A KINGDOM NEEDS A KING

Curtains fluttered by the window’s side as gentle wind blew past them, whizzing through a small chamber lain with stone. Sun’s golden light pierced past the clouds and lit up the world in rich hue. Chirps of the birds signaled the dawn and the world slowly woke as smoke rose from chimneys and clatter of hooves and footsteps brimmed through the Skyfire Paradise.

High up in the tower, wrapped in cloth and bandages, Parsia lied still and calm while Thalia sat on a chair next to him, her arms crossed against her chest, her eyes closed. While the world outside bathed in noise, the small room was doused in silence, not a sound to be heard. It has been nearly a month since Lynne departed, but not much has changed. Skyfire Paradise still prospered with more and more people pouring in as its borders widened. At its center still stood the Tower, withstanding all storms as the Kingdom’s cynosure. Like a lighthouse attracts ships towards the shore, the Tower attracts travelers however far away they might be.

Thalia slowly opened her eyes and exhaled softly as she glanced at the still Parsia. Stretching out and yawning, she got up and walked over to the window, letting the wind brush past her cheeks as its chill woke her. Her eyes shifted downward on the ever-spreading mix of cultures; to the south lay simple villages surrounded by farms and cattle; to the north stood vast, armored fields for military training. To the west spread the city itself, buildings rising one over another, while to the east widened a massive palace surrounding the Tower. Smiling lightly, she glanced back onto Parsia and walked up to him, gently placing her hands onto his chest as she slowly poured Mana into him.

Both his arm and leg had completely recovered, but some of his internal injuries still remained, even over a month after the incident. She expected him to wake up any day now which is why she barely left the small room, unless absolutely necessary. A mere moments after she lifted her hands up, she heard a knock on the doors which slowly creaked as they opened. A tall, slender woman holding several dozen parchments slowly walked in. She had narrow, mean-looking eyes and had her black hair tied in a bum.

“Lady Thalia,” she said in a seemingly indifferent voices. “Your presence has been requested.”

“What’s the matter?” Thalia asked, creasing her brows slightly.

“Our scouts reported a large army moving toward us from the North,” the woman said. “The Council wishes to convey to discuss the course of action. Please come with me.”

“Sure.” Thalia said hesitantly as she cast a glance backwards onto Parsia.

The woman led her down the massive Tower and toward the Palace. It rose like a high and mighty giant into the sky, eclipsing all other buildings near and far away from it – save for the Tower itself. The Palace was always busy save for its top floor which was reserved for the Council meetings. The woman led her to the side where they used a simple formation to teleport directly to the top floor. When Thalia arrived, the giant, rectangular table had already been filled with cups of wine, surrounded by nearly twenty chairs, all full with the exception of two – the leading ones. Thalia sat on the smaller one and glanced around, spotting a few familiar faces among the crowd.

“Now that we’ve all gathered,” the Principal spoke after a few moments of settling. He sat directly next to Thalia, his expression indifferent. “We can start with proposals. Anyone wishes to begin first?” nearly everyone immediately raised their hands and the Principal glanced at Thalia who sighed inwardly.

“Settle,” she said calmly. “Our army lacks practical experience. While it would be easy to repel whoever is attacking us, I propose we let the Mortal Army take charge, led by Commander Lu as an insurance.” the man called Commander Lu sat a few seats below and he gently nodded toward her in the sign of agreement.

“Should we risk it?” an elderly-looking woman asked softly.

“What’s there to risk?” a burly man sitting opposite of her said. “The Queen is right. We can’t wage all wars with Mages, it’s the unspoken rule. We can use this campaign as an incentive for more Mortals to join the army as we’ll offer some rewards for contribution.”

“That’s right,” the Principal said. “So far, they’ve been living under the umbrella of Mages’ protection. However, we’ve already established ourselves. Our population has surpassed four million last week, marking us as a mid-sized Kingdom. Bare severe losses, it should be successful campaign regardless. They have to learn to protect what’s theirs, and not rely on us all the time.”

