Spirit Prince (7)

Edited by: Kuro and Lille

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Not much happened on their journey to the capital, Juline, so they arrived there with no troubles. Juline was in the northern part of the country where the weather was nice all year round.

The Knights of Frayx escorted the prisoners to the castle and directed Jasper's and Liam's men to their temporary housing. The castle gave all foreign Royalty and their men a nice estate. The survivors, Madam Rottrett, and her son were also given temporary housing elsewhere.

The estate was close to the castle, close enough to walk there, though most nobility and royalty wouldn't dare. After much debating, Liam and Fel shared a room and settled into their room with no problems.

The room was your typical nobleman's room with elaborate decorations and gold. The bed was quite large and able to fit at least five people in there. There wasn't much in the room, seeing as it was a guest room.

Fel, who had changed his clothing, jumped onto the bed and sprawled out like a starfish.

"This bed is pretty comfortable! Been a long time since I've been on a bed this nice." Fel said in contentment as he closed his eyes and felt his body sink into the mattress.

Liam sat on the bed next to Fel. "If you come to visit Floecia, I can show you the bed in my room, it's much nicer than this."

"That sounds nice." He had a lot of time in this world as a spirit, so it didn't matter to him. It was nice to think about how long he could relax here until he got tired of it and wanted to leave.

Liam stared at Fel for a while, though Fel didn't know what he was looking at. He just let the man be for a bit.

"Fel, why are you continuously using magic even when resting?" Liam finally stated his concerns that he was holding on to for the whole month.

Fel opened his eyes and looked at Liam who was staring at him intently. His face was filled with worry. He felt bad for making the man worry, but it was nothing for him.

"To think you could see the magic surrounding my body, aren't you a powerful one? It's an illusion spell that is used to hide my true form. It's normal for spirits to hide their true forms and only unleash them when in battle. I am second to the Spirit King and Queen, you know?"

Fel made it sound like he was joking, but he was very serious. His father was the Spirit Elemental Fox King and his mother was the Spirit Dragon Queen. They were the highest-ranking spirits. He also had an elder brother who would take his father's place. It wasn't a lie that he was a spirit ranked just below the Spirit King. He was a Prince with no other titles, but he was doted on the most by his parents and his brother.

He sat up and gave a playful smirk. "Would you like to see? But I'm sure you will be quite shocked to see my true form." If anyone else saw his true form, they would have to die, which was what his parents and brother taught him. It was fine if it was Liam as he liked the man a lot.

"I would love to see!"

"Alright, let me get off the bed." Fel stepped off the bed and stood a few feet away from it, making sure he had lots of room.

At his command, his body lit up. It wasn't a long process, but Liam felt that time began to slow down as he watched the tail become nine tails.

One by one, different colored tails came out, red (fire), blue (water), green (wind), yellow (earth), brown (wood), purple (space-time), black (darkness), white (light), and grey (neutral). In the end, his original whitetail stood tall in the middle. His tails were just as long as he was tall, but they somehow never touched the ground, as if they were floating. His white hair grew a foot long, his gold eyes deepened, and a red teardrop sat between his eyebrows. His fox-like eyes narrowed, still hinting at his playfulness.

His tails, even if they seemed heavy, had minds of their own. They softly fluttered with every movement he made, but they never touched, only touching where they met at his lower back.

Looking at Fel's feet, they were lifted off the ground, hovering, as if the ground would taint his small perfectly carved feet.

Fel smirked, and a hand reached out to lightly touch Liam's ear. He teasingly moved his hand, tracing the outline of Liam's jaw, and letting go of his touch when he got to his chin.

He then danced around the room, giving his husband a little show. His tails moved with him, almost encircling him as he spun. Lower-class spirits danced with him, barely touching the air around him. His hair seemed to have bits of sparkles that glittered when the light shined on it, making him seem surreal.

Liam could only see colorful specks flying around Fel, making the scene even more enchanting.

"Don't you think everyone would be surprised if they saw me?" His voice was softer but somehow slightly deeper. It was as if his voice rode on music sheets, playing a beautiful melody.

Fel was like a peacock unfurling his beautiful feathers to his potential mate. Hoping to woo them in and take them home. He knew his husband was not one to fall for looks, but it didn't hurt to tease and be playful with him.

"Yes, I agree it's definitely best if you cover up with your other form." If other people saw Fel like this, he would rip all their eyes out.

Fel chuckled and slowly changed back to his snow fox-kin form. He then calmly sat down on the bed next to Liam, as if nothing had happened. His tail seemed to want to stick to Liam and brushed up against the man, hoping to get a pat on the head.

"Yes, I think I would stand out a little too much."

