To the envoys, the nobles of the Leonberk Kingdom were an unimpressive lot. They had clearly dressed in what they considered their finest, but their attire was so far removed from continental fashions that it looked not merely unfamiliar, but provincial. The so-called great lords were at least presentable, though they, too, were far from sophisticated.

And their faces were so stiff. Here they were at a banquet celebrating their victory, yet they seemed utterly incapable of enjoying themselves. Some even looked anxious. This was the first banquet attended by foreign envoys in nearly a century; to those envoys, the nobles looked terrified of giving their foreign counterparts anything to criticize.

They might have won an astonishing victory against the Empire, but they had yet to shed the habits of a weak nation. So the envoys thought.

They were mistaken. The kingdom's nobles were not anxious about exposing their shortcomings to foreign envoys.

"Surely nothing else will happen today?"

"Nonsense. This is a momentous banquet celebrating our victory. What could possibly happen?"

"As if the other occasions weren't momentous when disaster struck."

They were worried that something might happen here today.

"Good grief. These days, merely hearing the words 'royal banquet' is enough to make my heart sink."

Remembering how badly the royal banquets of the past few years had ended, the nobles were genuinely afraid this one would meet the same fate. Of course, not every banquet hosted by the Royal Family had ended badly.

"Even His Highness the Crown Prince wouldn't cause another incident with foreign nobles present."

"Don't forget. His Highness didn't hesitate even with the imperial ambassador present."

The problem was the crown prince. Every banquet he attended had been plagued by incidents.

It had been only a few years since he had hurled abuse in Marquis Montpellier's face, back when the marquis was still the ambassador. Nor had it been long since he had arrived with the Northern lords and thrown an Orc's head before the king. More recently, scores of the kingdom's nobles had been put to death for collusion with the enemy. All of it had happened in this very hall.

Under the circumstances, it would have been stranger if the nobles were not anxious.

"Please, let today pass without incident."

They fervently hoped that the banquet would end as it was intended: a celebration of the kingdom's victory. Better still, that it would be remembered as the momentous day a crown princess was chosen.

As if he understood their thoughts, Second Prince Maximilian had arrived early to soothe their fears, telling them not to worry and to enjoy the banquet.

"Are you quite sure the Royal Family—no, His Highness the Crown Prince—hasn't arranged something today without our knowledge?"

Count Branbrut, commander of the Iron Hawk Archers, put the question to Maximilian, drawing on the friendship they had forged fighting together on the central front.

"The Royal Family has no purpose for today's banquet beyond celebrating our victory and choosing a crown princess. So please put your worries aside and simply enjoy yourselves."

Only then did the count turn away, looking relieved. Watching him go, Maximilian sighed. In truth, he was not so certain himself.

He had not lied, of course. The Royal Family truly intended nothing beyond a victory celebration and the selection of a crown princess.

The problem was that selection. It was the Royal Family's wish, regardless of his brother's own wishes. He had heard that his royal father had talked his brother around, but that did little to ease his mind.

"Whew. This is a happy occasion. Let's not think about anything else."

Maximilian shook off his unease.

The kingdoms' envoys approached him one by one to offer their greetings. Their lips politely paid tribute to the kingdom's victory, while their sharp eyes studied him. They were plainly desperate to learn every scrap they could about the kingdom.

Soothing the kingdom's nobles had already worn him out. Having the envoys scrutinize him with glittering eyes on top of that was no small ordeal. The three-day banquet had only just begun, yet he could already feel the back of his neck stiffening. Even so, he treated the envoys with the utmost hospitality.

These people would never have spared the kingdom a glance in the past. Until very recently, fear of the Empire's displeasure would have kept them away. Yet now they had willingly made the long journey to cultivate friendship with the kingdom. He could not afford to lose future allies by treating them carelessly.

While Maximilian entertained the nobles and envoys, filling the now-vacant role of mistress of the royal household, the banquet began in earnest.

"The legitimate son of His Most Noble Majesty King Lionel Leonberk, rightful ruler of the Leonberk Kingdom! Eldest son of the Royal House of Leonberk! Savior of the North! Lion of the North! The kingdom's mightiest knight! His Highness Crown Prince Adrian Leonberk enters!"

His brother, the central figure of this banquet, had finally appeared.

"Our respects to His Highness Crown Prince Adrian Leonberk!"

The musicians' playing, which had filled the hall only moments earlier, fell silent as the nobles knelt and bowed their heads with the cry.

Receiving the profound reverence usually reserved for a king, his brother swept an imperious gaze across the hall. As he surveyed the nobles, his eyes stopped on the assembled envoys. His gaze was so clear it seemed to see straight through them.

The envoys who met his eyes froze. They should have bowed in greeting, but seemed to have forgotten even that. Maximilian was just about to step forward and remind them to pay their respects when his brother spoke.

"Quite a crowd."

His tone was indifferent.

Only then did the envoys come to their senses and bow their heads in respect. Maximilian marveled. Before him, they had prattled away with well-oiled tongues while studying him, but before his brother they did not even dare lift their heads. They looked like rabbits before a lion.

TAP, TAP.

As he stared at the envoys' profound deference, footsteps reached his ears. His brother was already right in front of him. Maximilian's eyes lit up.

