“This is the first time we’ve met, so allow me to introduce myself,” the Elf said with a curt nod. “My name is Zarazel Neifion. I am the Elven King’s brother and a permanent member of the Elven High Council in my Kingdom. It’s a pleasure to finally meet one of the heroes of the younger generation.”

Zarazel, like all Elves, was quite handsome. His green hair was cut short, and his green eyes were as sharp as the arrows he frequently used to hunt the Beasts around their kingdom.

Lux took his hand and shook it twice before letting go. Although being called “one of the heroes of the younger generation” sounded good, the Half-Elf could tell that this was just flattery in order to get him to have a good impression of the Elven Noble who had visited the Academy.

“Now that we’re both acquainted, allow me to cut to the chase,” Zarazel said. “The slots for the 6 Kingdoms are very limited. Cai, Xander, and Keane had given the Skystead Alliance, Xynnar War Pact, and the Six Kingdoms their quotas.

“However, those are just 5 quotas. Even if the Barbarian Kingdom and the Azov Kingdom are no longer vying for those five slots, the three kingdoms need to divide them. Unfortunately, our Kingdom got the short end of the stick, and we were only able to get one quota out of the five.

Because of this, I have asked your father to give me one of the slots that Henrietta has, and he agreed… at least, in return for some favors.”

The Elf glanced at Alexander, who was busy signing documents, completely ignoring his gaze.

“Usually, we can ask Prince Einar and Vallaki Meitar (Val), to give us some of their quotas as well, but they refused this time,” Zarazel narrowed his gaze in displeasure. “The Barbarians are sending their own Initiates, while Vallaki has decided to bring his Guild Members to conquer the dungeon.

“The way I see it, the Gesian Kingdom (Barbarian) and the Azov Kingdom want to increase their quotas for the Final Gate once the Gate of Famine is cleared.

“With you leading this exploration, the chances of success are nearly 100%. To this day, the representatives we sent in the Gate of Conquest regretted their decision to separate from your group. It is not an understatement to say that their regrets know no bounds, especially for the Wildgarde Stronghold who sent so many people last time.”

The Elf’s slight jab at the place where he grew up almost triggered Lux into slapping the arrogant man silly. However, since Zarazel was a High-Ranker, he decided to just let it slide for now.

“Tell you what, the Elswyth Kingdom is willing to purchase the five slots in your possession,” Zarazel stated. “Also, you may also ask us for a favor, with the exception of Gerhart’s safety. You already know that he is hell-bent on making the Royal Family suffer, so we will not stand by and allow him to do as he wishes.”

Lux pondered for a bit as he considered Zarazel’s proposal. Currently, he needed a few slots to take Gerhart, and Cethus with him. The reason why he planned to take Cethus with him and not summon him inside the dungeon like what he intended to do with Flamma was because of his race.

Cethus was a Dragon Born, and although the Six Kingdoms rarely interacted with Dragons and Dragon Borns, they understood that it was a race that mustn’t provoke at any time.

Lux wanted to show the Skystead Alliance, the Xynnar War Pact, as well as the Six Kingdoms, that he was on good terms with the Dragon Born.

This would act as a deterrence, as well as a reminder to the other Factions, that he had some friends in high places.

Originally, he planned to give the remaining three slots to Barbatos Academy, but since his father agreed to give the Elves one Slot, it only meant one thing.

His father was thinking about the bigger picture.

Since that was the case, Lux decided to do the same.

“I have three slots remaining, but I can only give the Elswyth Kingdom one slot,” Lux replied. “I intend to auction the last two remaining slots to the Sevede Kingdom, Razohan, as well as the Navarre Kingdom. This is the only compromise I can make.”

Zarazel frowned and tried to negotiate with Lux, giving him promises of wealth, as well as more favors from the Kingdom. However, the Half-Elf was firm in his decision, which made the Elf Diplomat give up in the end.

“Dealing with you Kaizers is always problematic.” Zarazel sighed. “Fine. We will take the one slot you have for the agreed price. Also, you may ask us for one favor, but this favor mustn’t exceed our bottom line.”

“Understood.” Lux nodded.

Although he was a bit disappointed with the outcome of the Negotiation, Zarazel was still able to secure two additional quotas for the Elswyth Kingdom. This allowed them to bring three representatives into the Dungeon.

If all went well, and those three survived, the Elves would have fifteen slots for the exploration of the last gate, which was rumored to open once the Four Gates had been conquered.

When Zarazel finally left the room, Alexander raised his head and made a gesture for Lux to sit.

“You did well,” Alexander stated. “Did you originally want to give Barbatos Academy those slots?”

“Yes, Father,” Lux replied. “But, after gauging the status quo, I deemed that it would be unwise to annoy the other kingdoms any more than they already are. Although you are a Saint, and they can’t do anything to you, maintaining friendly relations with our neighbors can give us better rewards in the future.”

Alexander nodded. “That’s right. It is better to make friends than to make enemies. This way, we can focus on what is in front of us without worrying about being stabbed in the back.”

Lux agreed with his father’s words, and they chatted in detail about the things that were happening behind the scenes. When their talks were finally over, Alexander finally breached the issue with Cai.

“I apologize if I decided on your behalf about Cai’s issue,” Alexander said. “I thought that it was a good idea at that time. Also, Iris didn’t reject the idea, so I thought that it was fine to push through with it. Maximilian has already told me your reply, and I just want to ask you one thing.”

The Saint of Barbatos Academy held Lux’s gaze and asked his question.

“Are you really fine with this arrangement?” Alexander asked.

Lux nodded. “Yes. I have thought long and hard about it, and the answer is still yes. Although Cai and I are far from being lovers, this can be nurtured as we spend time together. Also, Iris seems to like the idea of having Cai as my Fiance. I’m sure that it will work one way or another. All we need is time.”

“Right. Time does a lot of things.” Alexander agreed before once again looking at the document in front of him. “The representatives of the other Kingdoms will arrive before your birthday. Having considered this, we decided to hold a grand party for the event. I know that you aren’t fond of these kinds of things, but since guests from far away have arrived, it would be inappropriate if we do not hold a proper ceremony.”

Lux felt like a major headache was about to hit him, but since his Father had already decided, he deemed it best to just let him do what he wanted.