The Crown Prince was practicing his kickboxing very enthusiastically. The trainer and servants wondered why he seemed extra spirited today. They even noticed him smirking at times while he would start his sets again. The servants looked at each other and would smile as well, believing that the prince must be happy about his upcoming marriage.
After his workout, he grabbed his water bottle for a long drink and sighed in satisfaction. Everyone there noticed his happy mood as he smiled to himself and a laugh escaped his lips.
"I cannot wait to see the look on her face when she sees the ring I got for her. Then the look she will make when I take it back from her after our divorce!" chuckled the prince as he thought and took another gulp of water. "The price will definitely make her stunned when she learns how much it cost me to get my hands on that stupid ring!
"I will need to give this to her in a very public place so that everyone will see and remember that ring when she has to return it back after we divorce. I think at the Academy would be the perfect place to do so as there will be many noble sons and daughters. Too bad no one can record anything that happens at school, nor the paparazzi will be able to have any pictures of me giving it to her. Maybe I should ask her to see me outside the gate..."
"So, it seems that my dear cousin is excited about his upcoming wedding. How did you manage to get the girl so soon?" said a voice that broke the prince's thoughts.
"Zander! You are finally here! No doubt for my upcoming wedding. When did you get here?" asked the prince excitedly as he approached Zander and hugged him, making Zander give a face as he realized that he had just sweated from his workout.
"Alright! You missed me as much as I have, but could you perhaps take a shower first?" said Zander playfully making the prince laugh.
"What's the matter? Can you not stand a little sweat from your favorite cousin?" said Prince Maxen as he placed his arm around Zander, making him roll his eyes.
"Please! You are my cousin, and I would rather you be a pretty lady over a muscle-head guy. Maybe, like your new bride," jested Zander making the prince look away.
"If you want her, you can have her..." said Maxen under his breath, making Zander pause as he was the only one who had heard him mumble.
"Say that again?"
"Ha! Let us go to my study to further catch up," said Maxen as he quickly changed the subject while leading Zander to the study room, making Zander ponder in thought.
After the prince quickly showered, he went to meet Zander sitting in his study on a chair. Zander had found a copy of the file on the future Crown Princess on top of the study desk and was looking through it curiously. Maxen paused when he saw that Zander seemed engrossed with her picture as he made a face.
"You like that picture?" asked Maxen while Zander never looked up at him.
"So, this is my future cousin-in-law," stated Zander with a very neutral expression, startling Maxen to wonder what happened to his happy self.
"Yes. What are you thinking?" asked Maxen while looking at Zander's face when he suddenly looked up at Maxen.
"Nothing. Just thought how lucky you were to be getting married," said Zander with a pleasant smile, again startling Prince Maxen for the sudden change.
He had felt a little tense before but suddenly the tension in the air disappeared. Prince Maxen wondered if he was just imagining things. He smiled at Zander as he approached him to continue their original chat.
"How long are you staying this time? What about your mother, Aunt Primrose?" asked Maxen as he sat in front of him, while Zander smiled gently at him.
"Mother thinks it is time to come back home. So, unless something drastic changes, we should be staying permanently back here and I am to attend the Royal Academy with you," said Zander while Maxen seemed to get visibly excited.
"That is marvelous! Where, exactly, will you and Aunt Primrose be staying?"
"Well, right now I am staying in a hotel while I wait for my mother to get here. She expresses her deepest apologies that she does not believe she will make it to your wedding. She said she had to prepare to finalize our migration and had me lead the way. She should be here soon after your wedding," Zander said with an apologetic look, making Prince Maxen frown.
"Why are staying in a hotel? You are still a Prince of Glear. Just stay here until Aunt Primrose gets here and we can see about a more permanent residence afterwards," said Prince Maxen, leaving Zander to ponder over his words and smiled again.
"I see. Well, I will get someone to bring my things here. Are you sure that your parents will not mind? I had tried to get an audience with them earlier, but Queen Aunt and Royal Grandmother were finishing the details on your bride for her wedding dress, as for King Uncle... I was told he was not feeling well. Is everything alright?" asked Zander with a concerned tone while Prince Maxen turn away and sighed.
"He has his good days… today is not one of them," said Prince Maxen as Zander placed his hand on his shoulder in comfort. "I am glad that you are back. You are the only one that understands what I am going through. If only we never went that time, so many princes would have been saved, including your father."
"The payout would have been great if it did not end so tragic. Even the Princes of Edalelia lost their lives because of that incident. Only Royal Uncle was the only one who was lucky enough to live as long as he has from his generation. We are lucky that it did not affect us at all as he shielded us from the outcome. If he had not done so, I am sure that you and I would not have survived back then."
"No one should have been there to begin with. Now, Royal Father suffers greatly since that time and no one mentions that day by decree of Royal Grandfather when he was still alive. It is a dark history for the Royal families of Glear and Edalelia. I hear that there is still no Crown Prince since the last one passed away?"
"The Queen of Edalelia has been hesitant on which of her grandsons will inherit the throne. Some speculate that she wants to see which one will be a better ruler in the future. Unfortunately, rumors have it that they both offended a distinguished noble lady and were grounded severely because of it; however, no one knows if the rumors are true. The two Princes have been quiet for over half a year. Maybe the rumors are indeed true," said Zander as he stood beside Prince Maxen.
"I wonder… if the rumors are true, who did they offend? What did they do? Have you not had the chance to speak to them yourself, Zander?"
"I haven't seen them, but I am not close to them since we did not live in the capital. I only saw them during important gatherings," said Zander as he pondered while his eyes seemed to glisten when they fell on the pictures that were on the desk. "They were usually surrounded by many people, but they seem to be remarkably close with a certain young lady from a Marquess family. She was very well liked amongst the nobles and royals of Edalelia. No one has seen her, for nearly as long as the two princes have been supposedly grounded, since she has retreated to mourn the loss of her family."
"Lady of a Marquess family…" Prince Maxen mumbled as he seemed to recall an old, long and buried memory that quickly faded as soon as it came to mind.