Chapter 296: New Club Member Lapiz lightly fixed her uniform as she looked at the door of the clock tower in front of her. After taking a deep breath, the young lady knocked on the door to announce her arrival. A second later, it opened by itself. Before her stood Alex, wearing a butler uniform. "Welcome to Endless Horizon, Ms. Lapiz," Alex said with a smile. "Y-Yes. Thank you for having me," Lapiz stuttered. "Please come in," Alex made a gesture for Lapiz to enter. "Everyone else is waiting for you in the club room." The young man had wanted to greet Lapiz normally, but after telling his club members that they would be having a new member, Vaan proposed that Alex wear a butler uniform and make sure that their new club member would feel at home. To his surprise, Lavinia and Chuck approved of Vaan’s proposal. In fact, Vaan already had the butler uniform in hand. Alex had genuinely felt confused at the time, wondering why the pretty boy was carrying such an item inside his storage ring. But since it had already come to this, he decided to play along and wore it. Lavinia even helped him smoothen his uniform and fix his bow tie with a sweet smile on her face. She said that it looked good on him, and asked Chuck to take a picture of her and Alex, which she planned to send to her grandfather, Ramza. After Lavinia took the picture, it was Vaan’s turn to take a picture of him, which Chuck happily took. Just remembering that memory made Alex sigh. He had a feeling that his dear club members would be treating him like a servant for the entire day. But if it would make Lapiz comfortable, he didn’t mind playing along with everyone for the time being. "We can use these stairs to climb up the tower, but in order to save time, please step on the magic circle over there," Alex pointed at the magic circle located at the center of the first floor of the tower. When Lapiz finally stood in place, the young man approached her and activated the magic formation, which teleported them inside the club room. ""Welcome to the club!"" The members of Endless Horizon happily greeted Lapiz, except for Renard, who simply sat with his arms crossed over his chest. Renard had always been antisocial, and this was his definition of being social—being present during the welcome for their new club member. "Thank you, everyone." Lapiz smiled. "Let’s all get along." Everyone clapped, including Renard, officially welcoming their new member. "Now, let me introduce you to everyone," Alex said. "This is—" "You don’t need to introduce us. We can introduce ourselves," Chuck stated before flipping his hair. "My name is Chuck No Rizz, the most handsome First Year in the academy. I am a Fire Mage, but I plan to become the Flame Emperor in the future!" Lapiz blinked, already knowing Chuck without introduction. He had a bad reputation for being a troublemaker, and her sister had repeatedly told her to stay away from him. "My name is Vaan," Vaan introduced himself before grabbing hold of Alex’s arm. "I am Alex’s fiancee." "No, you’re not," Alex gave Vaan’s head a karate chop, but it didn’t have enough force in it to really hurt. So instead of rubbing his head, Vaan only giggled and gave Lapiz a wink, which made the young lady smile. Vaan had this playful atmosphere that made everyone lower their guard around him. Also, due to how delicate and cute he looked, many believe that Alex was a really lucky guy for having a cute girl around him. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚 Of course, they had no idea that Vaan was actually a guy and that Alex was just playing along so nobody would find out about the pretty boy’s true gender. The only reason the noble families around the Damne Territory refrained from targeting Vaan was their belief that, through marriage, their heirs could lawfully acquire his domain. The Damne Family was a Viscount Family, so it was only normal that many would like to claim that title for their own. This was especially true for the third and fourth sons of Noble Families who couldn’t inherit the title of their parents. Lastly, the King had also stopped any attempt of the Noble Families from forcefully taking over the Damne Territory by declaring that he recognized Vaan as the sole and rightful heir of the family. Alex had asked Princess Xenia and blackmailed Prince Edward to convince the King to do it. So now, Vaan should be able to enjoy his school life... at least for the time being. "My name is Nessia Varr," Nessia said. "We are already acquainted. So I hope we get along, Lapiz." "Yes, Nessia. I look forward to working with you as well," Lapiz replied with a smile. Lapiz had always wanted to befriend Nessia since the latter was very approachable, kind, and polite. She wasn’t like those stuck-up nobles who only showed respect to Lapiz because she was Aeris’ sister, whom they couldn’t afford to antagonize. "I’m Charles Lambert," Charles bowed respectfully. "I’m just an ordinary person, so don’t mind me." "No, you’re not," Lapiz shook her head. "My sister wanted to scout you to become part of Obsidian Fang. I also saw the video of your performance in the Battle Royale. You are an All-Rounder, so I can understand why my sister wanted to poach you." Alex smirked because what Lapiz said was true. Obsidian Fang had tried to poach Charles in exchange for the cure to Eris’ disease. But Charles decided