(0)A tranquil land, after all it ended

The streets were bustling with people. It was to be expected since today was the 350th anniversary of this small but prosperous kingdom that existed in this cruel world.

A small heaven where people could trade freely, where there were no fights and no slaves, and there was enough food and houses. You could find work easily if you had just arrived and had no money left after the long travel.

You would be compelled to say that such a kingdom did not exist since the world itself did not permit it, but here we were, celebrating 350 years after the creation of this sweet peace.

Let me guide you.

Although we are talking about a kingdom, it wasn't that big. Besides the Capital, there were only a few small cities.

You would see the biggest city, which also served as its Capital, surrounded by mighty forests and walls.

Since the city was divided by another couple of walls, let's start with the outer district. Here we could see the main gate that was heavily guarded in case of some beast came from the forest. But that rarely happens nowadays, so don't worry too much.

Passing by captain John reprimanding a couple of new recruits. Even though he sounded way harsher than he intended to, he was a good man, loved by all his subordinates.

Many people enter the city carrying bags, cars, and other things. Even a skinny teen has just arrived, with a determined look to become someone big like the stories that the old foggies are telling the children about the past king.

Suppose we passed by a few houses and plazas. In that case, we could see old man Marco, one of the best storytellers in the neighborhood, sitting in front of a fountain and telling jokes to the mass of children. You could also hear the name of the King being mentioned by him.

You are slow! Let's make haste, there was not so much time left from the day, and I also had to go home to see my kids.

Starting with the inner district, we found a significant upgrade compared with the outer community: inns, mercantile companies, knights, etc. Here was the place for the wealthy people but also for the ones with history. That was proven by the presence of the Browne family in the middle of negotiating something shady with an overweight man with a sly smile on his face.

Sigh, I would have to do something about that, but let's leave it for another day. After passing the last walls, we found ourselves in front of the new castle. The sun had already started to lower itself, so I needed to hurry.

It's nothing that fancy, mostly made of wood and stone. The last wall was built to keep this mansion-like castle safe.

There are also few people passing by, primarily servants that had to clean here periodically. But, if we go around the entrance, we could find an abandoned garden after walking for a while.

What was once one of the most gorgeous flower gardens now lay in a mixture of unrecognizable plants. There were even some fruit trees that had grown in the wrong direction. They had a rough texture, maybe because of the passage of time.

If we looked towards the castle, we could find a part of the wall collapsed and fragments of stone and tree roots scattered in half of the visible room. From the rooms' depths came the sound of a roughed and muffled breath. Just one.

There you could see the outline of a half-collapsed throne and what seemed like the corpse of a human lying on it. That was Him!

A wrinkled, dried-up face. Long white hair served as his blanket. Only his bones could be seen from his past healthy body.

The people praised him as the one and only King that this forgotten world had truly managed to know. It was a brutal world to live in, one that even the gods had long since abandoned.

There came another breath! There is no doubt that he was still alive, but why was he there? Why was nobody helping him? What was he eating? What was he drinking? Could he sleep well during the night?

Why... was he staying there for so long? I had lost count of how many kids I had raised so far...

"Hmm...Is that....you...Sam?"

But nobody replied. The dying King could only see a small flower at his feet and a petite bird looking at him from atop the crumbled wall.

As always, it would set off as the sun was going down. Time passed, and even it had children to return to.

Yes, like always...

A set of steps came from nowhere, scaring the bird away. Steps that haven't been heard for ages in this forgotten corner of the palace.

The King slowly lifted his eyes and looked at his uninvited guest. A youth in his prime stood on the rubble and looked down at him. At his hips was a sword. And the sword had a symbol that was impossible not to recognize, even with his poor sight.

"Why... do..you...have....it?"

A wooden wolf's head. The gift that he made for her. The last one before being trapped in this cursed place.

A sudden spark illuminated his eyes.

Ah! I see...So you have managed to get back safely.

That meant that his daughter was still alive. He didn't endure for three hundred years in vain...

Thank you, young man. Truly, thank you!

The last tears came flowing from his dried-up eyes.

The youth was about to reply, but he stopped. There was no reason to. The King had finally found peace, leaving behind a tiny tray of light that made its way to the youth's chest.

"May he rest in peace."

After bowing his head to the King's remains, the youth took off on yet another adventure.

With the King's death, the 2-3 meters magic crystal in the castle's depths finally shattered. And as if sensing something, one bird from the flock started crying and turned its way around, returning in a hurry to the King's side.

But it was in vain, as the previous hole in the wall disappeared, sealing the King's body inside for his eternal rest.

Author's note: This is the end of the book, not the start of it.

Author's note:

I leave this flower as a memento for the man who was the main character in my first novel as a child.

Everyone will eventually die, but the characters of a book will live to tell the story again to yet another reader.

I thank thee, who was my knight and my guide as a child. May you live another life as somebody else's hero.