"Your highness. It's time for our final sparring match before you enter the academy. From here on out, if you can injure me in any way, let it be your win."
Just like their first meeting four years ago, the duke and the prince stand motionlessly in the empty training ground, facing each other in the cold silence alongside the spring temperament with wooden swords in their hand.
A few meters apart, the midnight-haired boy smirks before placing the blade over his shoulder, playfully tapping it. "Training with you has been an experience. Who would've thought that in the beginning, you didn't want to take me in as your student."
The duke hums with slight annoyance. He closes his eyes before stabbing the sword in the ground, both hands on the tip of the hilt. "Neither did I. But it was truly worthwhile to have you as a student." Upon a moment of silence, the duke slowly opened his eyes with a hint of happiness displayed. "Who knows... with your potential, you might even surpass me."
The midnight-haired boy smirks with delight after hearing those praiseful words. "I feel even more motivated to win now!"
"Then do try your best, your highness."
The young boy looks up into the clear, blue sky. A sudden idea struck him at the moment before looking back at the duke. "Say... If I manage to get a hit, can I ask for a wish?"
The duke looks questionably at the young boy, tilting his head as he contemplates for a moment. "A wish?"
The young boy eagerly nodded. "Yep! You have to promise to grant this wish no matter what!"
The duke stroked his chin before slowly nodding with agreement, getting caught in the prince's sly trap without knowing. "Alright. If it's something within my disposal, I'll see what I can do."
The young boy smirked before quickly positioning his sword in front of him, ready to start the spar. "Remember, you can't take back your words!"
A moment a silence came in between them. The dust migrated along the spring breeze, howling as the tension continued to spread in between their eyes. The young boy's body slowly trickles with golden lighting, his wavy hair flowing upwards with the electric current.
Soon after, a golden aura began to cover his body and sword, enhancing his body to its maximum capabilities.
He closed his eyes, breathing steadily to maintain balance between the magic and aura. In that single moment, he immediately opened his eyes before appearing in front of the duke, nearing to strike his face.
The duke continued to look at the scene in front of him in slow motion before slowly closing his eyes, grabbing the sword stuck in the ground and blocking the attack easily as he opened his eyes once again.
Once the prince felt the impact of both swords collide, a magic insignia appeared below the duke.
The boy dashed backwards, activating the magic. Soon a burst of flame surrounded the duke. A few seconds went on before the flames burst out and were extinguished. A black sphere of aura covered the duke before it also dispersed.
Immediately after, the duke dashed towards the prince and struck his side with the edge of the sword, throwing him far away while also causing a burst of dust to explode in the air.
The prince quickly regained composure and fixed his posture before dashing again towards the duke. A series of sword jabs quick enough to cause blurs to the normal human vision yet the duke gracefully evaded them before grabbing the prince's collar and throwing him far away to the ground.
The prince slides across the ground before regaining his balance, gasping out of breath while defensively positioning his sword in front of him.
"... I'm still no match for him."
He closes his eyes once again, but instead of just lightning covering his body, there was also a gust of wind. Invisible to the naked eye but enough pressure to feel it in your skin. Surrounding the prince's body stronger and stronger, slowly a trickle of lightning covered his body as the wind began to reside.
In a flash, he disappeared from the duke's view.
"Fire, Wind, and Lightning. Thankfully, he mastered three of his four aptitudes already."
The duke could still feel his presence but it is undeniable that he can no longer keep up with his fast movement.
"Relying on speed to keep me on edge. Not a bad plan, but still..."
Just before the prince was about to strike his back, the duke immediately blocked the sword before slowly glancing coldly at the prince from the corner of his eyes. "Speed isn't everything if I can predict where you're going to hit, your highness."
The prince clicked his tongue, immediately covering his whole body with his golden aura, and disappeared even faster than before. After-images appear and reappear throughout the area as the duke can no longer keep up with his movements.
He sighs before readjusting his glove. A huge burst of mana started to engulf him just before his eyes turned dead serious. "I'm disappointed. If this is all you have then it's better to end this quickly."
Huge spikes of earth, not sharp enough to impale, emerge from the ground. The prince quickly dodges them all but they now hinder his movements and speed.
"Earth magic? I never knew he had the earth aptitude..."
