1 Chapter 1: The Queen’s harem

"They are here!"

The womenfolk in the palace whispered among themselves. After all, men were a rare commodity in this day and age. Now, a grand total of ten of them had arrived in the palace. According to reliable sources, some of them had travelled from afar, and had exotic features and special abilities. They were all here in the Land of Pradzia, for one sole purpose, to vie for the Queen's attention and love, and become the Queen's Consort.

Queen Mia was famous for her beauty and intelligence. She had ruled the Land of Pradzia since she was only eight years old. She was brought up by the wise ladies of the Court, since her parents had passed away. Now, Queen Mia was twenty two years of age, and lacking of suitors from the Kingdom. A strange disease had stricken the land a decade ago, and it seemed to have affected the male population a lot more. Men then became a rare species.

Ada, the lead Wise Lady of the Court then proposed that the Queen should marry, and her husband would be handpicked by the Queen herself, from a elite group of men, after they had been sufficiently observed and examined by either the Queen herself or the rest of the Court.

"Look, such a handsome fellow!" A small voice exclaimed as Peter Black sauntered his way along the garden path. He seemed to have heard it and straightened his back even more, lifting his head up in the air. He was the stereotypical tall dark and handsome fellow, and he was especially athletic and strong.

"Have you seen the Queen before?" Peter asked the shorter man standing next to him.

Gale Forrest turned to him and smiled. He was a head shorter than Peter, and his complexion was fairer. He blinked his enigmatic green hairs and a smiled. Though he was not particularly good looking but he did have charisma.

"Yes, in fact I have." Gale was the rare entity that survived the pandemic that wiped up most of the men in the kingdom. He had seen the Queen when she was only a child. Even then, it had left a deep impression in him.

Peter turned to Gale to take a closer look. He had not expected that anybody would have seen the Queen before. He was just attempting to start a conversation, hopefully befriend the person. In this game of survival, allies were always important.

"My name is Peter, you can call me Pete. What is yours? How did you meet the Queen? What does she look like? Are the rumours true?"

"You have many questions," Gale smiled. "My name is Gale." His smile was sincere and it took Peter off guard. Gale added, "What rumours are you referring to?"

Peter fell silent. Gale looked guileless, but he was still a competitor.

"I heard some rumours about the Queen's rare beauty?" Peter left the question hanging.

"I haven't seen her for more than ten years. When I last saw her, we were both children."

Peter only had more questions. "Does she know that you are here to win her hand in marriage?"

"No, she doesn't. I don't even think she would recognise me. We met ages ago." Peter heaved a sigh of relief.

Even though Gale looked innocuous, he had the advantage of having known the Queen. He might not be very handsome but perhaps he would know how to approach the Queen. It might be more prudent to befriend him, as such information might come in handy.

Peter then hastened his pace to catch up with another man walking in front of him. This one had handsome chiselled features and intelligent blue eyes. He carried a string instrument across his back.

"Are you a Musician?" Peter asked.

"Oh hello. I supposed I am. Peter right? I heard you from just now. Good ears I suppose. My name is Darren."

"Wait a minute. You are Darren the Great, Prince of Azur?"

Darren smiled, "I supposed that is just another name of mine?"

Peter felt instantly diminishing in size. It seemed that the competition was going to be tough. He was neither royalty nor wealthy, but he had made a name for himself. He was reasonably good looking and an excellent swordsman. Though he had never seen the Queen before, he had long admired her. She had been a beacon of light and strength for the Land of Pradzia, who had emerged as a strong kingdom. Legend had it that she had special abilities beyond human understanding, and amazing intellect. She was able to learn foreign tongues quickly and extraordinary memory.

Darren patted Peter on his back. "I have heard of you before, the Black Knight right?"

Peter did not respond. He was quietly delighted. He had indeed made a reputation for himself.