As the Duke was going towards the village William talked about, his heart was battling with his mind. He loved his son so much that he was willing to give his life for him, but, at the same time, this meant he had to make sure William was safe. On one hand, he was worried that that village could be working with the Kingdom of Tatras and that William will be in danger if he continues to be friends with Oliver. On the other hand, William was so happy today, and he knew that the good results at the entry exam were not the main reason... the reason was the fact that he finally made a friend. Somehow Oliver showed no interest for William's family name and status, but actually tried befriending him, something that had never really happened to William. The way that all the other kids his age approached him only to get benefits, which made William see everyone as shallow, so he never made any friends before. As he was getting closer to the village, he felt quite conflicted as he knew that William was really mad about this, but, at the same time, he knew that it was best to make sure. If Oliver was innocent, the Duke planned even on offering him the possibility to move in at their palace, or come over whenever he wanted, without needing an appointment or invitation. However, if he was guilty, he will never see the light of day again...
The troops led by the Duke arrived at the village and spread out in teams of two. They started entering homes and searching for anything that could make the villagers suspicious. The village started to get noisy. People were trying to get the soldiers out, but they didn't dare to attack them as they knew who would win...
The Duke went directly to the orphanage with 2 soldiers. They searched every inch of the orphanage and couldn't find anything suspicious inside. Of course they woke everyone up. Oliver was a little bit dizzy and for sure very confused. What were soldiers doing in the orphanage. That was something that you don't see every day, or rather, every night...
"Excuse me, could you tell us what you are doing and who gave you permission to enter?" asked Oliver politely.
"Mind your own business, kid!" responded in a harsh tone one of the soldiers.
"You know that entering a private property without a decree is illegal. You can be sued for it..." said Oliver in a very composed manner.
"I'll show you 'decree'!" said in an angry tone the soldier and threw his fist at him.
Oliver had kind of expected this. It was common for soldiers from the capital to treat villagers like animals and use their brute force to show them who's boss. However, Oliver wasn't your usual orphan. He knew the law and he knew how to defend himself, so, within three moves, he was sitting on top of the angry soldier.
"Do you also know that for attacking a soldier you are sent to prison, kid?" said the soldier threatening Oliver. The kid was too good to be an ordinary boy. He had to be one of the slave traders! There's no way an untrained normal kid could have avoided that attack!
"I am aware of that. Also, I am aware of the fact that if a soldier attacks a citizen without reason, he can lose his job and go to prison. If the person attacked defends without killing the soldier, there is nothing that the court can do to him. And I am sure that the person watching this from the shadows knows this as well." said Oliver looking in the direction of the Duke.
The Duke was shocked that his presence was noticed, but now he was sure of it: this was Oliver and he was not an ordinary boy. There was something odd about him. Why would a kid like him be in an orphanage? The way he moved showed that he had more than just training: he had talent. He must have had extraordinary good stats at birth for all physical categories, and as for how well he knew the law to be able to recall it so accurately at a stressful moment like this while remaining calm, he must have high IQ and EQ (emotional intelligence). So, he was either a trained assassin with years of experience, or at least a One In A Million. To let him free would be a big mistake, if he was guilty, so the Duke decided to test him:
"Hello! I am Duke of Avondale. This soldiers came in on my orders, and if I remember the law correctly, the King and the Duke of Avondale, the King's brother, have the right to order such things. Is that not true?" said the Duke as if he was not sure and seeked confirmation.
Oliver suddenly bowed. "You are right, Your Majesty! I am sorry for my rude behavior. Is there anything we can help you with?" he said somewhat confused. The Duke of Avondale was also William's father. What could he be doing here? Did something happen to William?
"Yes there is. Oliver, I want you to come with me. You will be taken to Susa for an interrogation. Do you have any objections?" said the Duke.
Oliver knew now that the Duke knew who he was, as he called him by name, but he didn't know what was his reason for coming after him. He felt a bit suspicious, but William looked very much like this man, so he must be saying the truth about being the Duke of Avondale. He could only go with him and find out what this was all about.
"No, Your Majesty." said Oliver.
"Good! We are meeting with the other soldiers at the Village Hall and from there we are going straight to the capital." announced the Duke and turned to leave, but then stopped: "Soldier, tie him up!"
In an instant, the soldier who was under Oliver got on top of him and tied his hands behind his back. Oliver was shocked as he thought he had overpowered that soldier. This weren't ordinary soldiers. Could this soldiers be the Duke's elite troops he read about?
"Let's go!" said the Duke and left.
Sister Mary couldn't hold it in anymore. She was so confused. What was going on? Had Oliver done something to upset the Duke?
"Oliver, what happened? Why are they taking you? This must be a misunderstanding! Or did you offend him by accident? Please tell me you are not in trouble!" said sister Mary in tears.
"Can I speak a moment with her, please?" Oliver asked the soldier.
"You have one minute. But I will have to stand next to you so you don't run away." responded the soldier a lot kinder. His earlier reaction must have been an act to test Oliver.
"Thank you!" said Oliver gratefully. Then he turned to sister Mary and said: "Don't worry about a thing! I didn't do anything wrong, so they will just interrogate me and then let me go. Something must have happened in the capital and now they are probably interrogating possible suspects."
"But why would you be a possible suspect? And why would the King's brother, the Duke of Avondale, come personally after you?" said sister Mary still worried and she was right: the Duke didn't move out personally for any minor problem.
"Well... Today I took the test together with his son. I was the only one besides him that took the test today and we got along really well. Given this scenario, if something were to happen to someone from the royal family, I would be one of the first suspects, right? But rest assured: I didn't do anything, so they won't do anything to me. I'll be back in the morning or somewhere around noon, I suppose. Could you prepare my luggage, because in two days I have to go and confirm my place at The Academy?" finished Oliver to direct sister Mary's attention to something else.
"Ok! I will take care of your luggage, so you take care of yourself. If you are not back by tomorrow evening, I am coming to Susa to search for you!" she said trying to encourage him to be brave. She was sure that Oliver was innocent, but he sure was unlucky. He only met the Duke's son and now, because of that, he has to go to an interrogation.
Oliver left escorted by the soldier while all the kids from the orphanage were crying and sister Mary was barely keeping herself together.
The Duke, Oliver and the two soldiers met with the others at the Village Hall. The Duke questioned the other soldiers if they found anything suspicious, but they hadn't found anything, so the Duke ordered their departure and they all left for the capital.