The duke quickly covered his body with his black and dark blue aura before disappearing. Clashes of swords and bangs can only be heard but not be seen between the two people.
The sun quickly began to hue over the sky, a tint of orange reigning down into the ground while the prince heavily breathed in and out. The duke stands there motionlessly without any sign of fatigue.
In his left shoulder, a single shredded piece of fabric dangled out, exposing the clothing underneath his coat. He sighs before looking back at the prince. "You won. Your techniques are still a little rusty but it should be sufficient in your journey."
The duke then smiles at the prince. "I'm sure you'll do great. My job as your teacher is now over."
The prince finally regains his breath, standing up properly before smiling brightly, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "What do you mean? I'm expecting you to teach me more once I graduate. There's still a lot for me to learn!"
The duke sighs out annoyingly. "I see. I hoped that this was the end. Teaching you limits my time with my family you know."
The prince laughs loudly before wiping a tear from his eye. "What about me? Don't you see me as your other son?"
The duke tilts his head with slight confusion.
Seeing the duke confused, the prince smiles before looking at the orange sky with tranquility. A gust of wind soon washes his exhaustion as he slowly closes his eyes. "... In a way, I see you as a father I never had. Mother did everything she did to raise me properly, but the emperor..."
Just before he could finish his words, the duke suddenly appeared in front of him and patted his head. Slowly opening his eyes, he could see the small smile that enveloped the duke's face.
"I never knew you saw me in that way... It's truly an honor to be seen like that by you."
The prince's eyes slowly lit up with delicate warmth. The duke continued to pat his head before stopping. "I may not have the qualifications for it... but if you want, I can be a father you can depend on whenever you want, your highness..."
The prince couldn't help but smile brightly. A moment of peace and tranquility enveloped the area that was partially destroyed from their spar.
A single thought emerged from the prince's mind once again before looking intently at the person in front of him. "That's right! The wish!"
The duke removed his hand before nodding along with his words. "Yes. As promised, I will grant any request that is within my reach."
"Please! Could you let me be by Lys's side! Not as a friend, but..."
Unable to finish his bisfull words, the prince's face showed signs of embarrassment. Covering his reddened face with his hands while looking away from the duke.
Surprisingly, the duke stayed calm, but silence continued to fill the wide space, unknowingly the air between them getting colder and colder. He quietly removed his hand from the prince's head before slowly walking towards the estate.
The prince lifted his head up questionably to see where he was going.
The duke continued to look calm and unemotional. But once he was far away, a pillar suddenly struck the prince from underneath, throwing him up into the sky without remorse.
The duke looked back with the corner of his eyes with slight disdain. "... I really have no say of this. All you can do is convince Lysander. Of course... I don't like the idea of giving up my child to anyone. Even you, your highness."
Still talking to the air, he quietly signed before exiting the training ground. For a long moment, the training ground continued to remain silent before the prince finally fell down to the ground with a huge thump, a cloud of dust covering the area.
He lays down on the ground, smiling for some reason before laughing out loud. Once he finished, he sadly sighs into the air, arms and legs extended into the ground like a snowflake, yet still smiling. "Convince him..."
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ .
Even at this moment, the two young boys continued to hug each other despite the presence of the other people around them.
Qadir slowly walked up to Nila before slowly whispering. "Nila... I can't help but think that your personality has drastically changed all these years."
Arms over her shoulder, she hums at his response before looking up at the orange sky with white clouds covering the radiant sun. "I guess it did. I could still remember how I would act like Nilo: Serious and stoic."
Remembering the subtle memories, she slowly extended a smile through her lips. "I would always think that acting like a "proper" adult was the best way to survive in this world."
Qadir tilted his head with slight confusion as to why she would think like that. "A proper adult...?"
She nodded. "I'm not sure. I didn't want to be taken advantage of like when I was a child. So I thought being serious and cold would help me become someone that can finally protect my brother..."
She looks down upon the ground with a hint of sadness covering her brown eyes. "That seriousness and coldness, in a way, engulfed my entire personality. I... I just hope that Nilo can become the person he truly wants to be."
"I see... You truly care about Nilo."
