Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 838: Pawns Of The Aetherion Prince

“Have you finished drafting the list of students who will join me in Frieden Academy?” Prince Asta asked his personal butler, who stood by his side.

“Yes, Your Highness,” the butler replied. “I handpicked the best among the students from Aetherion Academy.”

“What about the group of troublemakers I specifically asked you to include?” Prince Asta arched an eyebrow.

“Yes, Your Highness,” the butler answered crisply.

The butler had been with Prince Asta since he was four years old. He had grown familiar with how the prince’s mind worked.

Since the prince had to establish his righteous image in front of his subjects, he needed some people to do the dirty job for him.

That was where the group of troublemakers from the academy would come in.

“Including the troublemakers, there are a total of thirty exchange students who will accompany Your Highness,” the butler reported.

The prince gave a quick glance at the list that his butler had given him and smirked.

“Perfect,” Prince Asta said with a smile. “By the way, is my uncle still here in the capital city?”

“Lord Rowan is still within the capital.” The butler nodded. “It seems that he is meeting up with some of his old acquaintances because it has been a while since he returned to the Empire.”

“How long has he been away?”

“Nearly six years, Your Highness.”

Prince Asta pondered for a while before looking out of the window of his room.

The only ones who knew about the real purpose behind this student exchange program were the King’s inner circle.

To avoid any mishaps, they made a binding oath to prevent themselves from speaking of their plan, even by accident.

This eliminated any unforeseen consequences, especially from the Headmaster of Frieden Academy, who also carried the bloodline of the Royal Family.

“I’m feeling a little excited about this trip,” Prince Asta muttered. “I hope I don’t get disappointed.”

If the exiled prince was really in Frieden Academy, Prince Asta intended to capture him personally, adding a meritorious act to his name.

However, they must do it as cleanly as possible so that the Paragon of Space couldn’t attack them for kidnapping one of his students.

A Paragon was still a Paragon.

Even the Aetherion Empire didn’t want a full-blown confrontation with Rowan Vademont if it could be avoided.

But that didn’t mean they feared him.

Although they would suffer in a straight-on fight, they were willing to pay the price so that the prophecy wouldn’t come to pass.

Also, they had prepared a trump card that would keep even a Paragon at bay.

After the King and Professor Rowan had a meeting, they both agreed that the exchange would happen after two weeks.

Those who were added to the list of exchange students still needed time to prepare, while Frieden Academy also needed to prepare their accommodations.

The one in charge of this was the Student Council of the academy.

Since they were going to prepare the accommodations for one of the princes of the Aetherion Empire, they needed to make sure that no fault could be found with it.

The three kingdoms of Avalon, Solara, and Faelarun had formed an alliance to stand up against the Empire from the north.

Although no conflicts between them had happened over the years, and trade was booming with the empire, they didn’t dare lower their guard because they were still dealing with the strongest empire on the continent.

The next day, inside the Aetherion Grand Academy…

“Did you hear the news?” a teenager wearing three red earrings on his right ear asked. “Looks like they added me to the list of people who will participate in the student exchange program.”

“What?!” The teenager’s friend gasped in shock. “Are you serious?”

“Very serious.”

“Damn… I’m so envious. There are rumors that the two elven princesses studying in that academy are top-tier beauties.”

The teenager smiled evilly. “Yes. I heard about that as well. Don’t worry, I’ll personally inspect their bodies to see if they are just as beautiful under their clothes.”

“Damn, I’m so envious,” the teenager’s friend said with a sigh. “I really wish I was born with your ability.”

“Hahaha! Sucks to be you.”

“F*ck off!”

“I have more news to share,” the teenager with the earrings stated. “The Four Evils and the Six Scoundrels are going with the Prince.”

“What?!” The teenager’s friend looked at him in disbelief. “Aren’t you part of the Six Scoundrels? You mean the other five are also coming with you?!”

“Shhh! Not so loud!” The teenager with the earrings looked at his surroundings. “Do you want me to get in trouble?!”

“I’m sorry. But is everything you said the truth?”

“Of course.”

The teenager with the earrings didn’t know why he and the other famous troublemakers in the First Year batch of the academy were all invited to participate in the student exchange program.

Still, they were told that they would gain academy points as long as they participated in this program.

For the teenager with the earrings, who was at the bottom of the rankings, this was the perfect opportunity to score some easy points. Aside from that, he was also very curious about Frieden Academy.

In fact, their own Headmaster treated the academy as a rival of sorts.

He even went as far as to say in yesterday’s student assembly that those who would be accompanying Prince Asta must prove that Aetherion Academy was better than Frieden Academy.

Since duels between the two academies were bound to happen, they just needed to win at all costs.

That was what the Headmaster had declared in front of everyone.

“I will not tolerate losses. If any of you lose to a student from Frieden Academy, I will deduct academy points directly from your accounts. However, if you win against them, I will give you a big bonus. So, make sure that all of you win no matter what.”

The promise that he gave made those who were invited to the student exchange program think that this was a good opportunity to gain massive benefits during this trip.

After all, not only would they be exempted from the final exams during their First Year, but they would also gain merit points that would be carried over when they became Second Years.

They were not aware that they were merely pawns that Prince Asta would use to serve his goal.

The Prince believed that this trip to Frieden Academy would not only allow him to raise his prestige and influence among his entourage, but also make the foreign students look at him in a new light.

And if he got lucky, then he might even be able to poach some talented students whom he could add under his wing.