Opening

White Eagle Port was as damp and cold as ever in the morning. A blue-and-white Sailing Warship entered White Eagle Port and docked at its designated berth. Sailors in white uniforms swiftly lowered a gangway covered in a dark red carpet trimmed with gold, then lined up on the deck and dock like a human corridor, raising their hands in salute.

Two men and two women emerged from the cabin, descended the gangway, and headed toward the Customs Building.

Leading the group was a beautiful woman with long golden hair. She wore a sapphire blue fitted knight's uniform, white riding trousers, and knee-high Leather Boots. Exaggerated golden tassels hung from the shoulders of her uniform. If her chest had been covered in colorful medals, anyone would have assumed a marshal had arrived. Yet she wore only a large silver eagle pendant, lifted by her full breasts and swaying with every step. She was tall, a full 1.8 meters, with a delicate, fair face. In Edward's Previous Life, she would definitely have been called a Nine-head Beauty. Her expression was cold, carrying an air of authority without anger. Her long golden hair was tied behind her head in a lovely ponytail that swayed along with her stride.

Behind her walked a blond man in heavy armor. His silver armor gleamed in the Morning Light. He stood nearly 1.9 meters tall and had a young, handsome face, though compared to his imposing attire, his features appeared somewhat boyish.

Behind them walked a shorter man and woman side by side. The man wore a white Priest Robe. He had short silver hair and a baby face, while his slit-like eyes made it seem as though he was always smiling. The other was a young girl with Wine-red Hair, wearing a pointed witch's hat and a black mage robe. She bounced along as she walked, looking indescribably adorable.

When the group entered the customs hall, all the staff rose and saluted. As the female knight passed the visa counter, she suddenly turned and spotted Miss Harris, who was bowing her head in greeting. She stopped, and a smile bloomed on her expressionless face.

"Ai Li, you're on duty today."

"Good morning, Princess," Miss Harris greeted her with a smile. "I'm on duty today. It is truly an honor to see you."

"No need for formalities. Just call me Andrea, like you did back at school." The female knight continued smiling.

"Yes, Princess. Have you just returned from your visit to the Southern City-states?"

"Uh, I told you not to be so formal." The female knight sounded a little helpless. "I was gone for two months this time. Has anything happened recently?"

"There have been quite a few immigrants from the Central Lands lately. I heard the war over there is intense, and the Ayrland Empire has already joined it."

"Mm, I've read the reports from the Old Continent too. More immigrants are a good thing—we can at least continue developing the land to the West Side. Anything else new?"

Miss Harris frowned and thought carefully before saying, "An Alchemist returned to settle here a month ago. I heard his home is south of City Gate Street, and his Alchemy Shop is opening soon."

She then pulled a red slip of paper from a small handbag beneath the counter and handed it to the female knight.

"Look, he delivered this yesterday... Oh, right, it's called a Coupon. I think that's the name. He stood outside the customs gate and handed one to every colleague getting off work."

The female knight lowered her head and took the slip. It was bright red and quite thick, with the feel of a card. Printed on it were the words: Smith's Alchemy Shop and Blacksmith Shop Grand Opening Sale. Present this coupon with any purchase in the store to receive a 20% discount.

On the back was printed: Our business scope includes all blacksmith-related products (excluding horseshoe-nailing services), alchemical household products, alchemical camping products, Beginner Level Alchemy Potions, magic item repairs, and more.

The female knight raised an eyebrow and muttered, "What kind of strange new terms are these? I've never heard them before."

"They should be new terms from the Central Lands. After all, new things come out over there every year," Miss Harris replied with a nod.

"I understand. I'll be heading back first." The female knight turned away smartly and waved. "Ai Li, come have tea at my place when you have time."

"Yes, Princess." Miss Harris watched her leave with a smile. Once the Knight Princess had gone some distance away, she muttered quietly.

"She still hasn't returned my Coupon. I wanted to visit that legendary Alchemy Shop after work. That Big Sister..."

The guard John silently handed over his own Coupon...

Outside customs, a Guard of Honor was already waiting. The young knight in heavy armor was Princess's Guard Captain, Mr. Lainhardt. He bent down and helped Princess into the splendid carriage. After waiting for Pastor Elvin and Princess's Royal Mage and Cousin, Miss Alice, to board as well, he walked to the front of the procession, mounted the tall Warhorse his assistant was holding, accepted a slender flagpole bearing a blue-and-white striped banner, and began clearing the way ahead. The Military Band behind them began to play. The grand procession headed toward the city gate.

Pedestrians and carriages along the way stopped to make way, calling out blessings such as, "May Princess be well!"

Princess and her Cousin leaned their upper bodies out of the carriage window, smiling with eight perfect teeth and waving to greet the pedestrians. Cheers rose again and again from the roadside.

Before long, Alice with the Wine-red Hair shrank back into the carriage's shadow, heavily leaning against the soft Purple Velvet Backrest. Pouting, she said, "Keeping up this fake smile is exhausting. It's even more tiring than memorizing Spells."

