At Theon, camps were set up near the western part of the fallen nation. This is where the entourage of the Fourth Prince was situated. They were temporarily staying there for now since there was a battle some hours ago and the soldiers required rest before moving around.
Count Zayne appeared to meet the Prince but of course he was faced with a "Halt." Said the soldiers part of the Black Lion Legion. It was a legion created by Estafan with the permission of the King. Though this did not make the Count happy for her said "Insolence."
The Count came from the higher noble class so did his group of guards who were all either from noble families or knight families.
They all began to disrespect the soldiers for trying to stop the Count saying they were disrespected. The commotion made the Prince walk out from his tent, he was wearing a loose shirt and black pants, there was no armour or sword on him.
His silver hair gently waving due to the breeze while his eyes shining like a sapphire without showing any hints of emotions "Well?" He asked his men to know what was happening. The soldier who denied entry to the Count spoke with his head tilted down "My Lord, the Count tried to enter your tent without any prior notice of arrival."
The Count refuted that statement by saying "I do not need to send a notice to visit the Fourth Prince." But that was met with resistance by the Black Lions who all began to go rowdy though the Prince simply raised his left arm which shut them all up.
He then looked at Count Zayne and sighed "Do not mind the loyalty of my men which you probably will never get to experience considering you surround yourself with cowards." Hearing those words the group behind Count Zayne began to protest but the Prince wasn't wrong.
Count Zayne was a young noble who came to the battlefield on his volition because he wanted to make a name for himself since he was a vassal of Duke Gerin Leondra, House Leondra was famous for its warrior culture. Many similar young nobles and knights followed the Count to the border although they never actually joined any battles.
They were busy polishing their faces and looking pretty while riding a horse while the real soldiers were dying in the battlefield.
Such was the dynamic of the Kingdom since the nobles lived an entitled life of no problems since if there is any problem, they can throw a common born citizen at it expecting the Citizen to fix the problem or just maybe die with it.
But they hated Estafan since by the time the Count joined, Estafan was already winning and had a private legion along with a special force all to him.
And his forces were not tasting defeat but endless victories thus branding themselves a fearsome force to reckon with. This actually strengthened the position of Estafan in terms of getting the throne since he was after all a war hero who were respected by the citizens for his victories.
His stories were told in the countryside albeit in a way to propagandise himself to look better even though the brutality he was showing in the battlefield and outside the battlefield.
The Nobles found the common born to be loathsome and it was clear that the Count's group hated the Fourth Prince because of his achievements as a common born or partially that since his mother was a maid.
Many call him a mistake which shouldn't exist though they themselves feel more annoyed since Estafan never reacts to such remarks.
But the Nobles, they do not stop even with the silence "Sheesh, these soldiers have no respect. What is to expect when their master himself is a child of a lowly maid who tricked the king to have a royal baby." It didn't stop there as another said "She deserved it when she died that day." Which of course was met with pure aggression.
Suddenly the nobles who dared to spout such nonsense began to feel a terrible sensation. It was as if they couldn't say "I can't breathe." Their words before they fell. Something was blocking their windpipe, more like something was squeezing it.
Count was shocked but he turned his gaze towards Estafan and he was shocked to see those sapphire-like eyes shining brightly. He even though was weak could feel it, the sensation of Aura being released by the Prince.
It wasn't much but strong enough to choke someone from a distance even without touching but the Count shouted "STOP!" He continued in a brazen manner "How dare you attack Noble's part of the Aristocracy Court of the Kingdom." But hearing that only made it worse because Estafan proceeded to crush their windpipe and give those two a cruel yet slow suffocating death filled with agonizing pain.
The Count was shocked with his face showing how terrified he was "How dare you!" He turned his gaze towards the Prince who stood showing no emotions at all "You monster, you are nothing but a Prince abandoned by the King. Yet you show such audacity."
But Estafan responded by saying "Audacity? Me? I must say Count. You came here unannounced that too carrying weapons with a group of people who clearly didn't like me much. Were you expecting to deal a killing blow and make your master happy like a good slave." He said this while keeping a poker face.
Count Zayne grabbed his sword but didn't unsheathe it yet "Be careful Count, the moment you pull it out. Your head falls though I won't stop there because I feel you feed your family to my hounds." By hounds he meant his special troops consisting of 100 men who were trained to wield Aura as he meant that he'll send his Bloodhounds to hunt down the Counts Family.
The Count held his ground holding the sword but after some minutes he sighed "You.. I promise you one thing, Estafan. Before you leave this place, I will make you pay for your Insolence." But Estafan responded with "Don't end up doing things which may make you lose a head especially when you don't even use it much."