"That's all for today. If anyone has no further matters, you may leave now," I stood up and addressed the officials on both sides of the long table. With my mother absent, I'm the one in charge of receiving the lower-ranked officials. There hasn't been much going on in the Elf Kingdom, mostly just talks about taxes, disaster relief, funds needed for regional development, and other lesser issues.

The officials nodded and stood up one by one to leave, each offering a gesture of respect before turning to depart. As the last one left, I let out a sigh and handed the morning's documents to my adviser before turning to them, "Bring Miss Lucia, I have to speak with her."

"Have you perchance forgotten, Your Highness?" my adviser replied, head tilted to the side, "Today is Miss Lucia's time for the Elf Divine Blessing. She must go to the Wind Elf temple alone. It would seem the affairs of the realm have been quite taxing on you. Would it not be better to take a break for today?"

How was I supposed to know about this... that the Wind Elf blessing Lucia possesses isn't a lifelong buff, but something that requires occasional visitation for a top up. She never mentioned this to me... Ah, I see, the former owner of this body would have known since he had accompanied Lucia each time.

But I didn't know, Lucia didn't tell me, and likely only kept it to herself because I seemed so busy with state affairs. Left without an answer, my advisor respectfully bowed before departing with the documents, leaving me behind, musing alone.

What can I do without Lucia? Am I supposed to venture into the terrifying Black Forest, famous for its Ground Dragons, alone? No way... even if I’m riding a swift horse, I would be killed if I encountered such a beast, for Ground Dragons are faster. So basically, PRIOR to Lucia's return, I'm stuck in the palace.

The real question is: How long before Lucia will return? I really NEED to know this answer, but I can't ask, can I? It would bring about utter chaos if I were to ask out loud when my own fiancée will be back, wouldn't it? If Lucia found out that I could forget even important events like this because I supposedly do not care about her, she'd get mad...

Could Elves get so insecure? I prefer to anticipate the worst-case scenario than to risk it. Lucia's anger backed by her Wind Elf Blessing is indeed a terrifying prospect...

"Bang!"

Lost in thoughts, I bumped into someone who had rounded the corner. Though it was only a minor collision, I winced in pain as I hit a full suit of heavy metal armor. Tears welled up in my eyes as I held my possibly twisted nose, looking up at the Elf who had come to help me up, "It is this servant's fault," he anxiously exclaimed, "I failed to take heed due to my haste, causing an inconvenience to Your Highness. Are you alright?"

"I'm alright, Lord Exi," I replied, standing up and later looking at the Elf in front of me, clad in a suit of armor. He knelt on one knee as he plead, "I sincerely regret this incident, Your Highness. I was preoccupied worrying about my daughter and failed to notice Your Highness. Please punish me as you deem fit."

Waving dismissively, I said, "Not at all, accidents like these are quite common occurrences and in no way a sign of disrespect. I myself was distracted by thoughts of Lucia, hardly paying attention to my surroundings. We're quite the same in this regard."

Lord Exi, my future father-in-law, chuckled heartily and replied, "Then, it's Lucia's fault, she's made both of us worry unnecessarily. When Lucia returns, remember to give her a proper punishment."

"Indeed, all of our worries are caused by Lucia," I said, sporting a troubled expression as I looked out the window, "So occupied today, I couldn't accompany Lucia. I wonder how she's doing right now. She should be back soon, right?"

"Your Highness, there's no need to worry. Lucia goes to the temple for the Blessing every month. The procedure involves hunting a stag to offer at the temple and then take a bath. Lucia is quite skilled at hunting, so most of her time is spent traveling. She usually flies back. And as always, she will be back by tomorrow morning. While she's away, I'll safeguard the palace in place of my daughter."

"Thank you for your hard work, Lord Axie, I hope you won't miss your daughter at every turn," I said.

"Ha-ha, Your Highness, same for you."

"Oh right, is the royal guard ready?"

"All preparations are completed, we are just waiting for your order to depart, Your Highness."

We waved goodbye. The guards in the palace never take off their armor, which is made of either metal or Earth-Dragon scale. The metal armor is primarily plate armor, and the Earth-Dragon scale armor is made from, well, Earth-Dragon scales. But all the armors have received the queen's blessings, reducing their weight and increasing protection. Moreover, receiving the Queen's blessing indicates her trust, which for an Elf is an honor akin to a medal or ribbon, so the royal guard never takes off their armor in the palace.

Elven warfare somewhat resembles that of English longbowmen. They start with a volley of arrows, and then as the enemy charges, the spearmen in the back hold the line and the swordsmen charge to replace them when the enemy gets too close. Elves are naturally gifted archers, so their opening volley is quite deadly.

In mountains and forests, groups of three Elves spread out and conduct guerilla warfare against their foes, and when the enemy is sufficiently annoyed and disarrayed, they draw their scimitars and longswords and plunge into enemy ranks.

Among the royal guards, infantry are particularly brave. I've even seen an elf kill a bee with one arrow out of annoyance, an act that left me astounded. But among the royal guard, such a shot is viewed as pretty ordinary. The most formidable heavy cavalry of the Elf race are also in the royal guard, wearing blessed plate armor to break enemy lines, followed closely by riders in Earth-Dragon scale armor who engage the enemy in close combat.

Although Elves can ride, their horsemanship leaves something to be desired. But the horsemanship of the royal guard is as nimble as the Elves themselves.

This is the defense force of the palace and the biggest military entity of the Elf race. The Shadow Force elves are dispersed in the palace, and although I can sometimes notice a few, most are virtually undetectable, like Lucia, who told me she simply won't be noticed if she doesn't want to be.