She sadly sighs. "But even showing my love for him all these years, he rarely visits or talks to me." She quickly turns to Qadir with an angry expression. "In fact, he makes time to visit you more, even if he's busy. I can't help but be annoyed about that."
He laughed after hearing her words, slowly wiping a tear from his eyes before looking warmly at her. "But still, you made sure to raise him properly. I'm grateful that you did so, even if it meant sacrificing your own time. Anyway, even when he's with me, he never forgets to talk about you."
She silently hums out a tune, closing her eyes while smiling warmly at herself for a long minute. "... Being with the young master, his family and the people around him... I could finally rediscover myself. But I do admit that my personality seems to have degraded like a child."
He silently smiled. "I could see. But thanks to that, you helped the young master realize his feelings."
She shrugged away the response. "It was a gamble. Part of me was also just teasing him, but you were the one who helped him realize his emotions, not me."
"Ha ha…" He then looks at the two hugging boys while scratching his cheek awkwardly. "But still, how much longer are they going to stay like that...?"
With everyone looking at the two boys still hugging each other without a single care of the people around them, everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of nervousness, especially because of the immense pressure, not aura, the duke was emitting.
As expected, the duke slowly walked towards them before a fragment of his aura quickly twirled around the prince, lifting him up into the sky.
He crosses his arms disdainfully. "Please refrain from being... touchy, your highness."
Despite the predicament he's in, the prince couldn't help but laugh at the situation, scratching his head awkwardly. "Using your aura like that... I can't help but be in awe."
Clicking his tongue with pure annoyment, the duke felt a sudden tug in his clothes. Looking at the cause, he saw the white-haired boy standing there solemnly.
His eyes were filled with pure sadness as his source of warmth was taken away from him. "Father… Please don't be mad at him."
After hearing those words filled with sadness, he immediately placed the prince down at the ground. He flinched as he realized how much of a fool he is for his son before sighing to himself.
He then looks back at his saddened son with slight hesitation. "Lysander..." Trying so hard to act tough yet the boy's sad face only continues to pierce his heart, especially since he is the cause of it. "... Never mind. I can't say anything about this. But it will have to wait after we finish with the subjugation. You can't engage in battle in such a state."
The white-haired boy sadly looked down at the ground before nodding. "Okay..."
He's right. This isn't the time to consider my feelings for August. The wellbeing of the citizens are at stake. If we don't act now, I'm afraid that more people are going to become victims to their plans.
I could feel father gently patting my head. I bitterly smile to myself, knowing that this is his way of saying sorry.
Father quickly looked at Qadir. "Qadir, take his highness with you. We'll separate our main forces into four, as planned."
All the soldiers rallied together in front of Nila before she took the initiative to lead them to their destination. The sky slowly began turning dark as the night gently embraced the sunken, orange sky. I look back at father, reminded of the same figure I once saw before in my dream when I was just born...
His arms held me tightly, while the midnight particles flowed through the window and into the midnight sky.
He looked at me with so much worry, yet trying his best to show a warm smile before stroking my head just like at this very moment...
I wonder... Why am I suddenly remembering this dream now?
But still... I'm glad to finally have a father that cares about me this much...
He slowly removes his hand before looking at Veda. "Veda, I trust that you can manage on your own?"
A playful smirk emerges from her lips. "I am not the same weak person that you first met, your grace. I will make sure to do my part."
He quickly nods before looking at me. "Good. As previously discussed, their hideouts are located in the far edge of the southern district in an abandoned manor near the forest. Veda will infiltrate inside the manor while rescuing the kidnapped civilians. The four of us will surround them to distract the commotion inside."
He glances at Qadir and August. "You two will take charge of the west and south of the manor while Lysander and I take the north and east."
August was soon lifted up by Qadir like a sack. "H-Hey! Is this really necessary?!"
Qadir playfully smiles back as August tries to squirm down. "Sorry! His grace really doesn't want you to be near... Well, you know. In any case, we will get there much faster with my speed."
They quickly run off. Veda quietly approached us but did not say anything. Father continued to stare at the two people running off before looking back at me with worry. "I'm afraid we'll have to rely on you to teleport us to the location, Lysander."
"I don't mind... but what about–"
Veda quickly interrupted as I was about to finish my sentence. "I'm afraid they have some other things to take care of on their way to the designated location, young master."
