CHAPTER FOURTEEN – MYSTERIOUS SYMBOL
Laurence Jules Von Truman…
The Fifth Prince of the Truman Empire…
Born without magic affinity with him and lacks in any kind of Martial arts combat.
During the coming-of-age ceremony where young children from the higher-class society reach the age of 5 years old, they were brought up into the TOWER OF RAELLAK.
The tower that responsible for testing the young children for their magic affinity.
The original Laurence is being called a magical wastrel and a disgrace of the Truman Royal Family because of the original owner's inability to manifest an affinity.
His Father, the King had hated him and his mother Hanezza lost the favor of the King because of the original owner's situation.
However, that's not the end.
After a year had passed since that time, when the original Laurence is around 6 years old, his mother died mysteriously.
When the news broke about his mother's sudden death, the King, his father, didn't even care about the original's mother and what's worse is that they didn't even bother to give her a proper burial.
Because of that, the original Laurence held a resentment towards the King, who didn't even care for both him and his mother just because of the original owner's reputation.
'Wow! What a scum of a father indeed! Tsk!'
After the death of his mother, they left the original Laurence alone on the other side of the Palace and even the servants didn't pay attention to him as they left him on his own devices.
To have an affinity is a must to them because this can also state as your status within the higher-class society and the Empire.
Even though the original Laurence is born as an illegitimate child, they expect him to have at least one affinity to have a hold of his position as a Prince of the Empire.
However, the result is not what they expected to be.
Because although Hanezza is from a commoner status, it is revealed that the original Laurence's biological mother is someone they considered as a genius in her generation.
That is because she holds the rarest affinity of all time.
As Laurence (Dark Phoenix) looks through the original owner's memories once more, he couldn't help but to think that something is a miss about this part.
'Why do I feel that there is more than meets the eye about the original Laurence's magic affinity?'
As he mentioned about the original owner's affinity, he checks his body if there was something wrong.
After that, he felt hot suddenly, which makes him fan himself as he looked around.
'What the f*ck?! Is there some kind of fire-heating mechanism inside a f*cking restroom?! What the hell?!'
There is something that burns inside him. He didn't know what to do as he keeps on fanning like there was no tomorrow.
Not long after that, he noticed a symbol that appeared on his forehead suddenly as he looked himself at the mirror in front of him.
He frowns at the sight of the symbol that flashed to his forehead because he didn't see this mark on the original Laurence's memory.
'Just what the f*cking hell is this?!'
At the center, a snowflake-like symbol with a pair of wings in the middle that seems like glowing or something.
Laurence touched his forehead where that strange symbol appeared, but a sudden jolt of pain coming from his head that makes him dizzy.
He grabs a hold of the sink in front of him and didn't want to let out a scream because he didn't want to catch everyone's attention.
It will bring him no good if someone saw him in such a vulnerable state and others would take advantage of his weakness.
'Just how unlucky…'
He pants heavily as he grasps his own chest and endured the pain that was coming through his head.
The more he endured, the more the pain would come, as if there were tons of needles that are poking inside him.
He keeps on holding at the sink for him not to stumble down on the ground, but he couldn't take it anymore.
As more pain keeps on rushing inside him, there's something flash through his memory that he couldn't fathom if these were also the original's memory.
'W-what are… these?!'
After that, his body went to the mirror as he couldn't balance himself any longer, which makes him stumbled on the ground and the mirror in front of him shattered into pieces.
He heard footsteps rushing forward and maybe, because of the mirror that shattered, it creates a disturbing noise that wouldn't go unnoticed by everyone.
As he keeps his vision clear, he saw a man's silhouette rushing through his side and he remembered that there was a servant waiting for him outside of the restroom.
That person who he recalled as Giovanni immediately assists him, and Laurence could tell that the servant is talking to him, but he heard nothing as his consciousness fades away…
....
ALBERT HOUSEHOLD BANQUET
PRIVATE QUARTERS
"It is an honor that you join us here, YOUR HIGHNESS CROWN PRINCE"
Inside of the private quarters where most of the distinguish head noble household gathered, they stood up as one of the most respected royal family members entered the scene.
The Crown Prince could only smile politely at them but in actual reality, the said man wanted nothing but to dash off this room as he didn't want to associate himself with these rotten people to the core.
'Argh! Politics is going to give me a headache! I didn't want to be here as I need to get back at my little brother, who I unwillingly leave at the banquet!'
After he finished up meeting with his close associates who were part of his faction, the Crown Prince immediately left with his trusted aide to return to the main hall to fetch his little brother.
However, he didn't expect that he would be called by none other than Duke Albert and led him inside the private quarters of his manor.
Before the Crown Prince left with Duke Albert, he ordered his trusted aide to fetch his little brother at the banquet.
It's no secret within the Empire that the Crown Prince favored the Fifth Prince which makes the other nobles couldn't help but to question his actions.
The Crown Prince didn't care about what they say about his favor to his little brother because in his opinion, his little brother deserves protection from unwanted schemes.
'This is the only thing that I could do as I made a promise to his biological mother, Lady Hanezza…'
So that's why at the young age, he worked hard to earn the status that he had right now and still continuing to do his duties and responsibilities as the Crown Prince and the next King of the Empire.
Even though he didn't want to entertain Duke Albert and his other associates, he couldn't decline because of this old bastard's influence with the Royal family.
'I just need to give him some face and it won't be a problem. Just endure it for now…'
The Crown Prince only listens to the conversations of these people and sometimes the Crown Prince would join if the topic got caught his attention or the other way around.
Minutes had passed and as he was about to bid his farewell, a sudden familiar voice speaks through his mind that makes him halt for a minute.
«…. "Crown Prince. Please exercise caution and restrain. Someone had found Fifth Prince Laurence unconscious and was sent to the infirmary" …. »