The Shadow Force is under the exclusive command of the Elven king, and I don't have the authority to summon them. The reason I can command Lucia is because she is my fiancée and we have a close relationship. Normally, I wouldn't be able to summon the entire Shadow Force, but Lucia has told me that because the queen is excessively indulgent towards me, she has said that the Shadow Force should satisfy all of my demands, which means I can, in fact, summon the Shadow Force. The royal guard obeys the Elven royal family, so I command the two most powerful armed forces in the Elven race.

These are the forces I trust the most for the Earth-Dragon subjugation expedition. I lack the confidence to be able to kill all the Earth-Dragons with a volley of arrows. If the gorge is not long enough or the dragons are too fast, and I don't have soldiers capable of close quarter combat to hold the line, there's a chance we may not come back alive. During previous expeditions, it was mainly young Elven nobles wanting to make a name for themselves that signed up, and the royal guard wasn't involved. That changes this time, I'm calling on the royal guard.

My mother is universally adored by all within the capital, so I don't believe there's any need to worry about palace security. But to be safe, I'll leave half the royal guard behind to protect her.

The plan to subjugate the Earth-Dragons is strictly confidential, as everyone believes they've already been eradicated. This time, we must transport our forces and supplies to the Black Forest in stages, where we'll then form up under the cover of the trees. The lie I told before seems to be causing more problems than it's worth, in hindsight.

Tomorrow morning, Lucia will return. There are three more days until the giant crossbows will be ready. In the meantime, I've got nothing else to do. My mother is still asleep, nothing new there. So, I decided to take a walk alone. Maybe I'll meet a beautiful Elven maiden and have an interesting encounter or some such thing.

After checking to make sure my turban was still secure, I walked out of the palace onto the city streets. While it's true that the prince of this nation is rather famous, it's not as if people walking around in the streets recognize me. Everyone's busy with their own lives and certainly not focused on spotting the prince.

Upon seeing the grilled meat sold by the roadside, I groped my pockets only to remember that I hadn't ever had a concept of money here. I've lived here for a fair while and never once did I need to spend money. The Elves use common metal coins, but I didn't have a single one!

I can't just run over and say, "I'm the prince, could you please give me a rabbit leg..." I've lost all face for the royal family! Before, I used to have Lucia with me whenever I went out, but this time, I completely forgot about money when I went out on my own! Do princes not carry money on them?! To be honest, I don't even have a concept of a wallet!

Well... I guess I'll just have to see... I can't use my face to exchange for a rabbit leg...

The streets of the Elf race are bustling, and I am aimlessly wandering in the crowd. The buildings near the palace of the Elves are beautifully constructed, exuding a natural atmosphere and neatly arranged, while the buildings near the wall are very ordinary wooden structures, some of which are even damaged. And distribution has no regularity, people here are not so brightly dressed, but they don't look poor either, probably these are just ordinary residents.

"Wow, I didn't expect to see the prince coming out alone today. Didn't the lady from before come with you?"

Just as I was about to turn around and leave, someone called me from behind. I turned around and saw a man in black standing in front of me. I was stunned for a moment before I said, "Ah, it's you. I'm just out for a walk today, do you live here?"

The lady from yesterday nodded and looked at me with a pair of red eyes that held laughter, she said, "That's rare. His Highness the prince, who was nearly unseen throughout the year, has recently become exceptionally active. I thought it was to announce the existence of the fiancée, but actually, it seems that you came out to empathize with the people? Should I understand the frequent appearances of Prince as a sign that the Elf Queen plans to abdicate?"

"Well, let's not speculate about it. After all, my mother is still... I didn't come out for any particular reason. I'm not empathizing with the people or anything. I just came out for a walk because I had nothing else to do." I forced a bitter smile. The Elves were extremely sensitive. But I understand, usually, when I was at home because of my mother, my frequent appearances in the absence of the Queen's presence indeed made people think perhaps it was a sign of change.

"If Her Majesty the Queen were to abdicate, we would be very upset. Ah, Your Highness, please don't misunderstand. I'm not criticizing or doubting you, it's just that you currently have no merits to speak of, which makes us a little puzzled. The problem with the ground dragon before, there are still people getting hurt, everyone is somewhat doubting you."

I forced a smile, "You're right. That's why I want to make up for my shortcomings. I was too careless last time. This time, I have to eradicate the ground dragon completely. No, I must eradicate the ground dragon."

"Yes, go for it, Your Highness. Although I don't know what kind of plan you have, I can feel that Your Highness is very confident, and that's good. We don't have any power, we have to rely on the power of the King to protect us. The Elf Kings have always been doing great, I believe, Your Highness, you are no exception."

She bowed deeply, and then looked up at me with laughter in her eyes, "By the way, where is the lady from yesterday? She still lacks a few things to make the perfume."

"Oh, Lucia? Lucia has gone out on business. What is she missing? I’ll gather it for her, it doesn't matter who does it as long as it can be bought."

She looked at me, a playful light flashed in her red eyes. I couldn't see her lips behind her veil, but I was sure at this moment that she was smirking. She took out a little bottle and said, "Or rather, there’s something that only you, Your Highness, can give… Well, since Your Highness has made yourself clear, I need your hair, blood, and saliva."

"Are you sure you're making perfume?"

I was shocked and stared at her. Her red eyes crinkled and she let out a laugh. "Haha... I know these things may sound weird, but they are indeed ingredients for the perfume. I won't question the young lady's thoughts. I just follow her instructions. Now, would you please mix your hair, blood, and saliva into this little bottle…"

Wait…

I don’t mind my hair and blood…

But it seems inappropriate for a prince to spit in public…