"Pfft. Showoff."
As everyone else stared at the King of Lanthanor as if they were seeing a ghost, Elanev couldn't help but say this under his breath even while hiding his own shock.
The old man had only said that Daneel was an Exalted Warrior, but that was leagues different from being a Peak Exalted Warrior- a being just one step away from becoming a legendary Champion, which was a level that had never been seen in the Central Continent.
Usually, he was used to being the center of attention in a room due to his fast training speed, but in front of his little brother, all he could do was bow and accept defeat.
Eloise was the first to recover. After all, she was someone who had full confidence in the King's abilities to repeatedly awe everyone, so this only served to increase the adoration she felt for him.
Kellor was next. With a wistful expression, he leaned back and caught his chin with his hand before shaking his head.
He couldn't believe that this was the little kid whom he had awed all those years ago, in the National Academy, when he had shown up to kill that spy from Axelor.
It felt like it was just yesterday when Daneel had been looking up to him for support, but now, he had surpassed him and gone so far that he was merely an ant that could be crushed with a thought.
At this moment, he could only feel shame that he was still stuck at the peak of the Exalted Human level, and extreme curiosity as to just how the hell the King had managed to cross everyone in the Central Continent itself, just like someone who had come to participate in a running race with a super-fast Ether-driven carriage.
As for Aran, Cassandra, and Robert, their shock was the most pronounced.
Cassandra was like Elanev in the sense that she was also someone who was proud of her training speed.
However, now, seeing someone who had broken all the norms known to her, her jaw just wouldn't close, and she could only keep staring with wide open eyes, while wondering if this was a dream.
A damn Peak Exalted Warrior!
That meant that…the person in front of her was the most powerful man in the entire Central Continent!
She was a fiery woman who had never felt any kind of feelings for any man, but now, such an ultimate level of power suddenly made the King look quite attractive.
If Daneel could hear her thoughts, his face would once again be burning by now.
Aran, on the other hand, began to chuckle and laugh as if he had gone crazy.
Here he was, busting his ass each and every day just to reach the Peak Exalted Human realm for years, and their King had gone into closed door training for a few months and come out as a Peak Exalted Warrior?!
I mean, come on, man, should you be so domineering that you make the rest of us feel worthless?
His laughter seemed to be just one step away from turning into crying, and this broke Robert out of his shock.
He had just been feeling quite proud of his own training speed after recovering the ability to train, but he had never expected that his son would eclipse him like so.
Seeing the others who reacted in different ways, Robert first stood up and said, "Son, it is not good to show off like that." Before walking away, unwilling to let his son see his reaction.
"Exactly!"
This was from Elanev, who had actually been hoping to get the same reactions from everyone by revealing that he was a Warrior.
Hearing his admonishment, it was Daneel's turn to not know whether to laugh or cry.
He had just wanted to inform them, and to be honest, he hadn't intended to drop it like a bomb like that, thus eliciting such intense reactions.
However, now that he looked back, he realized that maybe…he had done so unconsciously just for this.
Well, he had gone through untold difficulties to get to this level, so he was very proud of that and seeing the shock and dropped jaws had felt quite fulfilling and satisfying.
Yet, now, understanding that he needed to offload some of the attention, he blurted out, "It's not just me, Elanev is a Warrior too!"
"WHAT?!"
If it were the King of Lanthanor, who was said to be the most talented person to be born in centuries, then the others could at least accept that he was someone capable of such feats.
But Elanev? The playboy who had once been famous for being chased around half the Kingdom for bedding the daughter of a very powerful Fighter when he was just a teen?
They couldn't believe it. No, they didn't want to believe it.
Even though it wasn't as shocking finding out about the King, everyone in the room except Eloise had had enough of shocks for now.
"Nope," said Cassandra, getting up and throwing her hands in the air.
"Uh-uh." This was from Aran, who mimicked Cassandra and stood up while shaking his head.
"…"
As for Kellor, he didn't say anything, but his emotions were clear: he wasn't ready to believe that the kid who was constantly accused of stealing the undergarments of women had surpassed him.
Robert also didn't say anything, but he shot a glare at his son, and the King had understood by now that he had made things worse.
These were all people who had been struggling for power for years! And now, all of their struggles had been made to feel useless due to these revelations.
Only Eloise, who already knew this, sat in her seat with a small smile on her face.
"Son, come to our room later. We should talk."
As Daneel heard this and scratched his head, Robert staged a walkout, and as the King of Lanthanor watched on helplessly, Aran, Cassandra, and Kellor followed him, all while still showing disbelief.
"Hey, why are you-"
Hearing Elanev say this, all of them turned around and shot such an intense glare toward him that he promptly shut up and remained seated.
At the door, only Kellor turned around and weakly shrugged after glancing at the King before exiting too before shutting the door.
As for the reason behind this walkout, it was simple: they just needed some time to wrap their heads around the fact that the Kingdom which had just recently been targeted and mocked for having no Warrior level individuals at all, now suddenly had 2, with one even being a Peak Exalted Warrior.
Inside the room, Daneel's eyebrow twitched while he spoke in a tone which made him look as if he were trying to cling on to his authority as the King right now.
"You're all dismissed…I-I guess?"
Finally, this made Eloise break out into laughter, and as this tinkling sound echoed across the room, Daneel and Elanev also cracked smiles before beginning to chuckle.
However, while laughing at the absurdity of the situation, Daneel decided one thing: he was going to make all of those people Warriors as soon as possible, as he had no intention whatsoever of letting them waste their potential at their current level.
It was not just them; he had decided that all those who were qualified, such as the previous Grand Court Mage who was silently training, would be given opportunities to break through.
Lanthanor was soon going to be the center of a lot of attention, so the more Warriors they had, the better.
As for the plan he had stated, he was truly looking forward to it: the television was one of the most world-changing inventions back on Earth, and it was high time that it was implemented here, so that Daneel could reap the benefits.
One thing was for sure, though: he was going to have this little incident of his own commanders walking out on him scrubbed from the records.
…
Meanwhile, in the Kingdom of the Elves.
A court session had just been adjourned, during which Eldra had heard a report that she was currently the Queen with the highest approval rating in the last few hundred years.
She had only cracked a small smile and said some perfunctory words about how that was possible only with the continued support of all those in front of her, but inside, she had been scoffing about it.
After the court, she headed to the underground room again where she spent the majority of her time.
This room was quite small: it was made of yellow-colored stone, and some simple necessities such as a bed and a basin were placed to the side.
One wall was left completely bare, and as she closed the door, activated the formations which hid her presence from all those below the Hero level and knelt before placing her palms on it, as if she were praying, she heard a voice in her head.
"Well done, Eldra. You are progressing well. Your mother was right about you."
Eldra frowned as she heard this, but she put away her emotions before asking the question she asked each and every day, whenever she came to this room.
"How close am I to breaking the oath?"
"Have faith, dear. The technique I gave you is one which is highly effective. Now, have you completed your assignment?"
"Yes. I have gotten close to a maid. Like you instructed, I let her become my true friend. I speak to her about almost everything. She is an orphan, so she has started to treat me as family. I, too…"
As the Queen of Eldinor showed a small moment of vulnerability, the voice in her head said, "Treat her as the same? Good, that was exactly what was supposed to happen. Now, call her here."
With shock, Eldra asked, "Here? B-but why? I thought you said this room had to be kept secret from everyone!"
With a laugh, the voice responded in a chilling tone.
"From everyone alive, child. Everyone alive."