4 The Convicted Son
With a loud clang, the King of Maraire slammed his goblet onto the table causing it groan under the tremendous amount of force. However, the king did not pay any attention to whatever pain his table may be feeling.
"What did you say happened to my son?" Snarled the king with indignant fury.
The messenger gave the king another salute. "The first born prince has been injured due to the accidental rampage of his rain skill."
"What was the cause of this incident."
"Apparently, another student aggravated the prince to the point where a lighting bolt was unintentionally called down and stuck the two of them."
The king tensed up in his seat. "Is my son alright?"
The messenger nodded, albeit with a slightly sour look. "The first born prince has been treated with no lasting damage. He will undoubtedly make a full recovery."
The king let out an audible sigh of relief. "At least my son is out of harms way now."
The messenger's sour face became even sour. "Actually, your highness, the situation is far from being over. I'm afraid that the first born prince is still in a precarious situation."
The king frowned. "Didn't you say that my son was safe and sound and would make a full recovery? What else is the matter then?"
".... the commoner who instigated the incident was killed in the lightning strike."
The king froze in his seat and stared at the messenger in silence before speaking out in a soft voice. "Don't tell me the commoner was a citizen of the Freolibera Coalition...."
"I'm afraid so, your highness."
The king's eyes started to dim while his complexion became pale. The strength in his body seemed to escape him as he weakly laid his back against his chair. "How did the Freolibera Coalition respond?"
The messenger let out a wry laugh. "They were furious of course."
"Was it made clear that it was their side that instigated the situation? Their civilian was the one who cause the skill to uncontrollably activate."
The messenger shook his head. "If that was the only problem then the Freolibera Coalition wouldn't be able to say a thing against us.... however, there is another reason why they are furious."
"And why is that?"
"On the scene of the site, a majority of the healers focused on aiding and treating the first born prince instead of the commoner who had more severe wounds. By the time they were finished with the first born prince, it was too late to save the commoner."
The King tightly gripped his fists. "Why didn't those healers split up their team and attempt to save the both of them equally?"
"The commoner boy required an immediate B rank heal in order for him to hold a chance of survival. However, there were only 3 C ranked healers and two D ranks on the scene. If the healers focuses on the commoner boy, the boy might have had a chance of survival however the healers were afraid of incurring your wrath in case the firstborn prince suffered any permanent damage so they prioritized the prince first."
The king placed his head into his hand. "Why didn't the healers quickly heal the commoner after healing my son? They should've had enough time and enough mana to heal them both-"
"The healers accidentally overused their mana on the first born prince and was thus unable to completely heal the commoner. It is said that all they were able to do was make the final moments of the boy as slow and painful as possible."
The king let out another sigh that seemed to add ten years to his age. "What do the Freolibera Coalition wish from us?"
The messenger opened his mouth but was unable to flesh out the words he wished to say. After a few minutes of silence, the messenger was finally able to say with great difficulty, "they wish for the head of the first born prince."
The king immediately pushed his chair back and slammed his arms onto the desk, causing cracks to fracture all over the furniture and made the messenger terribly flinch. His previous demeanor of an aged man had fallen off him like shackles and revealed an unbridled power beneath. Despite the aggressive behavior he showed, the king's face was far from showing any emotion. In fact, the king's lack of emotion was what made him so terrifying.
"Send a warning to the King of Metal and tell him that I am not afraid of starting a war between the Maraire Kingdom and Freolibera Coalition."
The messenger paled. "B-but your highness-"
"Tell that arrogant romanticist that I will come after him as the King of Water and personally deliver his severed head to the goddess of water." Coldly stated the king before sitting back down in his seat.
Just as the shivering messenger was about to exit the King's workroom and deliver the message to the King of Metal, the official leader of the Freolibera Coalition, a person who had been quietly observing from the side room and coughed. "Excuse me your highness, but if I may, may I share a couple of thoughts?"
"Proceed advisor," replied the King of Maraire with a gaze of utter apathy.
"As we all know..." drawled the advisor, pausing slightly for dramatic effect. "The firstborn prince is... infamous for his.... appearance and talent. Although it pains me to say this, handing over the firstborn prince to the Freolibera Coalition may be the best choice we have."
The king's fist involuntarily clenched even more. "Explain."
"Well you see.... the Freolibera Coalition are superior in wealth and.... in certain cases.... determination. They fight to avenge, in their opinion, a fellow comrade unfairly left to die for a, if it may not be so presumptuous of me to say, a useless prince. Meanwhile, a small portion of our soldiers may feel... unwilling to die for a prince with no particular skill set. Another point is that the Freolibera Coalition will gain a righteous reason to invade our kingdom."
"And seek a mutual destruction of both of our lands?"
"There is a rumor that the King of Metal has allied with the King of Thunder. Pardon me for the disrespect but it will be hard for even you to duel two Elemental kings alone."
"Stop dragging yourself words and get to the point."
"Yes your highness," drawled the advisor once more. "The point is that war with Freolibera Coalition will cost us greatly when it could be avoided. We could also say that as the firstborn prince of Maraire, he must take on his royal duty to serve the people and.... do what must be done for peace."-
The king glared furiously at the advisor with all the indignant wrath a raging sea could muster. "Are you telling me to send my own son to an execution stage? Willingly?"
"I wouldn't necessarily use.... execution stage but yes. Sacrifice the prince for the welfare of the kingdom. No one will blame you for it your highness. The firstborn prince always had rumors surrounding him. And his lack of talent also meant that he was an unlikely candidate for the throne as well."
As if deciding between killing the impudent advisor before him or letting him live, the King of Maraire silently observed for a moment before letting out a sigh. He collapsed back into the chair like an old, weary man.
"So in order to be a good king, I must kill the fatherly emotions within me?"
"Yes, your highness."
".... Tell the King of Metal to change his mind about the execution of my son."
The advisor frowned. "My king-"
"And if the King of Metal will not concede, tell him that I will end the life of the prince myself. I'd rather him die quick and swift to my blade then be tortured and played with till his death. If he doesn't agree to that condition, tell him that this will be war and I will make sure to destroy his Coalition to the last speck of dust even if I must sacrifice ever other human life in my kingdom."
The messenger flinched while the advisors frown grew even deeper. "My king! I do sorely advise-"
"The discussion is over. Leave my room at once."
The messenger immediately bowed before dashing out the door while the advisor left the room slowly and reluctantly.
Once everyone had gone, the King gently picked up the goblet and caressed the symbol of a fountain imprinted on it's side and closed his eyes.
"Oh goddess of the sea, please answer my prayer. Is what I'm doing truly the correct path? Is my son's sacrifice necessary for the survival of this kingdom? Will my blade be forced to consume the blood of, not an enemy, but my very own blood?"
The king placed the empty goblet back down on the table, still caressing the fountain on its side. "I do not know the correct path.... I do not know."
