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"You are offering me a title?" Basil asked calmly.

"I am offering you a responsibility," Anthony answered calmly. "To be a very well know person—the Kingdom\'s icon."

"There are many people willing to be a mascot if icon is what you are looking for."

Anthony merely laughed at Basil\'s response. \'This lad is really fearless; he doesn\'t care about what I might think. Good, I like it. I can\'t stand being surrounded by bootlickers!\'

Turning his eyes away from the smirking Anthony, Basil observed the expression of the Queen. She seemed slightly surprised, which indicated that Anthony did something that was different from what she had expected.

\'Anthony is really dragging me into his family\'s matter,\' Basil thought in annoyance. \'He wants to use me against his whole family, huh?\'

The ongoing feud between each of his sons frustrated Anthony. All of them only cared about being the best candidate, but none of them knew how to be a good King.

From how things were going, he couldn\'t see the future where his Kingdom would prosper under the rule of his sons. All of them were still immature, and he didn\'t want to waste his time to guide them until they became a wise middle-aged man.

When Basil emerged, a crazy idea flashed through his mind. He had quickly brushed it aside, but upon being surprised by Basil\'s brilliance countless of times, he decided to go with the plan.

Turning Basil into another candidate for the King.

"A talented individual like you, unlike any of our Kingdom\'s officials, is liked by many people. By receiving the title, although you do not become an official of our Kingdom, you can still act like our ambassador."

"\'Go and forge good relationships with as many powerful people as you can,\' is what you are saying?"

"I am not obligating you to, but it\'ll be helpful for our Kingdom to have a good relationship with the people who are fond of you."

The Kingdom\'s Golden Apple—the highest honorary title a citizen could ever receive. Treated no different from the way the Royalty was treated, anyone who received it could become the ruler of the Kingdom as long as the King wanted them to.

No one could challenge their position, not even the original Royal Family.

Although it had never happened before—the Kingdom\'s Golden Apple title bearer being the King—there was no guarantee Anthony wouldn\'t make it happen. Because of this, the Princes were worried ... Except for Edward.

\'Flogging a dead horse will not make it move, but doing it to a sleeping horse will be a different story,\' Anthony thought as he looked at his sons. \'They need to open their eyes, and see the bigger picture.\'

Anthony was hoping Basil\'s presence would be able to somehow make the Princes realize what they must do. He wanted a good successor—a good King, not a snotty brat thirsting for authority.

He commended their dedication to make their mother happy, but he didn\'t want it to be their main reason to become a King. Unlike them, her knew that their mothers were also yearning for the authority.

He needed a King who could stand on his own feet, and could make a decision on their own after weighing the advantages and disadvantages of said decision. He needed a King who could cut anyone in his way ... Even his own mother.

So far, only one of his children possessed said quality—his sole daughter. He, however, didn\'t want to give said daughter any authority in his Kingdom.

\'She has sided with the Empire. I will never be willing to let this Kingdom fall into those greedy bastards\' hands.\'

The child he had adored the most—his most talented child had been coerced by the Empire\'s sweet words. She had immediately turned her back on him, and now he was waiting for the day where he had to cut his own daughter came.

"So, what is your answer, Basil?" If things went south and the reality became eternally sour, Basil would be Anthony\'s sole hope. \'No matter what answer you give me today...\'

\'Anthony will make me King ... Laughable!\' Huffing lightly to himself, Basil said, "If being The Kingdom\'s Golden Apple means I can travel and do research freely, there is no reason for me to reject it."

"That is a very good decision." Anthony smiled so bright, his family even wondered if who they saw was really him. "The ceremony will be held in two days. I am expecting your presence."

Basil nodded his head casually, and focused on his food. Anthony also did the same, allowing the room to be engulfed in a deafening silence.

The atmosphere became tense. The gaze that the Queen and the concubines gave towards Basil\'s family was no longer welcoming.

Although it was pretty neutral, Basil\'s family could detect the grudge the Queen and the concubines held against them. Their gaze turned to Basil, and Basil immediately nodded his head as soon as he met it.

\'You have just gotten yourself into one hell of an ordeal. Are you aware of it?\'

\'Don\'t worry, I got it.\'

Basil was as casual about it as usual. At his confidence, Basil\'s company could do nothing but trust him, like they always did.

Just like that, the dinner ended ... With Basil becoming the enemy of most of the Royal Family.

...

The night passed faster than the night before. None of them had talked about Basil\'s decision even after they reached home—it was as if it was a sensitive topic that everyone unconsciously avoided.