His brother, who normally wore nothing but drab armor, had dressed in pure white finery for the occasion. He looked so splendid, so dazzling, that Maximilian almost forgot his princely dignity and shouted for everyone to look. Look how magnificent his brother was! Even the Young Lion of the North's appearance was striking!

"What's gotten into you now?"

"You simply look so dazzling, Brother..."

"Don't be silly."

His brother gave a little laugh and resumed walking toward the dais. Maximilian watched him go, then followed him up.

"You may all rise."

His brother dropped into the seat beside the throne and spoke quietly.

The nobles rose and looked toward the dais, waiting for the crown prince to speak.

"Since we're having a banquet, enjoy yourselves."

At that single sentence, which barely qualified as a celebratory address, Marquis Bielefeld put a hand to his head. Siorin Kirgayen sighed. To Maximilian, even that brevity seemed supremely manly.

"And don't mind me."

His brother added those words, then sank deep into his chair with a thoroughly sullen expression.

CLAP.

Someone clapped to signal the musicians to resume. Music filled the silent hall once more.

"When will this be over?"

His brother was already grumbling with boredom.

* * *

In truth, the Leonberk Kingdom was not a particularly well-known country. For one thing, its position at the continent's northernmost tip made travel inconvenient. Nor did it have any noteworthy specialties that would justify the trouble of visiting. The exorbitant tariffs and tolls imposed by the Empire were another reason people had stopped going there.

Only a handful of learned historians remembered that the kingdom had been founded by people who had broken away to escape imperial persecution, or that its history was studded with wars against the Empire. To everyone else, Leonberk was merely a backward northern country. Had it not won that astonishing victory against the Empire, they would never have visited.

They wanted to ascertain the kingdom's underlying strength and, beyond that, forge ties with it. In the past, fear of the Empire's displeasure would have made such a thing unthinkable. But after losing to Dotrin and then to Leonberk, the Empire no longer enjoyed its former standing.

For the first time, people began to doubt its power. Perhaps the vast empire that styled itself master of the continent was merely an oversized braggart.

Of course, cultivating friendship with the Empire's enemy on the strength of mere doubts would have been far too dangerous. But the Empire currently had no attention to spare for affairs abroad. A Fire Dragon was rampaging through the south, while the Third and Fifth Imperial Princes were fighting a civil war in the central region over the right to succeed to the throne.

If they were going to make a move, now was the time. First, however, they had to establish the strength of the Leonberk Kingdom, which had defeated the Empire.

If the kingdom proved weaker than expected, that would confirm the decline of an empire that could not defeat even such a foe. If its strength matched their expectations, it would mean a new power had risen on the continent. Either way, they had nothing to lose.

The problem was the lack of information. Since their arrival in the northern lands, the kingdom's knights and soldiers had strictly controlled their movements. They had been obliged to follow their guides all the way to the capital, leaving them no opportunity to assess the kingdom's true strengths and weaknesses. Only upon reaching the palace had they finally encountered its elite troops.

"The Royal Knights are more capable than we expected. Their presence is honed to a keen edge as well, suggesting considerable combat experience. Even the ordinary soldiers have high morale and strict discipline. They fully deserve to be called elite troops."

"I cannot tell whether we should take the fact that even the Royal Knights had to fight a war as a sign of the country's sorry state, or simply accept what we see and conclude that the kingdom's forces are strong."

They had barely managed to discern a fraction of the kingdom's military strength, yet it had only confused them further. After much deliberation, they finally reached a conclusion.

"We will judge after seeing the eldest son of the Royal House of Leonberk."

And so they waited for the banquet to begin, waiting for the moment the Lion of the North appeared before them. At last, they came face-to-face with him.

That gaze seemed to pierce their very souls. That immense presence overwhelmed the entire gathering. From the moment the eldest son of the Royal House of Leonberk appeared, the envoys could scarcely breathe. Far from scrutinizing him, they could not even look him in the eye.

He had done nothing but sit on the dais looking bored, yet he was unquestionably the one who ruled the hall. They had not even glimpsed the swordsmanship said to have defeated several imperial Paladins. But they knew. The rumors were true. The Lion of the North who had made the Imperial Army tremble was no fiction.

The instant they realized that, their investigation was over. It was time to stop gathering intelligence and start cultivating friendship with the kingdom.

While the envoys busied themselves, the King of Leonberk entered the hall. Without preamble, he proclaimed:

"Should any woman win the crown prince's heart, she shall become the crown princess."

He invited them to win the crown prince's heart themselves during the banquet, declaring that neither rank nor country of origin would matter.

It was an exceedingly strange proclamation to make about a crown prince's marriage, and an excessively arrogant one to deliver before those who had come seeking a marriage alliance. To the envoys, it sounded as though the kingdom possessed such strength that it had no need for the political ties or alliances that normally accompanied a royal marriage.

That was not the case at all. The king had made the proclamation simply because he would be grateful if his eldest son, who had not the slightest interest in marriage, married anyone at all.

The envoys grew desperate.

"Our plans have changed! Go at once and tell the princess to get ready!"

"Pardon? Her Highness wasn't to attend the banquet until tomorrow..."

"Didn't I just tell you our plans have changed?"

Messengers hurried out of the hall as the envoys bustled about. Meanwhile, the kingdom's nobles had already approached the dais to pay their respects to the king, each accompanied by a beautifully dressed daughter or niece.

The banquet to select a crown princess had truly begun.