“Any more objections?” Thalia asked.

“… not an objection, per se,” a man with hunched back said as he stood up. “But a question, if I may, my Queen.”

“Yes?” Thalia asked, inspecting the man carefully as she didn’t recognize him.

“The empty chair,” as his words escaped his lips, the atmosphere immediately grew colder and heavier as Thalia frowned. “Can’t stay empty forever, my Queen. No doubt we all respect King Lynne from the bottom of our hearts, but, the Kingdom needs a King, my Queen.”

“Are you volunteering?” Thalia asked.

“Of course not, my Queen!” the man said as he quickly bowed. “I’m far, far from worthy of sitting upon the Throne. Still, I stand by my words, however… heavy they may seem. If not that, then I believe we at least deserve to know when will King Lynne be returning.”

“…” Thalia glared at the man for a moment before sighing; she knew very well this wasn’t something that could be swept under the rug and had to be dealt with eventually. “Lynne has abdicated the Throne.” she said calmly, but her words sparked the silent chaos among others. “He won’t be coming back, I’m afraid. The reason I withheld that information was because I was taking my time in trying to think of the correct decision. You’re right: the Kingdom needs a King.”

“… have you made the decision, Queen?” the Principal asked calmly.

“Yes. I’d like to recommend Prince Parsia,” Thalia said. “He already has experience with ruling a Kingdom, has charisma and leadership skills, and I believe we’re all aware of his personal strength.”

“… I-isn’t Prince Parsia recovering still?”

“He should wake up any day now,” Thalia said. “Of course, this is not my decision alone to make. I’ll return to the Tower while you discuss the matter.”

“… if we were to, uh, agree with your proposal,” the back-hunched man said. “Does that mean you would… marry Prince Parsia?”

“Yes.” Thalia said calmly. “We’d hold the official ceremony and the Crowning right after. No, I will not bear his children. I’ll maintain my position as a Queen until Parsia finds someone else, which is when I’ll abdicate as well. You’re all more than aware that I’m merely a figurine of my own accord. I don’t intervene with the Kingdom’s matters because I have no experience in ruling over one. He has. I trust he’ll do a far better job at being a King than Lynne ever has. Thank you. I’ll be leaving now.”

Thalia quickly got up and left, leaving behind a room doused in chatter and noise. The Principal watched her leave with heavy expression, sighing as she escaped his sight and shaking his head.

A mere moments later, Thalia was in front of the familiar doors, taking a deep breath as she calmed down. She grabbed the knob and gently pushed the door open. As she stepped in, her feet froze as her eyes widened and her breath escaped her. A familiar face sat upright on the bed, his head hung low as his golden hair fell down his sides. When he heard the doors open, he slowly glanced up and saw her. After a moment of stillness and silence, he smiled gently. Seeing his smile, Thalia rushed in and hugged him tightly, causing him to push groans of pain back down his throat. He slowly hugged her back and waited for her quivering body to calm down. A few moments later, she finally let go and sat onto the chair near the bed, her lips curled up in a smile.

“… I’m alive, huh?” Parsia murmured hoarsely, chuckling. “I was certain my days were counted.”

“… did you want them to?” Thalia asked.

“I thought I did,” he said. “But… ah, I don’t know.”

“Do you want a drink?”

“Yes, please.” Thalia took out two small, black gourds and handed one over. Parsia gulped all of it in a single motion, wiping his mouth afterwards. “Aah, that hit the sweet spot. What’s this?”

“A local brewery’s pride,” Thalia said. “Real cheap to make, even cheaper to sell. Tastes good, takes a while to get drunk on it. I’ve even seen kids drink it.”

“It’s good.” Parsia said, nodding. “Slightly sweet, but good.”

“How are you feeling?” Thalia asked.

