The missing daughter.

The Duke of Goldcrest's extravagant celebration for his daughter's coming of age came to a close, the grand hall emptied slowly as guests started to filter out. Sieghart's family, who had been enjoying the festivities, were amongst the first to leave. Sieghart's mind was plagued with thoughts of his harsh treatment of Velice, the Duke's daughter. Marcus, sensing his younger brother's distress, inquired if anything was wrong. Sieghart, unwilling to show any vulnerability, dismissed Marcus' concern with a wave of his hand.

The family made their way to the carriage with Elena, their doting mother, clinging to Sieghart's arm while sniffing his hair and remarking on how wonderful he smelled.

"My Sieg is so precious!" she cried out.

"Mother, don't start with this again," said Sieghart, partly irritated.

"But you're so... you're so beautiful honey! You're an angel!" she giggled still clingy as ever.

Sieghart sighed. "I'll never be able to live freely will I?"

"No!" she heartily replied.

"That... was a rhetorical question," he held his head in his palm.

Elena fussed over Sieghart while the rest of the family laughed along. Sieghart's father, stepmother and the twins jested while Melvis, their quiet brother, remained stoic.

"Elena, my dear, stop fussing over Sieghart," Greldine chided.

"Meanie," said Elena as she gave Sieghart a quick kiss on the cheek before watching him settle in.

Greldine, however, wasn't ready to give up his stern demeanor, he confronted Sieghart about his absence during the greeting of the Duke and his daughter.

"Son, where were you today?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Sieghart sheepishly scratched his head.

"Oh that? I had to go to the bathroom, father."

Greldine clicked his tongue in frustration and muttered under his breath, "Typical."

Luna and Luke, Sieghart's older siblings, couldn't resist teasing him.

"Did you get lost, Sieghart? Need us to hold your hand next time?"

Luna giggled as she pushed Sieghart further into the carriage.

"Oh, shut it, you two," Sieghart retorted with a grin as he settled into his seat.

Marcus, his older brother, just smirked as he climbed into the carriage.

Meanwhile, Melvis, the quiet one of the family, sat with the adults - Elena, Greldine, and his mother, Martha.

Martha leaned over to Melvis and asked if he was all right.

"Are you feeling alright, dear?" she asked with concern.

Melvis nodded, stifling a yawn as he replied.

"Yes, just a little tired from all the festivities."

Elena chuckled as she climbed back into the carriage.

"Well, get some rest, dear. We still have a long journey home."

As they settled in, the night had already fallen, and the nobles of the Goldcrest Duchy were ready to depart. Sieghart's family bid their farewells to the Duke's mansion before the carriage began its journey home.

---

Next day,

Sieghart awoke groggily to the sound of birds chirping outside his window. He stretched his muscular arms and let out a satisfying yawn, feeling the satisfying burn in his biceps. He slowly sat up, rubbed the sleep from his eyes, and felt his stomach grumble in hunger.

"Hmm, I need some grub," he muttered to himself as he climbed out of bed. His mouth was drier than a desert, so he decided to wash up before anything else.

He took his time in the shower, enjoying the warm water as it cascaded over his chiseled abs and bulging pecs.

Twenty minutes later, Sieghart emerged from the bathroom, feeling like a brand new man.

He walked down the corridors, feeling refreshed and energized.

That was until he ran into Luna and Luke.

"Hey guys... huh, what're you doing?" Sieghart asked, curious.

"We're studying for the upcoming exams," replied Luke, holding a pile of books.

Luna nodded along, her brown hair bouncing around her face.

"Our magical engineering teacher has been tough on us, we've gotta make sure we pass."

Luke chipped in, "Yeah, but I'm more worried about our nature magic cultivation class."

Suddenly, Luna let out a cry, her big blue eyes filled with tears.

"I forgot he was a nightmare too! I haven't even studied for it yet!"

Sieghart was already lost, but he listened on anyway, intrigued.

"Well, good luck with that. I'm off to go grab some breakfast."

Luke looked at his watch and then told Sieghart, "Uh, it's already afternoon."

Sieghart's eyes widened in shock.

"What?! When did that happen?"

Luna chimed in, "Well, you've been sleeping like a corpse all day. Even Celica woke you up, but you just went right back to bed."

Sieghart chuckled. "Hey, I had a really stressful night, you know."

Luna and Luke nodded in unison, as if they understood exactly what he meant. They then proceeded to walk away, leaving Sieghart in peace to finally get some food.

Sieghart strode down the corridors, the click of his dress shoes echoing through the stone walls. A figure appeared in his peripheral vision - it was Melvis, the stoic brother who patrolled the halls. Sieghart offered a friendly wave, and Melvis nodded in return, his expression unchanging.

Yawning, Sieghart weaved his way down the stairs in his immaculate noble attire. The foyer sprawled before him, and he spotted Celica chatting with his father, Greldine. As he approached them, he offered a polite bow to his father and a curtsey to Celica.

