Hanzuo no longer knew how to respond to the king. He quickly tried to think of anything he could say to calm His Majesty down.
Then Xien began walking toward the door, and everyone's gaze followed him.
"Your Majesty, where are you going?" Hanzuo asked.
"If you won't act to obey me, then I'll do it myself."
The king turned the door handle and walked straight out. None of them could stop him.
Hanzuo exhaled deeply and bowed his head.
"What do we do now?" Desmond asked quietly.
"No one can stop His Majesty. There's only one choice left. We must let him see Valestron today."
When the king exited the Dining Hall, he immediately sharpened his senses and tried to locate the boy.
He sensed something—but it wasn't strong or clear. He could barely trace Valestron's presence, which secretly irritated him. He felt insulted because it was the first time he struggled to find someone he wanted to track down.
He could sense every person around him—their breathing, their exact positions—clearly. Except for Valestron. The boy felt like a thin wisp of smoke, and after a moment, the trace disappeared entirely.
Emrys slipped away from his senses just like that. "What kind of creature is this Valestron? How is it possible he vanished from my senses?" The king repeated his search again and again.
He began sweeping through the whole area.
Students were starting to notice him, bowing their heads in shock, but King Xien paid them no mind. The only thing in his head was finding and confronting Valestron as soon as possible.
And he would not stop until he did.
"Your Majesty." Soon, three supervising teachers stepped in front of him with bowed heads. "You should not be here right now. The competition is still underway, so we ask that you please return to the Dining Hall."
Xien sighed sharply and lifted his chin. "And what right do you have to tell me what I can and cannot do?"
The teachers stiffened. "F-forgive us."
"I will find that Valestron! And you cannot stop me!" the king roared. They stumbled backward and disappeared, trembling.
The students nearby were now staring at him.
"Father." A voice spoke behind him, and the king turned to see his son Lucien. "What are you doing?"
The prince noticed that people were staring because of the commotion the king was causing in the middle of the competition, so he quickly approached and whispered, "Father, please. If you want to get revenge for what that Valestron did to Elise, don't do this here."
The king glared at him. "He hurt my princess! And he nearly killed you, Lucien! What are you two even doing?! Why can't you catch a simple boy?! Four Guilds have joined forces but still haven't found him?!"
"Father, we're doing everything we can. He's elusive."
King Xien almost laughed. "Elusive?! You outrank that Valestron, Lucien! He's the weakest boy in this entire institution, and now you're telling me he's 'elusive'? Is that really the best excuse you can give me?!"
Lucien glanced away, eyes shut tight in frustration. His chest burned with humiliation as his father shamed him publicly. "Father. I'm asking again—leave this to me, and return to the Dining Hall and wait. I will catch Valestron for you no matter what. I promise."
The king let out a long breath and stared sharply at his son. He was losing faith in him, but considering the situation, he placed a hand on Lucien's shoulder before walking past him.
"I'll return to the Dining Hall. Fulfill your promise, Lucien. Unless you want me to punish you further."
Lucien was left bowed on the path, fists clenched as his father walked away.
Not far from them, Xin's group had witnessed the scene. Xin leaned against a wall with arms crossed, smiling.
Beside him, Loan shook his head. "Seriously… I didn't expect the king himself to get involved just because we still can't catch that Valestron."
"The longer this goes on, the harder it becomes. Emrys is impressive—how does he manage to evade the entire institution on his own? It's unbelievable when you think about it," Eris added.
Sai watched the prince walk away in frustration. He looked at his palm and clenched it. "Even so, that's no reason for us to give up."
"Right. We still have to move, even if success seems impossible. He's just a little rat, isn't he?" Xin said before walking off with hands in his pockets. "It's time for the White Hunters Guild to act."
Elsewhere—
Magnus had seen the entire scene between the king and the prince as well.
He waited for the bowed Lucien to pass by before speaking. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"
"You don't need to think. You didn't see or hear anything," Lucien replied coldly without stopping. "I'm going to find Valestron and take back the respect my father stripped from me. Will you help me, Magnus?"
The Guild Leader smiled. "Why wouldn't I? You're not the only one who needs something from Valestron. We'll work together to catch him."
On a nearby rooftop, Rein Flamio and members of his Guild had also watched the same father-and-son scene below.
"It looks like everyone's about to get aggressive," he said, turning toward the setting sun. "Emrys Valestron… who are you, really, to cause this much chaos in the entire institution?"