26 The Royal Court
The rising sun cast a rosy hue across the morning sky in the Kingdom of Assyria, illuminating the scene with golden rays of sunlight. The newly-risen sun illuminated the city streets with a gentle light, bringing with it a flurry of early-morning activity.
The citizens of the kingdom of Assyria, who had just begun to sell their meager commodities, glared with disdain at a magnificent carriage adorned with priceless gems and intricate designs as it slowly traversed the muddy, unpaved streets of their kingdom.
Inside the lavish carriage, two figures could be seen discussing leisurely, an expression of intense dissatisfaction on their faces.
"Damn that retard prince Alexander. Calling for a royal court meeting as he pleases." A pudgy middle-aged man with thinning brown hair cursed hatefully. He was dressed in an extravagant and ornate silk robes, and his chubby face was extremely unattractive as he spoke. From his extravagant outfit, it was evident that the chubby man was a noble of Assyria.
"Calm down, Earl Gerid. It is probably going to be another one of his useless meetings." A tall, slender man with a gaunt visage dressed in a two-piece medieval style suit sneered disdainfully.
"Most definitely Viscount Henry. If it weren't for his status as a crown prince, I would surely abstain from attending this ludicrous joke of a meeting." The chubby man now identified as Earl Gerid said, his tone incredibly condescending.
"We cannot skip a meeting of the royal court, Earl Gerid." Viscount Henry sighed helplessly.
"I do hope that this farce of a meeting would be concluded quickly. I have some new toys waiting for me back at home." Earl Gerid said, and traces of his lecherous depravity was clearly visible in his sly eyes.
Viscount Henry naturally knew what the toys were, but he merely shrugged in response. The unlucky virgin commoners who caught Earl Gerid's lecherous eyes would surely die after he had his fun with them, before he threw their bodies to be devoured by wild beasts or even worse, monsters.
Of course, what he did was punishable by Assyria's law, but then again, who in Assyria could actually punish Earl Gerid for his heinous crimes?
The crown prince of the kingdom was an incompetent fool who did not care about the well being of his citizens, his only concern being wine and beautiful ladies.
At least, that was his description until the battle for the defense of the castle walls.
The two nobles did not say anything else, and the coach fell into a comfortable silence, each thinking their own thoughts. After an hour of uneventful traveling, the two nobles arrived at the massive yet regal castle gates where Crown Prince Alexander resided.
"My Lords, we have arrived at the royal castle." The driver of the carriage respectfully informed the two nobles after bring the carriage to a halt.
Both Earl Gerid and Viscount Henry alighted gracefully from the luxurious carriage and started making their way towards the imposing royal castle looming over them.
On their way to the royal court hall, the duo also saw majority of the Assyrian nobles dressed in extravagant and ornate outfits similar to the ones they were wearing alighting from their various luxury carriages and making their to the royal court hall where the meeting Crown Prince Alexander called for would be held.
"This is quite a crowd, wouldn't you say?" Earl Gerid murmured as he observed the procession of nobles approaching the royal court hall, his beady-like eyes narrowing as a premonition of imminent disaster appeared in his heart.
"Our retarded crown prince probably has another foolish plan for the kingdom that would drive it to its early doom, and needs our advice as nobles before implementing the plans." Viscount Henry sneered, dismissing Earl Gerid's worries as baseless.
"Let's hope it's just as you say." Earl Gerid replied gloomily, still not convinced at his subordinate's words as he looked around the luxuriously dressed nobles.
At that moment, another fancy carriage came to a stop at the entrance to regal castle gates. Painted on the doors of the carriage was a ferocious bear, and the flags of the same ferocious bear mounted on the side of the carriage flapped wildly in the air.
However, as soon as the carriage came to a stop, every noble, regardless of their rank stood still and stared at the carriage, their eyes wide open in shock.
They could recognize the flag anywhere, as it was the flag of the household that held the most power in the Assyria besides the royal family.
The Duchy of Helios!
As if on cue, the door to the carriage opened, and a tall well built man dressed in an elegant red-three piece suit alighted from the fancy carriage, an elderly butler following closely behind.
Duke Oliver of Assyria was here!
The tall, well-built man paid no heed to the gawking nobles and walked imposingly towards the entrance to the royal court hall, his steps as bold as ever.
Earl Gerid's heart started beating extremely rapidly at that moment. His cautious instincts which had never failed him before was tingling dangerously, sending the chimes of warning bells down his spine.
Earl Gerid gulped fearfully. There was no doubt about it now. His premonition from earlier was right.
Today's royal court meeting would be very different from usual.
...
Inside a very opulent palace, a very handsome man could be seen styling his lustrous golden hair. On his broad shoulders draped a black velvet royal robe, and he wore an exquisite black and gold medieval-style three-piece suit studded with priceless gems.
There was a magnificent gold crown on his head, and two black earrings dangled from each of the piercings in his two ears, which he inherited from the body of the former crown prince.
The very handsome man was of course the crown prince of Assyria, Alexander Quinn.
Alexander took a step back after he finished his styling his hair, and took a look at the reflection of himself in the large mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
If the way he looked before was that of a crown prince who was indolent and leisurely, the way he looked now screamed of imperialism and dominance.
As for the reason he went all out to look extremely extravagant, it was because the royal court meeting was happening in the next two hours. He had to look both extravagant and imposing to the nobles attending the royal court meeting, otherwise with his infamous reputation as an incompetent crown prince, it would be a tad bit harder for him to assert his dominance.
Satisfied with his reflection the large mirror, he let out a contented sigh, before grabbing the black regal scepter that was resting on the side of his king sized bed.
As he walked towards the exit of his opulent palace in controlled and steady steps, he activated his second skill [Sovereign's Dominance], striking the feeling of fear and trepidation into the heart of any person bold enough to approach him.
'It is time to clean Assyria of its disgusting parasites.' Alexander thought icily as he stepped out of his palace, his azure irises completely devoid of any emotion.
