Rest & Recuperation

Aurora was calm as the sun passed over the Captal City. The market place was busy as usual, many individuals were out and about minding their own business. The King was still residing at the Keep, for now he seemed to want nothing to do with his duties.

Since the King's return, many small revelries were being held occasionally. A two year long war was a demanding ordeal, and left the King, the lords and even the soldiers craving some much needed rest.

The celebrations were naturally ordered under the Royal House of Lambros, and held in the Hall of the Keep. The King would make his appearances, so would the Queen, but the young prince was nowhere to be found. Many held their own speculations about the matter.

However, Princess Valeria often made her appearances. She was ordered to do so by the King, to reassure the timid mindset of the nobles towards the resolution of the war with Leon. Perhaps, these occasional revelries were her only opportunity to enjoy herself, one couldn't tell for sure.

Against everyone's expectations, she managed to not only grow accustomed to her circumstances, but slowly began inculcating herself amongst the nobles.

Valeria would often be present at the feast adding to conversations as if it were natural to her, even though she was talking to some of the most powerful men and women of the Kingdom. Her confidence and demeanour, exuded an essence of royalty that the nobles had come to miss in Prince Theodan Lambros. This made them appreciate Valeria's presence even more. Regardless of who became King, the idea of her possibly becoming a future Queen of Leventis had begun to take root.

Damien was naturally kept busy as the famous cook of the Keep, but he didn't shy away from this responsibility, since he too required the extra coin to afford Kai's tuitions.

Today was another busy day for the Keep's staff, and Kai who had no classes to attend, was promptly helping his father with the kitchen duties. He stood next to his father and chopped down on some radishes, while his father brewed a stew for today's main course. There were many undercooks who were curating the various meats, some of which were hunted by the King himself.

Damien wasn't one to speak during his duties. But he had always been overly curious towards his son's training, so he couldn't help but spout, "How's your training with Sir Illinor been son?"

Recently, Damien had noticed Kai's perpetually exhausted and beaten down state. He didn't know much about the training, but he knew that it was extremely challenging for his son. And yet, Kai was persevering, Damien felt proud, more than he had ever before.

"It's going rather well father, at first I didn't have a good impression of Sir Illinor, but it seems like things are improving between us now, well as long as I'm… giving it my all" Kai said the last part with a hint of sarcasm, but Damien ignored it. Rather, he smiled and looked at his son with immense affection.

"I'm sure you are Kai, but you look worn out, are you sure you don't want to rest today, it's necessary to rest and recuperate after such strenuous training. Plus, your state lately, it's been bothering your mother and I."

Kai stopped cutting the vegetables, he turned to his father. "Father, I've decided to try my luck with refining, I know it's expensive, and highly unlikely that I'd succeed. But, I'm going to try nonetheless… Sir Illinor promised to support me if I can meet his expectations."

"However, I-I will still need a refining guide, they're not easy to come by, and I know you and mother are already stretched thin on your budget. So I'd like to help out more officially, at the Keep, I'd like to earn a wage, even if it's not much, so I can purchase one myself, eventually."

Kai had a weak smile, as he explained his current predicament to his father. However, Damien was completely silent in response. It was difficult to ascertain what was going through his mind. He soon turned to one of the undercooks and summoned him.

Damien ordered the undercook to relieve Kai of his duties, and soon after said to his son, "Kai, there is no need for you to continue assisting me, I'd like for you to leave this busy and overcrowded kitchen, and wait for me till my shift is over."

Kai was surprised by the change in situation. But he was forced to leave, it was the cook's orders. Before Kai exited, he noticed his father call over one of the servers as well. Damien handed him a written note and whispered something to him, the server immediately disappeared through the exit, leaving Kai even more confused.

There wasn't much to do for a young boy in the famous Keep of the Kingdom. Usually, Kai would find Theodan and they would bide their time together. It was a fresh change of pace for the both of them.

Kai himself didn't have many friends. For one, he never had enough chances to interact with the village boys and girls, and conversely neither did he have enough time to interact with youngsters of the city, most of his time was spent in this very luxurious, but equally monotonous Keep.

That was how he first came in contact with a young Theodan, who similarly was bound to the grounds of the Keep. Due to his unusual physique, and royal status, he was prohibited from making public appearances. But as of recently, Theodan was nowhere to be found, even in the grounds of the Keep.

