Enzo and Carlos had gotten familiar with each other as they wandered through the forests effortlessly.
Enzo's aim with a bow was precise and swift, every moment he takes before aim was well synchronized with the movememts of grabbing his arrow.
Carlos was skilled in chanting quick spells if he was kept calm and not under pressure, with ease he continuously expanded his ice barrier, making it sturdier and more deadly.
After breezing through the forest, Enzo jolted to a stop and look behind at Carlos. "Only my grandparents live with me but they're out in the capital for tonight so you can stay with me." he offered with a smile.
Carlos smiled and gleefully agreed to Enzo's request, he had never had this much fun in a while, being able to spend time with someone his age was a miracle and a blessing. It all felt surreal to him, a thought rushed to his head, 'This was what I imagined the world to be.'
Enzo invited Carlos inside his home, which was a large cottage near the woods. The interior was dark and had a strong scent of jasmine, Enzo lit up the fire place, providing lighting and warmth in the dark cold night.
Both of the boys sat by the fireplace and chatted, they were having the time of their lives, making jokes, telling their different life experiences.
Homestly, Carlos had never felt so at home and comfortable in a while, not even in his own home. However, with Enzo, he strangely felt a strong sense of warmth and comfort.
After chatting for what seemed like an eternity, the boys got exhausted and layed out cushions beside the fireplace. Before going to sleep, Enzo raised his hand and sticked out his pinky.
"Promise me, We'll continue being friends forever even when you go back!" Enzo said with a determined face.
"What if I can't ever get out again?" Carlos replied with a sad tone, knowing that he would have to leave his new friend behind no matter what.
"Just sneak out again! You're a prince yourself, you deserve to make your own decisions at this age!" Enzo angrily said when he had remember Carlos saying that he had been under strict caretakers all his life.
"Promise me you'll still come and meet me, even when you're king!" Enzo pressured with a wide grin.
"What if-" before Carlos could finish his sentence, Enzo shoved his pinky in his face.
"No ifs, just that you will." Enzo said, still holding out his pinky.
This was the first time in Carlos's life that he had felt the desire to be king, to impress his friend that he could do so. However, deep down in Carlos's heart, he loathed being king or related to his father at all.
Carlos held up his hand and did a pinky promise with Enzo, "I'll definitely keep my promise. I..really hope we can meet again in the near future." his voice getting soft at the end of his sentence.
"We definitely will!" Enzo said before drifting off to sleep.
Carlos slept like a log, forgetting about all his worries and the trouble he'll be in when he gets back to the castle. However, he didn't regret leaving the castle one bit. Through the tough journeys he found a friend he can speak his mind with.
However, when Carlos found temporary happiness, disaster was about to strike. He jolted up from his sleep and held his head with his arms, shaking terribly.
Visions of the future at the palace were being flickered in Carlos's mind. Endless groups of people can be seen marching in the palace at a uniform and quick speed as if they had been trained.
Knights rushed out to attack the enemy but the vision soon flickered to a field of blood and littered dead body of the knights when the enemy stood tall and proud at their victory in the battle.
Claude could been seen rushing out along with the imperial knights, the battle looks much more deadly now. However, the Vuitons were terribly outnumbered, even if the knights were much more well trained than the intruders, the drastic difference in number set them at a disadvantage.
The battle went on and the vision flickered once again, this time, Carlos could see himself standing face to face against a masked man, the vision blanked out and one last time, it showed a vision of the castle exploding into orbits.
Carlos started breathing heavily, he knew what he had just witnessed in his dreams were true. Without wanting to alarm his friend, he quickly grabbed his bag and left the house.
"My visions of the future predict an hour into the future." When Carlos said that, he knew the limited amount of time he had, he ran through the forests that no longer contain any monsters due to the bright sunlight shining in the morning.
Carlos ran and ran blindly, hoping to spot a sight of civilization. Eventually, he spotted a small populated village and took a minute to catch his breath. He immediately took off his coat to show his bright hair to capture the attention of people and the knights that were on search for him.
It all worked to his plan, some villagers noticed the new arrival of a child with bright silver hair with crystal-like eyes, only to finally realized that it was the prince.
They all panicked and contemplated whether to kneel and greet the prince or alarm the knights that were on patrol, some villagers knelt in respect, while some alarmed the knights that were searching for the missing prince.
Carlos without warning, ran towards one of the knights, they were all holding swords and in a ready attacking position. "Drop it, take me back to the castle now." he demanded with a scary tone.
The knights looked at each other, confused, they had been warned that the prince would attempt to run away and attack them at sight and would use his power by any means to not return back to the castle.
"Prince..Carlos?" a knight said, confused why would the ambitious and strong-willed prince would make such a hasty decision to return back after he had finally gotten what he wanted.
"I'll explain the situation when we travel back." Carlos said, his tone getting more demanding.