Laurin Haeusl; Kingdom of Eins, 610, Summer

The sounds of wheels and hooves sped past a wide grass plain, led by a stone road that could fit at least two carriages side-by-side. This road began in Winschel, the bordertown where they arranged to meet the Prince at the local bookstore.

They were now in the middle of the plains, but the road still extended as far as the eye can see with large trees looming in the horizon. They had a lot of distance to cover; after passing the plains and forest, they'd have to go through another town to take a bit of rest, before heading back to this long road that led to the Royal Capital, and through another round of abundant greeneries and wildlife.

Laurin was excited, but he was uneasy. Rolling up the curtains on his side of the carriage, he took a peek outside. His men were on guard, surrounding the carriage. Just in front of them were two of his most talented men, Arnold and Reese, scouting the immediate vicinity. Behind the carriage, three men and their horses followed, keeping their backs in check.

Satisfied with his men's position and their dutiful guard, Laurin glanced a bit at the person seated across. The Prince slouched his back, and rested his elbows on the windowsill, his head slumped on his hands.

Earlier, when they entered the carriage, the Prince made sure to tie the curtains on his side of the window, like he wanted to never miss the view. Laurin was going to try to dissuade him, lest they happen upon some travelers and they recognize him. Worst yet, if the Massarreli has gotten wind of his return, they might expect to have some run-ins along the way.

Still, there was this weird tug that told Laurin that he shouldn't try to make a fuss about it. He reasoned that it's been quite a while since the Prince returned. More than that, it felt like the bored man wouldn't have it any other way, like he always had. There was just nothing else to do besides have a conversation and stare at the grasslands.

"Laurin, it's been a while." The Prince greeted, cutting Laurin's introspection.

The young man looked at Laurin like they'd known each other for quite a while. It was true that he knew him since he was a child, but this man right now seemed different. Far different from the rumours and what he actually observed of him when he was still a kid.

"It has been. I hope you've been doing well, Your Highness." Laurin greeted back before he bowed and felt glad.

Laurin didn't try to stop a smile from escaping his calm facade. As much of the rumours seemed true back then, he knew that the Prince, in all his quirks, was a good kid. Knowing so, Laurin was the first one to jump to action when he found out that Madea had a lock on his whereabouts.

He was still unsure about the circumstances that led to Madea's discovery, but he'll take it over anything else.

"God, it's been what? 14 years?" The Prince said. "I've got to say, you don't seem to have been given any time to relax. I just hope you haven't burnt yourself out." The Prince leaned in to grab Laurin's shoulders and shook his body playfully.

Laurin smiled awkwardly before The Prince removed his grasp.

For what was still the same though, it seemed that the Prince still hasn't got out of his habits of being a wisecrack at times.

The Prince was observing Laurin, looking at his aged features, his large slightly shaking hands. It was true that Laurin really does get into his work, but that's because of his loyalty. He thought it was his duty to work himself dry for the sake of it.

"Once I get crowned, the first thing you have to do is, I don't know... Like go to a bar or something? You could use a woman's touch." The Prince whispered while he placed a hand beside his mouth.

Laurin was perplexed, so much for the Prince being different. He still has a habit of getting to the nerves of people. Laurin stifled a chuckle, then retorted: "Ahh, but I've never found a woman to pique my sights for a while now. I'm sure you could introduce me to some foreign woman who'd be happy to have me?"

"Hmm, I seem to have met one woman who rejected my advances cause I looked too damn young for her." The Prince creased his brow as he spoke and pouted as he finished.

The Prince then shut his eyes as he tried to recall something, perking up when he seemed to remember.

"Ahh, yeah. She's this 40 year old from Anila, said I should find a woman my age."

Laurin creased his brows. Is the Prince a womanizer who had a thing for older women?

"Hey, don't give me that look. I'm kidding." The Prince squinted his eyes as he reprimanded Laurin.

Then both let out a hearty laugh, eliciting some interest from the Knights beside the Prince's window. The Prince seemed to notice them take a look, and returned their gazes. As he did so, The Prince raised his eyebrows and showed a small hostile glare.

Needless to say, everyone who turned to look pulled themselves together and faced forward, glad to just let the two men's reunion be.

"I thought that something was different, but all in all it seems like you're still the same as ever, Your Highness. You didn't even fail to make the guards flinch with just a glare." Laurin spoke softly, and the nostalgia he felt altered his usually firm voice.

"That's what I do even then, huh? Funny, even I thought I'd grown past that phase." The Prince chuckled, then let out a momentary smile.

