The Safehouse
His time in the inn had proved to be very valuable. Howard was able to extract a lot of crucial information regarding how the cities and towns worked, what life was like in the area he lived and traveled compared to the north, and so on.
Once Howard's legs are well rested, his stomach is stuffed full of nutritious food freshly prepared by the folks in the inn, and his brain satisfied with the information he got out of Frisk, the two venture outward into the city again, to continue the operation meant to secure Howard his safety, and a new identity.
They pass through each district safe and sound, blending in with the crowd and throwing off any potential pursuers. Once they were sure the two were safe, Frisk escorted Howard straight to the safehouse.
On the outside, the building looked like an ordinary house in the district. It was a 3 story building made entirely out of stone bricks stuck together by a strange hard substance that Howard did not recognize, and a wooden frame to keep it from falling over. The windows, unlike the ones in the other districts, were made out of paper and blocked anyone from looking inward.
Frisk and Grout walk up to the front door and give it a firm knock. The small peeping hole slides open, and reveals a pair of eyes looking back at them. Their eyes, after tuning out the ambiance of the city, hear a whisper come from the other side.
"State your reason for visiting."
"We are here to see Mr. Weston," Frisk replied. The man on the other side shuts the peephole and unlocks the door to let the two men in. Howard assumes that was the code they settled on to confirm who they were, something they put there for extra safety.
The two were greeted by a very warm and humble, but short hallway with a normal stone wall, no paint, and a wooden plank floor that didn't creak at all. Inside with them was a short man wearing commoner clothes; a hemp tunic with short sleeves, some long pants, and a pair of leather shoes.
Once he closes the door, he takes Frisk over to a different room while instructing Kant to stay where he is. Being the patient man that he is, Howard complied with their request. 15 minutes later, the two men can be seen walking out of the room, with Frisk holding a large satchel bag and a rolled piece of paper.
With the satchel bag and paper in his hand, Frisk walks up to Kant to say his goodbyes to him. He had now completed his mission and was free to go as he pleased.
"It was an honor working with you, your highness. I thank you for being extremely cooperative and friendly with me throughout this entire operation."
"Likewise, Mr. Frisk. I have learned a lot about Lukeword from you. I hope we meet again." Frisk nods, heads to the door, and leaves the safehouse. The man waits outside till Frisk disappears into the crowd, before heading back inside the safehouse and locking the front door.
Now that the two are alone, the man turns to Kant and bows down to introduce himself.
"Good Afternoon, your highness. I am Knight Adam. I will be your guardian for the week." The man stands back up, and meets Kant in the eyes.
"Would you like a tour of the safehouse? Although it is a bit small, I think you will like what you find here."
"Lead the way, Knight Adams," Howard replied. With Kant's permission acquired, the knight led the prince through the building, showing him every room, from the basement, all the way up to the top floor.
Through Knight Adam, Howard learned that this building had gone through a lot of renovations and repairs, to fix and clean everything up to be tolerable to the prince.
They had fitted many luxury amenities like a bathroom in the basement and a private bedroom with a nice view, they refurbished the place with new furniture for Kant to use, and they even built a secret passageway for him to escape the safehouse if he is found out.
Although the place was not as lavish as the royal palace or his home in the old world, he found the warm and cozy atmosphere very comforting, and relaxing. The man felt grateful that Kant's father put in some effort to make him comfortable. Once the tour was over, they headed back downstairs to the hallway entrance to conclude it.
"What do you think of the safehouse, your highness? Is it up to your standards?" the knight asks the prince. A question his parents wanted to ask him themselves, but was unable to due to the circumstances.
"Hm… It is indeed nice. However, I do have one question in my mind I would like to clear," Howard replied.
"Go on, your highness.' Howard points to the walls of the rooms, asking if they were soundproofed or not.
"If I were to scream inside this room, would anyone on the outside hear me?" he added. The knight shook his head, stating that…
"Your highness, I can guarantee you that this place was fitted with the materials to restrict sound from going outside. Nobody will be able to hear you, even if you scream," he explains
"Hm… Good. Good. So what now? How long will I have to wait here?" he throws in another question. They had not specified exactly how long he would stay here. All he was told was to wait there till "The king chooses someone to lead the territory of Lukeword,". Not really a specific number.
"That depends on how long the king wants to take," the knight answers. Feeling unsatisfied with the vague answer he threw out, Howard asked a different question.
"Can you at least give me an estimate?" The knight looks up, places his hand on his chin, and takes his time to think it through and give him a satisfactory answer.
"Hm… Maybe about a month?" he replies, his voice tingling with uncertainty.
"A month? That is an awful lot of time. Who is going to cook for me till I leave this city?"
"That would be me, your highness. I will not only be your guardian but also your servant for a while. Once my mission is complete, I will be replaced by another knight who will take care of you."
"Alright then… One last question. When will I get my… identity, and how should I act?" he asked. He wondered if he was being provided with a strict set of rules to follow, or if they would allow for some liberties to be taken.
"There is an envelope inside the drawer beside your bed. It should tell you everything you need to know," Adam explained.
"As for the day you debut as… Howard? Was that the name you chose?" Howard nods.
"Well anyways, it will be when you get to pick your own knight as a bodyguard. This is the knight who will replace me," he answers.
"I get to pick my own knight?" Howard asks again, making sure he hears him correctly.
"Yes, you will. However, they will not know you as Prince Kant Maybale. They will simply know you as Howard," he states.
"Why is that? Won't they be more loyal to me if they knew I was the prince?"
"Maybe so, but this is a decision made by the king himself. You have to choose but to accept it. Don't worry, he will be the one paying for his or her salary. Indirectly, of course," Adam answers.
"Till then, I recommend practicing the character you want to put up. You will have all the time to do so," he adds, suggesting the prince an activity he can do to pass the time.
Howard was a little confused by this strange decision. Now why would Daniel not want Kant's bodyguard to know it was his son? It would have definitely motivated them a lot more to keep him alive. Something felt… fishy.
"What are you thinking about, your highness?" Adam asks. Howard immediately snaps out of his train of thought and lies straight to his face.
"I was just taking in what you told me. Anyways, I will head upstairs to my room," Howard replied. Before he walked up the stairs, he leaned back to tell the knight not to prepare lunch. He told him that he had already eaten.
"Mr. Frisk has already informed me about that."
"Oh, alright then."
Howard heads up the stairs, straight into his room. There, he walks to the drawer and searches it for the envelope. Howard found it chilling on one of the corners of the drawer walls. He opens it up, and starts reading through the guidelines written by Kant Maybale's own father.
"Huh… There are not a lot in here. Thank god…" he mutters.