Benjamin's mind went completely blank, taken over by an indescribable panic. Fortunately he managed not to babble, but that didn't mean that he was in any way calm. What should he do? Don't panic! It was just two of the six candidates vying for the Throne entering the cafe together, only for a friendly chat of course! Nothing could go wrong!

“What?”

Only one word escaped Benjamin's mouth, but his bewildered state was obvious to any who looked at him with the slightest attention. Duke Prelestia, on the other hand, may not have shown anything on his face, but his words and tone of voice betrayed how excited and all ready for an explosive situation he was.

“I must say, this is positively marvelous! I was starting to get irritated since that stupid prince refused any of my attempts at communication.” Wait, Benjamin had come to meet with the Duke while he was in a bad mood? “First I get to meet this potential gem, and now I have the newly-arrived princess setting up such an interesting situation in my very own turf?” Did Benjamin hear something about him? Maybe he made a good impression. “I don't remember this date being my Ascension Day!”

The Duke was all fired up for this. Meanwhile, Benjamin had a very bad feeling about the developing situation. He really hoped the Duke wouldn't want to do want he thought the Duke would want to do. Once again, he prayed fervently to the Flame. Please, don't let the Duke Prelestia want to meet with or observe the prince and princess, please!

“What shall we do, Duke?”

Don't ask him that, Duke's underling, whose name Benjamin did not know. What if he says something like: Let's go watch them, or something. It's going to be so much fun! Hopefully he'd be more serious and say something to the effect of: Well, keep an eye on them while I finish this talk with my good friend Benjamin here, then I will send him on his merry way and take a look at things myself. That would be for the best. Some more mental prayer couldn't hurt right?

“Take up some discreet positions around and keep an eye on them.” Yes! “I will also observe them with Benjamin.” No! “I'm sure this will make for a great chapter of his adventures.” Why? No! Stupid Flame, why can't it answer even one single damned prayer? He didn't want to be anywhere near a member of the Imperial Family, let alone two, with one of them being his supposed commander, who he had already deserted. “You will accompany me, yes?”

At least Benjamin had recovered enough to not show on his face his intense discomfort. It wasn't like he was afraid of being recognized or anything. After all, he was a nobody as far as the prince was concerned, even if he revealed his surname. Even if the prince looked directly at him, there was no way he could know he was looking at a deserter. But, you know, what if, right? He didn't really want to be dragged back to the Innovation and then executed. Was he being too paranoid? Nonsense! There wasn't such a thing as too paranoid when it came to dealing with member of the Imperial family. Still, he could only say one thing.

“Of course!”

And he said it with a big fake smile too. Growing up and dealing with his mother taught Benjamin all about what he called fake-requests. It sounded like a request, it looked like a request, it quacked like a request, yet it was anything but a request. Dire consequences awaited those who dared to even consider answering it with a no. Therefore, against his sense of danger, he answered yes. As expected, the positive answer seemed to please the Duke.

“Brilliant! Shall we be on our way then?”

Having said yes to the Duke's request, Benjamin had little choice but to follow him and the other Mutant-underling-guy out of the room. Hey, maybe this was a hoax! That would be nice, certainly! Or maybe it could be an honest mistake. They say everyone has one or two other people that look exactly like them, maybe someone just mistook two people who just so happened to look incredibly similar to Prince Charles and Princess Lia? One could hope.

“Is that...”

Benjamin was about to ask for confirmation as he sat on a table kind of nearby a private veranda, but he didn't need it. Even though the angle was bad and the six people were not exactly close by, there was no way that they could be anyone else. Whether they liked it or not, in the last few years every single person in the Empire acquainted themselves with each of the six candidates to the Throne, as well as their Swords and Shadows. Most people made it a point to know them very well, so they could know who they could not piss off under absolutely under any circumstances. It was pretty much a matter of life or death. Fortunately, the Duke did not see Benjamin's briefly horrified expression, since he was directing all of his attention the the two people sitting at that other table.

“Hmm, I wonder what they are talking about. The stupid prince seems awfully irritated for some reason.”

