Does this have anything else to do with it save a sword stuck in a stone and the lady granting it to someone worthy?
This was really fast development in my opinion, making it feel like the seraphim sky village was right next to the princess's city, among other things. I also didn't like it how Sorey didn't call bullshit on Lailah's claim the Shepherd path is destined to be so forlorn. In such a situation the hero is supposed to tell the girl that he will reforge that sad path into a much happier one!
The foxy villain is quite an intriguing character and not totally one-dimensional either. It's nice he seems to be sticking around.