19. A Negotiation

The palace is enormous and divided into five wings. Each wing is painted and integrated with the color corresponding to its particular name. Every person working inside the palace building had their outfits immaculately emphasize which department they worked at, aside from their token pass.

The Emerald Palace is consists of central offices, meeting halls, and other governmental buildings. Ministers and the high-ranking officers had a token in the form of a laminated pass with an emblem of their respective workplaces. These cards are made up of thick paper with powerful magic imbued in them. These tokens are a necessary item to bring before you can enter the palace ground. They served as a key with your personal identification in them. Every main checkpoint in the palace is supervised by a high-ranking guard from the Black corp. If your hold a card that mismatch your position or title, there will be severe backlash. Either you got electrocuted the moment you step on the palace's boundary, or you will trigger an alarm and activate the trapping magic. Whatever the result is, it will bring nothing but trouble to you, so it is not advisable to attempt it.

The Ruby Palace is surrounded by residential buildings. The innermost building with the engraving of crimson four-leaves clover on the front door, fenced with sturdy black gates, is exclusive for the Emperor and the Queen. Followed by three-leaves clover, which is reserved for Imperial Concubine, and the rest are for concubines.

Whereas for the princes' and princess' residences, a golden four-leave clover is engraved on their front door. All of them are granted a royal token corresponding to their title, position, and age. Each token had a magical power imbued in them with tracking magic and protection magic. Even the ugly prince, Danial, had one, despite the king never acknowledge him as his son. The token is in the form of a necklace, and Danial wears it around his neck.

The existence of this royal token is to ensure the people's location and supervised them as long as they are in the palace ground. Of course, many people disapprove this tracking method as it is simply outrageous and violating their human rights. However, Alexander disregards these complaints and makes it a rule anyway. One could discern that a psychological shadow of the past event had greatly affected him to this extent. He no longer blindly trust anyone.

The Sapphire Palace is filled with infrastructural buildings, such as a school, mainly attended by the princes and princesses that reached the age of five until twelve. The Royal tutor teaches them from the basics knowledge, about ethics, and vice versa. This is including the way to hone their magical aptitude and learning martial arts to protect themselves. There's also a library, a hospital, a pharmacy, and a kitchen.

The Amber Palace is exclusively for the military, with a vast and up-to-date training ground.

Last is Amethyst Palace, the sacred building for praying and worshiping ceremonies. This is the most tightly guarded area among the five palaces and supervises personally and solely by Alexander's personal guard, The Black Corp. They could be recognized by the rosary emblem pinned on their left shoulder. Their outfits are mainly black, from head to toes, and faces are hidden behind a mask.

Each and every very building is guarded by two guards, which rotate their shift every one hour. The guard is selected personally by Alexander and his overseer, Albert. Fundamentally saying, the palace is the most secure place in the Snowflake town. An attempt to breach them will result in severe punishment worse than death.

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Seiran and the rest are waiting outside of the next room, restlessly waiting for Danial. They stood rigidly, their backs as straight as a ramrod, due to the bearing of military discipline that imprinted in their minds and bodies. The Prime Minister, Grand Duke Arnold Winchester, approached the three familiar figures outside the meeting hall.

"What are you guys doing here?" He inquired. His voice is laced with a doting tone. He ruffled Seiran's hair while smiling warmly at his grandchildren. With Arthur, he patted the young's man's shoulder and nodded his head in appreciation. His grandchildren are definitely the best in this entire world. They are his pride, and Arnold is proud to call them his family. However, once his blue electrified eyes fall on Duke Arklight's face, his smile diminished. Scorn marred his wrinkled forehead. It's as clear as the day sky that he dislikes his son-in-law. Nevertheless, his dislike mutually corresponds as Duke Arklight also despised the old man.

"Can't you see? We're waiting for someone." Arklight casually responded. Although he knows, the question is directed to his children and not him.

"This rude brat is still here? I don't see you. Shouldn't Liliane have kicked you out of the house already for your blabbering mouth?" Arnold scoffed in return. Disdainful expression is visible on his face. "Why Liliane choose you is beyond my understanding."

"Unfortunately, my wife loves me very much, you sly old fox. Don't try to disparage our harmonious husband and wife relationship with your crow mouth." Arklight retorted.

The two of them engaging in a heated staring contest. Seiran and Arthur rolled their eyes in dismay. This is a usual occurrence between these two men. As soon as they are initiating eye contact, mutual hatred flash through their eyes. Scorn and scoff are bubbling inside their throats, itching to come out. Soon, they will start to duke a fight, jabbing the opponent's sore spot continuously, each word laced with poisonous remarks as deathly as the snake poison. At the end of these childish squabbles, they finally resorted to violence and included the uses of magic. Only their mother and grandmother could stop them when they reached this point.

