Chapter 189: Crisis in the Unveiling Party

One after another, the nobles of different ranks and status, along with the various branches of the Ashenlocke Family, took their seats as the event officially began.

The atmosphere inside Castle Hall Grandus was lively.

The enormous hall glowed beneath rows of crystal chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling. Golden light reflected across polished marble floors and expensive decorations, while the voices of nobles blended together into a constant murmur that filled the building.

At the center platform, a man and a woman walked onto the stage.

Immediately, flashes of light appeared.

Photographers stationed around the hall began taking pictures while the crews responsible for broadcasting the event adjusted their recording equipment.

The cameras were already rolling.

The unveiling was being transmitted live.

Not just to Metallica.

Not just to the territories under Ashenlocke.

But to all of Britannia.

Tonight, was the night the Duke House of Ashenlocke would reveal its newest generation of talents to allies, rivals, and countless curious spectators.

The future stars of Ash.

The future Young Lord.

The future of one of Britannia’s most powerful families.

"Greetings to all the Nobles, Counts, Viscounts, High-Embers, Low-Embers, and Barons who have made their way to this glorious event of the proud and powerful Duke House of Ashenlocke."

The man spoke brightly into the microphone he held.

The device itself was one of Britannia’s most common inventions.

A product derived from the research of the Galehart Family, the Wind Alchemists of Britannia.

Using Wind Alchemy as its foundation, the microphone amplified sound throughout enormous distances.

His voice spread across the hall clearly and firmly.

No matter where someone sat, they could hear every word.

"And greetings to all the young nobles as well. We haven’t forgotten you lovely, beautiful, and handsome children of Britannia."

The woman beside him added with a smile.

She also held a microphone.

"Finally... Greetings to Britannia."

The two spoke together.

Applause immediately erupted after the spoke, with the sound echoing through the enormous hall.

"Now..."

The woman continued.

Her elegant gown swayed slightly as she raised one hand toward the large golden doors positioned to the side of Castle Hall Grandus.

"Let us proudly welcome the Elders of Ash!"

Her voice rose higher.

At that exact moment...

The golden doors opened.

Rows of maids appeared first.

They walked in perfect formation along both sides.

Between them walked the Eight Elders of Ashenlocke.

Their black-and-white robes flowed behind them as they advanced calmly through the hall.

Golden patterns lined the edges of the robes.

The Ashenlocke crest rested proudly on the front of each garment.

The moment they appeared...

Every noble stood and every conversation stopped with only a wave of bows following.

The elders acknowledged the gesture and continued toward their seats.

Only after all eight had settled down did the audience return to their chairs and the hosts resumed speaking.

"My dear people of Britannia, we all know why we are gathered here today."

The man smiled.

"Yes."

The woman nodded.

"But before we begin the main event, we must first recite the Britannia Scholars Anthem."

The crowd immediately rose once more.

Even the elders stood.

The anthem echoed through the hall.

For a full minute, voices joined together, then everyone returned to their seats.

Music resumed and Servants once again began circulating through the hall carrying drinks and trays of snacks.

The hosts continued speaking to the crowd.

Meanwhile, among the seats reserved for the rankers...

Zavier leaned slightly closer to Zara.

All of the rankers occupied the front row while behind them sat parents, siblings, guardians, and close relatives. That was the arranged order of sitting.

"Any news on his death yet?"

Zavier asked quietly.

A trace of worry lingered in his eyes.

"Not yet."

Zara answered.

His tone carried clear annoyance.

His father’s nervous behavior was beginning to irritate him.

"Relax, Father."

He folded his arms while still maintaining the blank expression Felix had instructed him to keep.

"Everything is going according to plan."

His voice remained low.

"So, stop acting strange. If you continue like this, someone might notice."

Zara glanced briefly around the hall.

"And don’t let Sir Felix notice your nervousness either."

His eyes shifted toward Felix.

"Otherwise, he might think we aren’t capable of handling something this simple."

Zara’s voice came out colder than expected.

Zavier sighed.

His eyes also moved toward Felix.

The young Mainline noble hadn’t spoken to them since arriving.

He hadn’t even acknowledged them.

Instead, Felix sat calmly while watching the event unfold.

That alone made Zavier even more uneasy.

This entire situation carried enormous risk.

If things went wrong, he could lose everything.

His status.

His wealth.

His position and his reputation.

Everything he had spent years building.

All because of a boy he had always called useless.

"You are right."

He leaned back into his seat.

At that moment, a large screen materialized above the hall.

The display projected images visible to everyone seated on the lower floor.

"We will now begin introducing the rankers who displayed brilliance during the Trial of Steel."

The two hosts spoke simultaneously.

Their voices carried excitement.

Page, seated in the tenth position among the rankers, glanced toward Vera’s empty seat.

"Your Lady isn’t around."

A smirk appeared on her face as she looked toward Lyra.

Lyra sat lazily in her chair while her uncle and aunt sat behind her, both looking completely helpless at her posture.

"She is around." Lyra replied. "But she’s with the Head."

"She is?"

Page blinked.

"Yeah."

Lyra folded her arms.

"I was with her and Nina earlier and she left saying she was going to meet her father."

"Ehn..."

Page turned back.

At that exact moment, her name was called.

The photographers rushed toward her.

Flashes filled the air.

The giant screen displayed her image while the live broadcast transmitted it across Linsta.

Behind her, her elder sister representing the Laverdale Family stood and waved.

The hosts proudly introduced Page and listed her accomplishments.

The crowd responded with enthusiastic applause.

The Ashenlocke coat rested across her shoulders, her forest-green and rose-pink gown contrasted beautifully against the dark colors around her and the two-star gold badge attached to her black coat clearly showed her rank.

"Binder Rank at the age of thirteen."

