Several days passed uneventfully as Alex waited for news.

After the first day, he began playing with Wolf to ease his boredom and found that the dog was quite frisky.

It seemed he liked to jump on Alex when he wasn’t paying attention.

On one such morning, it was storming quite heavily.

Rain pattered again the metal plate as the storm kept getting worse.

Lightning could be heard every few seconds and at one point it even hailed.

Alex was busy playing with Wolf when he heard the sounds of hurried footsteps coming towards his cell.

Alex quickly hid Wolf under the blanket and told him to stay quiet.

This wasn’t the first time this happened so Wolf was used to it and lay down obediently.

Very quickly the door to his cell was pulled open and Alice rushed in, followed closely by the guard.

“Are you okay?” she asked breathlessly as she shook the water out of her hair.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” he asked curiously.

“I had a bad feeling, but it seems it was unwarranted,” she said as she glanced around the room.

Her gaze paused on the bed and it seemed that she saw the lump in the sheets but she said nothing.

“I will be taking my husband away for his audience with the king you may leave now,” she said to the guard.

The guard quickly nodded and left to call Alex’s personal guards.

“Might I ask you what is under the sheets?” she said somewhat sternly.

“Ah,” Alex gulped slightly at her tone of voice.

He slowly walked over to the bed and pulled off the sheets revealing Wolf licking his paws.

He turned around to look at Alex’s reaction.

She gazed at him somewhat annoyed but then when she looked at the dog her gaze melted and she let out a little aww.

Wolf glanced up, noticing Alice for the first time.

As she slowly approached the bed he quickly jumped up and growled slightly.

“It's okay Wolf, calm down,” Alex said quickly.

Wolf stopped growling but he still kept backing away from Alice.

Alice stopped and stretched out her hand so he could sniff her.

After a few moments, Wolf slowly approached and sniffed her hand.

Several moments later he began licking her hand making her laugh as it tickled.

Once she was done, she turned her head to look at him coldly.

“What on earth were you thinking?” she asked sternly.

“Do you know how much trouble you would have been in if someone had found out?” she asked.

Alex rubbed the back of his neck as he said.

“He was out in the cold and starving, I couldn't just leave him there.”

She snorted and said.

“That's a poor excuse but I suppose it will have to do, now let us leave we have an audience in an hour.”

Alex heard the sound of clanking armor as his guards entered the cell and saluted him.

Alice picked up the dog and proceeded to leave the cell.

Alex and the guards quickly followed her down the hall.

Once they were outside Alex finally realized how bad the storm truly was.

The wind blew the heavy rain in everyone's faces as they rushed to the carriage.

Lightning crackled in the cloudy sky.

It looked as if it was night time yet it was only morning.

The streets were empty as no one dared to brave the storm.

Quickly entering the carriage with both knights, Alice guards which sat in the front of the coach flicked the reins as they pulled away in the direction of the palace.

The carriage was silent during the trip, at one point the thunder was so loud that Wolf kept jumping every time the lightning struck before eventually moving into Alex’s lap.

Alice silently looked out the window as the rain pattered against it.

Alex noticed that she was shivering slightly.

It didn't seem to be from the cold but more out of nerves.

After all, they were going to meet the king.

Sliding his hand and grasping hers he squeezed it tightly.

She quickly looked over at him in shock.

“Don't worry, it'll be fine,” he said quietly.

After a few moments, she recollected her thoughts and nodded.

“I spoke to my Uncle Edmund, he should be looking into who bribed the magistrate in order to force us to go to the king,” she said.

“Well I think the better question is, what is their goal by sending us to the king?” he mused.

“Do you still have the dagger I gave you?” she asked.

He pulled the dagger out showing it to her.

Nodding to herself she said.

“We should be careful, even though the palace is secure, you never know what can happen.”

Half an hour or so later they arrived at the palace and were quickly let inside.

Alex handed Wolf to one of his guards who would remain outside of the throne room.

