Retrieve the Kingdom

Staged Events

The archduke looks at Andres with interest as he smirks and leans on the sofa, “I knew you went here for something, what is it about, hmm?” He waits for Andres and lets him start his cue. The older prince sighs as he looks at Andrei first and then to Bermin, “I have overheard a conversation of Councilor Desmond with King Dougal. I always overhear the king’s conversations, it’s not really new to me anymore.” He said as Andrei nudged him with his elbow on the arms, the older one just rolls his eyes. “Anyway, he just added a fuel to the fire of hatred that the king has towards Phoebe and maybe suspicion to you, uncle. Or at least they are not to blame.” He looks at Phoebe coldly as she feels the chills down to her spine, “M-me? Why me? Are you just here to pass the blame of all of this to me?” She said as Andrei glares at Andres, “Oh come on, she’s the only one that provoked this situation. I am not blaming her, in fact, I am warning her for what chaos she has pushed to start. You lady has an obsession lighting up the bomb within people and the worst is, you are doing that to the people who have literal connections to the king. What’s wrong with you, Miss Phoebe? Do you like provoking wars within this kingdom?”

Before even Phoebe can answer him back with the same rude attitude, the archduke intervenes in the conversation. “Andres, there’s no time to blame anyone here right now. Tell me what you need to say. Please, if you have bottled up anger to anyone since earlier don’t break that here like a rum bottle. Break the news you have instead and Phoebe, don’t try to continue what he has started. You guys will just go all day, now, I don’t want to hear those again. There will no be fighting in this house, is that all clear? This is not the castle, Andres and we are better than those people there. I demand respect here that I deserve.” He said as Andres sighs, “Fine, your lucky Phoebe, you have an uncle by your side. Anyway, before I was pushed by my emotions, I was gonna say this. Councilor Desmond wants a staged court case and he wants the best judge that the king knows. Well, that best judge means the dumbest yet smart judge. Dumb because he is too fragile and got manipulated with the most money. That’s mostly the gist of it, he just narrated his dirtiness which is just so damned curse. I hate him to the guts, I haven’t hated someone like this at all. I almost puke that he is proudly saying those, douchebag. Now it’s your on your hands uncle and maybe Phoebe.”

“Why are—” She was about to fight back as the lady stretches her hand on her front, “Phoebe, don’t talk back to him anymore. If someone is needed to be humble, I better say that you took that spot. It’s a rare sight that Andres is the one who is raising the white flag in fights and debates. So, Phoebe, for the sake of things, just calm yourself and don’t answer back to him. He loves these and he might love your face that is pissed off.” She said as the prince glares at the lady, even her, the wife of his uncle is not exempted with these. “What a great introduction to my attitude, auntie. I will get a friend again, yey. Cheers to that, Phoebe of Mires.” He said sarcastically, the lady didn’t mind those things. It’s not new to her since he shifted to this attitude years ago, he can’t even respect his own mother sometimes, so she doesn’t have the control him who he respects if he even has one that he does respect.

The archduke sighs, “Thank you for the information that you have delivered to us, Andres. I appreciate your concern and initiation that you have exerted an effort to. You may go home if you want or stay here within the night, you always have your room here vacant and sparkly clean. You too Andrei, your decision.” He looks at them as he stands, “Now if you may excuse me, I need to do a business here in this mansion, ironic, but whatever.” He smiles as he went out of the living room, leaving the two ladies on sight on the sofa. “I’ll leave here, without the archduke I might slap someone within this room and within the radius where I can do that. So if you may excuse me, lady Naia. I will be the one who will keep the distance between us, fighting with him is the least of my priorities.” She glares at the prince, which is a bold act of hers. The prince just smirked and ignored her after. She rolls her eyes as she left the living room. The lady looks at the boys as she stands, “The dinner might be served soon, you can do your things.” She said as she waits for them, “You know what, I’ll be staying here for the night, the king doesn’t care anyway who’s out of the castle at any time anyway unless they need them.” Andres said as he stands and went out of the room, all pumped up for his stay. “Strange, how about you, Andrei?” She looks at him as he looks back, “I’ll stay too, just gonna watch this man of what he will do in this mansion, he is sinister sometimes.” Andrei left and followed his brother through the halls.