Liam had many feelings coming up from deep within him. Feelings that he never knew he had. He only knew that the person in front of him was his, and he belonged to this naughty little spirit.

*****

Fel decided to drag Liam out to explore the capital after resting in their room for the night. They would be staying there for a few days, so why not have some fun?

He also knew that around this time, his parents would come running to the capital finding a faint scent of him the moment they entered the country. When they found Earl Rottrett in the prison, he laughed in their faces saying that he killed Fel, torturing him for a month in his basement, even leaving his corpse there to rot.

His parents captured the Earl from the prison, brought him to his estate, and had him lead them down to the basement. What they saw horrified them.

After that, they brutally tortured Earl Rottrett until he was stripped of his skin and hung dry outside. Then they rampaged throughout the country taking the lives of innocent people. Their eyes were clouded by hate, grief, anger, and guilt.

They felt guilty for not being able to find their son in time, but also for not telling him how to protect himself. They thought that they would be able to spend time with him, watching him grow, and showing him slowly how disgusting the world was. They wanted to ease him in, coddle him, to make sure he didn't break. But all their preparations were for nothing. The original Fel had died helpless and incompetent due to their coddling.

"Why the frown?" Liam asked Fel, whose eyebrows were slightly furrowed. It seemed Fel was thinking too hard. He unconsciously pinched Fel's cheeks before softly massaging his forehead with his thumbs. He wanted to ease Fel's furrowed brows and creased forehead. The soft circular motions and the slight tingle on Fel's forehead startled him, but he soon relaxed.

His husband, who always had to pinch his cheeks, upgraded and added massages to aid his discomfort. He couldn't hug him from behind so now he was massaging? Liam was so cute that Fel unconsciously chuckled happily.

"I was thinking about my parents who are probably worried about me. I can feel their presence approaching the capital."

Spirits were mysterious beings so Liam didn't question Fel. If Fel said his parents were coming, they were most likely coming.

"Do you know when they are coming?"

"Why? So you can prepare to meet your in-laws?" Fel teased Liam happily. He was in a good mood now since that bastard was sitting in prison.

He was also whole-heartedly pursuing his lover. He vowed that God System wouldn't be the only one chasing! It was the least he could do because he felt bad for how he treated the man in the first world. It haunted him a bit seeing his lover dying without ever establishing their relationship...

Liam was baffled at Fel's straightforward attempts to woo him, but it was definitely working.

"Though I am sure my parents would love you when they meet you," Fel reassured the slightly stunned Liam. Fel kissed Liam's hand that was clasped with his. It was a very intimate gesture, making Liam who used to be the clingy one, blush. He still needed to get used to being on the receiving end when being pursued so passionately.

The surrounding people who walked the streets of the capital felt like they were being shoved dog food. The single dogs wanted to run away before they would fall over from being overfed! Even System 225 felt like he was being overfed by the shamelessness in front of him. He had to cover his eyes once more to remind himself that God System was powerful and not so cheesy. His Host's image had died a long time ago so he wanted to at least have God System's almighty image in his mind.

After having fun teasing Liam, Fel guided them over to a nice-looking restaurant. They sat on the second floor by the window so that they could get a view of the streets.

There was a slight breeze that drifted through the windows, cooling them down from the heat of the sun. They watched the people of the capital hustling around. The bodies of the people showed exhaustion and malnutrition, but they did their best to live their lives.

Fel said in a soft voice, "There is no kingdom without its people." He looked out the window as he said this. He looked at the people walking by, seeing them in rags for clothing, their bones almost protruding out of their skin, but they all still worked very hard to make it through the day. It was very sad to see.

It was a simple sentence, but Liam immediately knew what he meant.

"He knows, but when you are the only good apple in a barrel that is full of rotten apples, it is hard to be noticed. One day, even he will be thrown out with all the rotten apples."

Even though this kingdom was biased towards the human race, the King was competent. His retainers and his nobles were not. They were greedy and eyed his throne for power. He had no one he could trust, making him even more paranoid.

"It's unfortunate that a good apple has to be in a barrel filled with rotten apples. It's not like he can throw them out of the barrel. If he did, it seems like he'd have no other apples in the barrel with him."

"If he could find 2 or 3 more good apples, it wouldn't be impossible to clean the barrel of its stench of rotten apples."

Fel chuckled. What his husband said was the truth. "But that's if he can find those good apples in the sea of rotten apples. He's too paranoid to see the good apples."

They gossiped about Frayx using metaphors. Even though Fel and Liam knew what they were talking about, it just sounded like they were talking about apples to other people.

When they finished eating their food, Fel's ears started to twitch. His senses were telling him that his parents were here and coming to find him.

