After parting with Putray, who wore a strange expression, in Heroic Spirit Pce, following his habit for the past three years, Thales walked out of the narrow and deste Blood Court with a book under his arm. He headed towards the stable in thepany of his bodyguards.


    Wya followed the group with a resigned expression, while Ralf quietly tailed the prince. It seemed like he was already used to this.


    There were about a dozen Constetiate soldiers behind them—most were men recruited from Broken Dragon Fortress years ago, including Genard the veteran and Willow, who was now no longer a new recruit. They had journeyed through countless hardships with the prince.


    On the outer perimeter however, the personal guards of Dragon Clouds City’s Archduchess and the pce guards were sending messages back and forth. It was as if they were about to face a great enemy. Groups of soldiers departed to clear the path ahead of them every now and then. Lord Justin, who was leading the troops, wore a dark and tense expression. He was performing his duty meticulously—to ensure the safety of the special guest.


    After all, it was an order from the archduchess.


    "For your safety, I sincerely suggest that you postpone our trip outside the pce for a few more days, at least until the archduchess’ hearing on state affairs is over, Your Highness." Wya was seemingly unable to ept the second prince’s leisurely steps. "By then, the White de Guards... I mean, the Archduchess’ Guards will have enough men to form your entourage, instead of putting their focus on the Hall of Heroes."


    Wya, the attendant nced at the Nortnd soldiers around him—it was half the number of men during the prince’s usual outings. Many Dragon Clouds City vassals visited the day before and after the council hearing. A great portion of the Archduchess’ Guards, be it the remaining former White de Guards or the elite soldiers trained by the Star Killer for the past few years, were assigned to the archduchess’ side.


    Thales pulled out the brown-covered book from under his arm, stroking the words on it, "The Light of Humanity: The Beginning and End of the Temple of Knights". He whistled in the way Ralf had taught him to, with nonchnce.


    Wya Caso had only returned to his country twice during his past six years of serving the prince in Eckstedt. Every time he came back, he appeared to mature even more. However, he was just as solemn and overly serious as before. That tense demeanor of his never loosened up.


    ’That won’t do... especially when we’re facing opponents like that,’ Thales continued to smiled and speak to himself internally.


    The prince then said in a rxed manner, "The issue of my safety when ites to assassins? The Nortnders are not idiots. If even a scalded kid is afraid of fire, it would be more so for a country whose king has been assassinated."


    Lord Justin, a former White de Guard, snorted loudly and mumbled something beside him. Thales, who had pretty good hearing, seemed to have heard him say, "Look who’s talking."


    Thales pretended not to hear it and shrugged. "Besides, it’s tragic enough to be put under house arrest in an adversary’s city like a prisoner. Do not strip away one of my very few forms of entertainment left."


    "Tragic? I find that you seem to be enjoying your ’prison’ life." Wya rolled his eyes. Now that he had be much closer to the prince, he retorted sarcastically, "Moreover, I have never seen any prisoner in such good terms with the ’warden’, so much so that she promises you time to routinely get ’fresh air’ every month as you please."


    Thalesughed. He waved at Wya without turning his head around. "Do not put it so simply. ying chess outside the pce is the pitiable right I’ve earned from the owner of Dragon Clouds City as well as Count Lisban after putting in a lot of effort and suffering thorough humiliation in the process."


    ’Suffering from humiliation? Putting in much effort?’


    Wya’s facial expression instantly became as sour as that of Lord Justin beside him.


    ’Are you referring to the countless times you made the archduchess skip ss with you and plunge the whole Heroic Spirit Pce into chaos?’


    "Must it be today?" Wya’s submissive naturepelled him to suppress the urge to talk back. The attendant then said with a steely look, "If there is no other way, you can y chess in the pce—after all, you only y against yourself."


    Under King Chapman’s surveince in the eerie Dragon Clouds City, and before the prince’s status, which was a basic guarantee for someone to be burdened with great responsibilities, what Eckstedtian noble would dare y chess with the sole heir of Constetion unless he or she was looking for trouble or harboring ill intentions?


