Chapter 268: Sending Off the Three Little Ones

Chapter 268

Sending Off the Three Little Ones

"Since the institute has been tasked with taking care of the residents of Erel City, the Setter family has relocated their meetings to this city. If you need our assistance with anything, you can send a message anytime," Steven said as he bid farewell to the young girl today.

Before Ellie had to leave for her mission with the institute, the eldest young lord of the Setter family finally returned. He declared that he would be heading to Erel City with Ellie, prompting everyone in the family to relocate their meeting place to Erel.

Although the Setter family mansion in Erel City wasn’t particularly large, it was sufficient to comfortably accommodate the important members attending this meeting. Thus, it wasn’t much of an issue. With the training plans progressing smoothly, many family members had improved their combat skills, alleviating much of the pressure from the issue. Only minor details needed to be fine-tuned.

The primary topic of future meetings would likely be resource management. The Setter family had acquired more critical resources than they could use. They planned to exchange these for treasures that could benefit their descendants for the next 100 or even 1,000 years.

Additionally, the Ares Kingdom had requested they oversee 2 more cities. Following their recent war victory, many Ares nobles had to take on additional responsibilities, managing the Rhea Kingdom’s cities to prevent civil unrest. Unifying the populace was no small feat.

Moreover, the Rhea Kingdom requested assistance in managing the forests along the route connecting the Rhea and Ares Kingdoms to fully integrate them.

Initially, other kingdoms had planned to intervene as a third party once the war ended. If the Ares Kingdom suffered significant losses, they would seize the opportunity to attack and claim all the benefits, thereby controlling both the Ares and Rhea Kingdoms. However, this plan was thwarted. The Rhea Kingdom’s formidable poison users were swiftly eliminated through a surprise attack. No one knew how this was achieved so thoroughly, but the loss of the poison users significantly weakened the Rhea Kingdom.

Additionally, the level 4 beasts they had reared became rampant in every city. The cages holding the level 2 and 3 reserve beasts were completely destroyed. Consequently, it was as if the Rhea Kingdom had already lost the war before it even began.

Later, they discovered that the one who helped them was actually a member of the Seven Night Poison group. He had been the Fourth Unit Leader of the group. However, internal conflicts led him to sabotage the plans of the Second and Third Unit Leaders, who had collaborated to create high-level beasts.

He became a spy for the Ares Kingdom with the condition that he be granted governorship of 1 city and subsequently become a citizen of Ares.

When the head of the Fernal family learned of this and informed Prince Joseph, it provided a solution to the rebellion issue. They pretended they had been planning this all along to infiltrate Rhea’s ranks and counter their plans. Naturally, Prince Jason was furious, but the outcome was beneficial for the people. He could do nothing but sincerely congratulate them.

In conclusion, the plan to arrest his brother failed in an unbelievable way. The Fernal family was fortunate to benefit from the Fourth Unit Leader’s betrayal, unaware that the true cause of the discord stemmed from Ellie’s actions while disguised as Luke.

But indeed...this was a case of doing good deeds quietly.

Overall, the Ares Kingdom’s lesser-than-expected losses deterred other kingdoms from causing trouble. They could only congratulate Ares on their comprehensive victory. Even though the Setter family was reluctant to take on more responsibilities, they couldn’t avoid the orders.

In the end, they negotiated to manage only 1 additional city. Though the Emperor wasn’t too pleased, many in the Ares Kingdom were delighted. With the Setter family not accepting these benefits, others had the chance to vie for control.

For other nobles, gaining a city to govern was highly advantageous. They could levy substantial taxes; if the official rate was 1 gold coin, they could collect 10 from multiple households, with the villagers none the wiser. This surplus became income for their families to pay the kingdom’s taxes.

In contrast, the Setter family didn’t impose various fees, except charging large merchants rent for trading space, which was quite low compared to other places. However, not just anyone could come; they had to be chosen by the Setter family.

This required the Setter family to plan more meticulously, explaining why their meetings were never short...

“I understand,” Ellie responded, even though she knew deep down she didn’t need to report anything to the Setter family.

Whenever Ellie had a problem, she never asked them for help. It was always the Setter family who showed up just in time to assist her.

"Alright, this time you’ll be going on a mission with your professors. I don’t expect the same chaos as in the Tower of Eternity, but if anything happens, use the magical device I gave you.”

“Understood.” “And also...”

“Let’s go.” Not allowing his father to continue speaking, Owen touched Ellie’s back to nudge her forward without caring about manners. Steven pursed his lips slightly but understood that he was acting like an old man. Watching the little girl who had grown so much in his eyes, Steven felt as though she were his own daughter.

“Father, don’t be so sentimental. Do you have any last words—oops! Do you have anything else to tell me?” Aman laughed, finding it amusing to see his father being ignored.

“I’ll take my leave now.” Koross stepped forward and bowed respectfully. The family head, feeling frustrated enough to want to kick his son, sighed and nodded to Koross.

