"You're Sangfroid???" Prince Leron was surprised. "You've grown so... so..."
"So big?" Rothfir said. "We didn't expect it either. He's one of our youngest yet he easily caught up to us both in body and skill, and now the Bishop even chose him as our Chief Huntsman!"
Sangfroid kept his head down, feeling a little embarrassed that the prince didn't recognize him. "It's good to see you again, Your Highness."
Prince Leron wanted to smack his head and laugh. Of course! He hasn't seen those rare purple eyes on someone else besides his good old childhood friend! He should have been able to tell just from those eyes.
"Sangfroid! You've grown so much, you're so different now!" Prince Leron suddenly hugged him. "My arms used to wrap completely around you when I hug you but now I can barely get past your shoulders! You were so small back then!"
Sangfroid couldn't say anything. He looks intimidating but was actually easy to get flustered, his ears increasingly turning bright red up to the tips. "I was..."
"How did you do it?" Prince Leron pulled away, smiling brightly at him. "Look at those arms, mine looks like a stick compared to it, and I'm pretty well-built myself! You must be eating really well now! Good job, you should always eat a lot so that you'll grow big and strong!"
The Noble Huntsmen tried not to laugh at this display of motherly doting by their own Crowned Prince. Prince Leron was only older by two years, yet he's treating this grown man like a baby brother.
"Remember when you fell off the tree and I caught you?" Prince Leron excitedly said. "You were just this big and very light like a bird, I almost thought that if I don't handle you gently I might break your bones."
"I'm different now, Your Highness..." Sangfroid scratched his head.
"Don't 'Your Highness' me, just call me Big Brother like you used to!" Prince Leron patted his head. "Your voice used to be so cute and high-pitched, I always felt like having a heart attack whenever you call out to me after mass like 'Big Bwother! Big Bwother!'. It was really so adorable..." He sighed happily from the memory.
"I can't call you that anymore, Your Highness." Sangfroid said. "We're not really brothers."
"What are you talking about? You've always been like a brother to me!" Prince Leron, ruffling his hair.
Sangfroid's face darkened at these words, but his expression remained neutral despite being upset.
Prince Leron continued to baby him. "Like a small, small baby brother—"
"I don't look so small anymore, aren't I?" Sangfroid suddenly took his hand, losing his patience. He stared firmly at Prince Leron right in the eye. "Prince Leron, look at me carefully. Do I look like a small kid to you?"
"Damn...." One of the Huntsmen whistled, but another one elbowed him on the gut. Still, they quietly smiled amongst themselves.
Prince Leron was stunned by this and his heart suddenly beat faster. Sangfroid was right. Long gone was the tiny kid he used to play with and was replaced by a dashing, handsome stranger. He was a man now, a man larger than him, who was tasked to protect him like how he protected him when he was young. Prince Leron suddenly felt silly and looked away.
"Sorry, I was too excited. You really have grown now, Sangfroid." He gave a sheepish smile, and took his hand away. "A-Anyway, how are you these days? How is the Bishop?"
"The Bishop is unwell, he is bed-sick." Sangfroid replied. "But he is still holding strong and directing us on what to do. He was the one who alerted us of Vladstin's attack last night."
Sangfroid spat out the name of Vladstin like it was a sour grape in his mouth. "I'm sorry, if we had come sooner, we might have killed him and avoided you being bitten..."
"It's alright. He's no longer human, I know his capabilities." Prince Leron felt a chill on his back slightly when he remembered how easily Vladstin took him down. "He disguised as a servant and was acting strangely. I should have drawn my sword sooner and kept my guard up."
"With all due respect Chief and Your Highness, I think there's no use beating yourself up over the past." Asver said. "We all messed up, what matters is how we clean this mess."
"You're right." Prince Leron agreed. "Has the council formed a meeting on how to deal with the damages? Is there anything I could help with the preparations for the attack?"
"The council is convening now at the throne room about what to do with the infected civilians." The adviser said.
"Shouldn't they just be healed at the infirmaries?" Prince Leron raised an eyebrow.
"It is more complicated than that, Your Highness." The adviser bowed his head. "There is a lot of stress for the doctors and healers whenever a patient goes into Bloodlust. The number of infected increases every day. The facilities to keep them are getting full and some could not afford to bring their infected family member to a doctor, causing the epidemic to spread among the lowest of the common folk."
Prince Leron gritted his teeth. "Why can't they bring their sick? Why are the doctors refusing them of treatment?"
"Well, you see, Your Highness..." The old man fidgeted. "Some of them don't have money to pay, and the infected nobles needed the attention of their physicians too so there's no room for the commoners. Some of the infected were also Crescentians...."
"So what if they're Crescentians? They are citizens of Ilvedia now. And why are these noble physicians refusing those without money? " Prince Leron was now angry. "What will they do if the situation got worse? Healing everyone should be the priority, not gaining riches in this state of emergency!"
"...That...er... I was just saying the general situation, Your Highness." The adviser's head went even lower, his back hunching now like a meek little rabbit. "The Duke of Desprotia is now suggesting to give an official decree to burn the worst of the commoner victims that cannot be accommodated to avoid further spreading—"
"What!?" Prince Leron slammed down his teacup back to the tray, making the chambermaid yelp. He pushed away his blankets and stood in his undergarments, his white bedroom clothes. "I need to speak with the council now."
The old man protested. "But Your Highness—"
Asver blocked the old man using his arm, grinning. "How dare you disobey the prince's wishes? If he wants to go, let him go."
"You little brat! I've had enough of you!"
"We'll accompany you there." Sangfroid said, taking Prince Leron's hand.
The Noble Huntsmen nodded and followed their lead. Prince Leron's cheek reddened. "You don't need to, I can go by myself..."
"Your constitution is still weak, Your Highness." Rothfir said, supporting his Chief. "We'd like to give our opinions too, but we're not sure who would hear us out. Good thing His Highness also share the same belief."
"Still, Sangfroid you..." Prince Leron's voice faltered.
"Hm?" Sangfroid looked back at him, expression determined and quite intimidating.
'You don't have to hold my hand the whole way!' was what Prince Leron wanted to say, but became too shy to say it.
He shook his head, avoiding Sangfroid's intense violet eyes. "Nothing, let's go."
Long ago, he was the one who used to hold this boy's hand and guide him as they walk around the Santimieda chapel's garden. He held those small, soft hands as they went through the forest to play. He held those hands protectively whenever Sangfroid seems to be getting into trouble. That was 14 years ago, yet he didn't expect the situation to be in reverse. Young Sangfroid's hands used to be just the size of his palm, and now it was his own hand that is completely covered by those long, hard fingers.
The only thing that didn't change was how warm his old friend's hand was. Somehow, it made him feel safe.
------------------------------------------
~BRIBE ME, PLEASE~
Ok, I'm getting desperate and pathetic so now I'm willing to accept bribes. I get jealous easily of other books that have a huge following and get sad everytime, thinking what's the point of writing if I feel like no one's reading/appreciate it.
1 NEW 5 star review with genuine feedback (emojis and just saying compliments doesn't count) - 1 extra chapter
100 comments in a week (only those with TEXT count) - 1 extra chapter
5 NEW people voting for this book- (so invite your friends haha) -1 extra chapter dedicated to them
100+ votes in a week in any of my books - 1 extra chapter for all of them
Magic Castle and up - Burst update
If you love my stories and would want to read more of them, please show your support through one of these bribes. Thank you!