    "Chess is not the point, ’getting some fresh air’ is, Wya." Thales continued to walk without stopping, patting the book in his hand with his left palm. "I do not count on people like you, who cane and leave Dragon Clouds City freely, to understand my feelings as a prisoner."


    Wya shook his head in resignation, but just as he was about to speak again—


    "Alright, Wya, please cut it out." Thales waved his index finger behind him, ending the conversation coolly. "Learn from Midira. He never talks as much."


    Wya frowned. His skeptical gaze lingered on Midira Ralf, the Phantom Wind Follower.


    As expected, the mute Ralf flipped him off emotionlessly without a word.


    "I cannot deny that." Wya sighed in pain. He looked down and rubbed his forehead. "He indeed doesn’t talk much."


    Thales whistled.


    At that very moment, a youthful and loud female voice sounded above them.


    "Oh-oh! Young Thales, are you leaving the pce again?"


    rmed, a number of new guards appointed by the archduchess pointed their bows and arrows skyward. However, the other guards remained calm, seemingly used to it. Wya and Ralf rolled their eyes almost at the same time.


    A thump sounded as a petite, hooded figure leaped down from a tree. She ced one hand on her waist and did a thumbs-up with the other hand while she tried to catch up to their pace. "No worries, with my presence, there will be no issues concerning his safety!"


    "Why do you always crawl on the branches, Lady Aida?" Wya questioned the hoodeddy, who was supposedly the prince’s chief protector.


    "The sun’s too bright. Of course I have to stay under the shade!"


    Wya lifted his head with a dubious look. He could not figure out how a shade had anything to do with tree branches.


    "Sorry, Aida. I’m just going to y chess in Spear District." Thales sighed, and said in frustration, "I’m not hunting hares in the outskirts of the city."


    "Huh?"


    Aida ced her hands on the back of her head, walking backwards and facing him. The hood that covered half of her face could not mask the disappointment in her voice. "Can’t you... just take two more steps?"


    "Two steps to get to the outskirts of the city from Spear District—do you mean the two steps of a great dragon?"


    Aida said pitifully, "The food they serve in Heroic Spirit Pce is always cold. Don’t you think... Kid, think about the steaming hare meat!"


    "The cold meals in Heroic Spirit Pce are for your safety. To inspect the food—"


    "Speaking of safety..." Aida made a fist andmented bitterly, "As your protector who follows you everywhere you go, I’ve fought a bloody battle. I was heavily wounded and I eventually saved all of you from the enemy as well as Dragon Clouds City... Now, I just want some hot meat to eat, but you can’t even grant me this small request..."


    "Are you talking about a certaindy who rushed into Heroic Spirit Pce with a grease-covered mouth six years ago, only to find that everything was over? Then, she happily asked me for money to settle some bills to prove that she was not a chicken thief?" the prince replied calmly.


    The next second, Thales turned on his heels, tilting his head in a practiced manner. He managed to dodge the finger of the angry and embarrassed elfdy, who had stood on her toes and attempted to poke him.


    "Hey, hey, hey, you dodged it again! This is the third time!" Thedy in the hooded cape froze in her ce, lifting her right index finger and trembling. "Why are you so used to this?!"


    Thales exhaled, shook his head, and kept walking. He left the mournful and helpless Aida (what happened to the adorable little Thales who could never evade my deadly poke?) as well as the countless soldiers and guards, who also ignored her while they walked forward.


    During the past six years, everyone had already gotten used to the peculiarities of the protector. Wya cast her a sympathetic nce, whereas Ralf emitted a soft, quivering whistle as a foil to her current emotional state.


    Thales sensed that the unique surge of power under his feet and on the side of his neck had slowly faded. He then felt a hint of weariness in his muscles. He frowned.


    It was that familiar surge of power, which helped him evade Aida’s finger earlier.


    The grim-faced Thales recalled the words of a man wielding a long, ck sword on a certain bloody night many years ago.


    ’"This is a cursed power... you can only upgrade it through a special method..."’


    ’It’s just as he said. It’s been six years since...


    ’But the effects and price for using it...’ Thales clenched his fist, feeling the soreness in his legs and neck.


