"My Prince you have returned" said a man as Liam got off his horse and he used his right hand to pet him.
"Good boy" said Liam as he pet his horse.
"Yes, I have returned" said Liam as he turned to look at the man.
"My prince should I take Nolan to his stall?" asked the Man
"Yes please do that" said Liam as the man walked closer and he took Nolan's reigns.
"You can take Nolan to his stall" said Liam as he turned to walk away.
"Oh, and please change his horseshoes, he requires new ones" said Liam as he turned back, he had ridden Nolan all the way to the north and back, so he was in dire need of some new horseshoes.
"I am sorry your highness, but we do not have any more horseshoes in the castle" said the man.
"Then order more from the blacksmiths" said Liam.
"That is impossible as well your highness" said the man.
"You see the Kingdom had run out of Iron, and the blacksmiths are unable to meet the people's demands" said the man.
"How come I am only hearing of this now?" asked Liam as he looked upset.
"I am sorry Sire, I thought that his Majesty would have already informed you on the matter" said the man.
"I see" said Liam.
"Well then, hold on with changing his horseshoes" said Liam.
"Alright your highness" said the man as Liam left.
...
"You May Enter" said Alaric as he heard a knock on his door.
"Ahh Liam my boy you have returned" he said with a smile as he looked at Liam.
"Yes I have father" said Liam as he sat down.
"What is the matter?" asked Alaric as he sensed that his son was not well, he could see it clearly.
"Father, how come you did not inform me of the Kingdom's problem of no sufficient Iron??" asked Liam as he looked at Alaric.
"Ahhh that is what it is" said Alaric as he was relieved that it was not something else that caused his son to look so down.
"Well my boy, you had just returned at that time, and I did not want to trouble your heart over something as menial as this, you were meant to relax, and not dive straight into your duties as you returned" said Alaric.
"I can understand that Father" said Liam.
"So when were you going to inform me about this matter?" asked Liam.
"Well you see the thing is my boy, this is a menial thing..." said Alaric.
"That is where you are wrong father" said Liam as he looked at Alaric.
"I will be King in the Future, and all the matters of the kingdom concern me as well, no matter how menial they may seem" said Liam as he was upset, his father never carried him along, as if he was still a little boy.
Well he was not, he was twenty three, and he was a victorious war man, he was going to be King and if he could not handle menial matters now, how would he do so in the future?
"I can tell that you are upset my boy, but please do not be, you are right, you deserve to be aware of the affairs of the kingdom" said Alaric.
"Yes I do father, I am twenty three" said Liam.
"When you were twenty three you were already representing your own father, and you were basically running the kingdom, why cannot I do the same?" asked Liam.
"Look my boy, you are right, you are completely right, and it is your right to be able to do so" said Alaric.
"But at the same time, I want you to enjoy your youth while you can" said Alaric.
"And I do not mean by being with women alone, I mean going out, meeting new people, and growing yourself as a man before you grow yourself as a King" said Alaric.
"Look my boy, I know that you are earnest to prove yourself" said Alaric.
"But there are some things that you cannot return once you have them" said Alaric.
"And one of those things is this throne" said Alaric.
"Liam, my son, my boy, once you receive this throne, you are fully devoting your life to your Kingdom alone and no one else" said Alaric.
"Trust me my boy, I have been there once before, it takes a man with ambition to keep on striving, becoming a King at a young age can become tedious at a point in a King's life" said Alaric.
"They begin to think of what could have been if they were still a normal man, if they were a free man and not a king who had the whole Kingdom on his shoulders" said Alaric.
"In order to avoid that regret in the future my boy, you need to make sure that you have done what it is that you need to do now that you are still free to move around" said Alaric.
"And one of those things is to find a woman, a strong Queen to support you in your journey as King" said Alaric.
"Yes Father you are right" said Liam as he bowed his head.
"But that does not mean that you cannot start taking responsibility already" said Alaric.
"Which is why my boy, I apologize for not informing you" said Alaric.
"And I ask you now for your most sincere opinion on the matter of the Kingdom running out of Iron" said Alaric as Liam raised his head.
"Thank you father" said Liam as he smiled.
"Go ahead my boy" said Alaric as he smiled.
"Well father since we are in need of Iron, I suggest that we resort to trading with the east for Iron" said Liam.
"They have not yet accepted the fact that they are now a Wyverdale state, and trading with them would better build the bond we are trying to achieve" said Liam.
"That is an exceptional Idea my boy" said Alaric.
"Thank you father" said Liam as he smiled.
"How come I never thought of that option???" asked Alaric to himself.
"You have been very busy father, and this is why you have me" said Liam.
"That you are right about my boy, that you are" said Alaric.