2 When the Queen died (Alexi)
That noon I was supposed to meet with my teacher Clarisse to learn about the history of Naldal, but mom had talked to her to postpone the class so that I could spend the day talking to the vanguard and make myself notable in the eyes of the army and also the people.
She was that way, the Queen of Naldal preferred to maintain a good public image rather than knowledge and helping others, I always hated her for that, but I guess that in the long run, this was the reason there was an increase in the pro-war sentiment. Before I continue on how my mother was killed I guess I should describe her.
She went by the name of Stephanie Holtz, but she was crowned as Queen Stephanie the I. her blond hair was something that ran rare in the kingdom, and I inherited it from her. Unfortunately, I didn't inherit her green eyes, she was the only one in the whole capital to have those.
She came from one of the oldest noble families of the Kingdom and she was proud of that, she would always boast about what her family does for the kingdom and how she keeps doing it as a queen. She entered my room with a light turquoise long dress, she still hadn't finished her make-up.
"Alexi, are you done yet?" she asked
"Not, yet I am almost finishing my tie."
"Well then, hurry up, we are running late by 3 hours. You are gonna have to take off that hideous handkerchief, it doesn't go with the rest of you," she said before leaving the room.
After changing my handkerchief I kept buying time to avoid going out for as long as I could. But in the end, I could only avoid going out for 40 minutes.
Then one of the servants called for my name, I liked her. She was around 17 years old, she has been there with me since I could remember. Her name is Anne and she is a really caring person, she lost both her parents in a fire, and thanks to the queen's infinite gratitude she found a job as my caretaker.
She entered the room to pick me up.
"Alexi! What are you doing? we are running-"
"3 hours late I know, I just don't want to go out there"
"Your mother is gonna kill me if you don't come out of your room."
She grabbed me by my hand and pulled me out of my room.
"No, Anne, I don't wanna go!" I cried with all my force so that I could be heard by someone, anyone. But no one answered.
"Listen, Alexi, I know you don't want to go, but it is part of small sacrifices you have to make as a prince."
I continued to cry, but what she said was true, even if I hated it.
In the end, it was inevitable I ended up going to the banquet hall. I didn't pay much attention to what my father said, nor to what other soldiers had to say. I tried looking for Anne among the other servants, but it was really difficult there were too many servants. The food was good though, something really simple. Baked potatoes and a piece of steak, I happily enjoyed it, it was really a rare occasion in which I ate stake.
By the end of the night, I was really tired and I finally found Anne, who picked me up and helped me go to sleep. That conversation I had with my mother was the last one.