    ’It has stayed the same.’


    Thales strode into the stable beside Heroic Spirit Pce, and stomped on a stool to mask his intention of rxing his leg muscles.


    Surrounded by guards on both sides, the prince came to the paddock he was familiar with. A sturdy ck horse stuck its head out of the fence, shoving its nose at him affectionately.


    "Did you treat her well?" Thales stroke the ck horse’s chin, smiling and checking her teeth. He said to the stableman beside him, "You know how Jennie likes to be clean."


    The professional stableman of Heroic Spirit Pce pounded his chest proudly, and promised the prince that his steed had never been healthier.


    Jennie, the ck horse—the prince’s ride was brought to Dragon Clouds City three years ago by the diplomat group from Constetion Kingdom. She was a good filly, chosen meticulously from hundreds and thousands of steeds. As a hybrid of a Nortnd war horse and a nd stallion, she inherited her mother’s fiery temper as well as her father’s powerful leg strength; a lot of riders who tried to tame her had gotten a taste of both.


    Surprisingly, Thales, who was particrly untalented in horse riding, got along with Jennie rather well. Even Viscount Kenney, the then-head of the diplomat group was in awe to see that.


    Thales chuckled, shoving the book in his hand into a bag on the saddle. He untangled Jennie’s rein, while Wya and the other soldiers looked for their mounts.


    "Good morning, honorable Prince Thales." At that very moment, a gloomy but calm female voice sounded outside the stable. "As an elder in her fifties, I have the obligation to remind you to ensure your own safety during this trip."


    The soldiers and guards cleared a pathway, bowing to the visitor. The Constetiates frowned in unison.


    Thales shut his grinning mouth and sighed with his back facing thedy.


    "Morning, Madam Ginghes." He did not turn his head to look at her. He just carried on with preparations for his departure. "I thought you were supposed to be with the archduchess at this time, assisting Her Grace to present herself to the vassals and nobles in a formal, elegant fashion."


    Ginghes, one of the archduchess’ personal administrators, was a noblewoman in her fifties with the appearance of someone in her thirties. She was dressed inly and she wore a simple headdress. She was proper, and often had an expression more serious than Wya’s. Her etiquette andnguage were impable.


    Allegedly, she was a widow of King Nuven’s vassal. Six years ago, she was invited by Regent Lisban into Heroic Spirit Pce to take care of the archduchess as well as teach her some necessary rules of etiquette. Like Jines Bajkovic of Renaissance Pce, she was an excellent and responsible administrator—if only she did not demand the Prince of Constetion, who should have been reading and rxing as he pleased, to also attend Nortnd etiquette lessons.


    By the way, she was one of the reasons why Thales skipped ss with the archduchess for the first time.


    Madam Ginghes still spoke with a voice that made one nervous against their will. "On a side note, I have brought messages from some important people.


    "I suggest you listen closely—even if you are from the South."


    Hearing that, Thales stopped what he was doing. He turned around and bowed before her.


    Madam Ginghes nodded, feeling satisfied. She stretched her swan-like neck and cleared her throat.


    "Her Grace of Dragon Clouds City instructed me to remind you that during the time of her hearing on state affairs," the administrator said proudly, "the newly-arrived books in the pce—"


    "Noted, Madam Ginghes." Thales scratched his ears as he felt his head pound. "Please report back to Her Grace that I will wait until shees back to open the gift."


    Madam Ginghes narrowed her eyes. Although her expression remained unchanged, Thales knew that she was not pleased with the prince’s interruption.


    A few minutester, thedy spoke again.


    The administrator’s attitude softened a little, but she still stared into Thales’ eyes. "Regent Lisban also demanded me to remind you that, during his regency, for your safety and the reputation of Dragon Clouds City, please obey the king’s order—"


    "Noted, Madam Ginghes." Thales caressed Jennie’s head,forting her of the displeasure brought on by her master not freeing her from her constraints. "Please thank His Grace, who still makes time to express his concerns despite being preupied with his duties, for me. Tell him that I will not leave Axe District and Spear District."


    Ginghes frowned slightly.


    "Lastly...