The Prince then changed his expression: he stilled his face and slanted one side of his lips. He held his chin with his right hand.

"So what's the plan?", The Prince asked.

Laurin thought back on the state of the Capital, and the Royal Castle. By around this time, Massarreli should still be kept in their estate, per Madea's guarantee that they would see to it to allow time for the Prince's arrival.

Laurin didn't know how much contact the Prince has had with Madea, how Madea managed to keep the Massarreli without allowing them to expedite their ascent, or how much Madea has revealed about Laurin's side to the Prince. But it was enough to just safely escort his liege.

While Massarreli is occupied, the rest of the Royal Guard were instructed to remain stationed at the Castle, scanning any nook-and-cranny for suspicious activity and also in wait to welcome the Prince's arrival.

Laurin didn't want anyone to be notified about his liege's return until the planned, slightly altered coronation the next morning, so he told his men to be as discrete as possible about the details.

There was still much to figure out.

"We'll arrive at the capital by nightfall, Your Highness. We'll disembark at the gates, and use the escape routes beside the western walls to covertly give you access to the Palace." Laurin lowered his voice.

"Afterwhich, tomorrow at noon has already been established to the citizens and important ambassadors as the time of the crowning of a new King, so then you'll state your-" The prince raised a hand to cut-off Laurin.

"No. I'll do the curse's oath as soon as I arrive at the Castle. You do know that I don't need to do it in public, don't you? Though I'll do one for show tomorrow." The Prince suggested.

Laurin knew that to be true. In actuality, he just wanted to gloat to the people that they've still got a rightful ruler to lead them. Still, he knew that the Prince was right.

Then Laurin realized one detail that made the Prince's suggestion make more sense. He's been stressed lately and it wasn't a detail you just forget, but he was glad that the Prince didn't overlook it, or rather, it was just a matter of fact.

"I see you've realized. That is, the agreement for the Massarreli royal line to take the throne is when the Eins line dies out." The Prince shook his head at the end of his sentence, reminding Laurin that it wasn't the case.

"Though the people thought that this agreement was placed long before and it was what they were told, the truth of the matter is that it's only been arranged by Father shortly after I left." The Prince paused a bit and looked outside before continuing.

"He didn't expect the Massarreli, who were originally his most trusted subordinates to then suddenly commit treason. Still, you weren't wrong that he was wise." The Prince seemed to contemplate a few things, before sighing and staring at Laurin with a fierce intensity, making goosebumps jump all over the Knight's skin.

"The reason Father falsified the documents and accounts of me relinquishing my rights, as well as me actually going through with his plans, was a sort of precaution." Laurin leaned a bit closer as the Prince spoke.

"The Kingdom was growing in power, and though he trusted Massarreli, he couldn't just leave Eins to someone who didn't embody exactly the same outlook on power and government as we did." Laurin nodded in approval of the Prince's suspicion.

"Still, in the event that it was needed, there had to be someone who took control of things. Massarreli was the natural choice in that regard. Had it been that the Massarreli really were to be trusted when father and brother died of a different reason, they still wouldn't have bothered to look for me. That was the precedent." The Prince raised a finger.

"The plan originally was that in the event of their death, I would return as soon as I found out about it, since Julien's curse's oath would not take effect. With that taken into consideration and the state of affairs, they wouldn't just stand idly by knowing that I can just appear and do the oath, so the earlier I do it, the better." The Prince then placed his chin on the hand he used to raise a digit.

As Laurin leaned back on the back of his seat, the Prince continued: "It wouldn't stop them from trying to find ways to get rid of me, and we don't have means to remove the curse from Julien apart from killing him, that's why I took my time." The Prince then paused a bit to heave.

"Besides, don't you find it strange that it took me a month before I returned even if things are supposed to be urgent? If I had just suddenly appeared, without preparation, things could have ended sourly." The Prince shook his head and Laurin closed his eyes to digest the Prince's words.

"Also, one month was the time I gave father back then." The Prince raised a finger again.

"He just decided to announce the one month limit to the populace so that they don't get confused about the lackluster response of the government when it came to it. I thought it was a bad idea, and it might end up being the reasons for an incoming challenge." The Prince shrugged then placed his arm on the windowsill of the carriage.

Laurin was allowed a few moments to take it all in.

"If I didn't return within one month, that means I've completely abandoned my country, and I would then automatically, and that time definitely, relinquish my rights." The Prince said before removing his gaze from Laurin.

Laurin hung his head down in contemplatiion.

