章節 23: Hide / Run

Love.

To nobles, the emotion was as rare as a nickel—and as useless to them in the same manner. Love is rarely seen as an advantage. Nobles who marry out of love are as scarce as hen's teeth. And that's why Alva could not believe his ears.

"Love?" Alva scoffed. "The only Crown Prince of a holy nation, in love with a riff-raff—a commoner who fights for a living? And a man at that! Just where is this empire headed? I know! That man seduced you, is that not so? If I was uninjured, I would have castrated that man who dares seduce you!"

"Alva, you are overstepping your boundaries." Dustan warned. "Master never seduced me. Is it so difficult to believe that pine for Master as a"

"Overstepping my boundaries—what! I have enough reason to eliminate that vile man! Your Highness, as your closest aide, you know I want the best for you. For you, I am willing to give up my life. I even followed you all the way here!"

"Which, I did not ask for."

Alva ignored Dustan's comment. "My prince, you are still too young to even be talking about love. In fact, you have yet to reach the age of maturity. How can you talk about loving someone when you are barely out of leading strings?"

"Alva, love does not come at a certain age."

"What do you know about love, Your Highness?" Alva questioned, as if to prove his point.

"I know more than you do, at the very least." Dustan retorted.

"Your Highness... I am your closest aide. It is my duty to serve you and follow you wherever you may go. I am only saying these things with your best interest in mind. What you feel for that... man, is not love." Alva reasoned.

"Why do you oppose me so, Alva? If you are indeed who you say you are, why do you continue to go against my wishes? Are you saying that I have no mind of my own? That I do not know what I am doing?"

Alva hesitated.

"Alva, I am capable of making my own decisions. It is my decision to go here, stay here—and if I shall leave, it will be of my own volition. Besides, there are things that you are simply unaware of. Do make an assumption when you have the complete knowledge of what you preach."

"Assumption? Well, Dustan, I see you have something of interest. You know the bastard's secret, eh?" Alva mockingly called him by his alias.

"... I will tell you. All in due time, my friend. But for now, trust me."

"So you do know."

Dustan stared at Alva in the eyes, unflinching. At his tranquil conduct, the blonde couldn't help but feel infuriated.

Alva chuckled bitterly. "Once again, you choose to leave me grappling in the dark, waiting for your explanation." Alva spat.

"Do not misconceive my actions, Alva. You know I mean well."

"I am beginning to doubt your discretion, Your Highness."

Dustan could only smile sadly. For he knew that no matter what he said, Alva would still refute him. The blonde had already closed off his mind.

"Go to sleep, Alva. Rest."

"But—"

Dustan's eyes glowed. "Sleep." Alva shut his mouth, compelling to Dustan's command.

And Dustan left with a heavy heart.

¤¤♡¤¤♡¤¤

"Master?" Hund called out for me at the other side of the door. However, I couldn't bring myself to face him.

Not him, or any of my disciples. I'm a failure as a Master. I can't even do something as simple as not kill my disciples. The tournament is in three days, but I was beginning to feel like I just want to drop everything.

My status as number one, my disciples, my role—I just want to hide from everything. To simply spend my time in this cold room and listen to the voice inside my head. To just rot away in apathy.

"Master..." Hund called out again.

From what I can tell, the man has been sleeping outside my door for the last three days. In the morning, he would head off to train with Dustan. And in the afternoon, he'd come back and give me a report of their progress.

This morning, Hund reported that Alva had finally gained consciousness and was on the way to recovery. He also reported how Dustan seemed pre-occupied during training. But he did reassure me and told me that the teen was doing better at handling the saber.

Hund's diligence to report things surprised me. I did tell him to keep an eye on Alva and Dustan. But, I never expected much from him—at least, not until that morning.

His obedience left nothing to be desired. Truly, it was the right decision to instill my will in his bones by giving him purpose. I believe, now, I've succeeded in turning him into the perfect dog.

"Master..."

And like a dog waiting on his master, he insisted on calling out to me—relentlessly so. I walked towards the door and sat down with my back against it. The door was warm.

I closed my eyes, simply listening to the sound of Hund from the other side of the door.

"Hund." I jolted in surprise. It was Dustan. "Is Master still refusing to eat?"

"... Yes, he is. He still doesn't respond." Hund answered. I hugged my knees to my chest.

"Master, I know you can hear me." Dustan sounded closer. "Please, open the door to us."

"You need to eat, Master." Hund added.

I decided against responding to their pleas.

"Master. Come out." Dustan changed his tone to a more commanding one. I frowned.

Did he lose his patience.

I heard him sigh after waiting for a while.

"I guess you really are immune to it." I heard him whisper on the door.

Immune? To what? His domineering tone? Like I hadn't had heard enough of that from Adelredus.

"Master," Dustan's tone went back to being soft. "I know you're scared. Confused, even. I know you just want to run away from everything."

What is this kid saying? I was almost tempted to come out and straighten his facts.

"But Master, running away is not the solution." He continued. "You have taught me that..." He whispered again, almost as if saying it to himself.

I heard him sigh. "Master, we are waiting for you. There is no need for you... to force yourself. But please, do not starve yourself. Take care of yourself..."

I had an inkling that Dustan wanted to say more, but couldn't.

The warmth on the door slowly disappeared. They must've left. I got up from my spot and went to my bed, wrapping myself in sheets to fight the cold. Left with my thoughts, I couldn't help but repeat Dustan's words in my head.

"Running away... am I now?" I scoffed.

創作者的想法
Ellaine_DT

Sometimes, I feel like running away from everything too. My responsibilities in school and circumstances at home, sometimes I just feel like everything is just too much.

And the only haven I have is all here in my head.

Well, that was depressing. I hope you guys would still hold on thoughhhhhh. Brighter days up ahead!

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