Gol D. Ace In Coiling Dragon

"Good evening, my fellow Wushan Townsfolk. On behalf of my Baruch family, I just wanted to thank you for joining us in celebrating our family's fortuitous news."

Ace and his group followed the sound's direction to the stage at the front. There, a family of four stood smiling warmly at the crowd before them.

Hogg stood in the centre of his family, dressed in a luxurious robe embroidered with a majestic golden dragon. He projected a valiant yet noble aura that made the crowd look at him in awe and reverie.

To his right was his brown-haired wife, Lina. She was dressed in a simple yet elegant white dress that only highlighted her undeniable beauty.

On her left, holding her hand, was her youngest son, Wharton, dressed in luxurious robes not too dissimilar from his father's. His four-year-old chest was puffed out as if he was trying to show his noble side, but it only made people want to pinch his chubby cheeks as he was truly too adorable.

But most people's attention was on the man of the hour. To Hogg's right, Linley stood calmly with his shoulder-length brown hair swaying gently with the wind. His gaze held a hint of pride but was also warm and inviting, leaving people with a positive impression.

"As many of you have already heard, my eldest son was lucky enough to be accepted into the Ernst Institute," Hogg announced before pausing, waiting for the crowd's applause to fade. "As well as celebrating this joyous occasion, we also wanted to announce another piece of good news.

Every man of great stature needs a powerful guard, which is why we as a family have decided to choose from the children of Wushan of similar age to become our son's personal guard. I will personally train said child myself in the ways of the warrior whilst Linley studies at the Ernst Institute."

As he said that, the sounds of multiple gasps could be heard coming from the crowd.

As a warrior of the sixth rank, Hillman could be considered a man of power and status almost anywhere he went, but Hogg had gone one step further. Despite not having a secret manual to cultivate battle qi, purely relying on his excellent physique gifted by his great genes, he had reached the seventh rank.

Despite a difference of only one rank between them, the seventh rank was somewhat of a watershed. The average seventh-rank warrior was no weaker than a group of ten peak sixth-rank warriors.

Knowing that, it was no wonder why the crowd was so shocked by Hogg's declaration. Not only would they be personally trained by a powerhouse at the seventh rank, but due to the Ernst Institute only allowing people to graduate when they reach the 6th rank, it meant that whoever was lucky enough to be chosen would end up the personal guard to a mage of at least the sixth rank in the future. They would have the opportunity to interact with the true movers and shakers of their Yulan Continent.

This announcement caused shock and excitement in every child present, bar Ace, who could sense Linley's gaze lingering on him.

'Why am I getting a bad feeling all of a sudden?'

"For now, though, let's just focus on having an enjoyable night," Hogg said with a cheery laugh.

As he led his family to their seats, the servants began bringing out the plates of food, placing them on the tables.

Besides those on the Baruch's table, everyone else had to go up and get their own food. Thankfully, due to the prestige of the Baruch Clan, no one was running or pushing to get to the front. Other than Ace, that was.

As soon as he had caught a whiff of the most beautiful aroma he'd ever smelt, he shot off towards the tables in the middle, where he knew the food would be laid out. By the time the servers had begun putting the food out, he was already queueing up.

If it weren't for the fact that he didn't want to provoke the family feeding him, he wouldn't have even bothered waiting for Hogg and his family to be served; he would've begun sharing his portion already.

"Please, please help yourself," Hogg said with an amused chuckle when he noticed the eager look on Ace's face.

Ace didn't need to be told twice; he sped along the rows of food, sharing out as much food as his plate could hold. By the time he was done, his greedy grin was hidden behind the tower of food on his plate.

He quickly reserved two more seats around him for his group before digging in unceremoniously, ignoring all the disdainful looks he was receiving.

Killian glanced at the line and then at Ace, or more specifically, his food. It was clear he was jealous of Ace's quick thinking to get to the front of the queue.

Lance, on the other hand, was more surprised by not just the quantity of food but Ace's ability to put it away.

'That food is made from rank one magical beasts. The only way he'd be able to eat food with that much energy is…

Has he already…

Impossible!

Even Linley took a year and a half to reach rank one, and that was with him consuming meals like this every night.'

It wasn't just him. Whether it was Hogg, Hillman, or the more powerful of the guards, they all had similar thoughts as Ace began to stuff his face.

'If he's really a rank one warrior, then we may have stumbled onto the perfect personal guard for Linley!' Hogg thought to himself as he watched Ace.

By the time Killian and Lance got to the seats Ace had saved for them, Ace had already finished and had fallen asleep, sitting up with a smile of contentment lighting up his face.

About an hour into the festivities, Ace began to wake from his slumber.

'Hmm, where am I? Ooh right. Is there any more food?'

As Ace wiped the dribble from the corner of his mouth, he looked up to see if any food was left. But before he could make his way for a second helping, Hogg's voice stopped him.

"I hope everyone has enjoyed the food and tonight's festivities. Now though, I'd like to announce the name of the child we've chosen to become Linley's personal guard and my student."