“P-Prince Tarek. That lion seems dangerous without a leash. Please refrain from such dangerous actions…”

Serja Dain tried to stop Tarek, frightened by the lion’s roar, but Tarek laughed recklessly and picked up another fruit nearby to throw.

“A strong man of the desert doesn’t fear such a house cat! Its teeth must have all fallen out. They didn’t even put it in a lion cage, did they?”

-Grooooar!

As the lion began to jump around swinging its front paws at Tarek’s continued provocation, the people placed close to the stadium in the front started to run around in chaos.

“Kyaa! The lion is going wild!”

“Run away! The lion is trying to climb up!”

The greatly excited lion was trying to climb over the low walls of the stadium, swinging its large claws.

Hades watched the chaos for a moment, then reassured the people in a loud voice.

“Everyone, calm down! We have our Prince Tarek here who is skilled with the sword!”

“What?! Me?!”

Tarek, who had been mocking the chaos from the side, jumped up in surprise at Hades’s shout.

“Originally I was going to do it, but Prince Tarek can bravely drive away such an old lion, can’t you?”

“Ha! Insolent…!”

Tarek, who was quite drunk and had his pride hurt earlier, drew his scimitar from his waist and went down to the stadium.

“Hades’s kitten, I’ll kill you with a single slash without needing to drive you away!”

Tarek, who had come down to the boundary between the stadium and the audience seats, thrust his sword at the lion that had put its foot on the stadium wall.

“Khaaat!”

But was it because he had drunk too much fruit wine, or was he momentarily frightened by the lion’s yellow eyes and large claws?

Tarek’s strike grazed the side of the lion’s face, and Tarek could only scream as he watched the lion’s front paw flying towards his shoulder.

“Uwaaaaah!”

Tarek’s loud scream filled the courtyard.

With Tarek’s injury, the stadium became an even greater chaos as people began to flee in confusion.

“In the end, the prince was scared of my cat!”

Amidst the chaos where people were running away due to the lion and everything was in disarray, Hades mocked Tarek like that, then suddenly erased his expression and put his hand on his scimitar.

“Latifa must be down there too, so I should kill that lion first. How on earth did it escape from the cage…”

It was when Hades was slowly rising from his seat to draw his sword.

A silvery wave was rippling down there in the stadium.

A silvery wave was appearing below, shimmering in the purple sunset of the glorious desert sun about to set.

“That’s…!”

Not realizing that his manly, refreshingly handsome dark lips were slightly parted, Hades stared blankly at that wave.

“Look over there! Someone’s there!”

Walking out gracefully and majestically from one corner of the wide stadium was Latifa.

The pure white silk dress she wore was embroidered with shimmering silver thread with beautiful embroidery, emitting a bluish light, like it contained the light of the full moon, with such elegance.

Around it were thin, transparent silk fabrics, fluttering gently with each step she took, making her look like a goddess descending to earth.

The sleeve ends showing her white and slender arms were embroidered with silver vine stems, and at the end of each stem were small, white shimmering peridots that emitted dazzling light with every movement.

Even the people who were fleeing lost themselves for a moment looking at her, but soon they started shouting at her again because of the lion roaring loudly again.

“Hey, run away! You’ll be eaten!”

The lion was blinking its yellow eyes with its face dripping blood from Tarek’s sword, but she was just walking slowly with a dignified and elegant gait.

As the lion tried to swing its front paw at her approaching nearby, even Hades, who hadn’t shown any urgency until now, urgently called out to her.

“Latifa!”

As if she heard his call, Latifa stood in place and stretched out her arm. At the gesture that seemed to say ‘don’t come closer’, Hades stopped his footsteps that were about to quickly go down.

“What are you doing now…!”

Her skin, whiter and more transparent than pearls, was revealed on her outstretched hand. With a confident smile on her red lips and eyes clearer than aquamarine, she was emitting a powerful aura different from the usual Latifa.

“Ha!”

Seeing that sight, Hades let out a laugh-like sound and smiled playfully.

“It’s white skin! The one standing there is an imperial!”

“Is she a prisoner that General Hades brought from the empire?! She’s even more beautiful than the golden princess we saw in the victory parade!”

People murmured as they looked at Latifa who had now climbed onto the central altar of the stadium.

