Chapter 14 - the banquet(1)

"Well, for now, just try to relax," Kostas said, thinking over the god's words. "Start meditating and focus on sensing the energies within you. Don't pay too much attention to what Lord Chaos said, you're not ready to understand it yet. Once you feel the energies within you blending, you'll probably understand what he meant."

John let out a sigh of frustration. "This day just keeps getting more and more frustrating," he exclaimed. "My mind is such a mess right now."

"Take deep breaths, John," Kostas advised. "Focus on relaxing your body and mind."

As John closed his eyes and began to meditate, he saw light particles of three different colors; a bright white light, a dark purple light, and a bright blue light. The blue and white lights were slowly moving closer, while the purple ones were all over the place.

"John," Kostas' voice called out, and John realized he had been meditating for hours. "You've been out for five hours or so."

"Five hours? I barely felt anything," John said, surprised.

"What did you expect? This is energy that even gods find difficult to control. You can't expect to master it instantly," Pallas chimed in.

"Be grateful that you could feel it at all on your first try. I couldn't even sense chaos energy until my 20th attempt," Kostas added, with a hint of bitterness in his voice.

As John tried to pull himself together, he heard a knock on the door. "Your Highness, are you okay? Can I come in?" Alfred, his butler, called out in concern.

"Oh, yeah, come in, Alfred," John said, trying to compose himself.

"I've been knocking on your door for the past five minutes, Your Highness. Why didn't you open the door?" Alfred asked as he entered the room.

"I was just asleep, the trial had been far more taxing on me than I realized, and I fell asleep soon after I lay in bed," John said his voice heavy with exhaustion.

"I see. Well, your highness, in that case, we must move with haste. We have little time to get you ready for the banquet. It starts in an hour, and you haven't even taken a shower yet. My goodness, look at how sweaty you are right now. I will ask merry to prepare your clothes for the banquet, so you should go take a quick bath and freshen yourself so that we may leave with haste," Alfred replied, his tone rushed and urgent.

"Alright, I understand. I will take a shower quickly. Ask merry to prepare something simple and elegant. I believe the elves prefer simpler styles than our imperial fashion," John said as he walked towards his bathroom.

"I understand, your highness. Now please hurry. Wasting any more time would lead us to arrive after the other princes, which the other nobles would view as an act of laziness on your part," Alfred urged, his voice insistent.

"Fine, fine, I understand. I'll hurry," John said as he closed the door to his bathroom behind him.

Ten minutes later, John emerged from the bathroom, freshly bathed and groomed. merry dressed him in a long blue suit, with a pink cravat tie, and a white shirt that complemented each other perfectly. He walked out of the room, with Alfred following closely behind him.

"Alfred, we have about 45 minutes before the official start of the banquet. Arriving too early would be just as unwelcome as arriving late. I will go and meet with his highness, the high king, before the start of the banquet as I have a few things to discuss with him," John said as he looked at himself in the mirror and tidied himself up.

"I understand, your highness," the butler said, nodding in understanding. "But before I go, may I ask who will be escorting you to the banquet? Will it be Sir Joseph?"

John shook his head. "I don't think that will be necessary, I will be going to the banquet with my grandfather."

Alfred nodded, "I see, well, in that case, I shall make sure everything is for your departure." He turned to leave, but before he could, John spoke again.

"Alfred, there's one more thing. I will be having a private audience with my grandfather before we leave for the banquet. Could you please inform the palace staff?"

"Of course, your highness," the butler replied, bowing before leaving the room.

John took a deep breath and made his way to his grandfather's chambers.

Knock knock knock

"Your majesty, his highness the third prince has come to visit you, do I let him in?" said a maid, as she knocked on the door of the high king's room.

"The youngest? Let him in, I'll see what he wants to talk about," said Gallen, as he granted John entrance into his chambers.

"Good evening, Grandfather," John said, as he entered the room and took a seat at the table where the high king was sitting.

"I see that you have dressed fancifully for the banquet today," the high king said, noting John's attire.

"Well, not doing that would seem unsightly in front of the elves, wouldn't it? I mean, first impressions do matter," John replied, making himself comfortable.

"Fair enough," the high king said, taking a sip of his tea. "So, what brings you here?"

"may I ask, what are your plans for me after we leave here?" John inquired, his expression growing serious.

"Well, for starters, once we arrive at my estate, I will hire the best tutors to teach you everything you'll need to know before you turn 15 and enter the academy. Then, for the next two years, I will send you to work as a mercenary under an assumed name, to gain experience in the outside world. And in your last year before enrollment, you'll spend time with me, learning how to manage the estate, and by extension, how politics works." The High King explained, laying out his plan for the young prince.

"But, what if others find out that I'm acting as a mercenary?" John asked, with a note of concern in his voice.

"We will have a cover story prepared, and we will make sure that only those who need to know are aware of your true identity. Trust me, I have been in the game of politics for a long time, I know how to keep things under wraps," the high king assured the prince with a reassuring smile. "But most importantly, you will need to learn how to fight and defend yourself, so you can protect yourself and the empire when the time comes, for now, let me give you a gift for successfully forming a contract. So tell me, is there anything you desire?" Gallen said, offering his grandson a reward.

"Hmmm, I want land," John replied after giving it some thought.

"Land? Interesting choice. Do you have a specific piece in mind?" Gallen questioned.

"Yes, I do. It's a piece of land outside your territory, by the Horizon's Horn," John explained.

"The Horn? That's a dangerous place, why do you want land there?" Gallen inquired, concerned for his grandson's safety.

"Because I can use the area as a training ground, with its dense concentration of mana," John said, his eyes shining with determination.

"If it's only a training ground you want, I'm sure there are safer places. Why there in particular?" Gallen asked, still uncertain.

"Well, the beasts there can be used for training as well, can't they?" John reasoned.

"I see, well, okay I will give you that land, but I won't let you go there until you are strong enough to defeat your knight. Because if you can't do that, you'll never stand a chance in the forests below the Horn," Gallen agreed, giving in to his grandson's request.

"Thank you for the gift, Grandfather," John said with a broad smile on his face.

"Don't thank me yet. Drink some tea, and then we'll leave for the banquet," Gallen said, pouring himself and John a cup of tea.

"Yes, sir," John replied, taking the cup from his grandfather's hands.