Pastor Elvin, who was also huddled inside, said, "Alice, this is the proper bearing of a noble. You should not say such things."

"Don't give me that. Your face doesn't need to make any expression for people to think you're smiling. Do you know how tiring this is for me? My face is about to cramp."

"Unfortunately, I am not a noble." At that moment, it was impossible to tell whether Pastor Elvin was smiling or feeling smug.

"You two, say less. Be careful someone hears you." Princess still wore an eight-toothed smile. Her lips clearly had not moved.

"Andrea, how did you do that?" Alice looked at her female cousin in surprise.

"What do you mean?" Princess asked softly.

"How can you talk without moving your lips?"

"This is Ventriloquism, an Assassin Common Skill."

"Why would a Great Knight practice an assassin skill?"

"It's also a Noble Lady Common Skill. Didn't your Housekeeper teach you?" Princess continued smiling as she waved out the carriage window.

"No..."

Just then, the carriages entered the city gate, and everyone heard a series of crackling pops. Even the musicians of the Guard of Honor stopped playing. Knight Reinhardt, who had been leading the way, immediately halted his mount, threw down the flagpole, grabbed the Large Shield and longsword hanging from his saddle, and turned his horse around to guard Princess's carriage. He looked as though he was only a shout of "Assassins!" away.

The guards around them immediately reacted as well, forming a circle and surrounding Princess's carriage layer by layer.

Everyone looked toward the source of the noise. At the southern end of City Gate Street, in front of a White Small Building, the crackling continued. There were also beautiful red and green flashes, fluttering red scraps of paper, and smoke filling the air.

The sounds gradually stopped, and the smoke slowly dispersed. A faint smell of Sulfur reached everyone's noses.

The White Small Building was covered in Colorful Flags, and strange-looking Flower Baskets filled the space before its entrance. Each basket seemed to have two strips of red paper with black writing on them. A Semicircular Golden Arch of some unknown material stood inflated above the entrance, bearing a large line of words: Grand Opening Today, 20% Off Storewide.

People on the street gradually gathered around. From afar, they saw a young man emerge from the doorway holding something shaped like a White Small Speaker. He put it to his mouth, and when he spoke, everyone on the entire street could hear him. Because of the distance, his voice carried a faint echo.

"Dear neighbors, friends from the Eastern and Western Continents, our humble shop opens today. Thank you all for your support. To show our appreciation, everything in the shop is 20% off today. Welcome, everyone..."

After he finished speaking, the curious crowd surged inside. He then hung the speaker-shaped object at the door, stuffed something unknown into it, and a strange song began playing from the Small Speaker.

First came the sound of gongs and drums: dong-qiang, dong-qiang, dong-dong-qiang. Then came the obvious groaning of the same man from before, deliberately roughening his voice.

"Hey-ya, hey-ya, hey-hey, hey-yo. Hey-ya, hey-ya, hey-hey, hey-yo..."

"Congratulations on getting rich... Congratulations on your success... May all the best things come your way... May all the bad things stay away... Ah... No one takes offense at excessive courtesy..."

Only then did everyone realize it had been a false alarm. Princess waved, signaling everyone to continue onward.

The Small Speaker's voice boomed in every direction, and everyone in the entire City Gate District could hear it. The band behind them could not play at all. The song seemed to possess some kind of magic, making people unable to resist swaying, dancing, and walking forward happily. The entire Guard of Honor's steps became a little disordered. Even the horses pulling the carriage pranced forward in little bursts.

Princess no longer had the mood to wave at the people outside. Leaning against the carriage backrest, she asked the Wine-red Hair mage, "That must be the Alchemist who returned from the Central Lands, right? You studied at Ailande Royal Magic Academy too. Do shops over there all open like this?"

"They open new shops quietly over there. I've never seen anything like this." The Red-haired Mage Girl curled her lips and continued.

"But there's a saying about Warlocks from the Alchemy Department: nine out of ten alchemists are weird, and the last one is a Pervert. This guy might just be that one in ten."

"Wouldn't we find out by going to see for ourselves?" A faint smile appeared at the corner of Princess's mouth. "How about we sneak out and take a look after we return?"

The Mage Girl's eyes immediately lit up. "Sure, sure! Once we get back, that guy Lainhardt will have to report to the Grand Duke and the council. Then no one will be around to keep an eye on us..."

"Cough, cough..." The Slit-eyed pastor beside them coughed to announce his presence. "You Two, could you not discuss sneaking out so openly? Do I not exist?"

At that moment, the two women turned together to look at the silver-haired Baby-faced Pastor. The stare made him draw his neck back slightly.

"Captain of Knights—stop at the Holy Light Church ahead. Pastor Elvin is getting off." The Mage Girl's shout came from inside the carriage.

The convoy stopped beside the Holy Light Church, and a certain Baby-faced Pastor was kicked out of the carriage. He rubbed his backside and had not even regained his footing when the door slammed shut with a bang. The convoy continued onward...