The curse and the curse's oath weren't just simple curses. For one, a lot of royalty mandated documents, ledgers, important equipment, treasury, and other important functions can only be accessed through a recognized King who has taken the oath, and his will.

If someone tries to play King without these functions, it would make ruling far too complicated and even risky. Plus, the people wouldn't really see someone who wasn't accepted by the curse as their ruler.

Two, the curse only works in its intended way to follow the right of succession. No multiple rulers, and no one skipping the hierarchy.

Third, it allows the current King to lay out succession rights, and the circumstances behind them.

Lastly, the curse itself is recognized by the citizenship, lordship, the Eastern Pas Alliance, as well as other nations, antagonistic or neutral to Eins.

As for the curse's oath itself, it has two functions. When the legitimate successor recites the oath while holding the crown to his chest inside the Throne Room, the curse would take effect. For the denizens of Eins especially, when the King recites the oath for the first time, they are notified through their link that a new King has been crowned.

As such, the citizenship are linked to this curse, although limited and with its function only serving as identifying their affiliations. In that sense, the citizen's still have complete freedom to do whatever, regardless of the King's orders.

Subsequently, reciting the last lines of the oath anywhere at any time and with a desired object touched by the King creates the King's Seal, a powerful barrier magic used for identification of the King for the sealed documents, royal letters, equipment, places of interest and others that can never be broken or utilized without a King's approval.

Needless to say, the curse's oath would be useless without these functions, and as such it was as essential to the Kingdom as the King himself.

As Laurin was done contemplating, his gaze fell back on the Prince. The Prince noticed it and returned with a gaze of his own.

"I see, Your Highness. You are right, things have been going the way His Majesty has seen. From the looks of things, the curse's oath wouldn't have worked without you actually dying first. Julien has probably realized that, assuming he tried to do the oath right after killing the King, so he's probably already prepared quite a bit of surprise for when we arrive at the capital, slowly building on that preparation until the final day, which is tomorrow." Then Laurin creased his brows.

"Though, for that part, I'm not quite sure. Maybe Julien thinks that the one month wait had nothing to do with you, and is grasping at straws trying to figure out why the oath isn't working and just decided to wait things out." The Prince nodded at Laurin's hunch.

"It might be so, and as such Massarreli has been keeping quiet this past month because they've reached the wall that my father, the King, made through me." The Prince then leaned in closer to Laurin as the Knight subconsciously stiffened his body.

"Or our buddies must have gave them the false promise of killing me, all the while keeping track of their actions, so that's why there hasn't been any preparations on their end." The Prince grinned and Laurin's eyes widened at the possibility and its implications.

"As much as they want to impede my crowning, their options are limited since I have the advantage. It's just a matter of getting to the throne room, which I'm sure you've made sure on your end." The Prince raised a brow and inclined his head as if questioning Laurin.

Laurin was perplexed and sat agape at the amount of insight the Prince has gleaned. Laurin did in fact have some arrangements with Madea, but it was only to ensure the Prince's crowning and contacting him.

Maybe the Prince actually had much more to do with things. From what he could conclude, it seemed that his liege was ready to take the oath anytime the country needed a King. In hindsight, it was an agreement that made the King relent, though he made sure to create some sort of hold on his son.

"I'm not quite sure about our buddies, but the latter should be true, you and the Guards are one of my people, correct?" The Prince then held his breath, as if in anticipation.

Laurin could almost feel that if the Prince didn't like his answer, his head would be rolling down on the carriage's floor right after. He wasn't sure why, but there was this unspeakable strength in his gaze, unfit for who was supposed to not just be a fool, but a weakling. The eyes and strength of a leader.

Fortunately for him, he and his men was as loyal and dutiful as a man can be.

"Of course, Your High- no, Your Majesty." Laurin slammed his right fist unto his chest in resolve, not breaking eye contact with his liege.

"I see. I just wanted to make sure." The Prince then chuckled a bit, straighthening his back and leaning onto the back of his seat: he then stiffened his expression, almost scowling in a way.

"So, as my loyal guard captain. My first order, find a woman. Your stiffness bothers me quite a bit."

The Prince scratched his head and furrowed his brows. Laurin could only chuckle a bit, and shake his head in disbelief. The Prince, though changed in some parts, was still mostly mischievous.

It made Laurin feel at ease, the most he felt in the longest while.

"I don't expect that you hope this decree to be done with immediate resolution?" Laurin inquired.

"Take your time. Just make sure you do it."

"As you will." The Prince smiled hearing Laurin's reply.

