**The Scape**

"The rebellion is a virtue as creative as necessity." — Albert Camus

With plans to escape the castle becoming increasingly tangible in Killian's mind, only the direction to take remained to be decided. Since he had already mentioned to the king his desire to head to the kingdom of D. Alder, that route was no longer viable.

Departing from Ashrose, he had a few options: head to the kingdom of Krois and enter the kingdom of Greenland, where he could catch a ship to the far east to the merchant peninsula, or cross the boundaries of the Black Forest, passing through the south of the kingdom of Korya and on to the small kingdom of Yvis, where he would embark on the Amaymon River to the kingdom of Braveheart to the north, which borders Bluestorm. There, he could catch ships to the far north or east.

Despite the alternatives, Killian couldn't determine the safest route, having never left the castle before. However, he reasoned that since the princess consort was from the Greenland family, he would be easily recognized and captured there. So, he opted for the second route: south through the Black Forest, passing through Korya and Yvis to Braveheart. "It's such a long and absurd journey that the King wouldn't find me," he thought.

Preparing himself, Killian acted normally. He attended fencing lessons with Sir Fairtower, political and art classes with his tutors, and at night made preparations for his escape. He took maps from the royal library, a medallion that was a compass, and some essential supplies.

Knowing the guards' shift changes well, he used a gap to sneak out of the castle. The capital was quiet in the early evening, and he discreetly followed the directions marked on the compass. He walked all night towards the northeast of the Ashrose kingdom until he reached the entrance of a forest. "Could this be the Karayan Black Forest? They say it's full of monsters," he thought. He remembered he carried a sword given to him by Sir Fairtower when he was deemed a genius in fencing. Without wasting time, he entered the forest.

The forest's terrifying pressure seemed to crush him, but he pressed on. Despite being tired, he heard frightening howls and growls. He had natural charcoal in the folds of his clothes and Fenir urine, an expensive material the king kept in the royal library. If what he read about predators was correct, the smell would scare away the weaker ones. With this thought, Killian continued until late afternoon, when he decided to shelter inside an old tree trunk. He ate, reviewed the directions on his map with the last light of the sky, and slept in the dark of the forest.

At Ashrose royal castle, the servants noticed Killian's absence. Initially, they thought he was avoiding tasks or shirking responsibilities, "finally acting like a normal child," they thought. By evening, his personal maid saw he still hadn't appeared and suspected something was wrong. She sought out Sir Fairtower and asked if he had seen the heir prince. Sir Fairtower, unaware of the disappearance, asked the maid to keep it discreet and ordered the guards to search the castle before alerting the king, who was in his quarters. The guards spent the night searching but found no trace of Killian. It was time to inform the king and search the Ashrose territory.

Sir Fairtower went to the royal office, where he found King Sebastian drunk, even early in the morning, behind a pile of documents. Despite fearing the king's reaction, he knew he had to report the disappearance:

" Your Highness, I have an urgent announcement!"

With his back turned, a wine bottle in one hand and documents in the other, the king grumbled:

" What isn't urgent in this kingdom?"

Sir Fairtower tried to be patient, but since Sebastian paid no attention, he said bluntly:

" The heir prince, Killian, is missing!"

At that moment, Sebastian turned, distraught. He tried to rise from his chair but was too dizzy from the drink. Even so, he tried to stay composed and asked:

" What do you mean my son is missing? Have you searched the castle?"

" He wasn't seen yesterday. The servants thought he was throwing a tantrum and acting like a normal child, but by nightfall, he still hadn't appeared. The prince's personal maid sought me out. I asked my men to search the castle, but he is not here."

Sebastian, though dizzy, seemed to become sober. He looked seriously at Sir Fairtower and ordered:

" I want you to search the entire capital with your men and interrogate everyone who was here yesterday. If they saw the prince at any point!"

" I will, Your Highness! But what if he's not in the capital?"

The king, furious and desperate, shouted:

"Then we'll search the entire Ashrose territory if necessary! I will not lose my son like I lost his mother! Seal the territory. No one enters or leaves Ashrose until I find my son."

Sir Fairtower thought of other suggestions but saw the desperation on the king's face and decided to carry out the orders immediately.

