~Talfen, the capital of Coldshore~
~Inner Court, The Royal Palace~
Sarell had chosen to remain hidden because he wouldn't have been able to do much to protect Reqiel with the capable Crown Prince dashing over faster than he could have with his wings much less his legs. He would also prefer it if Prince Reqiel was kept in the dark about his stalking activities.
He had remained behind the hedge that he had been hiding behind with Prince Cederic while the Crown Prince went dashing over the moment the black garbed assailants swooped down.
He had nearly broken his resolve when Prince Reqiel was stolen away but naturally, he didn't need to lift even a single finger because not only had Cederic immediately gone to rescue him, another guard had shown up as well.
He found the tall, dark haired guard a bit unsettling. He instinctively felt like he needed to avoid that guard in particular and he hoped that this would be the only time Prince Reqiel would get to interact with him.
He was especially jarred when the guard in question shot a sharp look in his direction as he walked past his hedge with three other guards and a knocked out assailant with unerring accuracy.
Sarell was certain that the guard knew he was behind the hedge and although he wasn't committing a crime, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He couldn't say for sure why but that guard in particular was extremely dangerous.
He returned his attention to his charge when the unsettling guard disappeared out of view, wishing he could move closer so that he could listen in on their conversation.
Reqiel had been walking for an unreasonably long time by now and it made Sarell grimace, His Royal Majesty, King Rinon would have had heads rolling by now, if he was made privy to this. It also looked like they would keep on walking, so he had no choice but to keep following along while remaining hidden.
At least this time, Prince Cederic would be present to protect them… Well, Princess Aethel surely didn't need protecting, although he had been anxious for Reqiel's safety, he couldn't help but watch her immobilize both assailants in such a short time.
~*~
Andras' handsome face was devoid of emotion but behind the mask was a riot of thoughts - He had just saved an Angel.
…and the Angel was none other than the troublesome nobility that he had bumped into earlier in the day.
While it was easy for someone of his standing to hide his identity, it was just as easy for him to pick out other creatures who were hiding in plain sight. What caught him off guard was how unbothered the Angel had been, even if he couldn't tell that Andras was clearly not human, his survival instincts should have kicked in but he seemed to have none of that.
He handed over the assailant that he had been able to take down solely because he wasn't human, his hearing was impeccable so it hadn't been difficult to pick out the unmistakable sound of a lady screaming.
From the looks of things, the guards leading his unit on their patrol had made certain that he wouldn't be close enough to intervene while the test was ongoing but that didn't stop him.
He had also gotten the chance to meet the Crown Prince and the famed Princess that he had heard so much about but they both paled in comparison to the Angel. They called him royalty, they thought he was human royalty… Why was an Angel impersonating a human Prince?
The guard that had been responsible for reporting to Crown Prince Cederic came up to him with a black scowl, "You're dismissed for the day."
Andras hesitated, it wasn't yet sundown, technically the patrol wasn't over, not to mention, he still had a station to report to after dinner.
"I said you're dismissed for the day," He repeated, sounding more upset although Andras hadn't done a single thing wrong.
He just tipped his head respectfully and walked off, it was probably best that he spent the rest of his day meditating. And by meditating, he meant that he had to come to a decision of what he would do about the Angel. The troublesome nobility just kept posing more and more of a problem to Andras.
He had yet to come across an Angel on his travels although he knew that it was unavoidable as Demon Hunters constantly roamed Earth and after losing the war, Earth was Angel territory.
His initial plan was to try to blend into the background and if that didn't work, he would kill off the Demon Hunters and then move to a different place. However this was a completely different situation from what he had planned for.
Firstly, the Angel didn't even seem to notice that there was anything off about him, he hadn't gotten even a slightest whiff of animosity from the bright Angel. Secondly, he had achieved an important goal of his by rescuing the Angel and from the looks of things would be promoted to the inner court the very next day, he wasn't too eager to hurt someone that had unwittingly helped him.
He was also fascinated by the circumstances surrounding the Angel. He was clearly not a Demon Hunter, not with that frail build, even a human Princess was higher on the strength ladder than he was. So why was he pretending to be a human Prince from a distant country?
Andras couldn't help but wonder if this was something that happened often that he was simply unaware of, and he was curious to find out the story behind it.
Just as he stepped into the empty living quarters providing for trainee guards, a wall of his father's intent slammed into him, sending him down to a knee.
His turbulent thoughts from the unexpected meeting with the clueless Angel had left him vulnerable to his father's mind link but it was only for a moment, and he righted himself back to his feet.
Moments when his father managed to reach out to him, even only briefly reminded him that he was working with urgency, he needed to learn all that he could about Coldshore from the Royal Palace itself and then be on his way.