A servant quickly led them to a waiting hall right outside of the main throne room.

As they were seated on beautifully decorated seats with cushions.

They heard a commotion from the throne room.

Suddenly the doors flew open as two armored knights walked out dragging a man who was screaming and kicking.

“You bastard!”

“You'll pay for this!”

Screamed the man as he was dragged away.

As the guards rounded the corner the screams faded away.

Alice grasped Alex’s hand tightly.

It seemed that something bad had just happened and that didn’t bode well for them.

A man in a black plaid jacket walked over to them and signaled for them to stand and walk over.

The man then cleared his throat and shouted,

“His grace Alex of Rath and his wife Alice of Reinhardt!”

As they walked in they took in their surroundings.

To each side of the large throne room were balconies with rows of benches lining them filled to the brim with court nobles.

In front of them at the end of the red carpet that seemed to be common among kings was a tall golden throne.

Decorated with jewels and various other ornaments, what stood out wasn’t the throne itself but the one sitting on it.

A man who looked to be in his late 40’s sat in a long blue and white robe with a crown on his head.

But what drew Alex’s attention wasn’t what he was wearing.

No.

It was his eyes.

His eyes resonated with Alex.

The eyes of the broken, the tortured, the eyes of those who suffer.

Dead eyes.

The king gave a slight smile when Alex came in.

Next to the king was a second throne upon which sat a young man around Alex’s age with blonde hair that was brushed back.

Upon his shoulders was a similar robe as his father, however, his was red and white.

Alex noted that there was no queen in sight.

The young man watched him with dark beady eyes as he approached the throne.

His lips curled up in a sneer, however, no one saw it as their attention was focused on Alex.

The reason their attention was so focused on Alex was because he hadn’t kneeled.

Not kneeling before the king was not illegal in this kingdom although it was in every other country, whoever did not would be put to death.

The reason Alex was allowed not to kneel in this kingdom was because the king had no royal blood flowing through him.

20 years ago the current king had started a coup against the king at that time and as his general, he had convinced most of the army to join him.

After successfully taking over the throne he had decreed that only those with royal blood could command an army, in order to prevent a coup he let the royals maintain their status.

However, royals did not have to kneel to him, although if they didn’t it was considered rude.

Shocked murmurs rang through the throne room as the nobles whispered among themselves.

Alice looked up at him with shocked and concerned eyes.

“What are you doing?” she whispered angrily.

However, Alex kept his eyes forward and back straight, remaining silent.

The king’s eyes twinkled slightly at this sight but he refrained from commenting.

However, the prince got up angrily and shouted.

“How dare you not kneel before the king!”

Silence fell in the room.

Alex ignored the prince and continued staring at the king.

“You dare ignore me?” shouted the prince again.

“Silence!” the king said, staring reproachfully at the prince.

The prince looked at his father in shock.

“But father!” he began.

“Sit down!” his father said sternly, cutting him off.

The prince reluctantly sat down however he glared at Alex.

During this commotion, Alex had never broken eye contact with the king.

“This is an interesting approach, boy.” the king said.

“You come to have an audience with me in light of a crime you committed yet you dare act rudely towards me?” he said with a slight laugh.

“One would believe the stories that you truly are arrogant and a fool.”

“However…”

“Something tells me those rumors aren't true?” the king said.

“Well! I suppose it doesn’t matter, let's get to business,” he said switching the topic.

“So you led an army without permission and with no title backing you? Only the blood of a royal and the heir to a duchy?” the king said, amused.

“How brave…”

“Or perhaps, how foolish…”

“Why did you do such a thing?” the king asked.

“I could not stand by as many lives were lost, when I could have done something to stop it,” Alex said still not breaking eye contact.

Suddenly the king’s eyes turned cold and he stared back at Alex’s unflinching gaze.

“What punishment do you believe I should give you?” he asked slowly.

Alex was slightly bewildered.

‘What is the correct answer here? If I'm too light it'll be the wrong answer but if I'm too harsh then I would be a fool.’

