Oblivious Smiles

Back at the royal table, while the Queen and Elisa are busy searching, Herina had excused herself to the comfort room, giving the King's time for a private talk. "Hail the prince!" Ferrol proposed a cheer as he raised his glass of wine, Frederick followed with his glass and yelled the same. "You got a splendid successor in line, my friend; he's got the looks, the intelligence, and most of all the power to move the people. The traits of great Kings like us, I am sure one day he'll be just like you."

"That's a given, Ferrol; Nicolas is not like any other children. I made sure that he got the best education the experts can offer, you can even give him a sword and I'm sure you won't believe he's just starting with life," They both burst into laughter as each took a bite from the steak they were feasting on.

"I know, I know, being a master of the sword myself, I can feel only with the way he stands, but, enough with the now my friend," Ferrol leaned in closer into a whispering distance and steered Frederick towards his daughter.

"What do you say, We talk about the future. I had been blessed with a daughter after my two boys; luckily, you too had your first child, so what do you say". Frederick has a clue as where this conversation is headed, It was pretty cliché for royalties to have this kind of talk like the case with his parents, but regardless, he still asked what Ferrol meant to properly hear him out. "You see, our kingdoms had ties since long ago. Ever since they were built, if I recall. Our great-grandparents had been like us, best of friends, without fail, but the next generation is kind of lucky, don't you think? Let's set our sight for making our ties stronger than steel, and what way to make this come true is through—"

"Marriage"

"Exactly, If you think about it, if one of us had been a girl, then our parents have not hesitate to do the same thing."

"I know, sounds unsettling now but I understand your point."

"So? What do you say?" Ferrol leaned in even closer, his smile wider than everybody else in the hall. Reena had seen him giggle but she did not care; she was more interested at the door. Frederick, on the other hand, thought for a second; he weighed every bit of pros and cons from Ferrol's proposal, but there was hesitation inside his mind. He had been lucky to choose a bride like Natalia in his own will; it would be unfair for his son to be married to someone he did not choose. "Why the long face, If you're wondering if your son would get mad in the future, then you just need to bring him with you on your visits," Ferrol pressured him.

And as they saw the Queens walking back to their seats, he shared his conclusion: "I will think about this, but I like this idea of yours. It would really benefit both our kingdom and the people," he whispered back before Natalia could hear anything.

The Queen stood beside the table; she was now stressing over her missing child and couldn't seem to take a break. The edgy look on her face brought wrinkles in her forehead that bothered Herina as she came back from comfort room. "What's the matter with you, Natalia? You seem to be troubled by something; have you upset your stomach, perhaps? Do you want me to accompany you?". Natalia disregarded her for a second as she kept searching from her seat. The Queen of Algernon needed to pat her by the shoulder before she snapped out of her dilemma. "Natalia, are you okay?"

"Forgive me, Herina, I'm fine but I can't seem to find my son anywhere. Elisa and I have searched the entirety of the castle but even her daughter cannot be found. Although we are most certainly sure Logan is with them, I can't remove this stingy feeling in my chest," she sat down, her hands to her chest as Herina handed her a glass of water. "Dear, have you any idea to where they might have gone?"

"I don't know, Ferrol and I had been sitting here since those two had left, I had never seen them since," Frederick also began searching from his seat when Elisa came intruding with a more distressed look on her face. She asked for forgiveness for excusing herself at the table without prior notice or being summoned before finally revealing the information she had gathered from the knights resting at the side.

"With them tricking the knights like that, we can at least know they went outside," the King emphasized. "Elisa, you should call the other knights and tell them to fetch Nicolas and Alisa outside. I have been too soft to them, but this time I would really scold them for their actions," Just as Elisa is about to leave and communicate the orders, the silent little princess of Algernon spoke.

"There is no need for that; he's already here".

The table went silent, probably because it was the first time they heard the princess talk for tonight, but most probably due to her peculiar statement. They just stared at her for a good second, watching her as she continued eating her fried chicken and steak, When the door towards outside opened with a thud, a thunder shocked everyone.

Trembling and panting, a boy emerged from the entrance. His knees shaking as he took small, weak steps towards the other people. With each step dripping from the rain, he had painted the dry floor as it sucked most of the moisture. Everybody had stopped on their festivities, the music stopped, the laughter seized, and Frederick's wine became stagnant.

Not another moment later, he fell to the floor, but he kept on going forward. As he came to the light, the terrified mural painted on his face became prevalent; he seemed to be running from something. Whatever it was, Elisa knows that it's not something to be messed with; even the boy's eyes are shaking, screaming for help. He just shrieked as if a boar being hunted down by a merciless hunter. He might be named Hunter but at the moment, he is the prey. His struggle spread pity among everyone, but no one dared to move due to the laughter that suddenly enveloped the atmosphere.

They followed the direction of the sound and they saw another figure entering the castle on its back—the picture they never expected to see that night. The rain is pouring hard and the night is dark but bright enough thanks to the mishap outside. At last, they understood what's happening—their homes, their livelihood, and everything else that's basically keeping them alive and well until tonight. It petrified the king at his seat as much as his people when Nicolas started his performance.

"Huuuunnnttteeerrrr," he cried like a manic monster about to maul the boy alive.

It stopped Hunter on his tracks and Rickety looked back. His eyes went wide as if it would pop out their sockets, and he immediately begged for forgiveness as he continued crawling away from the prince. Nicolas caught up to him with ease and stepped on his leg.