"Okay, father. Stop before you're going too far." Arish, their uncle, said immediately, putting a stop to the fight. He nodded his head to the other three. Arish and Liliane resemble each other like a twin, with his hair is a curly mud blond. Whereas Liliane had smooth, flowing black hair, surpassing her hips. His gentle countenance is pleasant to the eyes, and he loves to spoil his niece and nephew to the extreme. Still unmarried despite reaching forty soon. "The one inside, who is he?"

"Ask the old man. He knows." Arklight spat his answer. His eyes never leave Arnold's face.

Arnold opened his mouth to say something, but his son interrupted again. Arish motioned a silent gesture toward him by putting his index finger on his lips.

The old grand duke glared dagger at his son, teeth grinding in anger and a sliver of bitterness lacing in his eyes. He felt betrayed by him. This brat support stranger rather than his father? Ungrateful bastard.

However, Arish ignored his father's dissatisfied gazes and said, "Okay, okay. Let's talk later. This seemed like a serious matter, and it is not appropriated to discuss them in the public space. I understand, brother-in-law. Father, let's go back first." He looped his hand around his father's arm and dragged him out.

They could hear Arnold's bickering, something about wanting to put the stupid brat in his place, keeps resounding in the corridor. Arish helplessly listens to his father's ranting. He shook his head while keep persuading the old man to lower his voice.

"Tsk, that old man better drop dead soon. He already lives long enough." Arklight muttered.

"Father, our mother will be sad if grandfather died." Seiran reminded him.

"Then, he should stay at home! An elderly man keeps flaunting his authority around, did he not ashamed of such feat?"

"You just didn't want to see his face. That's why you refused to linger around the palace in case you've stumbled upon him. Honestly, you guys are the worst. People thought daughter-in-law and mother-in-law had bad blood between them, but from what I see, you guys are practically the same." Arthur chided in. "Stop bickering. You guys are elderly. Keep this going, and mother might really throw you out the house."

Arklight snorted in return.

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The king, staring at his son with unconcealed curiosity. He rested his long, slender fingers on the armrest of the mahogany chair, assuming a relaxed posture. His golden eyes wandered on the unblemished, glowing skin of Danial, his untainted snowy white hair, and finally settled at his overall physical structure. As expected of his gene. It is undeniable, his son's appearance is excellent. He could even rival the most handsome man in the continent, from the neighboring country, ranked S magician, the Imperial Prince Carlos Stravosky.

"What the condition?" He finally asked. "For you to follow my order obediently, what kind of condition you wanted me to fulfill in return?"

Danial has lazily crossed his long legs, being ignorant and oblivious of the etiquette and custom in the palace, especially while facing the ruler of the nation, the emperor himself. He titled his head toward the older male. His piercing brown eyes is calculatingly observed Alexander's reaction.

"Condition?"

"Don't pretend to know nothing, boy. You wanted something from me. That's why you are here. I can give in to your request, but, in return, I wanted your utmost obligation in abiding of one my order."

"Heh...Straight to the point? No apologies for all the tribulation I suffered during my stay in the palace? I received your injustice wrath, and you wanted me to forget those tortuous days just like that?"

Alexander showed no remorse for his behavior during these eighteen years. There's not a single hint of guilt in his golden orbs. Nothing except amusement.

"You're angry? Then, what will you do? Punish me? Took revenge?" He chuckles. "Do it, if you can, boy. I gladly welcome your attack with open arms."

"I certainly capable of doing that. However, I had a more pressing matter to attend to and refused to entertain a silly old fox with his antic." Danial's simply waved his hand and replied in a flat tone. "You're clever, old man. With your insight and keen instinct, you must already sense the forthcoming danger that soon befalls on the kingdom."

The older male hummed his acknowledgment. He knows, yet, he didn't care. His heart had died alongside the death of his beloved wife and his trusted aide. He continued to live and persisted. However, deep inside, he is as empty as a soulless body.

Danial suddenly felt uncomfortable. His heart wavered awfully, and a torrent of negative emotion keeps bubbling up. The original feeling is still there, and he could barely suppress them back. He pats his left chest as if reassuring the residual soul left in there. This boy loathes his father for abandoning him. His hatred overwhelmed his pure and sincere emotion, up to the point he wished to harm his father with his own hands.

This boy never gets the parental love he craves so much. His mother died early, and his father never once glance at his way, always looking at him with a jeering and disgusted expression on his face. Don't worry, Danial, I will seek the man's forgiveness for you. So, rest assure and leave everything to me. Danial mentally said. As if understanding his words, the residual feeling slowly dispersed, with a faint thank you, whispered in his ears.

"So?" Alexander asked again after a moment of silence.

"Enroll me to an academy," Danial said casually. "The one and only prestigious Diamante Academy that located in the neighboring country, Balzatine Kingdom. Please write me a recommendation letter to enter that academy. I need to go there as soon as possible."