“Uh, let’s see. My head hurts so bad I can barely see, half my bones haven’t healed yet, I can’t summon an ounce of Mana to my bidding… so, you know, not half-bad.”

“Think of it as your life lesson.” Thalia said.

“I really went mad, haven’t I? What the hell was I thinking, trying to invoke a Primal Thunder… aah, I really am a moron. How long was I out?”

“For over a month.” Thalia said.

“Wow… that bad, huh?” Parsia said. “You saved me?”

“… no,” Thalia said. “Y’se did. I merely halted the dying part for a little while.”

“… thanks either way. Is she here? I’d like to thank her too.”

“… no,” Parsia sensed uneasiness in her voice and glanced up. Thalia’s expression was downcast and complex, her eyes dancing between doubt and worry. “She… left.”

“Lynne?” he asked.

“He left too.”

“… then why are you here?”

“…”

“Ah,” Parsia mumbled, chuckling lowly. “Sorry to hear that.”

“… yeah.” Thalia said as short silence fell between the two. “Khm, anyway, don’t worry about your injuries, you’ll make a full recovery. However, as for your future prospects… I’m afraid you’ve killed them.”

“… yeah, I figured.” Parsia snickered. “But… I suppose a full recovery doesn’t sound that bad either. Did we win?”

“Yeah, big time.” Thalia said, laughing briefly.

“… I was banished,” Parsia said suddenly, surprising her. “When I went back home to bring Anna’s corpse, I expected a lot of things… but never to be banished for good. My own father wouldn’t even meet me, and my mother slapped me so hard I flew for nearly thirty seconds without stopping.”

“… sorry to hear that.”

“Hm. It’s fine,” he said, taking a deep breath. “It’s not as though I would stay there anyway.”

“Well, if it’s of any consolation, you may not need to stop being gentry.” she said. “With Lynne leaving, the Throne is empty and the Crown is waiting. I figured… who better than a guy who was already in line for it?”

“… you want me to become a King?” Parsia asked, arching his brow.

“… there’s a reason why Lynne said he’s abdicating the Throne, and not just leaving it in our care,” Thalia said, sighing. “And it’s only partially because he got tired of playing the role of a King.”

“… ha ha, yeah, maybe a bit more than partially.”

“Yeah, maybe.” the two chuckled for a moment. “Well, I imagine it’s not that easy.”

“It should be fine,” Thalia said. “Just off of your strength alone, no one else can match you.”

“… wait, does that mean you and I will have to get married?” Parsia asked, arching his brow.

“Yeah, officially.” Thalia nodded, smiling lightly. “Don’t worry, though. The moment you find your true Queen, I’ll be abdicating as well.”

“You’ll wait for him?” he asked.

“… yes. If he ever returns.” she mumbled, glancing back through the window.

“It’s Lynne,” Parsia said as he grabbed her hand gently. “Of course he’ll return. To him, death is probably too boring anyway.”

“… he’s changed Parsia… a lot,” Thalia said, looking down. “He told me nothing, you know? Not where is he going, not why, not when he’ll come back… that’s why… I’m afraid he’s not planning on coming back…”

“… he will,” Parsia reassured her, smiling. “If he never planned on coming back Thalia… he’d have told you to not wait for him and broken your heart. He may be many things, but, above all, he’s someone who loves you very, very, very much. If it meant breaking your heart today to save you from the purposeless hope, he’d have done it. It means that, at the very least, he wants to come back… one day. Believe in him. Trust that he’ll make it back okay, wherever he is and whatever he’s doing.”

“… yeah, you’re right.” Thalia said, smiling. “Thanks. You should probably lie down. It’s not good if you move too much for the time being.”

“Yeah, good call. I can literally hear my bones crying.”

“Yeah, they’re so loud I can hear them too. Come on.” she helped him lie down and gently placed her arms on his chest, letting her Mana warmly cruise through his body. “Recover quickly. A Kingdom needs a King.”

“… yeah…”