Prince Elric’s face contorted. It was as if he just bit into a rotting apple. In the middle of a race for the throne, the last thing he needed was for his father to think he was undermining him. The implications of Sol’s statement shocked not just the guests in the hall, but also the guards.

Everyone was aware of how damning such a statement could be. The fact that Sol linked the Prince’s disrespect to his abuse of authority only served to fuel the idea that the Prince didn’t take his father’s power to heart. Was he already acting as King?

To her side, Christopher looked at his sister with admiration. He felt a sense of loss as if his position as an older brother was somehow threatened. There was an uncanny mix of emotions that he couldn’t identify, but he knew for certain that a part of him looked up to this monster-like sibling.

However unfortunate Prince Elric was in taking this hit in public, he no longer held his initial confidence. Sol’s insistence on her innocence, confident demeanor, willingness to fight back to the bitter end, and her dangerous word choices left Prince Elric with few options.

He couldn’t retreat. The public venue was selected by him specifically to corner Sol and reduce her reputation. His goal was to destroy public opinion of her which would enable him to easily take her in. Retreating before so many people would damage his reputation instead.

Although they didn’t say it, the guests were all from high society and affluent families. The moment he backed down, he would lose more than just his reputation. Defeated by a 9 year old girl after he instigated the conflict. Prince Elric’s abilities would immediately be called into question and weaken his position for the throne.

For those reasons and more, Prince Elric simply couldn’t retreat. How unfortunate that he couldn’t persist either. Sol’s insinuation for him to undermine the King’s power wasn’t a charge Prince Elric could hold. That explosive statement forced him into a halt. If she persisted, it would only confirm her comment and word would reach his father before the sun would breach the horizon.

It was only now that Prince Elric understood the failures of his brother. This girl was truly a monster in human skin. Her eyes were open and bright. They displayed every ounce of rage she held within. Masked by smiles and decor, Prince Elric could practically see the virtual knife she wielded.

What he needed was a way to step down. He was wholly unprepared for such a failure. Prince Elric deeply regretted his knee jerk reaction to corner Sol at the public venue. Unwilling to retreat and unwilling to push, Prince Elric and Sol remained silent with entangled gazes. Neither revealed their emotions.

The thud of a body broke the standoff and pulled the attention of everyone on site to the entrance. Their gazes landed on a particular maid who had a foot resting on a strange creature. She restored her body to proper form and took a deep bow.

“Lady Reviarra, this servant has captured the beast that snuck around last night.”

Sol’s gaze drifted to the strange creature and looked at it with great interest. Beside her, Prince Elric’s gaze lit up. The opportunity presented itself. However, just as that thought was processed, his gaze turned sharp and took in the maid’s figure once more. It was too coincidental.

He needed a means to step down and suddenly one appeared. The odds were astronomical. Despite the knowledge that he was fed a means by his enemy, Prince Elric still jumped at the opportunity, though he pursued it with caution. Once bitten, twice shy. He refused to allow any other weakness.

This moment of overconfidence and haste taught him a valuable lesson. Just as Prince Elric was about to order his men, An kicked the beast’s corpse. The creature tumbled a few times before sliding to the Prince’s foot. Prince Elric wasn’t a stupid man.

He understood the maid’s intention immediately. This lowly maid was both warning him to step down and back off. He was being looked down on by a lowly maid. This lowly maid! Shame burned the maid’s image into Prince Elric’s mind, however the situation was critical enough to keep a cool head.

“Lady Reviarra, it would appear this Prince’s witness was indeed falsely implicating your ladyship. This Prince offers his sincerest apologies and will ensure the witness is judged by law.”

How could Sol allow him to leave so easily? The rage over this man’s actions passed her bottom line from the moment she was drugged. She was determined to make him leave behind at least a chunk of muscle. Sol ignored An’s cautionary gaze and pressed the Prince.

“This Lady trusts the Prince’s honesty and sense of justice. As such, this Lady requests the Prince to arbitrate this matter. This Lady wishes to confront this Lady’s accuser as the law entitles and this Lady pleads for the Prince to exact justice before me, as the law entitles. As the evidence is conclusive, which the Prince just agreed with, this Lady understands the trial can be exacted onsite.”