Kai missed his friend, but the letter reassured him they would meet soon, and he dearly looked forward to it. But till then, he was a lost soul just frolicking about the Keep. Eventually he found himself at the corner bench, in the square courtyard. Perhaps, he himself didn't realise how tired he'd been lately, once he sat down he felt glued to the comfort of the stone bench. He soon began to fall asleep.

"You! How dare you sleep in the King's Keep?" A stern, but young and feminine voice exuded out towards the half asleep Kai. Her tone was harsh, but her voice was soothing, so it didn't have much effect on the tired boy.

"This is ridiculous" the young girl frustratingly said. She looked around until she found a suitable twig. She returned to the sleeping boy, and swung down on the helpless Kai.

Whoosh! Kai immediately stood himself up in a way that naturally avoided the trajectory of the twig. He was still in a sleepy state, but his reflexes seemed to be sharp enough to avoid the strike even in his sleep.

"Ugh, is it time to train already?" Kai rubbed his eyes and yawned simultaneously.

The girl was taken aback by the boy's sudden movement. "You! Who are you?"

Kai finally fell out of his slumber and stared at the girl who'd swung a stick at him. But soon a sense of shock entered his eyes, that pushed him wide awake.

"Yo-You're Princess Valeria f-from Leon!" Kai remarked with some hesitation. He had always been slightly awkward around girls, but not only was the girl in front of him immensely pretty, but she was also a princess.

Valeria had a proud look on her face, "Yes, the very same, now tell me, who are you and how dare you sleep here?" She stared at Kai, without a blink.

Kai was embarrassed, and unfortunately also nervous, this situation had really come out of nowhere. "I-I, well, I'm the son of the cook, Damien Grier. I-I didn't mean to sleep here, its just… I was tired. I apologise princess, Ill be more careful." He sighed as he finished his sentence. He really didn't have the energy to even be nervous properly.

"Hahahahahahaha, I'm just messing with you. If you know me, then you know I'm not here by my own volition, so I couldn't care less about who loiters, or sleeps around here… Honestly, I'm tired of interacting with those bratty noble youngsters, they're so pompous, I hate it."

"And you! You seemed to be peacefully sleeping among all this suffering of mine, so how could I let it continue." Valeria spoke with a sardonic smile. "So, do you have a name, or should I just call you the sleeping boy?"

Kai was speechless. "I'm… Kai."

"Well Kai, it was nice to meet you. Unfortunately, I'll have to leave now, especially before that dull chamber maid finds me and banishes me to my confines. I hope I don't find you falling asleep again… hahaha Im just jesting, I don't care what you do. Goodbye." Valeria spoke casually as she walked away from Kai, who was still befuddled by their interaction.

'She sure is a handful' Kai remarked to himself as he saw Valeria's silhouette disappear into the distance.

A few hours passed, Kai struggled to stay awake, but his boredom got the better of him, and he promptly fell asleep again. He really wasn't used to pushing his body to such extents.

Eventually, Damien approached the bench and patted Kai awake, he had a smile on his face. "I'm glad you heeded my words, and took some much needed rest, even if it was in this odd place."

Kai awoke immediately, but when he saw his father face, he relaxed. The princess had previously given him quite the scare.

The father and son exited the Keep, through the wicket gate, and made their way to the market place.

"Father, now may I ask why you ordered me out of the kitchen, when I requested to work instead?" Kai looked at his father, he had been waiting for an explanation for hours.

Damien smiled again, "Son, you don't understand it yet, but your decision to attempt refining, it both pleases me and scares me. I personally understand the difficulty associated with becoming a body refiner. I know, because I failed at it, I was given the opportunity, but I couldn't do it. And, while I'm immensely happy that you've decided to attempt it, it's no laughing matter. You'll need every bit of help and rest you can get."

"From today onwards, I do not want you helping out at the Keep or the house, you will solely focus your entirety on refining. If you are to fail, then we can return to how things were, but if you are to succeed, then it would change everything Kai." Damien spoke with seriousness, he had made up his mind, and there was nothing his son could do to change it.

"But father…"

"I don't want to hear it boy." Damien spoke sternly, and walked ahead, "Now, follow me, there is something I would like for you to see."