As the sun rose, young Killian emerged from the old tree and continued his journey through the Black Forest. He heard a different sound from the others and, veering off the path a bit, found a child crying. She seemed like a common child, malnourished and very injured. Killian cautiously approached and asked where she was from. At that moment, the girl transformed into a kind of white feline with red eyes, too small to seem dangerous, who tried to appear fierce to the young prince, who smelled like a predator, a Fenir.

Realizing her fragility, Killian picked her up by the torso and brought her back to his trail while she desperately tried to escape. Weak and very injured, the creature quieted in Killian's arms. They continued walking until nightfall when he climbed a small mountain and found a cave that looked more like a hole in the mountain. With a roof over his head and on high ground, he decided to rest there. He took out provisions for himself and his new companion, who was unconscious, and gently ran his hand over her fur, trying to wake her.

The girl woke up startled and instinctively reverted to her fierce animal display, raising her fur and growling at Killian. Ignoring her threatening display, he calmly began to eat his rations. Killian's serene demeanor had a calming effect on the girl, who gradually calmed down and began to observe him with curiosity.

Seeing there was no immediate danger, she transformed back into a human. At that moment, Killian noticed she was completely naked, her pale skin contrasting with the forest's darkness around her. He quickly took a black cloak from his bag and placed it over her shoulders. The girl, intrigued, examined the piece of clothing as if it was something completely new to her.

With a gentle smile, Killian showed her how to wear the cloak, fastening it over her chest to keep her warm. She clumsily mimicked his movements but managed to cover herself. Once dressed, the girl began eyeing the rations Killian had set aside for her, hesitant.

"Go ahead, you can eat!" said Killian, encouraging her in a soft, friendly tone.

Though she seemed not to understand his words, the gesture and tone were clear enough. He took a piece of bread and extended it to her. Slowly, with initial distrust, she accepted and began to eat desperately as if she hadn't eaten in days.

While watching her devour the food, Killian noticed details about her appearance. Her eyes were slanted and delicate but still retained the red color and feline shape, even in her human form. Her skin had a unique tone, not exactly white, but not tanned either. Her hair, long and extremely straight, was a deep black that shone softly in the evening light. "She looks like a porcelain doll, like those my sister used to collect," he thought.

The small creature didn't seem to be more than five years old, making Killian's heart ache at the thought of what she might have faced alone in the forest. Noticing the broken shackles on her wrists, he remembered rumors about mythical creature trafficking circulating the continent. "She can transform into a kind of cat, so she must be a mythical beast," he concluded, worried.

He then decided to speak to her, even knowing she might not understand his words:

"I don't know where you live; it might be far from here. But I can't leave you alone, so I'll take you with me. And when you're older and can communicate, if you tell me where your home is, I promise to take you there!"

She listened quietly while finishing her meal. After eating, she transformed back into her feline form and nestled close to Killian. He saw her as a younger sister and, reflecting on it, thought: "Does she have a name?" Then, he said aloud:

" What's your name?"

The little feline opened her eyes and stared at him without responding. Looking deep into her red eyes, Killian said:

" Since you can't speak to tell me your name, I'll call you Ruby! Because your eyes are red like a ruby! What do you think?"

The newly named Ruby didn't show any emotion toward the new name. Instead, she stretched and closed her eyes again, seemingly feeling secure next to Killian. Overcome by exhaustion, he also settled down to sleep.

Meanwhile, in the kingdom of Ashrose, it was already the second day with no news of the crown prince. King Sebastian seemed on the verge of madness, repeatedly ordering soldiers to search the same places and even sending teams to the most distant areas of the capital, beyond what a ten-year-old child could be expected to reach.

It was at this inopportune moment that the palace received news of the arrival of the caravan from the king of Greenland, the grandfather of Sebastian's daughter. To him, everyone within the kingdom, except the Fairtowers, was suspect, and the visit seemed excessively timely.

Sebastian then received King Yoseph at the palace and noticed that the visitor was not yet aware of the crown prince's disappearance—or was feigning ignorance very well. King Yoseph, as usual, began to complain that his daughter was neither in the castle nor in the capital of Ashrose but in a distant land, and demanded that she be called back to the kingdom, as he had a family matter to communicate to her.

With no options to avoid rumors about the disappearance or perhaps in an attempt to play the king's game, Sebastian ordered that it be done as requested. However, he continued more discreetly, communicating with the soldiers and issuing new orders. The old king of Greenland, astute as always, noticed something was wrong. Everyone seemed too worried, so he asked Sebastian bluntly:

"Did something happen to my daughter?"

