Midnight Envoy

Laughter and the smell of expensive perfume filled the throne room once more, and once more Auria was displayed by her father like a crown jewel before the nobles. It had been a week since she learned of her father's plan. She had been crying nonstop ever since then, trying to think of a way out of her predicament. If not for Silvia's promise to help her, Auria would have ran away as Alea. Still, the thought of running away stayed in her mind. She wouldn't mind living the rest of her days in the streets of Noir as a squire.

Elyse felt uneasy as the eyes of the nobles fell upon him as he entered the throne room. He wore an azure silk tunic with gold accent on its edges, it was Freid's. Elyse can't afford to buy anything using the dragon's gold since he might need it for more important matters. Hence, he would always wear his armor everytime he needed to appear before the king or the princess. Looking about, He saw that the other princes were already enjoying themselves. He, on the other hand, never liked festivities, finding it difficult to socialize with other people.

"Some wine your highness?" a voice suddenly spoke from behind Elyse, startling him a bit. It was Grenwald, carrying a glass of wine on a silver platter. The prince can't help but wonder why the king's advisor would go around offering wine like a mere servant.

"Tha-thanks but I…I do not indulge that much on wine," replied Elyse feeling uncomfortable with the way the man looked at him.

"I insist your Highness. The king had this fine wine brought out just for you. It would do him great honor to have the prince of Crusdea taste the wine of Threanas," said Grenwald, thrusting the glass towards his chest. Not wanting to offend the king and draw more attention to himself, Elyse simply smiled meekly and took the liquor off Grenwald's hand.

Out of curiosity, Elyse smelled the wine, it had the scent of roses and pine. However, something didn't feel right. He can't put his finger on it but it felt that there's something wrong with the drink. It's just wine, everyone is drinking it. Look, even the other princes are drinking. Act like a prince just for once. These thoughts taunted Elyse's mind as he absentmindedly walked around the throne room filled with nobles holding the glass of wine Grenwald gave him earlier.

"Ow! Watch where you're—"Auria exclaimed as she felt wine splattered on her dress. Looking at who she bumped into, she was shocked to see that it was Elyse, the prince of Crusdea.

"So-sorry," Elyse apologized profusely. Of all the people he can bump into while walking absentmindedly, it just had to be Auria.

"It's alright," Auria smiled. The prince's stuttering reminded her of Lyrus and how he would stutter when embarrassed.

"Would you like to join me for a walk?" asked Auria. She herself didn't understand why she invited Elyse to join her for a stroll. Maybe she's hoping to prove that the mysterious prince was just like the others.

The two left the throne room. Elyse's heart beat so fast as they walked. He can't believe that the princess was with him right now. However, he felt too embarrassed to say anything. Auria on the other hand was also the same. Just what could Elyse be thinking right now? The thought lingered on her mind as they unknowingly ended up at the castle garden. Seeing where they are, Elyse can't help but recall the day that changed his life, the day he found out that he was eligible for the squire test, the day when he bumped into Auria, the same way he did earlier. Finding the memory quite amusing, Elyse smiled as he stood by and gazed at the hedges of daisies.

Auria felt something stirred inside her as she saw the prince smiled. It was as if she was with Lyrus right now. "Why are you smiling? Did you find something funny with the daisies?" asked Auria. Funny with the dasies? The statement sounded insulting. Auria can't help but berate herself for her stupidity.

"No. I just remembered something," replied Elyse. Remembered something? What if she asked what did he remember? What will he answer? Elyse panicked as he tried coming up with possible things to answer if the question was asked. The two stood and gazed at the beautiful garden in silence, both of them too embarrassed to speak to each other.

"So…why did you decide to compete for my hand in marriage?" Auria asked. She needed to know why a prince from a kingdom that only exists in legends would waste his time for a chance to marry a princess. Crusdea, if it indeed exists, is surely a powerful kingdom that can stand on its own. It would not profit from any allegiance, so why?

Why? Why did he decide to compete for her hand? Should he tell her the truth? What should he tell Auria?

"I-I…I…just want to marry you. I-I've…I've heard stories of your beauty and grace. Seeing you makes me—"but Elyse wasn't able to finish his sentence as he felt Auria's hand against his face. Elyse stood in shock while Auria started crying before him.

"You…you're just like everyone else. I thought—"Auria ran. She ran back to the throne room. She thought Elyse was different. How foolish of her. Of course, he joined because he was simply enthralled by her beauty and the stories of her that her father spread throughout the land. He wanted to marry her because she's good for his inflated ego. Wiping the tears from her eyes, Auria entered the throne room, not caring about a thing anymore. It didn't matter if there's a big wine stain on her dress. It didn't matter if the nobles made fun of her appearance. Most importantly, it didn't matter what her father wants to happen. She's going to live her life the way she sees it fit.

Elyse on the other hand simply stood infront of the daisies. Feeling something cold touched his skin, he looked up to see that snow had started to fall. Winter had come to Threanas. Just what did he do wrong? Was it because of what he said? Or was it because Auria already love someone else? Is it too bad to dream of a better life? Tears rolled down Elyse's cheek as he sobbed, his only comfort being the snow that has started to blanket everything around him.

"Princess, are you alright? What happened?" asked Silvia as the maid tried to clean the stain on her dress. All around them the nobles are whispering, most likely conjuring their own rumors as to what happened. Auria simply sobbed in reply as she cleaned her face with a handkerchief.

