The Princess And The Lord

Lory continued to read the web news later on she found the news about Lucas, in the news it was written about the official coronation ceremony of the new king of Harland, Lucas Noland Lucient,

Lory then clicked on the video link on the news, Instantly the female reporter's face appeared and with a bright smile she showed the crowd on the street welcoming the ascension of the new king but one could see the crowd was not as dense as the inauguration of the previous kings.

But that was understandable considering they had just finished a great war that have destroyed half the world, and from what the reporter said the ceremony was being held only a few months after Harland citizens return to their country.

Lory wasn't surprised they immediately crowned Lucas as the new King cause they needed to stabilize the country as soon as possible so they could start rebuilding the ruined empire and at the same time comforting the people's hearts.

In this difficult time, they need Lucas the last descendant of Lucient to be a symbol that will unite the whole country, he had to be the 'beacon of hope' just like their father said.

This was an unimaginable burden for a single person to carry.

In the video dozens of cars with flags with the Harland insignia enter the capital city of Harland, Herriond, even though the ceremony is not as grand as the previous King but the street is clean and several buildings have been reconstructed, along with asphalt roads that lead to the Cestine Palace.

As soon as the people saw the royal came they immediately cheered and shout with joy.

"Long live, King Lucas!"

"Long live, new king"

"Blessed the Lucient!"

The king's men guard the side road in order to keep people not step on the street while the king's entourage drives past them.

Unexpectedly, the car entourage did not directly enter the palace gate but stopped right in front of the Cestine palace steel gate.

Soon a dark-haired man with a large build wearing dark purple Lucient military royal garb stepped out from the driver's seat, the man was Fargo but unlike before he seemed much older yet he was buffer and bigger than she remember.

A few seconds later the passenger door opened and it was Fred who wear the same military royal garb yet unlike Fargo he still looks elegant and poise despite wearing Military Royal garb.

Fargo swept his gaze to the area around him intently for a while until Jay and Clift came out from another car then walk toward him then after exchanging a few words with them Fargo give a slight nod at Fred.

Fred fixed his garb before opening the door behind him in a courteous manner soon after everyone immediately bows their head and then put their hand on their chest as a formal salute to the royal family.

A man gracefully got out of the car and when the people saw the man coming back the cheers increased tenfold even the king's men had to tighten the barricades so that no one could break through their guard.

"Your Highness, welcome home!"

"Your Majesty, thank you!"

"King Lucas, we love you!"

The screams grew louder and even the female reporter and other reporters couldn't contain their excitement they reported the news with excited smiles on their faces.

Lucas wore the same military attire but with a different design for the royal family only, it was a black and dark purple military uniform decorated with a single Lucien crest brooch on his right chest and a simple silver blue bell embroidery on the collar and wrist, it was a simple design yet it perfectly captures the Harland King splendor and dignity very well.

Lucas stood there looking calm and collected he exuded a kingly aura that can be recognized even from the camera screen, Lucas lower his gaze for a moment his expression was deep and unreadable just like the old King people described in history books and stories.

Fred whispers something to Lucas and they talk for a while then Lucas gives a slight nod.

Lucas  did not look proud, amazed, or surprised to see so many people greet him with great fanfare, he still looked calm responding to the cheers of the people around him with a warm smile.

Lucas' sincerity touched everyone's heart as the people's cheers exploded like a shockwave that spread and shook the ground as they all shouted his name in complete adoration and love.

It was an incredible sight that no one had ever seen before even Fargo and the others could not hide their shock at the stupendous reaction of the people of Harland.

A moment later, the giant steel gates of Cestine palace began to open, as the crowd that had been bustling fell silent at the same time, all eyes were fixated on the black iron gates decorated with the Lucient Insignia symbol imprinted on each door, starting to open in a slow motion.

Lucas, Fargo, and the others watched the gate with an indescribable feeling, what could only be described as a mixture of happiness, sadness, gratitude, sorrow, and grief for the people who had no chance to return.