“I believe the correct punishment would be the one your majesty chooses for me,” he said neutrally.

The room fell silent once more waiting for the king's reaction.

Suddenly the king burst out laughing.

“What an excellent response! I love it!” clapped the king.

Once he had calmed down he sighed and said.

“Ah, youngsters these days… they never cease to surprise me.”

“Very well, as punishment, I will be sentencing you to join the front lines and command the army’s third division. If you fail and you run away from your duties, you better hope I never find you because if I do, I won't be as lenient as I was this time.”

Alex nodded his head in acceptance.

Seeing this the king said.

“Stay here for tonight, you will be departing in the morning.”

Alice and Alex were slightly confused as to the king’s invitation however they graciously accepted before a servant led them down a hall towards their room.

Once they were in their room and Wolf was let down by the guard as he closed the door, Alice turned around to face him.

“What were you thinking? She shouted angrily.

Alex merely stood there in the face of her yelling and said nothing.

“Do you know how badly that could have gone?” she yelled, poking a finger into his chest.

Alex stood silently.

“What nothing to say?” she said angrily.

“I will not kneel before anyone,” he stated simply.

“Why not?” she asked as the anger in her eyes reduced slightly.

“I can’t tell you.”

She raised her hands up in exasperation before walking over to the bed and laying down.

“Fine, whatever… why should I care,” she muttered.

Alex felt slightly bad seeing this but he shook it off and began petting Wolf.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door.

“What is it?” called Alice.

“Madame, a servant has informed us that you have been invited to dine with the king.”

Said the guard through the door.

Alice groaned as she massaged the bridge of her nose.

“Thank god I brought a gift…” she sighed.

“What gift?” he asked, not understanding why they needed a gift.

“When you dine with the king, as a show of respect you must bring a gift,” she said.

Alex nodded in understanding, there had been a similar custom in his world.

“I brought a 50-year-old mead just in case something like this occurred,” she said as she got up to change.

Walking into the bathroom she shut the door as she began changing.

While she was in there Alex took the time to change out of his outfit and into something more formal.

Grabbing a pair of black slacks and a white button-down shirt.

He put a blue tailored jacket on and buttoned the cuffs.

As he was done he heard the sound of the door opening and he turned around.

In front of him was Alice, however, he was stunned by her looks so much that he forgot to close his mouth.

Alice stood there shyly in a black dress with some frills, her hair was done up in a bun above her head and she had applied some makeup.

She looked stunning.

Noticing his gaze she blushed slightly.

“What…” she said shyly.

“Nothing…” Alex breathed remembering to look away.

“Anyway, we better hurry, it would do us good to not keep the king waiting,” she said changing the subject.

Alex nodded and they hurried to finish getting ready.

***

Entering the dining room they were awestruck by the plain look.

It looked quite similar to the one in the manor with the only exception being the fancy dishes.

As they approached the king who was seated they handed the bottle of mead off to a servant before sitting down to the king’s left with his son being on the right.

“Welcome!” said the king brightly as they sat down.

The prince merely glared at Alex.

“Thank you for having us, your majesty,” said Alice politely bowing her head.

“Oh, enough of that.” waved the king.

“Both of your fathers are good friends of mine who helped me 20 years ago, there’s no need to stand on ceremony with me.”

Alice nodded slightly and Alex remained silent as their dishes were served.

“So I hear you went against an army of 27,000 with a mere 15,000? Or so Fabien says anyway.” said the king as he dug into his food.

Alex was slightly surprised that he acted as if Fabien was also a close friend.

‘Seriously are all these old guys friends? What, do they have a book club together?’

Alex wondered sincerely.

The king must have noticed his incredulous gaze as he said.

“We all fought in the war together, we were quite the team back then.” he sighed as he seemed to recall old memories.

Alex suddenly remembered that the king asked him a question and answered.

“I did indeed face that many enemies with Fabien’s men,” he said politely.

