CHAPTER 50: VALENTIS CITY

"Wow, it really is." Elara held one of the horns using her small hands and tried moving it out as hard as she could with a cute, struggling expression.

"Brother James, look!" Elara looked at James excitedly.

"I’m sorry, my dear. She’s been spoiled by everyone until now." Evelyn said with a bitter smile.

"It’s fine. In fact, I like her more this way." Ignis smiled gently while holding Elara’s legs so that she wouldn’t fall down.

"That’s enough, Elara." James shook his head with a helpless smile and picked Elara from Ignis’ shoulders.

"Next time, don’t act like that to the people you’ve just met, okay?" He pinched her sister’s cheek softly.

"Why?" She asked in annoyance, as James had ruined her fun.

"That’s because it’s rude, okay?" He smiled and patted her head.

She pouted cutely, puffing out her cheeks in annoyance. "But she’s my older sister. You said that it’s fine to do something like this to our family."

"..."

James was speechless.

’I feel like I’m going insane before I turn thirty at this rate.’

Evelyn smiled amusingly when she looked at it and chuckled. "Okay, let’s pack your things first because I’m sure that your brother doesn’t have a lot of time to spare, and you need to depart before it gets dark later."

...

10 minutes later, Evelyn and Elara returned.

James stopped talking to Garran and the others as he excused himself and walked toward his mom and sister.

"Here." Evelyn handed a spatial ring to James and caressed his head lovingly. "Please take care of your sister. Always keep an eye on her and never let her run alone. If there’s a problem, contact your father immediately!"

James smiled in response. "I know, Mom."

Evelyn squatted down and looked at her little princess with a gentle smile. "Elara, be an obedient girl and listen to your brother." She patted her hair affectionately as she continued, "Remember to not cause trouble for him."

"Mhhmm—Mhhmm..." Elara nodded her head cutely.

She hugged Elara for a while before letting her go with an unwilling expression.

Elara waved her small hand cutely from Ignis’s arms. "Goodbye, Mom."

...

Subsequently, they left the Steelhearts’ manor and directly headed toward Valentis City. Ignis carried Elara, creating a thin red barrier around her, while Nyxrael did the same for James.

In fact, they could actually ride on Ignis’ back if she were to transform into her dragon form, but James was against it, as he didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention in case people noticed that there was a dragon flying in the sky and spread the rumors.

An hour later, when they almost reached Valentis City, James ordered them to stop since he wanted to continue on his own two feet so that he wouldn’t embarrass himself for being carried away when he’s already this big.

"Wake up, Elara." James patted her hair softly, waking Elara up with a faint smile. He told her to close her eyes so that she wouldn’t get dizzy from the journey since they moved at Nyxrael’s full speed, but apparently she fell asleep from that.

Elara rubbed her eyes and asked. "Have we arrived?"

Then, she looked around and became disappointed that they hadn’t arrived yet, as the surroundings were filled with greenery.

"We’re almost there." James replied with a smile.

"Oh? Let’s go quickly, I’m already starving." Elara extended her hands, asking to be carried by James as she unknowingly drooled from imagining these things.

"Alright, alright..." James piggybacked her and continued their journey by going toward the main road first because most of the time, they passed by a barren land or forest and would avoid people on the way since he didn’t want to be seen being carried away.

When they arrived at the main road, James saw a lot of carriages passing by from time to time, accompanied by escorts made up of knights and magicians.

Two minutes later, they finally saw the sight of a huge city wall looming overhead, around 50 meters tall.

Above the city gate, there was a statue of a silver crown resting atop a rising wave and a massive plaque emblazoned with the silver words ’Valentis City.’

As James had notified Grand Duke Valemar, he planned to not stay low-key and directly cut off the queue.

When one of the guards was about to stop James’ group, he took out the Steelheart’s insignia calmly.

"They’re from the Steelhearts." A Golden-ranked Knight blurted out because he had been paying attention the moment James directly went ahead instead of queuing.

"They must be James Steelheart and the Masked Knight who had killed the Wolfsblades’ old and current Duke!"

"The little girl on his back must be the Steelhearts’ princess."

"Who’s that beautiful girl in red with him?"

"Are they going to cause trouble here?"

...

People started to murmur among themselves, but James ignored them as he went inside after the guards made way for them the moment they saw the Steelhearts’ insignia.

The murmurs behind them slowly faded as James, Ignis, Nyxrael, and Elara stepped past the massive city gate.

Valentis City unfolded before them like a masterpiece with sky-piercing towers of whitestone and blue glass, streets paved with polished marble, and mana-crystals lining the wide roads, glowing faintly beneath the afternoon sun.

Waves of people, such as knights in uniform armor, robed magicians, merchants wearing enchanted accessories, and people casually walking with swords on their waists, passed by in this sea of people.

Elara’s eyes sparkled. "Wahhhh... It’s so big."

James chuckled and patted her head. "We’ll explore later. First, let’s go to the inn."

"I want to eat a lot of seafood!" Elara tugged James’ coat excitedly.

"You little glutton." James pinched her nose and dropped her on the ground.

Ignis smiled gently. "You seem to have woken up fully the moment the word ’food’ was mentioned."

Nyxrael said nothing as he quietly followed James’ footsteps.

The Azure Crest Pavilion was impossible to miss as a towering ten-floor giant, built with a combination of enchanted azure glass, shimmering marble, and floating water runes that circled its structure like a halo. Elegant water statues poured endless streams into hovering basins, causing droplets to drift mid-air before dissolving into mist.

Elara’s eyes sparkled. "Brother James... Are we going to stay here?"

Even though she had travelled to quite a few places to attend banquets with Cassian, James, and Evelyn, she actually had never been to one of the biggest cities, like Valentis City.

James smiled faintly. "Of course!"

The first four floors were dedicated to restaurants and lounges. The flavor of grilled fish, buttered soft-shell crabs, and mist-soufflés drifted from each level, making Elara drool.

"We’ll eat on the fourth floor. It’s said that they serve the best food in the city and even in the whole kingdom in terms of seafood." James said.

Hearing that, Elara’s stomach growled loudly in protest, as she couldn’t wait to eat all kinds of food, especially the seafood.

"Let’s go." Elara pulled James and Ignis eagerly.

The fourth floor opened into a grand dining hall shaped like a crescent moon, overlooking both the city and the distant ocean. The tables were carved from shimmering waveglass, the chairs cushioned with soft seafoam-blue fabric, and servers moved gracefully.

The moment they entered, the aroma of the sea washed over them—fresh, rich, and mouthwatering.