Chapter 46: Kingdom of the Sand

It was just been half an hour and everyone already felt exhausted. The sun was demanding attention, giving too much heat to them. If an ordinary man would march on these hills, they would be cooked sooner.

Anytime right now, it would be night time, but it's still hot in the desert.

"I-It's… too hot in here..." One of the knights with blonde short hair, said as their armor made the heat doubled up. They already took a rest before setting off in the hot field, but it wasn't enough. "Do you think… we should stop… your majesty?"

Danico ignored the request, and just continued forward. This made him leaving a bad impression on the knight, as he looked at him with disgusted eyes. Not just him, some of the knights that are following him didn't like his attitude. But the heat kept them from thinking too much about it.

Pete could be able to do something about it, but not all the time the weather spirits were present, and not everything he had to request would be granted.

And speaking of him, compared to the others, he was more energetic despite the heat. The mature sapling on top of him started to wilt in the middle of the desert, but he never seemed to care.

He looked behind him and he was greeted by the prince's face that shouted tiredness. No matter how hard he tried to mask out his exhaustion, it was still visible. But Pete would never mention that if he didn't want to get scolded.

"What's the matter?"

The prince saw through his actions, as he nearly jumped on his horse. His eyes of emerald sparkled under the sun like gems, no threat but that doesn't mean the tendrin can escape from the question.

"N-NOTHING… your majesty." He stuttered and shouted his answer accidentally, but in a second, he calmed down. Then, he decided to turn his head around forward to where they were heading, never gonna disturb him anymore.

But he didn't learn his lesson and tried to peek at the majesty behind him. As he expected, his sweats kept pouring from his head towards his neck, and yet, his expression is still the same.

He didn't think anything but concern to him. Even if he was gonna get scolded, at least he reminded him about his condition.

"I-If you want to rest, we can stop for now…" He said in a low voice, fear was still flowing in his throat. A side of him didn't want to say it, but he already spitted. And it was loud enough for the prince to hear it from behind.

"No, this is fine." He answered with the same face, no sign of anger. Then, he pointed the visible tall wall from a far distance, standing among the golden hills. "And besides, Erimia is near in sight. I prefer that we should rest once we're inside."

After receiving such a calm response, Pete couldn't help but sigh in relief and grateful that he wasn't mad about him. Indeed, sometimes he got treated by hurting words but that's just because of his idiocy, and he was to be blamed for that.

"Pete."

He called for his name once again. But this time, he didn't jump and just turned his head around. The prince didn't bother to look at him, as he just stared forward.

"Say…" He started to speak. His voice was deeper than before like he was about to say something that would make his subordinate think hard. "…which one should you follow? Me or the king?"

The tendrin didn't answer directly and just continued to look at him. He gulped, as he was unsure of what it was gonna be. Was the prince testing his loyalty to him?

Everyone knows that they must follow the king, the highest one there is. But to him, the prince was more important than anyone in the castle. He was the one who accepted him and treated him well. His loyalty will only be the one he would give.

"Of course, I'll follow you, Prince Danico!" He said in a higher voice, but it wasn't loud enough for the other knights to hear it. "You're the best one there is! And you're fit to the throne!"

After hearing what he said, he put up a smirk on his face, like he was expecting him to say that. He had been loyal to him ever since he was a kid, and right now was no exception.

"Yes, indeed, you will follow me." His smile never reached his ears, but it was enough to show that he liked the way he talked to him. Indeed, people might be praising him, but there was none that bowed to respect him, except his tendrin companion.

But then, his smile turned into a frown, as his eyebrows furrowed. Pete noticed this and he couldn't help but be concerned. He remembered his father scolding him every time, and he will always answer like he was the boss.

"My father never liked me, so I was sure despite me being the crown prince, he wouldn't give me the throne." He explained, his anxiety turned into frustration over the fact that he was thinking about it. "He might have done something when I am away, and I have a bad feeling about it."

His father was a stubborn one and would do everything for power to keep himself the king. If he was an immortal, then he would be the ruler of Deravon forever. And based on him chasing the cursed human, he might have some plans in his sleeve.

"Then, you should make me your watchdog at the castle, your majesty! I'll report everything that I see suspicious while you were gone!" Pete tried to make him feel better. To him, it was unusual to see him getting uneasy like this. He was full of confidence when it comes to planning, so he wouldn't

"No need. I'm gonna be needing you here beside me if everything will go as I expected it to be." He answered immediately. He was now looking at him in the eye, but he never turned his head. "You're the only one I can count on right now. You're my only subordinate."

Hearing this from his mouth made the tendrin enlarged his hollow eyes. It was glowing more than ever. It was the first time he had ever heard it. It was the first time that someone would rely on him. And he couldn't help but smile widely.

"Understood!"