“However I only walked away with a hundred or so, so it is not a victory to celebrate,” Alex said.

The king sighed and looked at Alex with a heavy gaze.

“Listen up, I'll only say this once and take this advice very heavily as it comes from me.”

“Because we always want to believe the worst. Optimism is a luxury, and only for the naive, the young, or the foolish.”

“You are still young, it is not your time to bear such burdens, leave the consequences to us older men,” he said, before digging into a piece of steak.

After they finished their meal, the mead they had brought was placed on the table.

Alex poured the mead into four glasses as was customary of the one who brought the gift.

Everyone grabbed a glass however the prince pushed his slightly to the side.

Just as they were about to down the drink a voice suddenly yelled.

“Stop!”

Everyone turned around to look at the voice.

There stood a wiry man dressed all in black.

Alice recognized him as the man who had arm-wrestled with one of her guards however Alex didn’t recognize him.

“What is the meaning of this?” shouted the prince as the guards pulled out their weapons and aimed them at the man.

“Lower your weapons!” shouted the king quickly.

“Father wh-” began the prince as a look of bewilderment crossed his face.

“Sit down!” his father shouted.

The prince sat down in shock.

“What can I do for you Mr. Emerson?” the king asked respectfully.

“As always it is a pleasure to see you, your majesty.” inclined Emerson.

“However, I'm afraid this time I bear ill news.”

“Speak,” said the king.

“That mead you were about to drink, it was poisoned.”

Everyone looked at Emerson, shocked.

Almost immediately the guards pointed their swords at Alex and Alice.

“Father let me deal with these traitors, they clearly meant to kill you!” shouted the prince getting up again.

“Oh for god's sake! Lower your weapons! And you! Sit down!” the king shouted.

Everybody became silent again as the guards lowered their weapons and the prince sat down disgruntled.

Through all of this Alex had sat quietly while Alice had been so confused she squeezed onto Alex’s hands for reassurance.

“Emerson… tell me who poisoned it?” asked the king looking at Emerson.

“Your majesty, it was the prince who commanded a maid to do it,” he said as his gaze darted to the prince.

Silence so quiet the only sound that could be heard was the sound of the raindrops pattering against the window and the occasional lightning strike descended upon the room.

Everyone's gaze turned towards the prince who looked so pale he almost looked like a ghost.

“Father… surely you don't believe this man.” said the prince, however his voice trembled.

The king gazed at the prince with disgust.

“To think my own son would poison me… guards take him away and throw him in the dungeon!” he ordered.

The guards looked slightly unsure however nevertheless they obeyed the king's orders all while glancing at Emerson fearfully.

All of them had the same thoughts running through their heads.

‘Who is that man?’

“Is that all?” he asked, rubbing his eyes.

“During an investigation, we were conducting, we discovered ties between the Toryn kingdom and the prince. From what we could understand it seemed as if they had promised to make him the king if he managed to eliminate you.”

The king sighed.

“What a fool…”

“Alright, thank you Emerson, and be sure to thank Edmund for me.”

“There is no need to thank us, after all, we wouldn’t have come for something as small as the assassination of a king, I merely discovered the poison by coincidence, as I was here on another mission,” Emerson said.

Some of the guards tightened their grips on the hilts of their sword when he said that.

“Yes I suppose not.” sighed the king.

As quickly as he had shown up, Emerson vanished on the spot.

“It seems we will have to move up our plans,” said the king.

Waving over a guard he said.

“Prepare a carriage,”

The guard quickly saluted and ran off to deliver his orders.

“I'm going to need you to leave tonight, and on your way to the third division I want you to deliver a message to your father,” he said as he requested a piece of paper from a maid.

Once he had written the message and sealed the envelope, he handed it to Alex.

“Do not open it and deliver it as quickly as possible.”

Alex nodded and grabbed Alice by the hand as a servant led them to pack their things.

The king sat back down in his seat and buried his head in his hands.

“I just hope it's not too late…” he muttered.