I looked absently at her. "Really?"
I could hear father let out a forced cough before intervening. "There were sightings of recent kidnapping in the slums of the southern district. Qadir and his highness are going to find the carriage carrying them, and save them if possible."
"Ah... I see. Hopefully, no one gets injured."
Father subtly smiles, trying to ease my worries. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll be able to handle anything that comes their way."
I smiled warmly at father as he said that before slowly closing my eyes as my worries subsided, reenacting the same teleportation spell that I once learned from the memories that Azar showed me before. Transporting three people in a far longer distance requires significantly more mana than that of short teleportation.
But thankfully I have more mana than I can do with.
A blue light began to surround us, blurring the area around us before we got transported to an area filled with tree's. I looked around, observing our surroundings to see if this is the intended location.
Teleportation magic can't work in an area you have never been before, so I took the initiative to visit this place before the subjugation and find a safe and secure location.
Of course, with father's permission beforehand... I would get the scolding of a lifetime if I visited the enemy's territory unattended.
"Thankfully, the teleportation worked. We're north, around a kilometer away, from the abandoned manor. I've already ensured that no presence is around the area, so we can safely initiate our surprise attack."
"Thank you, Lysander." He quickly looks at Veda. "We'll wait here before I receive confirmation from Qadir. After that, we'll initiate our plan."
We all nodded. I continued to look around the area just to be on the safe side. It'll be dangerous to let our guards down at such a crucial moment...
I hope August is safe right now…
In a secluded side of the forest, a carriage stood in the empty lot.
A battle was in progress as a group of unidentified people surrounded and attacked the two familiar people.
Qadir, with his longsword, accurately slashed and incapacitated the people with ease. A dark green aura surrounded him and the longsword before he looked at the young boy, surrounded by the group of people.
"Get him! He's just a child!"
The people began closing on to him with swords in their hands, ready to strike. In a short moment, the boy unsheathed his sword, striking the people around him. In a split second, all the people that surrounded him coughed out blood and collapsed.
The young boy breathed in while wiping the sweat off his head.
Qadir slowly walked up to him while smiling. "Nice job! That seems to be the last of them. They were all at their fourth ring at least, but you defeated them with ease."
The prince glares at him, still upset from what happened earlier. "Save the pleasantries. Also, when did you change your weapon? I recall you using that old farmer hoe or something."
"Ah..." He hesitantly looks away and up into the sky, a hint of sadness filling his eyes. "... It rusted and broke. I guess it was a sign to use a proper weapon."
"Ah, my bad…" He awkwardly scratches his head. "I know how much it meant to you."
He looks back, forcing out a laughter to clear the mood. "Don't worry! Either way, a longsword fits me more. I can more accurately strike their vitals than when I used the hoe."
"You... have quite a unique style of fighting. Rather than killing, you just aim to incapacitate them."
He stood there silent. After a short moment, Qadir's eyes soon turned cold and serious. "That's just how I grew. I didn't have the luxury, nor the skills, to kill my opponents before I met his grace."
He quickly pointed towards the large scar in his neck. "As you can see, I didn't even have the skills to protect myself." He then shrugged apathetically. "Of course, sooner or later they will die of blood-loss. So in a sense, it is more cruel than just instantly killing them."
After a moment of self-contemplation, Qadir smirks before looking back at the prince, roughly messing his hair. "Thankfully, you don't have to suffer the same way I did, your highness. Your skills are exceptional. You have the ability to protect yourself."
The prince would have been annoyed if he were to treat him as a child just like now. But this time, he let him be. He can sympathize with him.
Being targeted by the people around him, being used and almost killed just because of his position as the first Imperial Prince…
His current strength isn't something he got purely out of luck, but because of his will to continue living in this cruel world.
With the people he now cherishes...
The prince quickly flicks away Qadir's hand. "Enough, we need to check on the victims." He glances at the quiet carriage that was left. "They certainly kidnapped a lot..."
He clenches his hand with anger, gritting his teeth together. "... Just why do innocent people have to suffer?"
"It's the way the world works, your highness. People just have... different goals."