Her dazzling silver hair flowing softly under the hair ornament made of beautiful opals and silk shone more mysteriously and beautifully than ever, receiving the purple sunset light.

And there were two men of the desert looking at such a Latifa with burning eyes.

**

“Your Highness, do we really have to go this far?”

Irgos looked around, wrapped in a dark brown robe.

Many people were eating, drinking, and enjoying themselves around the stadium prepared by Hades.

“The fact that Hades didn’t invite me to such a big event probably means there’s a reason I shouldn’t know about it. There’s no need to create unnecessary trouble.”

Ruhan, standing next to Irgos, was also sitting on a long sofa drinking mint tea, with a dark blue robe pulled down over his head.

Not having received an official invitation to the Frau’s appointment ceremony and not even having heard about it from Hades, Ruhan had finally entered Caleb’s private property mixed in among the guests.

“Then you didn’t have to come.”

Irgos was lying on the sofa next to him, maintaining a quite upright posture.

“I didn’t come for the banquet, but because there’s something I need to find.”

While drinking mint tea, Ruhan was constantly rolling his eyes and looking at people, but Irgos wore an anxious expression, worried that people might recognize Ruhan who had sneaked in like a thief.

“I’m afraid we’ll be caught by other guests. If it’s discovered that a prince, and one said to be Hades’s close friend, has sneaked into a banquet like this, it will become a huge scandal.”

“Irgos. Sitting upright and doing nothing like you are looks more suspicious. If you want to hide in the forest, shouldn’t you look like part of the forest? Think of this as a vacation and enjoy it leisurely.”

Ruhan leaned back on the sofa, taking a sip of the tea with a strong peppermint flavor.

“It’s not a vacation if your superior is next to you. If you’d at least tell me what you’re looking for, I could help…”

Although Irgos grumbled, he still maintained his upright posture and didn’t let his guard down. Ruhan liked his stubborn loyalty.

Ruhan fiddled with the small bracelet in his pocket, careful not to let Irgos notice, and muttered softly.

“If only I could give this to her.”

“Eek, that’s Manut!”

Irgos suddenly pulled up the dark brown silk scarf he was wearing around his neck over his lower face, but Manut, a soldier with quite good eyesight, seemed to notice him and approached Irgos with a smirk.

“What, Irgos. Even a goody-two-shoes like you got invited?”

“Hmm, ahem. Manut, shh. Shhhh.”

Irgos cleared his throat loudly and kept rolling his eyes to the side.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you making such weird eyes? Have you become cross-eyed from reading military law books in dark places all day? I knew it when this guy bragged about becoming the captain of Prince Ruhan’s personal guard.”

“Manut, wait…”

A flustered Irgos tried to cover Manut’s mouth, but Manut continued his words, sneering.

“Didn’t I tell you that prince is a workaholic by nature and won’t give you any rest time and will work you to the bone-. Oh my goodness! Guardians of the desert!”

Manut, who had been speaking only his own words, recognized Ruhan at Irgos’s unusual eye signal and immediately knelt down in shock.

Seeing this, Ruhan chuckled and ordered him to get up quickly.

“General Manut. Be quiet and stand up. I’m just an uninvited guest who sneaked into a local dignitary’s banquet to enjoy delicious food.”

“W-Your Highness! Why are you here instead of going up to the VIP seats!”

“If you can keep quiet, this uninvited guest can become a distinguished guest instead of causing a big commotion.”

It didn’t matter if Manut found out, as he was Irgos’s close friend from the Palaestra (military academy) and as good as Hades’s closest confidant.

The reason for sneaking in avoiding Hades’s eyes was purely to be careful not to become the subject of gossip among Tarek’s supporters.

If word got out that Hades hadn’t formally invited Ruhan, it was obvious that rumors would spread about discord between them.

“Manut, secretly tip off only Hades about my presence here.”

“As you wish.”

Manut responded politely.

“And I’m not such a rigid workaholic.”

As Ruhan playfully added, Manut again clutched his stomach as if it hurt.

How long had it been since Manut left? The two heard people’s cries about a lion appearing and looked down towards the stadium.

And Ruhan could only stare blankly at that place.

“That’s… Lati?!”