    "Commander Soray Nichs demanded me to remind you to cooperate with Lord Justin and the personal guards, considering the unique circumstance of the council hearing," Thedy’s voice softened, but it still made one feel uneasy. "Also, due to your problematic record of returning after eight at night two months ago...


    "This time, if you returnter than five in the evening, he will withdraw your guards and lock the gatehouse. Meanwhile, he suggests that you to deal with your own problems regarding food and amodation."


    Thales frowned before he took a deep breath and exhaled.


    In his mind, he filtered out Madam Ginghes’ courteous wording. Instead, he visualized the displeased Star Killer with his folded arms and pale, dead face as he said, "You tell him, don’t bother toe back after five. Just let him die out there!"


    The prince pushed open the fence, stepped on the stool, and then on the stirrup to mount the horse.


    "Alright, Madam Ginghes." The prince faced the stern-looking administrator as he contemted his words for a few moments. "Again, please pass my word to that damn... to Lord Nichs..."


    Administrator Ginghes raised an eyebrow.


    "Five in the evening?" Thales sighed and solemnly said, "How about he just go f*ck himself?"


    The next second, Thales flung his reins without any hesitation. Amid Jennie’s loud neighs, they sped off!


    The prince and his horse darted past the astonished administrator. They did not turn back. His personal guards and soldiers followed, including the resigned Wya, unfazed Ralf, and sulking Aida.


    He flung the reins in his hands and dashed out of the za in front of Heroic Spirit Pce, heading towards the First Gatehouse.


    .....


    The trip from Heroic Spirit Pce to Spear District did not take much time. With the Archduchess’ Guards and patrol units cooperating, the traffic on the streets and roadways was smooth.


    Thales had been honest about one thing when he teased Wya earlier: this was a hard-earned opportunity to get some fresh air—to y chess in Spear District near Heroic Spirit Pce.


    On horseback, Thales controlled the rising and falling movements of his body as he watched Jennie’s ears and gleeful steps from behind. His lips curled up.


    In the past six years, his horse-riding skills had improved drastically. In terms of culture and civility, Eckstedt may have been a cut below Constetion, but when it came to emphasis on military skills, even the most boorish and low-ranking Nortnd nobles could beat their Constetiate counterparts by a mile.


    Thales still remembered the outdoor lessons (to put it mildly), which he attended with the archduchess. When Nichs, the "instructor" found out about his only two students—Thales’ horse riding skills were inadequate due to his "allergy" to equines; the archduchess refused to mount the horse out of fear—the Star Killer got himself some thick ropes. With a look of indifference, he tied the two of them onto the horses and ignited the horses’ tails.


    The lesson took ce once a day, two hours each time.


    The results were quick to show. Ten dayster, both he and the girl had be skilled, if not "expert" horse riders amid all the nausea and vomiting.


    When this step was over, Nichs untied them and began to correct their riding posture as well as techniques. He then introduced them to horse-riding equipment.


    It was followed by lessons on how to wield weapons... then learning to hunt on horseback.


    Later on, a former White de Guard secretly told Thales that standard horse-riding training for the White de Guards was twice the amount of lessons and duration. On top of that, the torch to ignite the horse tail was reced with a beehive.


    Once he thought of this, the prince could not help sighing.


    A secondter, Thales tugged at the reins in his hand. Then, with a bit of force, he sat back at the same time. His legs glided to the back, forming a rxed posture.


    The intelligent Jennie began to slow down immediately. Once he made sure of this, Thales loosened the reins just in time to imply encouragement,forting the extremely excited and beautiful filly, craving to vent her energy. She let out a snort of dissatisfaction.


    Jennie stomped her hooves on the ground, and few secondster, she stopped before their destination.


    Wya and Lord Justin’s horses also stopped.


    Thales was stroking and praising the ted Jennie—she recently picked up the bad habit of whining to get her master’s attention. At the same time, hemented the fact that equines were just as difficult to deal with as humans.


    He recalled the hundreds of cavaliers in ck Sand Region. ’God knows how much time, and energy was spent on producing just one skilled cavalier unit.’


