Tale of a Hedonistic wizard

His focus was sharp; his mind zeroed in on his purpose here. He scanned the crowd, his eyes catching familiar faces of court officials and nobles. He barely knew anyone here, as the ones present belonged to the upper class of the empire. As he strode to a corner of the hall, out of nowhere, a figure emerged from the group of people and approached him with a sly smile. Jaegar was surprised to see her and clearly annoyed to see the man beside her. It was Veronica and Ewen who stood beside her. Veronica's face lit up with unmistakable enthusiasm upon seeing him, while Ewen's expression betrayed his usual irritation, a scowl forming as soon as their eyes met. Both of them wore the distinct insignias of Arcnytes—an elite division of the Ministry's investigation Bureau that was known for tackling high-risk magical incidents. Veronica, now the vice head of the division, stood a bit taller, her rank lending her an air of authority that Jaegar couldn't help but acknowledge. Ewen, on the other hand, barely concealed his impatience. "Jaegar!" Veronica said, her tone warm, genuinely pleased to see him. "You are here?" Jaegar nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I got invited. Good to see you again, though. And Ewen…" he added with a polite nod, though he noted the man's simmering resentment. "I was starting to wonder how I am gonna survive this hell of a hole tonight, and thankfully you came to my rescue." Jaegar shook her hand as Veronica smiled at him. "Ah, I am sure you could survive on your own though." "Trust me, this is not my thing," Jaegar leaned in to whisper, "I much prefer the company of familiar faces like yours." Veronica chuckled softly, her eyes twinkling with amusement. Ewen muttered something under his breath, giving Jaegar an indifferent glance. Jaegar was well aware of Ewen's attitude; they had clashed numerous times back at the academy, and the arrest due to wrong accusations was something Jaegar hadn't quite forgiven, even if he'd since moved past it. Jaegar turned to Ewen and stretched his hand for a handshake, and Ewen held out his hand. As soon as he touched Jaegar's hand, Ewen felt like he was starting in a pit of fire, his whole body tensing up in response. He felt like he was in a furnace that was trying to burn his whole existence. Then suddenly a voice boomed in his mind: "I don't care about your petty grudges with me, but if I find out that you have anything to do with my arrest, trust me, this was only a glimpse of what you would be experiencing." Ewen, still standing in the fire pit, screamed as his mind couldn't take the mental pressure, and he shouted, "No! No! I don't know anything. Please, don't kill me." Jaegar released his hand, and Ewen fell back; he was sweating profusely. He looked at Jaegar with terror in his eyes. He didn't expect Jaegar had such horrifying abilities, and he was starting to think about his attitude towards Jaegar. Veronica, confused, asked Ewen, who was on the floor; people who were already watching Jaegar murmured, "What happened to you?" Ewen got up and walked out from there, watching Jaegar with fear. He hadn't expected that Jaegar would be this powerful despite having the aura of an apprentice. Clealy, he had underestimated Jaegar. Veronica watched him leave, shaking her head. Then she turned to Jaegar, squinting her eyes, trying to understand what had just happened. She asked, "What did you do?" "What? I just shook his hand, that's all," Jaegar said, shrugging his shoulders. Veronica sighed and said, "Whatever it is, it must have put him in his place." She could tell that Jaegar had done something as she felt the arcane energy ripple around Jaegar for a second. "Why are you here with him, then?" "It wasn't my call. The division decided to send him along. He is such an annoyance." "I can understand," Jaegar replied with a smirk. "Well, you must be wondering why we're here," Veronica said, drawing his attention back to her. "As it turns out, this isn't just a simple soiree." Jaegar raised an eyebrow, realising for the first time just how oblivious he was to the event's significance. Veronica chuckled, shaking her head as though amused by his apparent lack of information. "This gathering," she began, "is something of a—how shall I say?—matchmaking opportunity. Eligible young men and women of noble birth come together to seek out prospective partners, and if they're lucky, find a suitable match." Her tone was light-hearted, though her gaze grew more intent. "Though I would like to look around, me and Ewen are here on the bureau's business. It's about the princess who is coming here today." "What about her?" Jaegar asked, feeling the glances thrown his way once in a while. The ladies in the room kept on looking his way, not daring enough to approach him. Veronica, who noticed the glances thrown his way, chuckled softly before continuing, "But it seems like this soiree had been arranged to welcome." Jaegar folded his hands, as if he couldn't help it, "What to do when you're the most handsome in the empire?" Veronica raised an eyebrow. "HUH! Don't let it get to your head, Jaegar." "Well, it looks like you'll have your hands full tonight." Jaegar smirked, knowing he was in for an interesting evening. While they were talking, a man approached them. He ignored Jaegar and introduced to Veronica, "Hello, my name is Arnal Bordaulf." I couldn't help but notice your captivating presence from across the room." Veronica smiled politely, as he took her hand and kissed it gently. Jaegar then remembered about the House Bordaulf, the duke house known for their charm and political influence. There were a family of generational knights, and Arnal was no exception. Jaegar could sense he had ascended to the upper levels of the master knight, standing just a step shy of reaching the grand level.