Was the Duke being serious? Of course that wasn't a question Benjamin could say out loud, but still, he felt it was pertinent. The prince should have made his dislike for Mutants abundantly clear by this time. How did Benjamin know? Some might ask. It was simple: During the time it took for the Innovation to arrive in Destroia, the public announcer wouldn't shut up about not socializing too much with the local Mutants, along with a string of warning and “facts” about Mutants that sounded like not much more than groundless prejudice to Benjamin. Fact was, Prince Charles really disliked Mutants, so it was no wonder he was irritated at being brought to a place full of them.

Still, nothing to do but pay attention to them, at least he might be able to hide behind something once a brawl or something broke out. Seriously, who the hell thought this was a good idea? Two candidates to the Throne in the same place. Lunacy! Wait, wasn't Prince Charles getting like, super angry? What? Did he just... try to throw his cup of coffee at Princess Lia? Curses! There was going going to be a brawl! Wait, where is the Duke?

“Now, now, little prince, you have dirtied my honor way too much up to this point. I’d love to gut you like a pig right now, but I’d rather not have my friend’s establishment be rebranded as The Prince Slayer, or something like it.”

What the hell? What was going on? In the following moments Benjamin saw the Duke absolutely destroy the Sword and Shadow of Prince Charles, then proceed to threaten and humiliate the prince. Seriously, what was going on? How could the Duke even think of doing something like that? That was a possible future Emperor. How could he consider making such a big enemy? The prince left the cafe with both ego and body bruised. After that, the Duke even had a leisurely chat with Princess Lia. Who was this Duke Prelestia actually? Could it be that Benjamin had actually underestimated him? Layla told him about the Great Nobles of the Wildlands, but perhaps he had not understood the extent of their power. Now that he thought about it... The lineage that once ruled Trestia were the Trestias, although, as far as Benjamin could remember, it ended with Count Orlando de Trestia, who did not leave any direct heirs, and after a few years of disturbances the city became a republic under Imperial guidance. More than ever before, Benjamin was afraid of and exhilarated for what he might find in the Wildlands. Duke Deadalus Prelestia was a fearsome man indeed, much more than Benjamin originally thought, he wondered what kind of person this Countess de Trestia would be.

Taken by his own thoughts, Benjamin was startled when Princess Lia rose from the table at which she had talked with the Duke. He might be imagining things, but Benjamin thought that he saw in her eyes a respect for the Duke that perhaps mirrored his. Really? Could it really be that one of the unreachables, the scions of that incredibly proud lineage, to whom the entirety of the population of the Empire were slaves, in fact even if not in name, felt overwhelmed by the Duke? Yesterday, Benjamin might have thought it ridiculous, but the reality of Charles' humiliation was undeniable.

“Well, fuck me... Isn't that something.”

The words came out unbidden, but he really meant it. He had never meant to underestimate anyone. But really, could a person have been expected to foresee the destruction of their worldview? But then again, didn't he want to visit the Wildlands for this exact sort of reason?

“Oh, did you like what you saw? How long are you going to stand there, looking awe-struck? Come on. Tell me, what did you think of what just happened?”

Without anyone calling to him, perhaps he may have stayed there for hours awe-struck, ruminating over what had just happened. At this point, Benjamin wasn't even trying to impress the Duke anymore, he just wanted to properly articulate his thoughts.

“It's like... Think of something... old. Not necessarily all that ancient, but still an institution that had been there for so long that you'd think it would last forever... Do you have any idea the kind of power that the Imperial Family holds in the Empire? Of course you don't... Just like how I can't understand the sense of liberty that the people of the Wildlands have. They are... Everything. Yes, many would say that the Imperial Family IS the Empire itself. That is the space they occupy in the collective mind of the Empire. Of course, nobody ever thought of them as gods or anything... they lived, they breathed, they ate, they fucked, they died just like normal people. They are normal people, except that normal people can't have you killed for talking to them directly. Do you have any idea the kind of impact it would have on the Empire if the people knew of this. No, I mean, it's not like candidates to the Throne never died ignoble deaths before, but it was, you know, always from the scheming or at the hands of each other. But... For something like this to happen at the hands of someone completely unrelated to the Imperial Family... I'm trying to, but I don't think I can quite put the appropriate words.”

