When Iris opened her eyes, she found herself locked in the embrace of two people.

On her right was Lux, and on her left was Cai.

After they returned from their bathroom, they found Cai sitting on top of the bed with a flushed look on her face. Of course, they found this to be a very natural reaction.

Iris and Lux said nothing and simply removed the bed sheets and replaced them with new ones. After that, the three of them all slept on the same bed, with the blue-haired beauty in the middle.

‘Waking up like this isn’t too bad,’ Iris mused.

Lux was the person she loved, and Cai was her best friend. Being embraced by these two people made her feel something warm stir in her chest, chasing away the sleep that still clung to her senses.

There was a faint light coming out of the window, which was the sign that morning had already come.

Even so, Lux and Cai were still asleep with no signs of waking up anytime soon. In consideration of this, Iris didn’t move and simply enjoyed the happiness she was feeling right now.

However, that silence only lasted for a minute longer as the door of the room opened. Two lively Baby Slimes came in and jumped on the bed.

“Ma!”

“Pa!”

“Da Wei!”

Eiko and Fei Fei jumped up and down Lux’s and Cai’s bodies, waking them up from their slumber.

Seeing the two Slimes being so hyper early in the morning made Iris giggle. After being jumped on like a trampoline countless times, Lux opened his eyes and grabbed Eiko as she was just about to land on his body, making the Baby Slime giggle.

Seeing that Eiko wasn’t even a little bit sorry for waking him up, the Half-Elf tickled her, causing the baby slime to uncontrollably laugh and squirm in his hands in an attempt to escape.

Only after Iris intervened did Eiko manage to free herself. The baby slime jumped into her Mama’s arms, asking to be spoiled like a little child.

Cai, who had finally woken up due to Fei Fei’s actions, caught the Baby Slime in her hands before lightly patting her head.

“Are you hungry, Fei Fei?” Cai asked as she stifled a yawn.

“Wei~” Fei Fei nodded.

The members of the Rowan Tribe were early risers, and Fei Fei had grown accustomed to their daily routine. Right now, it was two hours past sunrise, and the Baby Slime was already very hungry.

Half an hour later, Lux, Iris, and Cai left the room to have breakfast.

Cai had returned to her Boar Form, not wanting anyone to see her human form—of course, aside from a handful of people and her family.

Although her Grandpa, Maximilian, had placed a seal on her body, making others unable to see through her body constitution, Cai had been using her Boar Form since she was a child.

For her, turning into a Boar was similar to breathing. It was a very natural action for her, and she was known to stay in that form for as long as possible.

When they arrived in the Dining Area, they saw Gerhart and Keane seated beside each other. Einar and Enlil were seated at the opposite table, alongside the Elves and the Barbarians that had come to Barbatos Academy to celebrate Lux’s Birthday.

Fortunately, Gerhart and the Elves weren’t doing anything that would provoke the other, which made Lux breathe a bit easier.

Einar and Enlil gave Lux a curt nod, and the Half-Elf returned their gesture with a nod as well. After that, he went to Gerhart’s and Keane’s table so that they could eat breakfast together.

Everyone ate in peace and made small talk with each other.

Lux ignored the side-long glances from the Barbarians and the Elves, who looked at him from time to time.

They had heard many stories about Lux from Einar and Enlil, and most of them wondered if they were true or not. Some were even itching to spar with him, making Einar chuckle at their ignorance. His companions had no idea who they were dealing with.

If possible, he wanted Lux to show them a thing or two to let them understand why he had recognized the Half-Elf as the Team Leader whenever they challenged the Sacred Dungeon.

“He doesn’t look strong, Your Highness,” one of the Elves said softly. “Why don’t you fight him for the position of Team Leader in the Sacred Dungeon?”

Enlil firmly shook his head because he learned firsthand that Lux was a very capable leader. Those who had challenged the Gate of Conquest were still regretting their decisions to this day and, if possible, the Elven Prince didn’t want to repeat that mistake.

His Father and the Elven Council had given a decree that the Elves accompanying Prince Enlil must follow Lux once they were inside the Sacred Dungeon regardless of how absurd his orders were.

Of course, the two other representatives that were accompanying their Prince weren’t too happy about it, but the punishment for disobeying the decree by the Elven King, as well as the Elven Council, was severe. This gave them no other choice but to reluctantly accept the orders.

However, if their Prince wished to take the position of Team Leader, they would support him regardless of the punishment waiting for them back home.

Half an hour later, Lux had finished his meal and was about to leave the Dining Area with the others when several of the Barbarians blocked their path with their arms crossed over their chest.

“We’ve heard great things about you, Sir Lux,” one of the teenage Barbarians said. “Our Prince has recognized you as our Team Leader, and we are willing to follow his words. However, we Barbarians only follow the strong. If possible, can you have a sparring match with us, so we can better understand if you have what it takes to lead us to battle?”

Before Lux could answer, Cai, who was by his side, snorted.

“It seems that all of you are courting death,” Cai stated in an arrogant tone. “Do you wish to get beaten up that badly?”

“No,” another teenage Barbarian shook his head. “We just want to spar. That is all. How about it, Sir Lux? Will you grant our request?”

The Elves who had eaten alongside the Barbarians all clapped their hands in support of their proposal. They also wanted to see with their own eyes if the fame the Half-Elf currently had was just an exaggerated rumor, or if he really had the strength to back it up.

“Okay,” Lux replied with a smile. “Let’s go to the Training Grounds.”

The Barbarians were very happy to hear Lux’s reply, so they allowed him to pass and followed behind him and his entourage.

Naturally, the Elves followed suit, leaving Einar and Enlil walking a good distance from the back.

“Why aren’t you stopping them?” Enlil asked.

“They won’t recognize Lux unless they understand how strong he is,” Einar shrugged. “Also, I want to see how much he has improved since the last time I saw him. You want to see it as well, right?”

Enlil didn’t comment, but his silence was enough to tell Einar that he was right. After the battle in the Gate of Conquest, the strongest members of the Young Generation within the Six Kingdoms had all risen to the Peak of the Initiate Rank.

They had received enough resources to achieve their current Rank in preparation for the great battle that was waiting for them inside the Sacred Dungeon.

Although Cai and Keane were also in the Initiate Rank, they were not Peak Initiates. However, that didn’t matter because both of them had the ability to go above and beyond their current ranks, making them even stronger than the side characters that Einar and Enlil brought to accompany them to the Domain of the Fallen.

“It seems that the brats are itching for a fight,” Zarazel commented as he finished drinking his cup of tea. “Should we also watch?”

The Barbarian High-Ranker who went by the name Kavan nodded his head.

“I also want to see if this kid is as good as the rumors,” Kavan replied. “I sure hope he doesn’t disappoint.”

Zarazel only smiled, and stood up from his seat.

Now that there was an opportunity to watch Lux fight, he would definitely go and see for himself, if the Half-Elf was worthy of the title of the “Strongest Fighter of the young generation”, which he earned after winning the tournament in Barbatos Academy.