Chapitre 8: Chapter 8

~Celestial Realm~

~The King's Castle~

Prince Velia, the eldest and the Crown Prince was the first to make his appearance. He was easily as huge as his father, and King Rinon only had a couple of inches on him. He swept right in, going down on one knee to bow to his father who acknowledged him with a formal "Rise."

Prince Calas showed up shortly after, doing the same as his brother.

Reqiel just bowed his head quietly in his sitting position to acknowledge their presence, hoping that if he didn't say a word to them, they wouldn't talk to him.

"How are you doing, Reqiel?" Prince Calas looked right at him from across the table to ask politely.

"Fine, thank you." He mumbled, wishing that lunch would go by quickly.

Attendants hurried in to serve them as soon as they were settled in, quietly moving around with ease even though their wings were out, Reqiel could never.

He zoned out while his adopted family discussed over his head, it wasn't like he could contribute to their conversation, he barely paid attention to the High Council meetings. Instead, he turned his attention to trying to picture what it would be like to leave the Royal Mount, anything to distract himself from the inevitable moment when his father would break the news... or not.

Lunch seemed to go by peacefully and Reqiel was starting to relax even, simply enjoying the meal with the rest of his family's conversation acting like white noise in the background.

He knew how to ride a horse, thankfully, as well as a hundred other things that he had never gotten to use. Riding a horse with his wings out was something he could accomplish but the entire process would be devoid of grace which was unfortunately required of him, being the Prince that he was.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't hear the King call his name, only startling out of his daze when Prince Calas nudged him under the table.

"Y-Yes?" He blinked, slightly confused.

"Father was speaking to you." Calas was quick to inform him.

Reqiel's heart jumped at this, anxiety churning up his stomach. Had his father said something about him going to the celebrations and he hadn't been listening? Would that enrage him and make him decide to not let him come along after all?

"Calm down, child." King Rinon spoke up before Reqiel could work himself into a fit, his voice calm. "Give your brother a chalice of water." He said to Velia, a clear difference in his tone.

"Thank you." Reqiel appreciated timidly after taking the gold chalice with both hands. This time he paid attention to the conversation, he didn't want what just happened to repeat itself.

"I was asking if anyone behaved strangely towards you at the Council meetings?" King Rinon repeated himself.

Reqiel's eyes grew round at this, his shock visible. He had not been expecting the King to ask such a question. "Um… well…" He trailed off, actually putting thought into the question this time.

The first person to pop in his mind was Archangel Ethrond but being a nuisance seemed a bit undeserving of what would come to him if Reqiel were to mention his name to the King. He didn't want to be responsible for the Archangel's fall from grace.

"Not quite, they all mostly leave me well alone." He finally got out.

They all shared heavy glances, leaving Reqiel feeling out of it and very lost.

Lunch was wrapped up soon after that and both of his elder brothers immediately made themselves scarce, and he followed suit.

The King might be much nicer to him but he was still incredibly intimidating, not to mention the very obvious fact that he was still debating his decision and Reqiel didn't want to give him a reason to change his mind.

Sarell was patiently waiting for him at the entrance to the castle and he quickly got into his carriage, his excitement mixed with anxiousness and the dread of Archangel Ethrond's upcoming visit.

In the solitude of his carriage, he could finally relax and think about all that had happened. He had come to a realization after he had seen King Rinon's reaction to his request that he was never going to Earth, at least certainly not for the next century.

Besides, he had merely been fantasizing, Earth was a hunting ground which meant there were definitely demons roaming around, he didn't even know how to hold a sword, how was he expected to protect himself or even more unimaginable, defeat the demon?

He was happy that the King had seen it fit to grant his request but meant that everything had to be done perfectly, he could not risk making a mistake if he wanted the King to grant another favor.

He was very satisfied with being able to visit the Kingdom once in a while, this was just the start. With time, he would gradually convince the King to lessen his restrictions, hopefully.

Sarell was the one to help him out of his carriage when he got back to his own castle, "Did anything go wrong?" His red-haired personal attendant asked as soon as they got past the huge front doors of the castle, the entourage slowed to a stop after getting halfway past the marbled floors of the foyer.

"No." Reqiel made a sour face. "I can't believe you don't trust me."

"I know who I raised, besides it isn't your job on the line," Sarell said without mincing his words.

"Fair enough." Reqiel grudgingly agreed. "Now, I'm off to my room, please try not to bother me until Archangel Ethrond shows up." He said very seriously.

Sarell didn't even hide his expression of disgust. "That trussed-up lackey is coming here again? What for?"

"I have no idea, he invited himself over for dinner as usual, and be careful how you address him, he's an Archangel… Were you not just worrying about your position?" He ended in a whisper, looking around although the attendants and guards around would never breathe a word to anyone.

"When he acts like one, I'll treat him as such. You're far too nice, your Grace," Sarell hmphed. "But of course, I'll let you have your rest now, just please don't…"

"Too late." A guard mumbled.

Reqiel had already bolted up the stairs, gathering up his gauzy robes in both hands as he dashed up the stairs; he was too impatient to get out of his stuffy clothing. If he had let Sarell handle it, knowing his personal attendant, he would make such a huge ceremony over it and Reqiel needed some time alone to recover from all of the socializing he had done in just one day.

If he didn't get enough time to recover, today might just be the day that he would snap and tell Archangel Ethrond what he truly thought of him. He would rather not though, it would not benefit him to make enemies considering how fragile his position was.

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