About half an hour earlier.
It was night time, and at this moment, two people were riding horses galloping in the night.
They were siblings of the El-Melloi family: Kayneth and Reines.
"The Moon King is the natural enemy of the Clock Tower. Her declaring that she wishes to marry Alvin, could be a ploy to spark inner conflict in the Clock Tower, or maybe something else entirely.
But either way, I think this news won't stay hidden long, we need to see Barthomeloi immediately."
Not long ago, having realized that Alvin might be in serious trouble, Kayneth had left the royal palace at once.
In the current Clock Tower, the Director was elusive and rarely seen.
In fact, the one holding real power was the Head of the Political Affairs Department, Barthomeloi.
As long as they explained the situation clearly to her, the crisis surrounding Alvin could likely be resolved.
Though Kayneth didn't hold out much hope.
After all, Barthomeloi was famous for her pride and independence.
She had her own principles and seldom listened to others.
And this matter involved none other than that Moon-dwelling Ultimate One.
.
.
As Kayneth had suspected from the start, the news that the Moon King intended to wed Alvin spread through the royal capital by that very evening.
Even if those within Camelot's court tried to keep it quiet, the Moon King's side could just as easily leak the information.
When it did spread, everyone in the capital was shaken and the first question they asked was: "Who the hell is Alvin?"
Some, of course, knew who he was. Some had even heard of the "Moon King."
Especially… the Clock Tower.
Just as Kenneth had predicted, when the Clock Tower's higher-ups heard the news, they were thrown into disarray—particularly the head of Political Affairs.
"Marriage? Between who and who?!"
When Barthomeloi received the message, her mind nearly blanked out. For a moment, she even wondered if she'd misheard.
When rumors first circulated that a powerful being from the Moon had arrived, she'd already guessed who it might be.
After all, in her knowledge, there was only one overwhelming being who resided on the Moon.
——Arcueid.
As the Clock Tower's long-standing nemesis, her power had always been a given. No one expected this Ultimate One of the Moon to actually descend upon Britain.
Even more shocking, she'd recently clashed in battle with Artoria and Morgan le Fay.
Though to this moment, Barthomeloi still didn't know why that battle had abruptly ended.
Did Arcueid simply fear Britain's other powerhouses?
Or… did she have another goal?
Barthomeloi had even called a meeting before to discuss Arcueid's motives.
The Lords offered different speculations.
But no one, absolutely no one—expected her reason was simply to marry Alvin.
The Lord of Spiritual Evocation, Eulyphis had a complicated expression on his face.
After all, he had only recently proposed a marriage alliance between Reines, his disciple Kayneth's sister and Alvin, hoping to tie the latter to their faction.
And now? Arcueid had intervened.
But more baffling was this, how did that boy even return from the Imaginary Number Space?!
Eulyphis still remembered Alvin from the banquet at the British palace, when Merlin accidentally banished him into the Imaginary World.
Was it luck? Or… was the kid's magical skill really that profound?
"Could this be a false rumor spread by enemies?" Gaius, the Lord of the Zoology Department, whispered from the side.
"I'd like to believe that too… but the royal palace has confirmed it as well."
Barthomeloi's sharp eyes gleamed as, for the first time, a trace of uncertainty crept across her cold face.
She was silent for a long time, then said, "Besides… who would bother spreading such an unbelievable, ridiculous lie as a smokescreen?"
If Arcueid really wanted to mislead people, she wouldn't have used words like "marriage" which is so magical and unbelievable that people would find it unbelievable at first sight.
More importantly—she didn't need smokescreens.
After all, that woman was too powerful.
In this era, apart from those people in Britain, no one was qualified to fight her
"…But I still don't get it. Why did it have to be him?" Barthomeloi muttered softly.
The other two Lords sank into deep silence.
The relationship between Alvin and the White Dragon hadn't even been sorted out yet and now this mess with Arcueid?
Just thinking about it gave Barthomeloi a migraine.
"If I remember right, at that banquet… didn't both Artoria and Morgan invite Alvin to dance? Though in the end, no one managed to dance with him..." Gaius suddenly added.
