The Exiled

"I heard from Alea what happened. You slew a dragon! A dragon! With your feat, you have completely surpassed your father." Freid shook Elyse's hand as the former whispered his greeting. It was a good thing that the throne room was filled to the brim with guests for it would be suspicious for a knight to be seen talking with the prince of Crusdea like an old comrade.

Elyse's smile widened at the thought. His father would definitely be proud of him. It had been a week since he woke up. It was fortunate that Freid was able to cover up for the prince's absence by guarding Elyse's empty room everyday for more than 1 month. Elyse's bestfriend even pretended to be him at one point. However, Elyse found it odd that the banquet celebrating the dragon's death was only held when he woke up. He found the coincidence a bit too convenient.

The prince's musings, however, were interrupted when King Deanor raised his glass for a toast. "Tonight, we celebrate the defeat of the dragon that terrorized Burne and Fehl. Tonight, we feast for Threanas' continued prosperity," the king's declaration was met with thunderous applause from the nobles. Asche, the dragon prince, was not pleased though. Elyse saw him and his dragonoids with exasperated looks on their faces. It was understandable since it was one of their kin that was slain.

The banquet was uneventful. Elyse, as always, tried to distance himself from most of the guests, especially Princess Auria. For the first time ever since he assumed the identity of the prince of Crusdea, Elyse felt exhausted. He longed to go back to his hut. More importantly, he longed to be with Alea. Maybe he should stop being Elyse?

"Would you care to join me for a stroll?" asked Auria, to Elyse's surprise.

"I-I thought…" Elyse berated himself. He was stuttering again due to nervousness.

"Just take a walk with me at the palace garden…just like the last time." Auria's voice sounded somber. Elyse can only nod in return. He thought that after what happened at the garden, Auria hated him.

"I-I'm sorry...fo-for what happened last time." Auria cursed herself. She should be apologizing properly yet here she is, stuttering like a child. Lyrus' traits were definitely rubbing off her. The two sat on one of the many wooden benches at the garden. It was a cold quiet night, cold enough to have a need for warm clothes, yet warm enough for one to enjoy the snow that blanketed what used to be hedges of roses and daisies.

Elyse stared at Auria. His heart beat fast. He still has feelings for Auria. But what about Alea? "It's no-nothing to-to worry about princess. You're right. I shouldn't impose myself upon you." Elyse held back his tears. He doesn't understand how he can feel sad about Auria turning him down.

Their talk, however, was interrupted when three hooded men appeared infront of them. Their long robes made the group appear ominous. Elyse had a hunch that the three were uninvited guests and he did not like his hunch one bit.

"Princess Auria?" One of the men wearing hooded robes asked. Elyse gripped the hilt of his sword. He had a very bad feeling about the three men standing before them.

"Yes, I'm Princess Auria. What is it that you want?" Auria cursed under her breath. She doesn't have her blade with her. Had she been disguised as Alea she wouldn't have to worry about the three. She looked to her right to see Prince Elyse, preparing to unsheathe his sword.

"What we want…is revenge. Tonight, you get your punishment, tomorrow, your father will have his. The Exiled shall not be forgotten." The man speaking earlier undid his robe to show his rune-covered body and the all too familiar brand on his forehead. The other two also bore the same rune on their foreheads and the same runes on their bodies. Two of the men then pulled out daggers and started to circle Elyse and Auria.

"Stay close to me princess. When I give the signal, run. Look for a knight named Freid, he should be at the banquet right now. Ask him for help, he's my friend." Elyse raised his sword. He had the advantage of reach. He just needs to keep the two men occupied to allow Princess Auria to escape.

Auria had other plans though. The third man had started chanting. The runes on his body had started to glow. Recalling the curse put unto Grenwald, Auria prepared herself to fight the rune-covered man. The curse is deadly. Given that Elyse was with her and armed, the curse would most likely be inflicted on the prince. It would be easier to kill Auria when her protector is dead.

The two members of the Exiled charged towards Elyse and Auria. Elyse immediately pushed the princess out of the way. His guess was right. One of the men would go for Auria while the other would go for him. Elyse rushed towards Auria's attacker, struck the man across the torso with his blade and kicked the wound, making the man fall back and writhe in pain. However, doing so exposed the prince's back and in a split second, he felt pain as the other man stabbed him.

Auria, on the other hand, ran towards the chanting man. Before her opponent could even react, the princess punched the latter squarely on the chest, knocking the wind out of him. His spell interrupted; the man tried to pull a dagger. With not a moment to hesitate, Auria did the first thing that came into her mind, she kicked her foe's groin, bringing the man on to his knees. The princess then knocked him out with a kick at the side of his head.

Elyse cursed. Of all the times he decided not to wear his armor, it just had to be when members of the Exiled attempt to assassinate Auria. The prince of Crusdea turned around just in time to dodge another stab from his attacker. Elyse struggled to keep his stance as the pain on his back magnified and his vision turned blurry. He must have been stabbed pretty deep by his assailant. The man, on the other hand, had dropped his dagger and started chanting.

"And just what do you think are you doing?" asked Freid to the man. Elyse didn't bother asking how his bestfriend found him and Auria, but the image of the knight was a welcome sight.

"You-you…you should—" but the man wasn't able to finish his sentence. Freid suddenly pulled out his blade and in the blink of an eye, slashed the man across the throat. Elyse can't help but shudder at the sight of his bestfriend holding a sword and wearing a grim expression. At that moment, Elyse was reminded that while Freid is a happy-go-lucky person, the man is still one of the strongest knights in the capital.

"Are the two of you okay? Goodness…that's a nasty wound you got there Ly—Prince Elyse." Freid almost called Elyse by his true name. The blunder immediately remove the dizziness Elyse was feeling.

"Princess Auria please accompany Prince Elyse to the infirmary. I will handle things here." The seriousness in Freid's expression had returned. Auria nodded in reply and helped Elyse stand.

"Never thought The Exiled would attempt an assassination during a banquet." Elyse pondered.

"You knew them?" Auria asked.

"We-well…I-I've heard of them.." Elyse pretended that his wound was making it difficult for him to speak. He didn't know what to say in case Auria started to prod him for more information.

"I see." Auria bowed her head they reached the door of the infirmary. She honestly didn't know what to feel after what happened. She knew that her family, the house of Glacia had committed a lot of atrocities in the past. But to think that such crimes would continue to haunt even her, she who hasn't done anything at all. The feeling of sadness, anxiety, and guilt only made Auria's decision to live her life as Alea seemed more attractive.

Elyse, seeing the troubled face of Auria, held her hand. "Everything will be fine, trust me." Auria felt tears well up in her eyes as she stared at the pained expression of Elyse. She wanted to tell him. She wanted to tell him everything but the thought of Elyse as one of the princes vying for her hand prevented her from doing so. In the end, all Auria can do was to muster a smile. Elyse, on the other hand, felt relieved to see the princess smile and with his vision starting to get blurry once more, bade the princess goodbye and entered the infirmary.

"What happened?" Thenan asked Freid. He can't believe that members of The Exiled managed to sneak into the castle.

"You tell me. I thought we already sorted out everything." Freid said as he continued to tie the man Auria knocked out.

"Yes, we already sorted out everything. I guess…I guess some of them are simply zealots. Foolish men who can't forget about decades' worth of punishment." Thenan sighed. The appearance of rogue members of The Exiled was never in the plan.

"Foolish, huh. I won't call foolish those who can't forget the pain their families have been put through under the Glacias' rule," said Freid as he watched the sky darkening and snow starting to fall once more.