“Take good care of her.”

“Yes, sir.” They nodded to each other before Ellie, Aman, and Koross stood in the teleportation device. Owen watched Ellie intently, as if unwilling to part from her. If you looked closely, you’d see a hint of sadness in his eyes. Although they hadn’t seen each other often, Owen had found ways to secretly meet the young girl. However, now that Ellie was at the institute, it would be difficult to see her again.

Ellie needed to focus on her studies, and she likely didn’t want him to disturb her. Realizing this, Owen’s sadness became more apparent.

“Don’t worry, Brother. Your younger brother has become much stronger. After this, I’ll protect your future wife well,” Aman shouted before the magic circle teleported them.

Everyone was slightly taken aback by Aman’s words. While others saw Aman’s remark as a tease, Owen, who maintained a stern expression, felt his heart race at the phrase “his wife.”

No matter how strong or decisive he was, when it came to matters of the heart...Owen was still just a boy...

After being teleported back to the familiar institute, Ellie found herself greeted by the sight of young Zoey, who had just returned from her impoverished village, her face brimming with happiness. Earlier, Ellie had given her a large sum of money, which Zoey used to help her village significantly. At the very least, they managed to build a fence around the village to keep out beasts.

Additionally, Zoey had bought plenty of meat and vegetable seeds for her home. It was clear that her family would survive the coming winter comfortably. With no more worries about her family’s well-being, Zoey was visibly joyful.

By her side was the knight who looked as silly and annoying as ever. As the 5 of them gathered again, they exchanged glances, understanding each other without needing words. Although Ellie often complained that she was annoyed with Wint and Aman, she felt that they had become her companions.

Besides Wint and Zoey, who were happily waiting for Ellie, another person filled with joy was Duchess Vida. When she saw Ellie arrive, Duchess Vida, who had refused to enter the institute until she could meet Ellie, walked towards her elegantly. Behind her was Aria, who nodded amicably at Wint, indicating that the two had grown closer recently.

“Duchess Ellie,” Vida’s friendly voice rang out. Ellie respectfully greeted her in return.

“Duchess Vida.”

“Mmm, I heard that you performed quite well in the recent battle. Congratulations on your victory,” Vida said sincerely. She genuinely wanted to thank Ellie for protecting her prince. However, if she said it outright, the prince might feel embarrassed. Although no one spoke it openly, everyone knew that Prince Jason’s survival was due to Ellie.

If it weren’t for Ellie being there and handling things so well, and more importantly...if not for Ellie, Eldest Young Lord Owen wouldn’t have shown up to deal with the enemy.

Even though it wasn’t possible to deal with the Fernal family right now, expressing gratitude wasn’t impossible. Hence, Vida had prepared a gift for Ellie.

“This is something I want to give you. I heard you’re interested in stratagem creation these days, so I thought this magic-infused brush might be useful for creating small intricate stratagems.”

Vida handed over a box containing a valuable brush. She had personally selected this from her family’s treasures. Her father didn’t object, seeming that forming an alliance with Ellie and the Setter family had been on his mind from the beginning.

“Although I feel greatly indebted to you, this brush is too valuable to refuse.” Ellie smiled and accepted the gift with care. This small gesture made the gift giver quite pleased.

“Thank you for accepting it. In truth, an item of this level...if Young Lord Owen wanted to give it, he could easily do so. Therefore, I don’t know if you’ll find it useful. Nevertheless, this item has been treasured in the Jarlon family for a long time. It holds great value to us.”

“Thank you, Duchess Vida, for your thoughtfulness. I will certainly use it well.”

“Thank you. And to you, Second Young Lord...”

“There’s no need to give me anything. And...if you want to thank us for saving that prince, it would be better if he came to thank us himself.” Aman grinned mischievously. Even in front of Duchess Vida, he remained unabashedly rude.

However, he dared to say this because he had already noticed a man walking towards them.

Prince Jason, who used to be full of arrogance, would have turned red with anger upon hearing such words. However, this time he managed to control his temper significantly, even smiling at Aman.

"Indeed, I should thank you personally. Not only for helping me deal with the enemies but also for opening my eyes. If not for you and the Setter family, I would have remained a fool."

Hearing Prince Jason say this himself, Aman and Ellie immediately looked at each other. Their reactions made Prince Jason burst out laughing.

Well...even he couldn’t believe how much he had changed. It was no wonder they felt that way. Nonetheless...he still thought the two of them got along very well. However, he wouldn’t say that again after Young Lord Owen became his true benefactor. Whether it was the unintended help in the tower or gathering the information on the Fernal family’s rebellion...

Therefore...from now on, he would not encourage a good relationship between them but would prevent it instead.

"I heard that the professor is calling the students of each year. So, you third-year students should go now. As for the second-year students, follow Vida. Don’t delay; everyone is waiting..."Prince Jason waved his hand. Although they had arrived together, in the end, they had to separate because they were in different years!!