to stay because he owed a debt to Alex for helping him enroll in Frieden Academy. Thanks to this show of loyalty and trust, Alex didn’t hesitate to buy the pill, Aurelia’s Tear, which could cure Eris’ disease after he gained millions of academy points from the Crest Clubs who harassed his club members. "The sleeping girl over there is Latifa, and the lady that is guarding her is Lotte," Alex explained. "There is also one more lady who looked just like them, and her name is Lumi. But her character isn’t really the best, so if she says anything bad to you, please, don’t pay it any mind." "What did you say?!" Lumi who suddenly materialized out of thin air, pulled Alex’s ear and berated him for badmouthing her. She had already planned to take a good look at their new club member but decided to keep herself invisible for the time being. This was why Alex casually told Lapiz about the attitude of one of Latifa’s most aggressive Alters, who specialized in physical combat. "Lumi, stop hurting Alex," Latifa ordered. "E-Eh?!" Lumi gasped, not expecting that Latifa would protect Alex from her. Lotte smiled faintly and motioned for her sister to come next to her. Although she was reluctant, Lumi obeyed and stood quietly beside Lotte, while glaring at Alex. Alex lightly rubbed his ear before glancing at Princess Xenia and Mary. "I’m sure I don’t need to introduce you to Her Highness, Princess Xenia, and her maid, Mary," Alex said. "The three of you are classmates, right?" "We are." Latifa nodded. Back then, Latifa was curious as to why Princess Xenia joined a newly established club. But after the incident with the Crest Clubs, Lapiz finally understood that Endless Horizon wasn’t as ordinary as she thought it would be. Finally, Alex glanced at Renard. He was wondering if he should introduce Mr. I-Have-Trust-Issues to one of his Queens. But before he could do anything else, the teenage boy took the initiative to introduce himself. "My name is Renard," Renard said. "I don’t really like getting along with people. But if someone bullies you, I don’t mind beating them up." Alex arched an eyebrow because this was a development that he didn’t expect. Although he didn’t want to admit it, Renard had started to care about his club members and was now willing to lend them a hand. ’Well, it’s a start,’ Alex thought. ’At least we now have a bodyguard.’ The young man then glanced at the final member of his club, who was carrying a small banner that was fluttering in the breeze. The word "Welcome" was written in it, making Alex give his little partner a thumbs up. "Well then, let me introduce you to our last member," Alex said. "He is none other than..." "Dim Dim!" Dim Dim introduced itself with an innocent smile. "It’s nice to see you again, Dim Dim," Lapiz picked up the little bun, and gently squished its cheek, making the latter giggle. "Well then, let’s talk about the agenda for today," Alex said as he personally pulled back a chair, so Lapiz could sit on it. "It’s about the exchange students who will be arriving from the Solara and Faelarun Kingdoms." The moment everyone was seated, Mary poured everyone some tea and handed them the snacks she had prepared for Lapiz’s arrival. After she was done, she remained standing behind Princess Xenia and listened to Alex’s explanation. "Actually, the Student Council President has sent a letter to all the club presidents, telling them to ensure our members are on their best behavior when our visitors arrive," Alex explained. "But he also urged us to test the capabilities of the elite students of Solara and Faelarun. "That said, all the clubs are required to prepare representatives for spars and duels if the need arises. Since our club is one of the most popular clubs in the academy right now, we must participate in this event at all costs. At least, that is what I should be saying. But that’s not entirely true." Alex then glanced at his club members with a serious gaze. "This is just a guess, but these exchange students might target our club," Alex stated. "So, if you don’t feel like accepting an invitation to a duel or a sparring match, feel free to reject their invitation. Do I make myself clear, Nessia and Vaan?" "Understood, President." Nessia fixed her glasses. "I will not fight unless it benefits me." "I’m a pacifist, so I will reject any invitation to spar with anyone," Vaan said without hesitation. Since Latifa was always sleeping, she wasn’t in any danger of being challenged by anyone. Alex then glanced at Lavinia, Chuck, Charles, Renard, Princess Xenia, and Mary. He wasn’t too worried about these people since they were strong enough to protect themselves. "You shouldn’t worry about us," Renard commented. "You should worry about yourself. Since you are our president, the chances of you being challenged are much higher than ours. Make sure that you don’t lose. If you do, I’ll beat you up." "Alright, but if you are the one to lose, you will listen to what I say for a week, okay?" Alex smirked. "Very well, it’s a deal." Renard nodded. "Good." Alex chuckled. ’Let’s see if you can win against my Matchmaking Strategy.’ Both teenagers smiled at each other, fully confident that they would not lose to anyone. Lapiz looked at Alex and Renard, wondering if the two of them were good friends or enemies that were simply waiting to stab each other’s back and go for the kill.