Prince Elric flushed with rage. Despite his decorum training and socialite experience, there was nothing he could do to prevent his emotions from showing through this time. Sol’s intent was clear. ‘You want to frame me? Expect to lose something in return.’

Her hint was anything but subtle and the guests understood her intention as well. She clearly wanted Prince Elric to kill one of his people in front of her. It was hard to say what impact such an event would have. Even if it was just a maid, the maid acted under his orders.

Who would follow his orders in the future if he couldn’t protect those following him? The implications of such a thing were wide reaching, yet vague. Despite understanding everything, Prince Elric didn’t have much choice. His own words tied his fate.

He called for a nearby guard to bring the accuser to the site. After declaring himself to be law abiding, Prince Elric couldn’t back down from enforcing the law. After Sol insinuated his opinion of the King, Prince Elric couldn’t bend the law. After Sol’s maid provided him a method to step down without destroying his image completely, Prince Elric couldn’t afford to lose the opportunity and his hand was forced.

The servant was brought to site with a confused expression. Not a single person on site thought the servant was guilty. This was an innocent killing. A public execution of sheer convenience. Although Sol held some pity for the servant, she was taught a clear lesson today.

Not a single servant under Prince Elric tried to help her escape. The servants are just the extension of the Prince’s power. Sol watched the innocent man forced to his knees and the merciless swing of Prince Elric’s sword. Until the end, Sol was confident that the servant had no idea why he was being killed. No one even cared.

Prince Elric said his farewell with an uncanny coldness before leading the venue. The guards trailed after him with a small group tugging the creature’s corpse behind them. An’s gaze trailed after the Prince with a hint of concern. He overheard the bulk of the conversation and from what he understood of Sol Reviarra, the girl wouldn’t cause trouble for nothing.

Since he didn’t have the full context, he chose to step in only once the situation was getting out of hand. Had he not stepped in at the last moment and provided the Prince a way to step down, it was likely that the Reviarra household would have become mortal enemies with the Prince.

Despite An’s efforts though, Sol threw away his efforts. Although the situation wasn’t as bad as it would have been, it wasn’t much better. The veritable face slap in such a public venue was enough for the Prince to mark the Reviarra family.

An sighed helplessly and moved to Sol’s side. Immediately, his spiritual awareness caught onto the awkward state of her body. Although she refined the bulk of the drug in her system, she had yet to even complete the Body Refiner Stage and so her body was still very much Human.

With a powerful enough spiritual awareness, one could live vicariously through another. An registered Sol’s state and chose to remain silent, however he marked the Prince for death. This little monster would never allow herself to be wronged.

While An, Sol, and Christopher were retiring from the banquet, Prince Elric was steaming in his room. He long since dismissed his servants and chose to be alone. His face was hot and his heart was burning. The shame was eating into him.

Oddly, the shame eating into him was the public humiliation Sol put him through and not his own actions. He was a Prince. Not only was he a Prince, he was the Prince closest to the throne. Inside his mind, he replayed the past day’s events from start to finish over and over.

Everytime, his memories would halt on that final gaze Lady Reviarra sent him. Within those eyes, he detected rage, arrogance, confidence, and a whole assortment of finer emotions he didn’t understand. Despite his efforts, Prince Elric couldn’t remove that masked face from his mind.

He surprised himself. He was no longer as angry and even looked forward to their next encounter. Prince Elric recognized those emotions, however he didn’t feel threatened. He knew it wasn’t love. Rather, it was an obsessive desire for treasure. The girl was only 9 years old, yet already managed to thwart him and his brother repeatedly.

If he could tame her and bring her over… The thought was infectious and once he thought it, he could no longer think any other way. Instead of looking to the future, he spent the rest of the night reflecting on the past and Lady Reviarra’s accomplishments.

Prince Elric suddenly realized how foolish he was for treating the Lady like any other 9 year old child. Perhaps he never believed it before. Reading it on paper and being a 3rd party to another’s conflict didn’t do it justice. First hand experience though… Prince Elric felt as if his eyes were opened to a new world.