Chapter 429: Honorary Elder

After receiving both emblems, Daniel and Andreas left the Black Palace without wasting time. There wasn’t a specific reason, but mainly because the atmosphere there had turned a bit dangerous.

Once outside, Daniel glanced at the black-and-gold emblem. Even until the very last moment, he had no idea what exactly it was for or what kind of features and benefits it had.

"That’s an honorary Elder emblem. With this, you’re practically counted as one of the Elders of the Lionheart Family. It doesn’t give you any real political power or influence, but it still holds very high significance. Outside this place, you’ll be considered a member of the Lionheart Family, and anyone who insults or attacks you will be directly insulting and attacking the Lionheart Family itself," Andreas explained after seeing his expression.

"Oh? I wasn’t expecting that," Daniel’s eyes lit up. The emblem was essentially a protective layer.

Now, with this emblem, he could move more freely. Combined with the existence of the Everlight Moon Guild, he had two different backgrounds supporting him.

Thankfully, in the future, he would be able to act with more freedom. Still, the thought that this emblem held no real political power made him sigh.

"Even though it doesn’t grant political authority, it’s very rare for the family to give one out. Fewer than ten people hold this emblem, and all of them are among the Lionheart Family’s greatest allies," Andreas added to complete his explanation.

Daniel nodded. Even without political influence, it still had plenty of advantages—especially since, in the future, when Andreas became the leader of his family, Daniel would gain the political power he was aiming for.

After that, they returned directly to the palace. As soon as they entered, Fino flew straight toward Daniel, throwing itself into his arms and knocking him onto his backside.

"It’s only been a few days and you’ve grown again," he laughed, stroking the little dragon’s head as it nestled more firmly against him.

"You finally came back?" Ilaris also appeared at the entrance after hearing their voices. A beautiful smile spread across her face when she saw they had returned.

After greetings and a bit of small talk, they went into the hall. Andreas and Daniel collapsed onto the seats, and Ilaris gave an order to a servant to prepare the best lunch for the day.

"How was your trip?" she asked as she sat down across from them and looked at them.

"Not bad, better than we expected."

"Nothing interesting. It was boring, with no excitement at all."

"Oh? You sure? Because I remember some pretty fun moments," Daniel said with a laugh.

"Shut up." Andreas, realizing what his friend was hinting at, replied with embarrassment and irritation.

Daniel raised his hands in surrender and said no more, shifting his gaze toward Ilaris and scanning her instead.

The girl had gotten noticeably stronger. It was clear she had been training, almost as if she was preparing for the journey to the elves.

"Nothing unusual happened here?" Daniel asked.

"No, thankfully. I spent most of my days with Avina, and the rest of the time taking care of Fino or training," Ilaris answered briefly.

"Fino didn’t cause any trouble?" Daniel asked with a smile as he looked at the little dragon. It still had the appearance of a bird, only fatter and larger now.

"No, actually it’s really calm and quiet. It sleeps most of the time. But... isn’t it growing a bit too fast?" she asked with some concern.

"No, that’s normal."

"If you say so... Anyway, when are you planning for us to leave?" Ilaris nodded and asked.

"We’ll depart tomorrow. Today we rest, and I need to speak with a few people," Daniel thought for a moment before answering. Before leaving, he needed to talk to Selera and Avina.

"So soon? Don’t you want to stay a little longer? There are still so many parts you haven’t seen yet," Andreas said. He was the one most saddened by their leaving and truly didn’t want to be separated from the two of them.

"Even though I’d love to stay longer, I have too many things to do. And that’s just in this world. Don’t forget, I’m an Otherworldly Climber. My home isn’t here."

Both their expressions shifted slightly. They had honestly forgotten that Daniel didn’t belong to their world.

"You’re right. Sorry, I forgot about that," Andreas sighed and apologized with a heavy feeling.

He had already caused Daniel plenty of trouble and had even received so much help from him. Wanting to keep him here any longer would be nothing but shameless.

"It’s fine, don’t worry. Sooner or later, we’ll see each other again," Daniel smiled, not taking it to heart.

"So, where will you go after this?" Ilaris, sensing the mood around them getting heavy, quickly tried to change the subject.

"First, I’ll take you and Rynor to a city where you can travel to the continent where the elves live. After that, I’ll return to the Central Plains. Once I make sure that both Fino and I have a safe place, I’ll leave this world for a while," he said after some thought.

"You know where to take them? Are there intercontinental teleport portals?" Daniel’s gaze fell on Andreas.

"There are intercontinental teleport portals, but they’re not nearly as common as normal ones. Only a few exist across the continent, and the ones that lead to the continent of the elves are even fewer," Andreas replied.

"I’ll ask around today and find the closest place where you can access such a teleport portal."

Daniel nodded and thanked him. After that, they talked for a while about various things, including their future plans. Eventually, Daniel felt it was the right time to take his leave, so he said goodbye for now and left the palace to meet Avina.

Before leaving, he asked Ilaris where he could find that girl, so without wasting any time he went straight to the training grounds.