Soul of Magic (Soul of Magic Book 1)

EIGHT

As they entered into the throne room, Richard and Aegan saw two men making themselves at home there. By the looks of it, they weren't exactly concerned about anyone seeing them; looking over things like it was theirs, touching things that normally weren’t allowed to be touched even by members of the royal court. They really must have been very close to his father if they had the audacity to behave like that, Richard thought to himself.

Clearing his throat in order to get their attention, he asked, "How may I help you gentlemen?"

The men looked up at him as he said that, a bit startled to see him standing there when they hadn’t heard him enter. But whatever shock they felt at his sight vanished so quickly that Richard found it hard to be sure if they were truly startled or not.

One of the men walked up to him with a smile on his face, it was obvious he was the higher of the two; a more evident fact being that the second man did everything the first man requested even if it was just a nonchalant nod. The first man wore a purple silk robe, the length of the material adorned with so many jewels he appeared to be literally glinting in the morning sunlight filtering in through the windows from all angles. He was rich man, and one who evidently had no qualms about showing off his richness in combination with his handsome features.

Truth be told, the second man wasn't bad either. He was muscularly built, a mountain of a man. And coupled with the intense way his eyes seemed to rove around the room like some set predator, it was obvious that he could easily intimidate any man; not that Richard was intimidated though. He was the one in charge, the prince reminded himself. And he made it known by getting himself seated on the throne, much to the obvious surprise of the men, and beckoned them forward.

"I am Ivan of Breston," the first man introduced himself before the second man. "And this is Dragur, he's my muscle, obviously. King Nicolas is an acquaintance of mine and I was hoping I could get an audience with him."

Richard deduced that Ivan must probably be a merchant or something of the like; the man definitely had the trader's attitude all about him. But that only served to perplex the prince further. Thing is, if there were people Richard knew his father hated more than wizards, they were merchants; he called them rich crooks. Which begged the question then that why would his father chose to associate himself with such an unsavory kind? And in such a close capacity too.

Anyway, Richard put on his best smile as he attended to them. "King Nicolas isn't available at the moment," he said, earning a satisfied smile and nod from Aegan. "But I'm his son Richard, you can tell me whatever you wish to say to him."

The man, Ivan, seemed a little unsure of Richard’s proclamation, but he continued anyway. "Your Highness," he began. "This is about a witch I met".

The prince’s demeanour changed immediately the word witch was mentioned; he was completely interested in the conversation. "Where?" he asked, having to physically restrain himself before he gave in to the urge to get out of his seat and badger the man until he spilled everything.

"I caught her in a town not so far from here,” replied Ivan. “I was going to bring her to the kingdom as a show of loyalty to your father but unfortunately, she escaped, sire." He looked truly filled with regret. He also must have seen the disappointed look on Richard's face at the burst in the conversation because he quickly added, "But I can take you to the place I lost her. She can’t be more than two days ahead, and with a force such as yours, putting her down will be easy for the both of us to accomplish."

Richard put his hand to his chin as he contemplated on the proposal. Interested or not, the prince didn't believe for a second that Ivan was interested in finding the witch just out of the goodness of his heart. He wanted something and he needed Richard, or rather the Cyriani army, to get it.

But he also had to admit that his idea was sound; the two of them working together could accomplish a lot. "Alright Ivan, I agree with your plan," he finally said. "We’ll-"

"Perhaps you should consult your father first, your Highness," Aegan suddenly cut in with a stern look on his face. "I'm sure we can go find him down the hall right now."

Richard immediately caught on to what the old lord was saying and nodded. He wasn't sure why it was necessary to interrupt him though. "Alright, Lord Aegan," he replied, almost rolling his eyes the way he’d seen Lorraine do whenever she found something overly exaggerated. But he didn’t: the other three men in the room would have considered that very unmanly. "Let's go find him, shall we?"

"Your Highness, you cannot leave Cyrian," Aegan said as soon as they were out of earshot. It was full of respect but the sternness couldn’t be missed either.

"And why, Aegan?" asked Richard, almost whining like a child that couldn’t have his favourite toy.

"Because it's against the custom for the king to travel out of the kingdom a few days before his coronation," replied the old lord, still sternly even though Richard’s eyes begged him not to be. "Besides, I know that Ivan of Breston person and he is not a man to be trusted." Aegan was pretty close to Nicolas, not to mention the fact that he was the most powerful man in the kingdom besides the royal family although he rarely showed it. If he said he knew Ivan, he knew Ivan.

"But what about the witch?" the prince asked, desperate that the old lord would see reason. "She has to be dealt with before word gets out and the people start thinking that we’re growing lax in our duty."

"Then send out a small group of men to go and deal with it. If there is even a witch to begin with, that is," he returned. "You're about to become king, Richard. Your kingdom needs you to be around.”

"But Aegan, you have been running things since Father died and I hadn't arrived. And there are countless men more able than I am to defend the kingdom in my absence," Richard replied. "Whether I’m here or not, everything will remain in order in Cyrian. But my men, they’ll always need me to lead them in person and you know it."

The old lord sighed; one that was full of frustration, but also resignation. The pronce wasn’t going to relent and he knew it. “Alright, you can go,” he finally said and Richard smiled. "But please, sire. Be careful.”

"When am I not?" he returned, giving the old lord a quick hug. "Thank you very much for letting me do this, Aegan." It was obvious that the prince would never have left if the old lord didn't give his consent; he respected the man too much to disobey him.

"It's settled," Richard said when he returned to the throne room. "We ride out tomorrow morning."

Ivan rubbed his hands gleefully together as a wide smile spread across his lips. "Believe me, your Highness," he said. "This is one adventure you’re never going to forget.” If only he knew how true his words were.