Chapter 57. The Banquet.

When Simon's fleet entered the Elani space they were welcomed by the border fleet however they didn't dare to stop the humans as their flagship broadcasted a transponder signal of a royal guest.

All the border guards did was to inform the empire's capital world that the human ships had entered their space.

The journey went smooth and without any surprises for the Terrans.

By now almost everybody had heard of the new space nation and their power so there was no one brave enough to try and mess with the fleet.

The Elani system was in a bit of an uproar as there was no previous precedent of an alien fleet entering their capital system.

The Empress however gave her permission for the Terrans to come to the Elani home world as her guests.

Also most of the people knew that the eldest son of the Xanzi family would have a duel with a human over the fifth princess and they were expecting a good show.

The prime minister was a bit worried about his grandson,if they went with standard dueling rules then the human would be able to end the fight in a matter of seconds.

The only chance to win was to change the rules and for that he needed the consent from the human and the empress.

Simon arrived at the palace in his shuttle,this time however he had an entourage with him.

The official diplomats and some of his soldiers wore power armor similar to his own.

It was a modern version of a winged hussar armor,The design was just radiating power and gave the wearer freedom of movement while intimidating any adversaries.

Waiting for them was the first prince Darun and the first princess Inia as a part of the imperial family it was their duty to welcome a royal guest.

-Welcome Admiral Black,I trust that your journey was a pleasant one.

The prince welcomed the guests.

-It's good to see you again your highness,And yes the journey was quite pleasant.

Simon answered the greeting.

-Allow me to introduce you to the First imperial princess Inia Xirna.

Darun introduced his sister.

-It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance princess.

The Admiral bowed his head slightly in a respectful gesture.

-The pleasure is mine,Admiral.

She also greeted him with courtesy.

-Let's get inside as the rest of the imperial family is awaiting you in the throne chamber.

The first prince proposed and showed the way.

Inia was under a great impression of the humans and especially liked their power armors and weapons they carried.

All the human soldiers accompanying Simon had polish sabers by their sides and also a side arm on their tight,

Simon of course also had a saber but his other weapons were his usual bow and arrows and two short swords on his back.

If someone didn't see him training with these weapons then they might think of them as purely ceremonial or decorative accessories.

However all the soldiers saw his training and knew better,Simon could kill an opponent with his bow from a hundred meters,and fighting him with his swords or a saber was usually a very painful experience.

They were walking through a long corridor leading to the throne room and the guards were standing at attention,presenting arms when they were passing.

The great door opened and they could finally see the Imperial family along with many high ranking ministers and dignitaries.

Simon almost immediately saw Alesia and he had to try really hard not to go straight to her.

He managed to control himself and went before the empress.

-Imperial Mother,allow me to present Admiral Simon Black and Envoy of the Terran Council Midori Sato.

The first prince announced.

-Welcome in my empire Admiral,Envoy.

We will discuss the reasons for your arrival tomorrow,today I invite you to a banquet that will be held in the evening.

The empress said, most of the ministers were in shock as in their culture the arrival banquet was held only for the most important guests.

-Thank you, your majesty.

Both of them said at the same time.

Simon got a crash course in diplomacy on the way there and did everything as he was thought not wanting to offend the empress.

-That will be all for now as I'm sure you are tired from the journey here.

The rooms are ready and the servants will show you to them.Get some rest and I will see you all at the banquet.

The empress said,cutting the introductions short.

After That they were escorted out by the servants and shown to their rooms.

The evening came And they were all brought to the ballroom .

The envoy Sato wore a traditional kimono,Simon and the rest of the officers wore their formal uniforms with ribbons and medals on their chests.

Simon had a Black navy uniform with his accouterments and many medals he received ,This combination made quite an impression when he was announced.

Everybody looked at the door to see him walking in and most of the men immediately recognized the ribbons and medals on his chest as military distinctions..

They didn't recognize them but that was an impressive collection of medals and whoever received so many of them couldn't be just a normal admiral.

Some of the Elani military officers came over and asked about the medals.

The answers they got shocked everyone.

It Turned out that Simon brought with him only a part of his mandalas and only the most valuable ones.

He even described some of them,and how he got them.

The military men were in awe when he started to explain what every medal represented.

Some other guests overheard the conversation and were in shock.

It turned out that this human was a veteran of many battles and he received his medals for those actions.

All of the humans were the main attraction and some braver aristocrats went to talk to them,also some of the young ladies went to chat with the new arrivals.

The Terran envoy was talking with some of the higher nobility and explaining her outfit as a traditional Japanese dress.

-The Empress has arrived.

The Voice boomed across the room.

The moment the empress walked in everyone except the humans kneeled.

The human soldiers saluted and the envoy bowed in a Japanese manner.

-All rise.

The empress said and took her place on the throne.

Right after that there were announcements of the arrival of the princes and princesses of the empire and Simon was waiting for only one announcement.

-The Fifth princess Alesia Xirna has arrived.

She walked in and Simon's jaw hit the floor.

It was his first time seeing her in a dress and she was stunning.