Sebastian responded with apparent nonchalance:

" No, your daughter is fine, as far as I know. She must be on her way."

Seizing the opportunity, Yoseph asked another question:

" And the prince? Is he well?"

There was a slight stir in the royal audience room. Sebastian replied coldly:

"My son is well."

Sensing an opening, Yoseph decided to pry further:

"Then, where is the boy? He has turned ten, hasn't he? Call him here so I can see the face of the future king of Ashrose!"

Unable to contain his anger, Sebastian stood up and replied curtly:

"I am still the king of Ashrose! The whereabouts of my son are not your concern!"

Yoseph raised his hands in defense and remained silent for a moment. After pondering, he decided to speak again:

"Don't tell me you don't know where the crown prince is?"

Sebastian, now standing, touched the sword at his waist and said with a voice filled with hatred:

"How do you know about this? Did you plot something against my son?"

Before he could do or say anything more, Yoseph continued:

"Oh, who do you think I am? I may be known for being opportunistic, but I pride myself on never raising my hands against children! I merely perceived it based on the kingdom's movements and your imprudent and anxious behavior since I arrived here!"

Sebastian released the sword and collapsed back onto the sofa. With a voice laden with guilt, he said:

" We had a small argument, and he disappeared! We don't know if he ran away, was kidnapped, or if he's still alive..."

Surprising everyone, Yoseph offered some comforting words:

" Don't blame yourself. Fights between parents and children are common. And calm down, if he had been kidnapped, they would have already demanded a ransom or made threats to your kingdom. And no one would kill the young prince, for what value does a dead crown prince have? The likely scenario is that he ran away. I myself ran away from my parents when I was younger. This boy has never left the palace; he won't go very far, and, as I did, he will eventually return to the castle."

Sebastian listened silently and nodded at Yoseph. At that moment, the arrival of Princess Catherine was announced. Sebastian received the princess, excused himself, and left her with her father, but before leaving, he said:

" I prefer that this matter does not leave the kingdom unless it is absolutely necessary. And I will decide that in the future. Is that understood?"

The king of Greenland nodded at Sebastian. The princess, meanwhile, seemed lost and looked at her father for answers. Sebastian left the room, accompanied by Sir Fairtower, who calmly waited at the door to deliver the news:

" We checked everything again, and I asked them to review the items that were missing from the castle. We found no sign of the prince anywhere, but we did notice the absence of some items from the royal library."

"From the library?" asked Sebastian.

" Yes" replied Sir Fairtower, continuing: "From your personal collection in the library, a compass, a vial of Fenir urine, and some other herbs and potions are missing."

Sebastian stopped, surprised, in the middle of the corridor, looked at Sir Fairtower and said, with a tired voice:

"Don't tell me you think he went to the Black Forest?"

" Based on my investigation, yes " replied Sir Fairtower without hesitation.

Sebastian, who seemed to be losing his balance, leaned against the wall and said:

"I've been there, you know? And barely made it out alive! If it weren't for Sage and Sef! What are the chances..." he said with a sorrowful voice. " What are the chances of him having survived the first night inside that place?"

Sebastian clutched his chest as if an enormous pain were consuming him from the inside out. Sir Fairtower, trying to stay firm but with a voice of deep concern, tried to calm his king:

" I know that boy well! I know his abilities! The Fenir urine might have worked and kept some predators at bay! He's also very good at fencing and seems to have taken the sword! There's still a chance! Don't lose hope so soon!"

Hearing the words of his faithful friend and guard, a slight glimmer seemed to return to Sebastian's eyes. Forcing his body to stand firm again, he said:

"Form a team with the best hunters and trackers in the kingdom! I want them to enter that damn forest and bring my son back!"

Sir Fairtower bowed to the king and left to carry out the orders. Meanwhile, still inebriated and desperate at the possibility of having lost his son, Sebastian headed to the royal library inside the palace. He touched the enormous wooden table where Killian used to sit to research or read about different places. The pain in his chest was overwhelming. Suddenly, a sudden shortness of breath overtook him. It felt like he no longer knew how to breathe, his head was exploding with thoughts about Killian and Leonor. Desperate, he clung to the chair and tried to control his breathing. His heartbeat sounded like a drum in his ears. When all the sensations ceased, he felt empty, as if an enormous hole were in his chest. Then, he could only think: "Leo, please, if there's still any chance, protect our son!"