He yelled with joy, as they continued traveling towards the wall in front. It was only meters away, and they could make it in less than half an hour. All their torturous travel had come to an end. And everyone had different reactions to it.

The prince just gave a smile, Pete was mesmerizing the tall wall, the knights just sighed in relief because of the heat, but the other two on the back had the suspicious reactions. The blonde knight was cursing with his eyes, while the one wearing helmet still has no reaction, not even tired.

"We're here," Danico muttered. Then, they started entering through the walls.

Like Deravon, they had a guardhouse to check those who were entering the kingdom, but it was never professional and secured. They presented themselves as the knights of their kingdom, and that the prince was with them. Everything didn't fit inside the wall, thus the others were just living outside, near the gates.

The security check didn't last long, and they finally let them enter. They were greeted by the narrow dusty streets of the kingdom. It was filled with stalls of vendors left to right, and beggars wearing a dirty lousy shirt and loose pants, raising their hand to request for pennies. But the other people, who were wearing more presentable clothes– long shirts or gowns, along with draped cloaks and a turban on top of their heads.

The houses were made of sun-dried mud bricks as walls, which most of them were covered by more mud to give a nice color like that of the golden sand. And some of them weren't just plain walls, but with carved shapes and patterns all over them.

Others have wooden-framed overhang rooms for extensions. Those were reaching two floors, even more, leaving the top open for blankets and carpets to dry up. Vegetation was still here, as palm and coconut trees can be seen scattered all around the kingdom.

They continued to walk further, noticing that the street they were standing on slowly turning into cement bricks with the same color as before. Soon, they made it to the square, where they faced the circular fountain of the kingdom.

But that wasn't the attraction in the place. The largest building among all of them was in front of them. It wasn't as big as the Deravon castle, but the beauty it represented is enough to tell that it is the home of the royalty.

Just like the other houses, it was made of mud bricks, but one couldn't be able to see it since it was mostly glazed by pine green mud. The domes that represented as the roofs of the palace have the same color as the glaze, ending up with a tall sharp tip on the top.

Most of the windows were arched-shaped and in geometrical patterns, as well as the walls that were symmetrical to the other side. The whole castle was surrounded by vegetation of green grass, and tall palm trees, followed by an artificial rectangular river bank that filled with stagnant water.

They were being invited to go inside the castle by the one and only ruler of Erimia, and they didn't have any reason to decline. Once they were inside, they were being brought to the throne room.

Soon, they made it towards the wooden gate with an arched gateway, following the palette of the castle. They were greeted by a smaller bank that can be seen in the middle below the roofless space of the palace. It was surrounding a garden of grass and sand, and trees that were perfect for strolling.

As they finally were walking at the hallways, they were greeted by the floor of ceramic tiles, forming into shapes of different colors, symmetrical with each other. There was no window, as the small garden can be seen through the pillars forming into arches at the top. It contained colorful flatten patterns of abstract shapes.

They might not be the richest kingdom among all, but their skills in crafting and architecture were not to be underestimated, not to mention they're living in the middle of the desert.

Soon, they finally made it to the tallest door in the entire palace, with fern color and the figure of a woman standing, holding a bow and sword on both hands with a quiver on her back, painted in shiny emerald. It was the crest of the Erimia Kingdom.

They opened the door and what greeted them was a wide spacious room. The ceramic floor was formed into a mosaic of abstract patterns, and the tall pillars that reached the ceiling arched with each other, which elevated at the end through a short wide staircase. There was a dome on the top decorated with geometric shapes of the same palette as the whole palace.

Green banners with silver trims were hanging, covering the brick walls of the room. In there lied the kingdom crest as well. In the middle was a throne of shining silver like that of the moon, filled with carved patterns from the desk to the back.

And sitting on the chair was the ruler of Erimia that everyone had been giving respect. She was supposed to be in her 30s, very much look like a mother, but her beauty was still intact. Her long black hair tied to the back by sparkling accessories, curled at its every part.

She was wearing a dress made of silk fabric. It had a dominance of purple, similar to her eyes. The silver trims were thick and forming into shapes, especially in the middle that was forming a diagonal square. The sleeves might be long, but one can still see her almond skin. The rest of it was touching the floor.

Her neck and arms were filled with jewelry that contained rubies and emeralds wrapped in hard silver threads. Her nails were polished with rose color, as large green earrings hanged in her ears.

One of her legs was put on top of the other, giving her the sense of both power and her femininity. The red-colored vertical lines painted from her cheeks towards the sides of her chin gave her the wild vibe like a lioness. Her face was as cold as ice, as her eyes were stabbing every soul she can see.

"Your highness."

All of the knights kneeled down, including the foreigners, and bowed at her. She was the Queen of the Erimia Kingdom, Queen Faliha Erimia.