    Thales stepped down from the stirrups, handed the reins to Genard who was behind him, and looked up at his destination—a chess room in Spear District.


    Reportedly, it was originally a wonderfully-furnished inn for aristocrats until its owner died in a robbery during the catastrophe that shook Dragon Clouds City six years ago. After that, a fellow Camusian bought the ce and renovated it based on the original décor, turning it into a club exclusively for aristocrats. Business had been good, allegedly.


    But surely, there was no way its business could be good in the present—ever since the Prince of Constetion selected the ce to be the designated spot of his monthly outing three years ago, the chess room was forced to be cleared once a month for him. However, it turned out not to be a bad thing, because business improved instead of declining. Many people had rushed to visit the ce where the mysterious prince in the pce ’had fought’.


    Amid the business owner’s ttery, Thales stepped into the chess room. Hundreds of the Archduchess’ Guards and patrol units had thoroughly inspected the ce, quarantining it from the neighboring areas.


    The prince looked at the empty hall and sighed.


    He ambled up the stairs and came to the state room on the first floor. Guards including Justin, Wya and Ralf followed him closely.


    Led by the business owner, Thales walked through a door, arriving at thergest state room—it was a spacious, semi-outdoor room. The balcony on the side was facing the street of Spear District. The prince’s seat was on the balcony, from which one could overlook the street.


    From the balcony, Thales was not surprised to see countless personal guards and patrols on duty along the street and entrances of some nearby buildings. There were at least two hundred men with arrows on their bows. They patrolled the ce routinely, vigntly guarding it against any unexpected people. Almost every man was eyeing him closely on the balcony.


    Considering such an arrangement and atmosphere, on top of the martialw, even if the number of guards were reduced by half, there would not be another tragedy like the one six years ago.


    ’Once bitten, twice shy...’


    The prince shrugged, sat down, and put down his book.


    He shifted his gaze to the chessboard and chess pieces before him—"The Rise and Fall of the Empire" was still popr in the Western Peninsr and it spread through the peninsr from Alumbia Kingdom nearly a hundred years ago—the seat across the table, which was meant for his opponent was empty.


    "Alright." Thales gazed at the red king on the chessboard and cast a rather emotional look on the ck as well as red chess pieces in the box while he spoke to Wya and Justin, who were tirelessly inspecting his surroundings, "You may go out. The door will be left open anyway. And there is a balcony. It will be the same if you stand outside the door or on the street.


    "As usual, I want to be left alone."


    Behind Wya, Ralf nodded slightly. He put down a tray of examined food and water, grabbed the business owner who intended to fawn over them for a little longer and headed to the ground floor. Aida was nowhere to be seen. She was most probably on the roof.


    "Prince Thales," Lord Justin, the former White de Guard said cautiously, "as usual, three hours. If you need anything—"


    The prince exhaled. "I will let you know first thing."


    Lord Justin nodded and exchanged nces with Wya. Then, together, they strode to the doorway ten meters away behind Thales. They guarded the entrance as they peering at the prince, who was reading and ying chess.


    "It’s the same every time." Thales shook his head and chuckled. He then continued to take out the chess pieces from the chess box before he arranged them on the chessboard one by one.


    The state room and street fell back into silence. The only audible sounds were the soldiers’ footsteps and Wya’s muffled grumbles targeted at Ralf behind him.


    ’Imperial guards, catapults, shield warriors, pawns...’


    Just as Thales ced the secondst chess piece, and reached for thest one, two fair and spindly fingers with beautifully-shaped nails emerged.


    The fingers descended from above, pinching the ck king and cing it onto Thales’ chessboard. They positioned it nicely and made sure it was perfectly aligned with the edge of the board before they turned its front to face the red chess pieces.


    It was done in a meticulous, precise manner.


    "Thank you."


    Thales raised an eyebrow. He looked up, unsurprised, nodding at the unexpected guest who appeared all of sudden.


    It was a friend the prince had not met for a long time. The Air Mystic, Asda Sakern sat down elegantly and quietly in the chair across him. Then, he stared at the chess pieces on the chess board as his lips curled into a faint smile.