The Duke listened intently to him, nodding here and there. Did Benjamin manage to transmit what he felt? Perhaps words were insufficient, but how else...

“Hmm, I see. But right you are, even the mighty bleed, just like the lowest peasant. Even a king will die if you stab him. This is the kind of place the world is, and there is no greater proof of that than the Wildlands. I'm sure you will have a lot of fun.”

The Duke seemed pleased at the results. Even the mighty bleed huh. It was as if by witnessing that scene Benjamin had learned some higher truth. Like he now understood better the nature of those who rule, they need not necessarily be feared as invincible, for they are just as vulnerable as those who are ruled, but they must always be respected.

“Please! I want to learn about the Wildlands, I need to. I have little else other than my passion and a promise of an account of my adventures, yet I ask for more than just your blessing and tolerance.” He knelt, in the only way he knew how to show his most profound respect. “Mighty Duke Daedalus Prelestia, will you give me your favor, as if I was one of your kin, as well as proof of such favor?”

He wasn't sure, but he thought the Duke was pleased.

“Whoa, no need to be so formal, aren't we supposed to be talking on a first-name basis, Benjamin?”

Benjamin couldn't help grinning like an idiot as he sat at the bar waiting for Layla's return. He looked at the beautiful medal he held in his hand. It was mostly made of silver and looked like the silhouette of a peacock, with details made in gold and small precious stones. It was a symbol of friendship with Duke Daedalus Prelestia, something which could likely give him access to people and things that he knew most would not dream of. However, that wasn't the only reason he was in a good mood. Apparently, Prince Charles left the city as soon as he got back to the Innovation and recalled his forces. Oh, that tea was pretty damn good. Of course, Benjamin ignored calls on his communicator. Fortunately nobody was sent after him, although he was likely not considered a very high value person anyway, so perhaps he may have been a little bit paranoid all of those times that he feared getting hunted or turned over for trial. Princess Lia probably wouldn't care about him, so, he could take it easy until Layla came back with news as to how they were going to cross the desert. Oh, just as he thought of her... there she was!

“Oh, you look like you're in a pretty good mood. Did your conversation with the Duke go well? Hey, a cup of tea for me too, the same one, yeah.”

Benjamin couldn't resist puffing up his chest. He was sure his story would impress Layla. Perhaps then she might respect him a bit more?

“Here's how things went...” He then recounted the entire thing from when they separated, including an account of the conflict between the Prince and Princess that painted Benjamin in perhaps a better light than the actual truth. A little embellishment was okay, right? “And that's how I got this.”

He then showed her the medal, looking all proud of himself, like a pet that had just managed to perform an incredible trick and expected to receive a larger than usual treat for it. To his surprise, Layla looked at it with a mixed expression, did he get duped or something? Worried about it, he asked her as much.

“No, eh, you didn't get duped at all, really. This medal is unmistakably the Symbol of the Duke, nobody in this country would dare to create a forgery of this and claim to be such a close friend with the Duke. The problem... lies elsewhere, sort of.”

Huh, that was really weird. Benjamin thought she would be ecstatic and congratulate him for his success. She even confirmed it meant he thought it meant, but yet, she was still uneasy about something. Benjamin was annoyed.

“Hey, I got it, you told me I should present myself as interesting, so I did, and apparently the Duke was satisfied with it. He gave me this and we could probably even meet the Countess by the showing this to the right people. Can't you look at least somewhat happy about this result?”

She rolled her eyes! What? Why? Did he actually make a mistake. But unless she explained...

“Look, I did tell you not to be too interesting didn't I?”

She did? Now that he thought about it... Perhaps she did... tell him, not to be too interesting. Wait, was this bad? He pointed at the medal in his hands and asked her in complete innocence.

“Does this mean I was too interesting?”

Layla nodded. Fuck! No. No! Fuck, fuck. Was he going to be in trouble now? Wait... He had promised more stories for the Duke later, and he looked like he was really going to hold Benjamin to his word. Was there a way to give it back? No way... Throwing it away would probably be equivalent to suicide. Layla sighed.

“Hey, you did say you wanted some adventures, don't complain too much if they get to be too adventurous. Hopefully we won't have anything outrageous happen to us.”