Barthomelloi said nothing.
King Arthur and Morgan didn't get along, and she had known about this a long time ago.
At the dinner party, she thought the sisters invited Alvin because the two were simply competing with each other and neither of them was willing to give in.
Even now, that was her belief.
…I mean, it couldn't be that Artoria and her sister were fighting over a man, right?
As that absurd thought flashed through her mind, Barthomeloi quietly shook her head with a faint chuckle, brushing aside the chaotic speculation.
Then, in a low voice, she said, "..In any case, once we return, have Alvin come see me."
Even setting aside the matter of the White Dragon and his connection to Alvin... the fact that the Princess of the Moon personally proposed marriage to Alvin was, in itself, enough to make the entire Clock Tower pay attention.
If he were to truly marry the Princess of the Moon in the future...
Just imagining that possibility brought a dangerous chill to Barthomeloi's gaze.
Standing beside her, Rufleus Nuada-Re Eulyphis also noticed what was going through the acting Director's mind, but chose not to speak.
Although Kayneth was his disciple, and in a way, Alvin was closely tied to him as well...
If this was a decision made by "Her Majesty", then no matter what, he had no right to object.
At that moment, a stream of mercury-like liquid quietly seeped in through the crack beneath the conference room door.
Then, came a soft knock.
The three looked at one another. Before long, Eulyphis sensed something and said in a low voice, "..It's Kayneth."
"..Come in," said Barthomeloi.
Soon after, Kayneth entered the meeting room with his younger sister, and came face to face with the three Lords of the Clock Tower.
At the head of them sat Barthomeloi, the current Lord of the Department of Policies and Laws, who oversaw the entire Clock Tower.
She scrutinized the man in front of her—the Lord of the Mineralogy Department.
Behind him, Reines was visibly uncomfortable in this setting, but for Alvin's sake, she held her ground and met Barthomeloi's gaze head-on.
"..Kayneth, shouldn't you be resting in the royal quarters? What brings you here?" Eulyphis asked slowly.
"..We came because of—"
Before Reines could finish, Kayneth gave her a slight look and then quickly spoke, "..We came regarding Alvin."
"..I assume the three of you have already heard the news from the Moon King's side?"
"..We have," Barthomeloi nodded expressionlessly.
Kayneth continued to ask, "..Has the Clock Tower reached any conclusions… regarding Alvin?"
"..Nothing definitive yet. We'll need to run further examinations once we return before we can determine whether your disciple poses a threat," Barthomeloi said calmly.
Hearing her words, Kayneth couldn't help but frown slightly. "..Alvin's been by my side this entire time. If anyone knows whether he's a problem, it's me—"
Before he could finish, Barthomeloi coldly interrupted, "..Kayneth, don't forget your position. If Alvin really is the White Dragon and is entangled with the Princess of the Moon, then that means your entire family will also be subject to investigation."
Kayneth's expression shifted slightly.
Once Alvin was investigated, the secret of the White Dragon would inevitably be exposed... and at that point, even if the Clock Tower turned a blind eye to the wedding with Arcueid, others would undoubtedly covet the White Dragon as a precious experimental specimen.
Watching Kayneth's expression grow darker and more troubled, Barthomeloi spoke slowly, "..Stand down. Once the investigation concludes, the Clock Tower will render its judgment."
Eulyphis, who was standing nearby, showed a flicker of hesitation beneath his aged face, but ultimately swallowed back the words he was about to plead.
In a situation like this, anyone who spoke up for Alvin would be directly opposing the acting Director of the Clock Tower.
For Kayneth, it simply wasn't worth the risk... Besides, with the family backing him, there was no way Kayneth would be ruined just because of this.
At most, they'd take a heavy blow, nothing more.
Reines stood quietly to the side, glancing at her brother's rather sour expression, then looking toward the woman before them, the ruler of the Department of Law and Politics, who stood like a queen.
Her lips pressed together slightly, her eyes darkening faintly.
It seemed her brother was right all along, this time, Alvin was truly in trouble.
…