As soon as the Palace gates opened completely, everyone fell silent, no one made a sound or moved as if their feet were nailed to the ground, they only stared at the Cestine Palace and some people involuntarily shed tears.

Fred, Fargo, Jay, and Clift stared at the Cestine palace that looked the same in their memories as if the time has been turning back to their youth, and all the old memories they had purposely kept in their hearts burst out like a broken dam.

They remember every day they always passed through this gate to go to school, Lory would remind Lucas of their homework, meanwhile, Jay would turn the radio loudly and get yelled at by Fred, then Clift would check Lucas' bag to make sure he didn't forget to take his homework and Fargo would hit the gas pedal causing everyone tumbling inside the car and they all shouted angrily at Fargo but he just laughs.

Jay pretended to look up at the sky to keep his tears from falling, while next to him Clift's expression remained stoic but if someone look carefully they would see the edges of his eyes turning slightly red.

Meanwhile, as the oldest, Fargo and Fred looked unaffected but only they know the painstaking effort they give to control the inexplicable feeling that grip their heart and tore them inside out like broken rags.

'Be a good king Lucas, for both of us'

Those words had become a source of strength as well as sadness for him, Lucas closed his eyes and the face of the older sister he missed so much flashed in his mind when he opened his eyes an illusion of a woman standing in front of him, she stretches her hand and smiles mischievously.

'Welcome back'

Lucas took a deep breath "I'm home" Lucas muttered quietly then he take a step forward soon after Fargo and the others followed behind him, subsequently senior ministers, officials, and some of the King's men followed suit, as they all returned to Cestine Palace

once they step inside the gate their body involuntarily trembles but they force themselves to be calm to maintain the king's dignity, however, people outside have long burst into tears watching the King return to his rightful place.

"The king has returned!" they raised their hands and cheered.

The last thing Lory remembered was when hundreds of Demon beasts attacked and destroyed Cestine Palace which caused a lot of people including her father drive out of the palace.

Lory's eyes became misty to see her younger brother and friends return to Cestine palace again and the once wrecked castle had been rebuilt even though not completely but at least some important parts have been rebuilt.

Zhao Li Xin didn't know what the running picture talking about but he assumed the man who looked a lot like Lory is must be Lory's twin brother and the palace that he saw was Lory's house and guessed from the sadness in Lory's eyes Zhao Li Xin felt his guess confirmed.

Zhao Li Xin gently holds Lory's hands [Your brother seems fine, he looks like a good King]

Lory wiped the corners of her eyes and chuckled [How did you know?]

[Look at the people's faces, I've never seen this kind of worship to a king before, Usually, I see fear, admiration, respect sometimes love but not like this, as if their life depends on the King] Zhao Li Xin thought he had underestimated the position of the Lory family in the hearts of the people, he might had no idea about Lucient influence to the world it seems that they are more than just ordinary rulers.

Lory heard Zhao Li Xin's comment and laughed [Fred said if we don't have a constitution, our country might become a giant occult state]

[And your family doesn't want that?] Sometimes Zhao Li Xin found it difficult to understand the Lory family's way of thinking, why they shunned the absolute power that all world leaders yearned for, and why the Lucient family's seemed to deliberately limit their authority even in their own kingdom.

Lory leaned her back and sighed then muttered in a solemn voice [the constitution was made not only for the people but also the guidance for the king so that he doesn't deviate from the right path. My father used to say the thing he was most afraid of was realizing the fact that there's no limit to his power and nothing could stop him to fulfil his desire, whatever that is so he make these rules that he follow adamantly]

[Is not easy… it took a lot of self-control and discipline which I could never do...] Zhao Li Xin could not hide her admiration for Lory's father and he never felt that way towards anyone not even his own master, Tian Meng Ji.

[Well, you learned…sometime in the hard way] Lory said in a meaningful tone.