While Danzel, Shirley, and Clarissa were really avoiding talking about it in consideration of Basil, Iliana and Ione were waiting for the perfect time. Fortunately for them, the perfect time—where they could be alone—came earlier than they had expected.

"So, what were you thinking when you accepted the offer?" In the carriage, on their way to the newly built cemetery to bury Whitney, Iliana asked Basil.

Ione was on the opposite seat, also looking at Basil in curiosity. Although she didn\'t understand the underlying meaning of the last night dinner, she wondered why her Lord was willing to be "bound" to the Kingdom.

"His choice to make me a candidate for King will have nothing to do with how things will end. I will soon be the entire world\'s enemy as soon as I declare my status as the Fated Child."

"I know about that." Iliana shook her head faintly. "What about your family? The moment you take that title, the people will not only know you, but also your family. You are putting them in danger."

"I have weighed the pros and cons of my decision, so naturally I have thought about that. Don\'t worry, with the resources the Kingdom will give me, no one will be able to touch them."

"What about your identity? With you being this close with the Kingdom, won\'t they find out about your identity sooner?"

"After receiving the title, we have a right to not be under the scrutiny of the Kingdom. Only the King has the right to scrutinize us, so anyone who dares to spy on us will face a severe consequence."

"What you are saying is...?"

"When things go south—it must be the day where I make a miss that the Church can exploit," Basil said solemnly as he gazed through the window. "For example, mingling with a Witch."

In other words, the ones who still needed to be careful were Iliana and Ione. The stronger and more well-known the two got, the more the Church would be suspicious of them.

In their mind, no woman should ever be that outstanding aside from the Goddesses they worshipped and the Pacifer women.

The moment when Iliana and Ione got too eye-catching to be ignored, they would do their best to make sure if the two were Pacifers. They would be able to figure out the truth, so that day would be the day where the three Pacifers had to leave.

"Don\'t worry about it too much," Basil assured. "Even if you retreated into the shadow, they would still find a way to prove you were what they thought you were."

Basil\'s eyes gleamed briefly as he intoned, "Don\'t be shy to show your brilliance. Make the world blind with it, and carve your might in their mind."

"That is... Rather overbearing, My Lord," Ione remarked.

"That is how I am, and how you should be from now on. In this world, weakness only invites enemies who will ambush you at the most unexpected time. Show them your strength, and they will come at you directly."

Iliana sighed lightly. "You always think about complicated things, but when you think simply, you really surprise me with your simplicity."

With a shrug from Basil, the conversation ceased. Iliana and Ione made a couple of small talks to fill the silence, but he didn\'t participate in it, nor did he show any sign of the willingness to.

At some point, the carriage became silent as they were busy with their own thought. The path they were treading was thorny, and they would be lying if they said they weren\'t slightly nervous.

"Distinguished passengers, we have arrived at the destination."

"Thank you for your work."

No matter how hard it would be, still, they had no choice but to keep treading. Painful, it would be; and worrying, it was; their story ended when they decided to stop.

"Uwah... Look at the scene. It\'s really beautiful."

Upon getting down from the carriage, Basil and company were greeted by the scene of the students from Rehearsal Class gaping at the scenery of the newly built cemetery, Chyphorse.

Chyphorse was the first cemetery that also functioned as a garden in Braxtein Kingdom. It was built to honour the outstanding Knights and Mages who had fallen in the battle to end the First Outbreak.

Because of that reason, not many people could be buried there. Even Whitney had only received the right to be buried there because of Anthony\'s consideration for Basil.

"A third of it is decorated by purple hyacinths," Iliana remarked. "They know what they are doing. I don\'t mind to be buried here."

Basil chuckled faintly at Iliana\'s remark, which slightly surprised her. She turned to look at him to ask for explanation, but he merely patted her head, then immediately walked through the gate of the cemetery.

The people followed Basil immediately. The moment they arrived at the grave that was reserved for Whitney, he immediately activated the Rune carved on the headstone.

The grave immediately opened up, prompting Iliana to take Whitney\'s body out and put it inside the grave. Basil waited for a few moments before closing the grave—he wanted them to take a good last look at Whitney.

When they had enough, he closed the grave, and Sealed it meticulously.

Whoosh!

He didn\'t feel as much sadness as he had when he had buried Iliana in his past life or when he had buried Irene. In spite of that, he still found the scene uncannily familiar.

The calming scent of the flowers, the warm wind that carried it, and the tears that fell to the ground—sorrow seemed to always be accompanied by them.