The Royal Palace...
Riverville,
Verum.
...
At the balcony of the royal palace, three figures could be seen peering down at the scenery laid out before them. The first was a tall man who appeared to be in his late fifties, who despite his age still had a well-toned body and very shrewd looking eyes.
The other was an extremely beautiful young woman who had brown hair and very intelligent eyes. while she appeared to be around eighteen to nineteen years of age she still managed to look extremely mature and voluptuous in her close-fitting robes.
The third was a young man that looked to be in his mid-twenties and while he possessed quite a great physique and handsome features, his permanent scowl ruined his good looks.
"Father why did you have to send our men to help that old Buffon. I don't see the reason for helping him when there's nothing in it for us. Honestly, I think he should be already glad that we didn't join Aries in looting him, why did he have to ask us to clean up after him now that he messed everything up?" The scowling youth asked the older man in an extremely frustrated tone.
The shrewd king looked to his son and gave a disappointed sigh before replying in a cold voice.
"Brandon you disappoint me. What have I always said about you not seeing the bigger picture? Do you think I am just wasting my resources, out of what? Goodwill?" The king of Verum asked in a frigid tone.
"I-I'm sorry, Fa-father." He stammered incoherently hearing his father's words.
"Ai... Listen you can't be this tunnel-visioned, you would be my heir in the near future and I can't have you behaving like a nincompoop. You will come to understand soon enough, just watch what I do and learn from it, alright?"
"Y-yes Royal father."
The king turned from his son and cast a deep gaze towards the horizon before speaking without turning back.
"Alina..."
"Yes, Royal father?" The young beauty who had been standing quietly in the corner replied in an even, confident tone, much unlike her elder brother.
Seeing this the king gave a nod of approval inwardly before he continued.
"What do you think of Tukhus's son, that Everhard boy?" The king asked in a seemingly nonchalant way.
Hearing the question the young lady thought for a moment before replying.
"Stupid, obsessive, naive and short-sighted." She said plainly without showing any expression.
"Hmm. care to elaborate."
"Basically, a slightly useful tool."
"Useful, hmm... Hahaha! Agreed he is stupid but still useful." The king paused for a moment before bursting out in a fit of laughter, leaving the siblings to their own devices.
With the king gone, realizing she had nothing left to do there Alina decided to leave, but just as she turned around a shadow appeared in front of her.
"You think you are so smart eh? you sure love running your filthy mouth all over the place you stupid woman." Brandon blocked her sneering.
Hearing his words she kept quiet but her eyes were soon filled with scorn and disregard.
Noticing this, the young prince got even more irritated.
"I don't like those eyes of yours." He scowled grabbing her jaw.
"Just you wait, when that old prick dies and I become king I will rent you out to one of those mountain tribe chiefs to be trained on how to be a proper woman by their most brutish men before sending you off to palace brothel to entertain our royal guests."
"Let go of me." She muttered in a soft voice yanking his hand off her lower jaw.
"Heh!"
*PUH*
Brandon chuckled at her defiance. Glancing at her in disgust before spitting sputum at her feet.
"Women, tch! creatures as useless as they should know the only place in this world they are useful is under a man's crotch." He muttered walking away
Alina stood there silently watching her brother's back fade off into the distance. Her eyes radiating a cold calculating light she smiled, muttering to herself.
"Men..."
"Why are they all such wretched, paltry animals?"