When the Duke of Zenith shifted his gaze to King Malon to know his opinion on Princess Yara's words, he noticed the subtle smile on the young King's lips. Just as expected.
The sun will rise in the west if the King ever spoke against his sister!
"What did you try to say, Yara?" King Malon asked after a while. Did his sister had a solution to take care of the infamous God of War?
"I hate how the Duke overestimates the Prince of Welahan but... " Yara Amiel paused and firmly met her brother's gaze. "I'm not underestimating him either.
"Prince Karium had many achievements under his belt and it's clear that it isn't just luck. He has some great skills." Shifting her firm gaze back to the Duke of Zenith, she added, "However, he is also a human, not an immortal."
"If he falls, then Welahan will be in grave danger," King Malon remarked and Princess Yara nodded.
"The best way to kill a tree is to destroy the root," Yara Amiel simply said with a little smile.
"What will you do?" King Malon quickly asked.
"I will tell our spies in Welahan to find out some information on this God of War," Princess Yara said without even thinking twice. Then a seemingly innocent yet cruel smile appeared on her lips. "To attack an enemy, we must know them well first. So, we will be able to strike them by attacking them on the most effective part. Don't you think so, brother?"
* * *
After 2 weeks
In front of the palace gate of Welahan, one young man was sitting on a horse. Though he was alone and with the scrutinizing gaze of the two guards on him, the young man was more than unfazed. Though the brown cloak that he wore covered almost every part of his body, he appeared pretty calm.
He gently tapped his fingers on his horse and calmly sat still while his enchanting topaz blue eyes were scanning his area. After a while, three men riding horses came from the direction of the main palace and rushed towards him.
The young man who was in the middle quickly gets off his horse and kneeled three steps in front of the man on the horse. The other two men who came with him followed suit.
"Welcome back, Your Highness," the man in the middle said. He briefly glanced at the two guards on the side who were now kneeling before he lowered his head again. "Please forgive me for the delay. I will make sure to -"
"I return without my token," the young man on the horse said and removed the part of his cloak that covered his head. When his rare yet natural silver icy blue hair was revealed, the two guards who were new to their job finally recognized him.
Prince Karium Maselli?
"A delay is only normal. Am I right, General Cassius?" Prince Karium simply added with his usual calm and nonchalant face.
Without even waiting for a response, the Prince started riding his horse and entered the palace gate while General Cassius and the other two men quickly mounted their horse and followed the Prince.
"Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to recover from your injury first?" Prince Karium asked General Cassius who was a step behind him. The General served as the second-in-command and the right-hand man of the Prince in the army.
"It's been a week, Your Highness. I'm completely fine now," General Cassius replied formally.
Prince Karium briefly glanced and the General before he looked at the front again. "That's good then."
"I was told that you will arrive with the soldiers tomorrow, Your Highness. Why did you rush back alone?"
"No particular reason," Karium Maselli muttered. "His Majesty is having a meeting with the officials, right? I should go straight there and give a report."
General Cassius raised a brow when he heard the Prince but he quickly maintained his composure again. "I understand, Your Highness. I will inform the royal court." Then the General quickened his pace and rushed towards the royal court where the meeting was currently taking place.
*
When the arrival of Prince Karium who was the Commander of the Welahan Army was announced in the royal court, the large door was opened and the Prince made his way towards the throne where his older half-brother, King Edric Maselli was sitting.
The young King was 24 years old and the Prince was four years younger than his half-brother.
While Prince Karium made his way towards the throne, all eyes of the officials were on him. Half were pleasant to look but half wasn't. However, the Prince ignored everything and just maintained his normal pace. When he was a few steps before the throne, he halted and get down on his knees.
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Rise," King Edric quickly said. With a smile on his face, he rose from his throne and walked towards his younger half-brother who was now standing on his feet.
"You do a great job, Karium. You not only take back our lands but you defeated the capital of Thigon and made them surrender to our great Welahan in less than two weeks. This is the biggest victory for our kingdom," King Edric earnestly said. He stood in front of his brother and glanced at him with pride.
The Prince nodded and still maintained his usual face that was devoid of any expression. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I owe it all to your blessings and the bravery of our soldiers.
"The soldiers will reach the capital tomorrow. General Allen will lead them," he added.
"That's great," the King said as he firmly patted on his brother's upper arm. "In that case, you should take a rest. A huge feast will be prepared to celebrate our victory once the soldiers arrived."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Prince Karium responded. Then he bowed and walked out of the royal court, ignoring everyone's gaze, be it pleasant or sour.
Once the Prince left, King Edric returned to his throne and looked at the officials who were standing on his left and right. "In a feast to celebrate our victory against Thigon, I plan to give Karium a new title," he declared.
The officials exchanged glances with each other, wondering what title the King was talking about.
Then King Edric continued by saying, "I will give him the title of the 'Prince of Morham'."
The Prince of Morham?! Almost everyone could felt their jaw dropped to the floor!
Wasn't the title considered as the highest and most powerful among all the titles for a Prince? It was even above the highest-ranking official!