Phoebe approached the archduke in the main hall just near the dining table wherein it’s another table but circular and has another purpose that it holds. Bermin looks at her as he feels that someone was behind him, “Oh! Phoebe, what brings you back to me?” He said as she looks around and whispered, “Should we start about this plan that we have, sir Bermin?” The archduke thinks as he looks around, “Maybe a little bit later, how about at the dinner? It’s the best time to execute this since our suspect might be one of the preparation servants or even the cooks.” He whispered as he smiles at her, Phoebe nods at him as the lady approaches them, “Dinner’s ready, I was just there.” She smiles sweetly as the archduke looks at her and gestured something that only them could understand. Phoebe was confused and she made it obvious for them. Bermin giggles as he pats her and puts his hand on her back as they start heading to the kitchen. “Please find the two princes and also Anna then tell them that dinner is already served and the archduke is waiting for them.” He approached a servant as the said person nods and went on their way to find the two boys in the mansion that’s just really big. As they arrived at the dining room, they took their favorite chairs occupied.

Bermin looks at the two ladies as he gestured them to start talking about the thing that they have planned and execute it now. “Hon, I have been thinking.” Lady Naia started it as the archduke looks at her, “Yes, my love?” He said as he was being served by the servant but kept his eyes to her. “Phoebe has been with us for so long and you know how I grew fond of her since I met her, even the time that I was away. I treat her like my own child like I was her real mother. As a mother figure, what happened to her earlier is unacceptable. Especially in my own residency. How bold of whoever has done that, but I want to know who are they. I just can’t accept it, Bermin. Oh god Alvi, help me.” She said as she started to cut the meat that she served for herself. “I share the same goal and feelings, my wife, but we can’t just point anyone here or even out there, there are many people in Eshecaea and we can’t just guess who dares and wishes the harm for Phoebe earlier.”

The lady acts like she was thinking as Phoebe was just eating quietly and acting like she was still a bit weak. Anna arrived as Phoebe waves at her, “Anna!” She said as she approached her. The girl was surprised and most of all happy, “Phoebe! Finally, you are already fine. I thought I am gonna lose a friend that fast. Oh, I hate watching you suffer while vomiting at the backyard of the mansion.” She said as Phoebe accompanied her and sat with her. “Anna, welcome! Join us.” The archduke smiles as the girl smile back. “And to you, Naia. Are you suspecting our servants? These servants are filtered and we already have trusted them for years. What is happening to you? You are coming back to your early days of our great filter of people to serve us just because of what happened to Phoebe.” He said as the lady sighs, “We don’t know if someone here is secretly working with other people and if so if they haven’t before, they can freely do anytime and any people outside. You know many people want to sabotage you and your operations to save the kingdom. Not all people have kind and pure hearts, think about that, Bermin. If they can do that to Phoebe they might to you or me.”

The conversation was cut short as one of the servants who served more soup suddenly dropped the pot on the table while pouring it on the big deep circular bowl. They all have different reactions as the prince arrived in that scene too. The servant was shaking as she suddenly kneels with her hands clasped together finger by finger. “I am sorry, sir Bermin. This would never happen again.” She said as she stutters every time she speaks, she is scared and fearful of what will happen next. “What kind of a mess I was welcomed to!?” Prince Andres said as he looks at the cook assistant, “Are you the one who has done this? You have just embarrassed the archduke with his decision-making skills right now—” He was cut Phoebe crouched in front of the maid, “Shut up, Andres. We don’t need more negativity here. Come on, don’t kneel. Sir Bermin won’t punish you. Come on, it’s just a mistake.” She said as the maid looks at her as she hugs her tightly that made her shocked and the rest that was watching this confused. She keeps muttering sorry as Phoebe gently pushed her away, “It’s fine, stand and just help others to clean this.” She said as Bermin approaches her, “It’s fine, Kyla. We all make mistakes. I understand, please don’t pity yourself. Come on, stand and do your business again, crying won’t do anything. Stand and be brave. I believe in you the first time I met you and I still am. Come on, Kyla.”

The maid looks at him as she stands and she just has noticed that she was wet too with the soup that splashed and reached her earlier. “Dress up.” Phoebe smiles as the maid nods and went out of the dining table and went to her quarters to change up. The others clean the table and the two princes took their seats as the table was cleaned and organized once more. Phoebe comes back to her seat as she looks at Andres with her peripherals. Her blood boils on his sight as she continues to eat and they had a good, peaceful dinner still talking about what happened earlier like what they have planned. Phoebe and Andres were about to fight again, but they shut themselves up with just one glare from the archduke.

It was already late in the night as Bermin walks his way to the master’s bedroom as someone stopped him and held his arm, “Sir Bermin, c-can I talk with you for a moment?”