"I know... but I can't help but feel ashamed. Many people are still suffering till this very moment yet I can't even help them." He quickly walks towards the carriage, a hint of coldness shimmering from his eyes. "Unable to save the people in this empire... I have no right to call myself a prince, I can only appear like one."
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ .
"Hmm...?"
A pale, silver-haired man who was sitting on a stone tablet suddenly looked out the window of the abandoned manor. The room is dirty and demolished with parts of the wall missing. A scar foregoes horizontally in both eyes. His eyes are permanently closed and blind, yet he's able to sense every motion in his vicinity.
"... They came again..."
A woman quickly entered the demolished room. Long jet-black hair with a beautiful and powerful looking sword dangling from her waist. Wearing light black armors that cover her pale skin and vitals. Her familiar rose eyes glanced at the man with curiosity.
"Have you discovered intruders?"
The blind man nodded.
A second presence quickly emerged from the shadows and into the room. Long, braided brunette hair with green eyes. Black and light clothes on her dark brown skin with short daggers on her back and small knives attached to a belt around her chest. She had her arms over her shoulder while acting nonchalantly.
A cocky and playful voice soon emerged from her as she looked around the room. "What's there to worry about? If worse comes to be, we can just run away and leave the captured people behind."
Huge steps slowly echoed through the corridor. A young pale man with light, silver armor soon showed himself through the broken door. His black hair is long and loose with nothing tying it back while two swords dangled from both sides of his waist.
"We still have to complete our mission given to us by the saintess."
"Indeed. Taking control of the Blakesty dukedom, who are the second wealthiest aside from the Ambroise dukedom, is something that we need to accomplish. Duchess Ambroise is already part of the noble faction, who supports the saintess, but having control of Blakesty dukedom, we'll have three of the four pillars of the Empire under the saintess command."
Everyone's gaze lingered to the one who spoke. Blonde, short hair, unnatural white skin with red eyes. His face can barely pass for an adult and the only thing that stands out of him is his beauty, akin to a woman. As he opens his mouth, his sharp fang is slowly revealed.
"I'm sure everyone here doesn't want to disappoint the saintess, right?"
Everyone nodded simultaneously, in their own characteristic ways. The blind man slowly faced the boy. "Those people... they're strong... Especially one of them..."
The boy tilted his head, unseriously smiling at the response. "Really? Well, it doesn't matter. They're all going to die anyway. Everyone here is of the sixth ring."
His eyes slowly keen themselves as he glances at the silver haired guy and the black haired woman. "Especially you two. A seventh ring magician and swordsman... even I will have trouble if I fight you two alone."
He closes his eyes before smirking once again. "Well, let's just eliminate the intruders and transport the slaves to the empire. The saintess needs tributes. The more, the merrier."
Everyone began to disperse. The only people left are the silver-haired man and the boy.
"... What about you...?"
The boy sits in a stone rubble, stretching his arms before responding. "Me? I'll stay here of course. If they manage to infiltrate, I'll be the one to stop them."
"I see..." He faces the window once again. "I'm just not... too sure... about this... One of them is strong... the other..."
Aas he continues to face the direction of the window, a new perspective invokes around him. A sea of inescapable mana began to surround him, originating from a sole place in the forest.
"Their mana is limitless... A sea that engulfs the whole forest... and beyond..."
"Is dangerous..."
The boy quickly laughs out loud before looking sadistically at the man. "You're funny! But if what you said is true... then this mission is a failure! Ha ha!"
The boy stands up before walking out of the room. "In any case. So many strange things happen in the Blakesty dukedom. They can even negate the curse we worked so hard on!" His playful eyes soon turned cold and dead. "It's better to kill everyone here. They're a huge pain in our plan. Especially that child... the one with the blessing of the mana..."
Smiling sadistically to himself, his body began to vanish, but his voice eerily echoes throughout the room for a long minute. "I would love to hear him scream in pain while I devour him... Ah...! Just thinking about fills me with pleasure~"
The silver-haired man continued to stand there in silence before sighing to himself. "Those who act arrogantly... always end up... dying first..."
He slowly exits the demolished room. The huge surge of mana continued to submerge him. But fear doesn't consume him, only a sense of anticipation fills him up.
"An opponent this powerful... I would love to fight them... even at the expense... of my own life..."