Once Upon The Life of The Wise King

The Cat Saved Me

ONCE UPON THE LIFE OF THE WISE KING

Volume 1

The Birth of The Wise King

Chapter 14 - The Cat Saved Me

In the throne room were the King and the Queen sitting on their respective seats. Below them was their eldest child, Prince Colin, who kneeled on his knee with his head bowed. When the Prince returned the previous day, his parents welcomed him and told him to rest for the day before they talk about what happened to him while he got captured.

"We are so thankful that you have returned to us alive, son," Queen Cielisse said in relief. "But what had happened to our fallen comrades was, indeed, so tragic." The Queen's tone of speech sounded depressed. She was saddened by what had transpired.

"It is my fault. I could not protect," Prince Colin blamed himself for not being strong enough.

"You are young. You did not have enough training and experience. Even though the palace soldiers and guards are here to protect the Royal family, you still must protect your people as the Prince of this Kingdom. We protect each other," King Wenhart spoke.

"I understand, father. I will train hard and do my best to avoid this from happening again."

King Wenhart hummed. "Now tell us what happened to you these past few days."

"Yes, father. The people who had taken me are called the anti-royalist faction."

"Anti-royalist? We have people who oppose the Royal family?" Queen Cielisse inquired.

"Yes, mother. They have a leader called Lord Azazel, who believes that everyone can use and manifest majika in physical forms and that he can help me manifest mine. And when I do, I can return and present myself as the heir, but I firmly declined their offer."

"Why?" the King asked. "You were not tempted?"

"Father..." Prince Colin paused as he looked up at the King. "Honestly speaking, I was tempted. I feel ashamed as the First Prince. I am the only First Prince in history who is not the heir. But father, mother, please trust me when I say that no matter what I desire in life, I can not let it control my reason. That," he said, "is my conviction."

The Queen smiled gently. "I can see in your eyes that you are telling the truth. I believe you." She turned to look at her husband and asked, "What about you, Your Majesty?"

"I admire your conviction, but that is not enough. You must prove it!"

"Yes, father," the Prince replied.

"What else do we need to know about the anti-royalist faction?" the King prompted his son.

"I don't know what their goal is, but they are dissatisfied with the royalty. The leader also aims to be the King. Also, that leader has no physical body."

"What do you mean?"

"Lord Azazel has no physical body. He used majika to contain his energy in an armor and goat skull mask. His subordinates looked alive, but I got told by someone that they are puppets. Even if you decapitated them, they could sew themselves back. They are immortal-like. But, without their leader, they can't attack or do anything besides from searching for their leader."

"How did you escape?" the Queen asked.

"A cat saved me," Prince Colin replied.

"A cat?" Queen Cielisse raised a brow. "How can a cat save your life?"

"Uhm... I promised the cat that I won't tell anyone who they are. I believe they are a good person. Otherwise, they could have just left me."

"What if that person is just using you?" King Wenhart spoke.

"I don't think so. That person seemed trustworthy to me, and they taught me something. Although I did not check if what they said about the genetic disease of the Royal family is true."

"What did they said?"

"The genetic disease is not a disease, but rather the result of using majika."

Prince Colin noticed the change in the atmosphere. Looking up at the King and the Queen, he took note of how their expressions seemed grave. He got a feeling that they knew something, so he tentatively asked, "Did you, perhaps, already knew about it?"

King Wenhart sighed. "Yes, we did," he said. "For generations, our ancestors concealed the truth from the people, and only the direct successor knew about it. They did it to avoid unnecessary attention and panic. Now that you knew about it, too, then there is no point hiding it."

"I see..."

"We will investigate the anti-royalist faction. If there is nothing more, then you are dismissed." The King was about to stand when prince Colin suddenly stood up and asked them to stay for a moment.

"What is it?" King Wenhart asked.

"The cat also asked me to give this to mother," Prince Colin answered as he pulled something out of his pocket. He showed it to them. It was the piece of black firestone given to him by the person who saved him, the witch. "This is a charm. They said that mother must wear it on her always."

"Really?" The Queen leaned forward.

"Give it to me. I will ask the Holy Priestess to have a look at that first. If it is safe, then I will give this to your mother."

"Yes, I understand." The Prince stood, walked up the steps, and gave the stone to the King.

Taking it, King Wenhart took a closer look at the stone and realized that it was the black firestone. "This... this is the black firestone that has been missing all these years. How did you get this?"

"Well, technically, that is only a piece of the missing black firestone. The person gave that to me."

"Still... This stone is sacred. Many people will vie after this. We need to make this a secret. Don't let it spread that a piece of the black firestone is in our hands. Do you understand?"

Queen Cielisse and Prince Colin nodded their heads.

"I will go to the Holy Priestess now. Dismiss," King Wenhart said as he hid the stone inside his chest pocket. "I'll go first."

The Queen looked at her son. "It is fortunate to find a piece of the stone," she said with a smile. "In every fortune, there is a corresponding responsibility and unfavorable circumstances. I don't know how it will help us, but I hope, no matter what happens, our Kingdom will remain strong."