"I'm glad. I do hope that your position does not change when you find out a little bit more about what's different about me." The Prince mugged as he spoke.

Laurin was confused, and his squinted stare expressed it so. However, the Prince only shrugged before closing his eyes.

"Now that that's settled, I'm going to take a nap. Wouldn't want you to feel uneasy with anything more I say now, would I, Laurin?"

Relaxing himself and letting go of the Prince's remark for now, Laurin chuckled quietly while he reminisced the Prince's childhood.

The Prince as a child was a trickster and prankster. He loved to pull fast ones on his tutors and servants, and liked to run around and make a mess of the palace. He wasn't interested in studying, and he also actively tried to make everyone uncomfortable around him.

Still, everyone knew it was in good fun, and people liked the Prince, as much as the Prince was there for them when they really needed it.

However, when he was 9 years old, the Royal Family found out that he didn't have a special ability. The Eins Royal Line was a family of mages, as any noble house was. However, they had a special affinity to control lightning to a high degree, a rare bloodline ability that inspired awe from other mages.

It was not that other mages didn't have their own specialties. Mages of their world only had one's basic ability, which is common to all, and other special abilities that represents their nature and heritage to create phenomenon through it.

Some mages have innate control of fire, and some others the ability to create or disable curses. These special abilities varied from one mage to the other, some more unique and at its core, powerful than others.

Still, it's widely believed that even with the limitations that most mages had to consider, a mage's talent has equal potential to others; strengthened through training and experience.

However, the Prince neither had his bloodline's special ability, or any apparent abilities apart from his mana. This only left him with the basic ability to enhance his body, which was something that all mages knew to utilize.

For a Royal Line known for their bloodline's magic, this was a very bad discovery. Of course, the Prince was still a legitimate heir even without his ability, but a ruler's influence over the courts, the populace, and other nations would suffer without it.

Soon after, the courts have learned to ignore the Prince's existence, and pooled most of their resources to just focus on his brother, seven years older than him. In the courts opinion, even if Aleuas was old enough to govern, he would have trouble controlling his demesne.

The people wanted a strong ruler, and though the prince was loved, he was weak compared to any nobleman who had awakened to their magic when they were even younger than him.

Of course, he still had to study politics and the intrigues of the court, but he was exempt from the combat practice he was supposed to start a year from then. As the months flew by, his pranks and playful nature slowly began to dwindle down, and he mostly kept to himself, not bothering to show up to royal functions and parties.

However the reason he was called a fool happened when he turned 12 years old. It was simple actually. He announced to his father and the courts that he would relinquish his rights to the throne.

He expressed his desire to see the world and travel, leave the comfort of the palace behind. The courts were flabbergasted, unsure of where the Prince got the idea of having an adventure. They tried to dissuade him, but the Prince wouldn't budge.

It was probably his disdain that he was being sidetracked for his brother, or his dissatisfaction about being a nobody in a sea of powerful men that pushed him over the edge. Whatever the reason, the courts thought of him a fool.

As useless a ruler he would've become, they thought that he'd at least find something useful to do for the Kingdom. To think that they were quite glad when his personality started to calm down and it appeared that he began to take his studies seriously. A loner he became, but there was progress in his lectures.

The King, after some persuasion, decided to relent and accept the Prince's request. He left the Prince with only a bag full of coins, and ordered his knights to escort him to the Eastern Borders.

The King also decreed that any documents that served as proof of his relationship with the Prince be expunged. It was years after that before Laurin found out that these documents are only kept hidden, and safeguarded, just before the King's death.

The King was a man of great foresight. Surely, he'd have known that his son would be back.

It was only when he'd find out about Madea's lead that he became aware of something bigger happening in the background. He was sure of it, that the Prince had been preparing for this long before. This created the stage for their counter-attack.

For all his selfish desires though, he decided to run away, and then come back? I wonder what made him think that he should return to his country in the brink of ruin?

Laurin darted a look outside, and noticed that they were approaching the forests. From there, it'd take at least a quarter of the day to reach the next town, after which, they'd arrive at the capital by nightfall, just in time for what he hoped is a quiet arrival.

The forests had groves spread about, as well as larger trees with massive trunks and branches, their leaves shielding them from the Sun. If it wasn't so bright out, it'd seem darker deep in the forests where mostly trees larger than here were abundant.

As foreboding as the trees were, he knew that they'd have a relatively safe trip. The Prince was right that Laurin needed a bit of rest, and now he needed it more than ever. Laurin closed his eyes, the clamor of his men and the chirping of birds was all he heard before he finally fell asleep.

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