Just as Xion thought everything was going great, sothing happened to Allen.
To others, there might not have been anything noticeable. After all, the alchemist always maintained a poker face, but after living together for so long, Xion could easily tell when sothing was off.
Like right now.
Allen was tense. His jaw was slightly clenched, and no matter how hard he tried to play it cool, the way his fingers curled tightly around the glass was enough of a giveaway.
If not for the quality of the glass, Xion might have seen yet another live demonstration of one shattering at a banquet.
"Are you okay?"
That seed to bring Allen back to his senses. His grip loosened slightly, and the tension on his face eased a little. "Hmm."
Xion already felt guilty. They had spent the entire day running around the market. Who wouldn’t be tired?
He certainly was, and he knew Allen must be as well. Yet he had still dragged him along.
The last thing Xion wanted was to witness another scene even remotely resembling Nocturne’s banquet. So, he had to use whatever ans he had at his disposal, and right now, that ant poor Allen.
Even though he had also brought his bag. A new one, which Allen had miraculously given him just at the right ti.
As for why Xion had brought the bag, wasn’t it obvious?
If he needed to use the system’s help, he’d need a cover for that. His bag was perfect for the job if he needed to pull out so weapon or so dicine.
With the black bag placed at his side, he was free to observe his surroundings.
And that included Allen’s odd behavior just now.
"We can go back if you want. I an, His Highness shouldn’t stop us now, right?"
Technically, they had fulfilled the prince’s request. They had attended the party. There was no rule saying they had to stay until the end.
Allen let out a quiet sigh. "We can’t. Not until the king makes his appearance. Only after that can we leave."
Xion’s shoulders slumped. "Oh," he muttered.
It was all too mind-numbing for him and also very exhausting.
The rules, the traditions, the moral values... There were too many of them, and getting used to them was harder than he had expected.
As if sensing his frustration, Allen casually introduced a few people while telling him about the little party which obviously was not little by any ans.
"In na, this is just a small gathering hosted by one of the princes. But only the best are invited."
Xion could tell.
After all, the king himself would be present. That alone ant an ultimate connection to power, and no sane person would want to miss such an opportunity.
Everyone here was a noble at the top of their ga.
That also explained why Xion had an easier ti than expected. Being here ant that no one dared to treat them lightly.
But there was more to it than that.
The Archduke’s wrath and his rciless way of dealing with enemies had long since spread across the land.
And now, with Xion as his beloved advisor, he had been labeled as soone just as important as Darius.
Allen, of course, knew it. Nonetheless, he did not utter another word regarding His Grace to Xion.
Once a teacher was a father for a lifeti. So, even when that "father" was still young, it was Allen’s responsibility to protect his peace.
He had succeeded in doing it so far.
However, fate had other plans for his own peace.
A man of short stature, his long mustache flaring as he spoke, was making his way toward them.
Allen’s barely calm hand began to tighten once again.
"My beloved son!"
The short man’s voice rang out, laced with exaggerated excitent. It had successfully gathered the attention of the people and Xion’s curiosity.
"He’s my father," Allen whispered in Xion’s ear, not bothering to lower his voice. "The one who left to die when I was about your age."
The words were audible enough for the man, Allen’s supposed father, to hear them loud and clear.
For a brief mont, anger flickered in his brown eyes. But soon, a massive smile stretched across his face, nearly splitting it in half with how wide it was.
As he reached them, his focus was solely on Allen. The person his son had been speaking to? Ignored.
After all, other than the Archduke, Allen had no useful connections. So why waste precious ti on so nobody?
Dismissing the curious gazes around them, he spoke joyously, "Allen, my child. We have missed you trendously." His voice dripped with exaggerated affection. "I’ve heard you created a new potion that enhances mana. Is that true?"
Ah, so this was it. Xion mused to himself as he silently stood beside Allen.
Allen had indeed created sothing like that, but the effect was very small, like 2-3%. And that also ca with side effects like headache and of course exhaustion.
Not surprising. If the body was forced to consu mana at an accelerated rate, fatigue was inevitable.
But the real question was, how did this shrewd-looking man find out about it so soon?
"No, you heard wrong, and I think you got the wrong person." Allen pointed in the direction with his pointed chin, "There is your beloved son."
"Oh, co on." The man chuckled, reaching out to pat Allen’s shoulder which the alchemist easily avoided.
Despite that, the shaless man persisted and directly grabbed Allen’s arm as the next best thing.
"I have soone to introduce you to. Co now, make haste. The Baron does not have all night for us."
Allen forced down the irritation rising in his chest.
He was well aware of how tenacious his father could be.
In that regard, they were the sa. Once either of them set their mind on sothing, there was no going back.
Were it not for the many eyes watching, Allen would have left without hesitation.
But he didn’t want to cause trouble for his teacher.
Leaving his teacher alone was equivalent to the open attraction for troubles, and he was not stupid enough to experience that firsthand. He also did not want to be punished like Ray.
With his highness, Nikolai’s protection, no one would be daring enough to provoke Xion... at least, for a while. And that was enough to settle everything,
So, in the end, he made a quick decision. He would listen to whatever nonsense his father wished to tell him before rushing back.
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