The words echoed through the hall, immediately causing whispers to spread across the crowd.

Many nobles looked at Page with admiration in their eyes, while others couldn’t hide the jealousy on their faces.

"She’ll be fourteen this year... wow... and she’s only Rank Ten?"

One noble muttered in disbelief.

"Just Rank Ten?"

Another repeated.

"Then how terrifying are the people above her?"

The whispers continued spreading from table to table.

Some shook their heads in amazement while others secretly compared their own children to the young girl standing proudly beneath the bright lights of the hall.

After several minutes of introducing Page Laverdale to both the audience present and the countless viewers watching through the live broadcast, the two hosts finally called the next ranker.

"Next, Rank Nine... Lyra Ashburn!"

Lyra slowly stood up from her seat.

The relatives sitting behind her immediately began waving with smiles on their faces.

As for Lyra herself...

She looked like she would rather be lying in bed asleep or fighting.

Her arms remained folded, and her expression looked completely bored as she glanced at the crowd.

Yet despite her lack of enthusiasm, the reaction she received was no different from Page’s.

Applause erupted once more.

The photographers rushed toward her.

Flashes of light repeatedly illuminated her face.

The giant screen above the hall displayed her image for everyone to see.

Among the crowd, many visiting nobles stared with increasingly shocked expressions.

Most of them had come to the unveiling party out of curiosity.

Some wanted to observe Ashenlocke’s future.

Others wanted to evaluate potential allies.

A few simply came to enjoy the spectacle.

Yet none of them expected this.

Nobody truly knew what had happened during the Trial of Steel.

Only families closely tied to Ashenlocke possessed fragments of information.

Even then, they only knew pieces of the story.

The full details remained hidden.

That mystery only made everything more impressive.

The family hadn’t simply produced talented children.

They had produced young Alchemists who had already reached Binder Rank.

And more importantly...

The presence these children carried wasn’t something ordinary young Alchemists should possess.

The way they stood.

The way they looked at the crowd.

The confidence in their eyes.

It felt as though they had experienced things far beyond their age.

And the rankings still hadn’t reached the top positions.

The realization made many nobles grow even more excited.

If Rank Ten and Rank Nine were already this impressive...

What would the Top Three look like?

The introductions continued.

From Lyra...

To Nina...

The atmosphere remained the same.

Shock, Admiration, Jealousy and Excitement.

The whispers never truly stopped.

Then...

"Felix Ashenlocke!"

The announcement echoed throughout the hall.

The reaction instantly became much larger.

Many people already knew Felix.

Or more accurately...

They knew his mother.

That alone made him famous enough.

Most nobles had expected Felix to rank within the Top Three.

If not Third Place...

Then Fourth at worst.

Because of that, hearing his actual ranking immediately caused a wave of surprise throughout the audience.

Felix’s rank hadn’t been publicly announced when he arrived earlier, since he had entered the hall long before most guests.

So, this was the first time many people were hearing it.

As Felix rose from his seat and elegantly acknowledged the photographers surrounding him, Zara felt his heartbeat quicken.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

Every word spoken about Felix seemed to push him closer toward his own moment.

Soon.

Very soon.

It will be my turn.

It will be my turn.

The thought repeated endlessly inside his head.

He could barely stop himself from smiling.

His hand rose to partially cover his face.

The situation felt unreal.

Beside him, even Zavier had begun breathing a little faster.

Father and son exchanged brief glances.

Both could feel excitement building within them.

"Now...!"

The male host raised his voice dramatically.

"Calling the Rank Six of the Trial of Steel!"

The noise inside the hall gradually quieted.

People leaned forward in their seats.

Many already knew who the Sixth Ranker supposedly was.

Felix returned to his seat with a faint smirk resting on his face.

"He is someone I would describe as possessing silent strength."

The host spoke with a playful yet serious expression.

"The Board of the Trial of Steel personally vouched for his brilliance, stating that he displayed many remarkable moments throughout the trials."

The female host added.

The anticipation inside the hall increased.

Even the photographers repositioned themselves.

"Please give a grand round of applause for Ashenlocke’s Sixth Ranker... ZAR..."

BOOM!

A loud crash suddenly interrupted the announcement.

Glass shattered violently near the main entrance of the hall.

The sound echoed throughout the building.

Conversations stopped instantly with dozens of heads snapped toward the source.

Several guests even stood up from their seats in shock.

The guards reacted immediately.

Boots struck the floor and weapons were raised.

Their eyes locked onto the entrance.

Then...

A calm voice echoed through the hall.

"Objection."

The word spread clearly across the silent room.

"Objection."

The crowd froze.

"Objection."

More eyes widened.

"Objection, my dear Britannians."

Ezra’s voice echoed loudly throughout the hall.

His tone remained flat and his expression remained plain.

Yet somehow, those simple words felt heavier than the introductions that had come before.

Standing at the entrance, Ezra looked completely calm while Lucy stood quietly behind him.

Her hands rested neatly together in front of her body, maintaining the posture expected of a proper maid.

The contrast between the two figures and the enormous hall made the scene feel surreal.

For a moment...

Nobody spoke.

The entire crowd stared.

The elders stared.

The photographers stared.

Even the people watching the live broadcast across Britannia stared.

Around Ezra, guards rapidly formed a circle.

Repeater Sword Rifles were raised and pointed directly toward him and Lucy.

The atmosphere immediately became tense.

Yet Ezra didn’t even glance at the weapons.

His eyes remained fixed on only two people.

Zavier.

And Zara.

The father and son had completely frozen.

Their faces drained of color.

"There is a treason happening right now."

Ezra said calmly.

His gaze never left them while his expression remained completely emotionless, but those words struck the unveiling party harder than any explosion ever could.