"Auria, tidy yourself up now. You can't let the other nobles see you like this," King Deanor said sternly. Auria merely looked at her father with a fierce eye causing Deanor to be taken aback by the sudden gesture.

The banquet continued well into the night. It was an hour or so before Auria saw Elyse returning to the throne room, his eyes seemingly red and puffy. Did Elyse cry? She, however, decided not to dwell on the matter anymore. Elyse wasn't her concern. Her concern was finding a way out of her miserable life.

"Your highness, an envoy from another kingdom seeks your presence," a castle guard said to King Deanor, catching Auria's attention. An envoy? This late at night? However, before she can ask the guard any more questions, her father already gave his approval to let the envoy inside the throne room. Trumpets were sounded to herald the coming of the midnight visitor.

The envoy was dressed in a simple hooded robe, but his silk tunic and the expensive looking sword that hangs from his side clearly shows that he's a noble. Stopping just a few meters before them, the mysterious envoy bowed to the king who seemed to recognize the figure before him. King Deanor looked uneasy as the envoy pulled down the hood of his robe.

Exile. The rune branded on the man's forehead read 'Exile'. Any air of nobility seemed to vanish from the mysterious envoy when he revealed his face. Bald, ragged beard, and blind in one eye, these features enhanced the intense gaze the man threw at the king. Auria felt Silvia's hand on her wrist, its grip tight. Does Silvia also know this man?

"A present for you King Deanor," said the man whose voice sounded deep and hoarse despite appearing to be middle-aged. The nobles immediately pulled away from the throne and gathered themselves at the far side of the room, leaving Elyse and the other princes at the center together with the man.

"I believe you're familiar on whose head this is?" asked the envoy as it tossed something bloodied and wrapped in a bundle of rags infront of the king.

"You! What have you done to my brother!" shrieked Grenwald upon realizing that the head was his brother's, a duke in one of the provinces under Threanas. The king's advisor quickly rushed towards the decapitated head while Auria and Silvia can only gasp. Grenwald may be not of good reputation but he definitely did not deserve this.

"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" shouted Grenwald as he looked at the man with rage in his eyes while hugging the head of his brother.

"Silence, you rat!" the envoy suddenly screamed making Grenwald stumble backwards as he scrambled to get up. Auria herself wasn't sure of what she saw, but after shouting, the man seemed to have uttered something which made the advisor's eyes widen in terror. A spell? At this point, everyone in the room have already distanced themselves as far as possible from the throne.

"What? Scared? You should be! Your reign of oppression will end soon!" shouted the man, as he removed his robe and tunic, revealing his body which was covered in runes.

"A long time ago, you banished me and my people for standing up to you. But no more, no more! The people will have their due. You will face judgment from the Midnight Council!" Silvia's grip tightened upon hearing the man's words.

"No. Don't do this. Please." Auria looked at Silvia and saw tears welling up the maid's eyes as she whispered her plea.

"Lophen!" King Deanor shouted. Elyse turned his gaze towards to the thief prince and saw Lophen muttering something as he approached the rune-covered man. Hearing the sound of unsheathing of blades, Elyse's eyes widened to see all the other princes, even Asche wielding a sword and walking towards the envoy. The other princes though eyes seemed to be out of focused. Are they in a trance?

"No, no, no..." Elyse muttered under his breath as he watched the other princes inch closer towards the man. Something tells him that it is not a wise idea to attack the mysterious figure. However, the other princes didn't seem to share his sentiment as they started circling the envoy.

"So are they the princes? The ones you are going to subdue to further spread your name? Go on, kill me! But know this, the people will have their due, the Midnight Council will punish you!" The runes covering the man's body glowed as he started to chant a spell. Elyse can only back away from the man. Should he use the spell Edrana taught him? However, Elyse's thoughts were interrupted by King Deanor's declaration.

"I don't know who you are and where you're from. But what I can assure you is that Threanas and I will bow to no one. Kill him!" commanded King Deanor. Auria can only cover her eyes as the four princes rushed towards the mysterious man, plunging their blades at his body. However, instead of a scream of pain or suffering, laughter came out of the envoy's mouth. He continued to laugh over and over as the princes plunged and twisted their blades on his body.

Elyse vomited not at the sight but of the ringing high pitched laughter that the man let loose. He felt his head ached badly with each passing second of the man's cackling.

"Hey, hey. Your majesty, are you alright?" Elyse looked up to see Thenan helping him up as numerous knights entered the throne room.

"You fool. This wasn't part of the plan." Thenan cursed under his breath. Plan? Does Thenan know the man?

After stabbing the mysterious envoy to death, the four princes suddenly backed away from the man in shock, as if they just snapped out of a trance. The runes that covered the man's body had stopped glowing as they are now covered in blood. The blood continued to spread at the floor of the throne room as do the whispers of shock among the nobles present. Clearly unnerved by what just happened, the king called off the banquet and ordered that knights to patrol the whole castle and the capital for the remainder of the night.

Silvia stayed with Auria that night. Auria for her part didn't sleep well. She had recurring nightmares of the man's laugh as he was being stabbed to death by the four princes. The same goes for Elyse whose dreams were filled with the corpse of the envoy.

The greatest shock, however, came next morning. Grenwald had died. The advisor was found in his room lying in a pool of blood, his body covered with numerous stabs, the same stabs that the four princes made. Grenwald was cursed by envoy to suffer the same fate as the latter. News of Grenwald's death and the midnight envoy quickly spread throughout the kingdom. Together with it, another set of rumors have begun, rumors of a rebellion, rumors about the so-called Midnight Council.