"Ah, my parents are almost here. Let's meet them outside."

Liam followed Fel and they exited the restaurant. Fel decided to walk them to a plaza that was halfway from where he and his parents were. He also knew that they would have room for their reunion without being in the way of other people.

When they arrived, Fel's parents had also arrived. Fel saw a beautiful man with white hair and red eyes. He had ears on the top of his head that twitched a bit. His luscious tail swayed side by side. His long legs and tall stature allowed him to look very noble. He looked a bit like Fel's Snowfox appearance, but he had a beard, making him look manly. He looked very strong and confident. Fel knew this wasn't his true form as most spirits usually kept it to themselves or with family.

At his side was a beautiful woman with light blue hair and pink eyes. Her hair went down to her hips and flowed down like a river. Her ears looked like elf ears, pointed and long. She had a set of wings on her back that looked almost transparent, making her look like a large fairy. In the light, streaks of rainbows glittered on her wings and skin. Her true form was that of a dragon though.

When they saw their son, tears immediately flooded their eyes. His father, King Alden, picked up Fel and spun him around.

"My baby!" Contrary to his tough and muscular appearance, he was especially soft in front of Fel.

"Papa!" Fel cheerfully squealed as he hugged King Alden back.

Liam had never seen Fel act this way. Usually, he was more sly and mischievous. He had a noble and elegant air to him. But now, Fel acted like a child in front of his parents.

Queen Chanel yanked Fel out of her husband's embrace and almost smothered the life out of Fel. "Sweetheart, where have you been? We went through four countries looking for you!"

Fel wanted to facepalm. No wonder it took them forever to find him. Why did they even take so long when they could follow his life essence? They were so weird...

[*Chirp Chirp* Main Mission: Find your parents to prevent their spirit cores from being destroyed, has been completed. Good job, Host.]

'Thank you, System.'

"I was trapped in some bad man's basement. He is currently in prison at the castle right now. Liam saved me from that bad man."

Fel grabbed Liam's arm and tugged him over. Liam was stunned at suddenly being pulled over. He didn't understand why Fel said that he saved him! Liam clearly knew that Fel was capable of destroying the whole kingdom or more. How could he not save himself?

But Fel knew that his parents never taught him combat and such, he couldn't just randomly show he knew how to use offensive magic. He gave Liam a look saying that he would explain later.

King Alden and Queen Chanel were eyeing Liam.

"Ah, you are King Hugh's son, am I right?" King Alden questioned Liam as he stared at his hand that was holding Fel's hand so intimately. He felt like ripping their hands apart but it seemed Fel was fond of him, so he let them be. He glared at Liam to show his dominance.

"Yes, that's right sir, but I do not recall ever meeting you...? I apologize." He pretended that he didn't see the glare...

Queen Chanel gave a soft laugh. "Of course you don't, Prince Liam. We met you when you were only a couple of days old. Hugh was very happy to be blessed with an adorable son. He was bragging to us for years about how smart you were. Though our Fel is much cuter than you."

"Fel is definitely cuter." Liam agreed right away.

Fel's cheeks turned red from embarrassment. Jeez, the original Fel's parents were always one to brag about him with everyone. They aren't any better than King Hugh. Even his husband wasn't a step behind them.

"Ah, we forgot to introduce ourselves, right dear?" Queen Chanel clung to King Alden's arm. "It's no wonder Prince Liam is confused."

"That's right. Well, I am King Alden, King of Spirits. It's a pleasure to meet you, son of King Hugh."

"I am Queen Chanel, Queen of Spirits. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Liam wanted to vomit blood. When Fel said his ranking was right below the Spirit King and Queen, he literally meant it! He was actually a Spirit Prince. One of the most powerful Spirits in this world and the Spirit Realm before the Spirit King and Queen.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too!" Liam hurriedly said. They already knew who he was so there was no need to introduce himself any further.

"Now that introductions are done, Fel, who was it that kidnapped you?" A murderous aura floated out of King Alden. His already red eyes glowed darker, ready to slaughter someone.

Queen Chanel chuckled evilly. "That's right. Why don't we eliminate him right now so that you don't have to worry about him."

Fel knew his parents would be this way and happily replied, "You need to speak with the King of Frayx. He is the one in charge of getting justice in this Kingdom."

"Hmmm, King Luther. I haven't seen him in a while. Does he still have incompetent people around him?" King Alden mumbled as he guided everyone to the castle.

"Yup. It seems like he's still surrounded by a bunch of rotten apples."

"Well, let's get rid of one of them!" Queen Chanel happily stated.

Liam, who was still holding Fel's hand, could only hope that he would never get on their bad side.