Chapter 7 - Settled.

“From the palace?” Melanie muttered. “Who would have known that I would be entering another one so soon,”

As my eyes watched the earth from below I couldn't help but wonder why am I in this awkward position? Since when did slave owners carry their slaves on their backs?

The figure who ordered them to bring water for me was the one who instructed one of them to carry me. I glanced sideways while resting on the back of the one called ‘Anton’ shoulder and looking at the figure that ordered this. They called him ‘’my prince or your highness' so I could only deduce that he is the prince of the kingdom.

But I must say that this position is better than the days I spent walking barefooted with my hands tied to a leash. It was truly a life of torture being with them for some dancing ritual.

Walter's POV

The Blood dancers were our last stop before we left the market and to be honest my blood still boiled at the memories I recalled.

I turned to my left where Melanie was, her hands were still tied. I wanted to release her from the vines but Jugel held me back, saying that slaves had a tendency to run away when they are bought.

If we let her run to the other parts of the city, she'll just get caught because her clothes will give off her position as a slave. Right now, the crowd was giving us weird gazes as to why Anton had a slave on his back but thankfully, the leaf caps we wore covered our faces.

These things were what you made when you covered your head with a handkerchief and tied it under your chin but the top was just larger so it made it look like cloaks.

Imagine your blood being used as a form of entertainment in the name of purifying you from your shame. Also I wondered why she had that reaction when she heard that we were from the palace. Maybe, she didn't expect that she would catch the eye of high officials like us.

After what felt like ages we were finally nearing the palace and were about to enter, the guards present clashed their spears.

I then shifted the leaf cap to my neck, the guards were stunned for a moment before they bowed. “Greetings your highness!” They chorused.

“Greetings,” I put on a stoic face as I walked into the palace while the others followed.

The guards looked at Anton with faces of confusion but said nothing as we entered.

“Demna, could you get her washed and into clean clothes? Then meet me in my chambers with Jugel and the rest,”

“Yes” Demna answered with a nod before stretching her hand to take the turn in carrying Melanie away.

“Let's go,” I said before touching the stairs and walking a stressful walk to the second floor.

The guards present at the grass curtain entrance to my room bowed before leaving. It seemed my instructions had reached the ears of all the guards who were in charge of my room.

As I sat on a wooden stand I looked at the trio and said “Sit,”

“Except for you Afril,” I added.

“Please excuse us,”

“Yes your highness,” Afril bowed before leaving.

After he left, Jugel and Anton both looked at me with gazes of curiosity.

“Let's wait for Demna,”

The grass curtain opened after a short while and Demna walked in and took a stand to sit on.

“My prince, what's in for today's discussion?”

I closed my eyes for a while and took a deep breath before speaking “I've decided that before my wings emerge. I would need a huge support system behind me before taking the throne. As you said, the Queen Regent does hold a lot of power over the high officials,”

In reality, I just wanted to kick her off from that seat and abolish that slavery stuff before kicking out those blood dancers.

Jugel rubbed his chin seemingly being in deep contemplation “There is one coming opportunity that we can start to yield your influence,”

“And that is?”

“The Upcoming Hunting Games,”

If I remember correctly, the hunting game is just like all those royal hunt stuff where you hunt for a game and the one with the largest game or the highest number wins.

“You are saying that I should showcase my awakened bloodline power while hunting?”

“Yes,”

I scratched the back of my head trying not to be embarrassed by what I was about to say, “For some reason, I can't seem to manifest any power from the bloodline even though it's been awakened like you said,”

They all looked at me in a strange manner and silence soon enveloped the room. “Do you mean that your manifestation hasn't started yet?” Demna clearly shocked by my words was the first to speak

Jugel continued to scratch his chin that had no signs of a growing beard “Usually bloodline manifestation is supposed to occur within a week of the bloodline awakening and it's almost a week since the signs were shown and it seems that this might be a problem,”

“It will be a problem!” Anton shouted. “Who knows when another assassin might come for the crown prince's neck and if he still can't awaken the bloodline during that time wouldn't he be defenseless again!”

This guy needs to take a rest.

“Anton, calm yourself,” I said.

Anton turned to me before going onto his knees, an action which stunned me “Your highness, I am a brother you called and Demna is your mage guardian,”

His head was lowered as he continued “Both of us have responsibilities, one of which include protecting you.”

“The shock and feeling of worthlessness we felt when you entered that hut to rest from your injuries was enough. Out of curiosity, I checked and discovered…”

Anton remembered the scene vividly, he gently opened the grass curtain to the hut and walked towards Anthart who was lying on a mud slab. His eyes widened when he found a slash mark on the prince's neck and the vines tied to his leg and arm were uncovered with the wounds made even deeper.

“I was devastated but a part of me hoped that things might have changed and so I came to check again and to my relief you were standing. I ran to be sure that I wasn't having illusions and checked your neck only to discover that the mark was gone. It wasn't until you pointed out the gaping hole and screamed at me that I knew,”

I knew that he was right. I had indeed been covered with vines after fighting a beast with some long scissors like mandibles but the body of a bug and failed to awaken the bloodline.

‘I was resting and being attended to…’

That thought persisted in my head and they meant that the assassin was none other than an attendant tending to my wounds and it seems that the previous prince dying and me entering into his body kinda triggered the awakening which I originally thought was just some transmigration effect.

I hoped that it was the former because some badass magic skill set could be useful in hand before my enemies get another attempt to kill me.

“Anton”

“Yes Prince Anthart,”

“How many times have I told you to call me by name and how many times have you done that?”

“Only once, your highness,”

It seems that he might have a lot of issues because of that incident. I thought it was my insult that caused him to be quiet but dang it, I wasn't expecting an anger outburst in the middle of a conversation.

“There is no need to beat yourself up brother. At least I'm alive,”

I shifted my gaze towards Demna “Were you also having the same issues as him?”

Demna responded with a nod and I sighed.

“Then when I slept off where were you two?”

“We were at the hallway entrance to your room, my prince,”

So they were not really far in the first place but I still don't regret hiring a bodyguard, the more the better.

“Prince Anthart, is there something I would like to ask you?” Anton had still not yet raised his head at this time

“Go on,”

“There wasn't a gaping hole in your body, the last time I checked. How come you got it?”

“My memory is hazy about that incident,” I said.

Now that I think of it, I have yet to see Anton's lesser bloodline skills. I hope I do during the next match.

“Now go back and sit, this discussion hasn't even solved the main problem at hand,” I waved him off.

Thankfully, he raised his head up and went to sit.

I then looked at the three of them with a face that I thought was stone cold enough “How are we going to handle this problem?”

“We can try forceful actions,” Jugel suggested.

“What do you mean by forceful actions?” I raised an eyebrow at his words.

“We could train you using another bloodline,”

“And how will that work?”

“Manifested Bloodlines somehow pull out another bloodline to do the same,”

“And the only person who might be capable of doing this is…” Jugel immediately turned to Anton who pointed at himself.

“But what I have is a lesser bloodline,”

“It's not wrong to try,’’

“To the training quarters then,” said Demna as her fists touched.

“And if worse comes to worst then his highness will have to r

eceive proper training from Anton,”

Anton was grinning after Jugel said that.

“Why do I have a bad feeling about this?”