"Good morn— afternoon, father," he said in a respectful tone. "Celica, what's on the menu today?"

Celica's eyes lit up as she responded, "I was just about to suggest a hearty lunch for you, Master Sieghart. I tried to wake you earlier, but you just wouldn't respond, I honestly thought you were dead."

Greldine interjected, "Were you tired from the party last night, son?"

Sieghart let out a long sigh.

"Yeah, I was. I had a lot of fun, though."

Celica excused herself to take care of breakfast preparations, and Sieghart turned to his father.

"I think I'll go help her out for a bit, see if I can find something to snack on in the meantime."

However, as he spoke, he noticed a worried look on his father's face. "Is everything okay, father?" he asked, but Greldine seemed lost in thought. After Sieghart's third attempt, Greldine finally spoke.

"Do you remember the Duke's daughter from last night?" Greldine asked.

Sieghart furrowed his brow, struggling to recollect.

"The one with the blue hair, right?"

I can't even remember her name. Was it Vessel? Vassal? Veronica? I can't get it right, can I?

Greldine nodded gravely.

"She was kidnapped yesterday."

Sieghart feigned shock.

"Really?" he gasped.

In truth, he didn't care much about the Duke's daughter, but he didn't want to seem inconsiderate.

Greldine proceeded to explain the incident that occurred hours after the party had ended, where the personal maid of Velice saw her taken and called the attention of the Duke.

"Yes! Velice, that was her name," Sieghart snapped his fingers.

Greldine raised an eyebrow, "Do you know something?"

"Apologies father," Sieghart replied. "Please, continue."

Greldine went on to explain that by the time guards were deployed to the mansion where Velice was taken, the perpetrators had already vanished.

"How's that possible? Shouldn't well-trained guards be able to quickly deploy and circumvent her captors?" Sieghart asked, his mind churning.

"The gist is that they used mana enhancements," Greldine replied, sighing heavily.

Sieghart's demeanor abruptly changed, his excitement palpable at the mention of magic. "That's fascinating," he said, trying to rein in his enthusiasm. "But what does that mean for the Duke now?"

"More like what does it mean for us... we need to be careful and tread lightly," Greldine warned. "I'll be meeting with the Duke to see how he's managing."

Sieghart nodded solemnly.

"Of course, I hope things go well."

"Indeed, Martha and your mother are already there," Greldine said, rising from the table.

"They are?" Sieghart raised an eyebrow.

Greldine nodded, "They're sympathizing with the Velice's mother..."

Sieghart remained silent.

When Greldine made his way to the door, Sieghart added, "Take care, Father."

Unspoken but understood, they both knew that sympathizing with the Duke was a way to curry favor with him. It wasn't very honorable, but it was necessary in their line of work.

Sieghart made his way towards the kitchen to join Celica when, out of nowhere, Celestia emerged from his chest, her ethereal body an otherworldly sight to behold. He reeled back, surprised, but quickly composed himself and asked her what she was doing.

"Celestia! What're you doing? I didn't summon you," he didn't want some random person in the mansion to see her.

"I need to know what's going on with the Duke's daughter," Celestia said urgently, barely taking the time to acknowledge Sieghart's unease. "You need to follow your father and find out what's really going on."

Sieghart raised an eyebrow, curious as to why Celestia was suddenly so invested in his personal affairs. "Since when do you care about what goes on in my life?" he asked.

"There's something I need to be sure of," Celestia said cryptically. "So you need to follow your father and get to the bottom of this."

Sieghart hesitated, unsure of whether to listen to Celestia or not.

"I'm not doing it," he said finally. "You can't force me."

Celestia let out a deep sigh, clearly frustrated by Sieghart's reluctance. "Of course I can't force you," she said. "But think about it - if you're able to find and rescue the Duke's daughter, you'll be handsomely rewarded."

Sieghart shrugged nonchalantly, unmoved by the promise of riches.

But then, Celestia hit him with a different type of incentive.

"And think about it this way," she said, leaning in closer. "If we can find out who took her, then that's a chance for you to test out your abilities on someone other than low-level monsters in the forest."

Sieghart was intrigued now, his mind racing with the possibilities. "If the captors were able to use mana enhancements, then that means they must be at least half decent in the use of magic," he said excitedly.

Celestia nodded, pleased that she had finally convinced Sieghart to get involved. "Exactly," she said. "Now go follow your father and see what you can find out."

As Celica walked through the grand hall, she suddenly noticed a strange haze of light in the corner of her eye. Before she could even make sense of what it was, Celestia had vanished into thin air. Perplexed by what had just happened, Celica asked aloud, "What was that?"

Sieghart noticed her confusion and came over to her, wearing his aristocrat attire with a sleek black coat and polished dress shoes. "It's nothing, Celica. But I need to follow my father; we're visiting the Duke," he said in his usual suave voice, flashing a charming smile.

"Oh, of course. I understand," Celica responded, bowing her head respectfully, not wanting to interfere.