"What about Arthur?" a sixteen-year-old boy, sitting in a wheelchair, asked the young lady wearing maid clothes behind him.
The maid thought for a while, shook her head, and replied, "Unfortunately, I couldn't find him."
Her short copper shimmer hair slanted on her neck and cascaded on her forehead like bangs danced when she motioned her head. Her hazel eyes reflected disappointment in herself.
Her heart-shaped lips opened as she continued with an apologetic tone, "I'm sorry."
"It's fine." His words and voice soothed her emotions.
She smiled in elation.
She then thought of something and asked in a bewildered tone, "Why are you trying to find him, Your Highness? Is he that special?"
She could not see her Young Highness's reaction, and even her plump breasts became a hindrance just to see his head.
Her master smiled bitterly and replied after he sighed, "If he is not, then what are we?"
"What do you mean?" She tilted her head, and her hazel eyes rolled sideways. "If he is that special, then it would not be difficult to find him. There are hundreds of kingdoms and each is owned by nobles of the Empire. I studied and know all nobles in our age who have a talent worth knowing, but there is not a single Arthur. And from the descriptions you left to me, he is a commoner.
With your position, is it really worth knowing about him?"
"Yes."
Her Young Highness's quick response surprised her.
Silence ensued, and the only noise that reverberated was her steps. The wheels on the wheelchair rotated with no problem. The quality alone conveyed it was costly, so it should be worth the price. There was no difficulty with it despite it having been utilized for ten years.
The maid perceived they were still quite far from her Young Highness's chamber. She wanted to talk to him more, so she thought about various topics and finally came up with the event they were about to participate in.
She then looked at her master, and a pity flashed in her hazel eyes. She felt sorrow for her Young Highness's condition and recalled the time when he was still healthy. He reached out his hand to her, and when she accepted it, she was embraced with a new life she deeply desired.
She vowed to repay his kindness someday.
"Your Highness the date of us going to Churches to receive our blessings is near. It's tomorrow, isn't it?" she asked with an excited tone.
"Yes," replied her master nonchalantly.
The maid was perplexed by his nonchalance and asked, "Aren't you looking forward, master?"
Again, his instant reply took her by surprise.
"No."
It was even voiced out with an indifferent tone.
The maid appeared on the verge of crying, asking her Young Highness in a trembling voice, "W-Why?"
Her Young Highness sighed as though he was helpless.
His voice called on her name.
"Sophie. You should know why.
I tested the different elements of mana stone. There was no reaction in the firestone, and it even left me agonizing. Then, the wind, earth, and other elements, there was no reaction. My father was disappointed, but he did not show it.
He even comforted me while praising my intelligence. Perhaps he already imagined my future as a Professor or a Crown Prince relying on his intelligence."
He then giggled and continued, "I don't even know if my brothers are okay with it."
Sophie was furious when she remembered her Young Highness's brothers, who always mocked his condition. He might be indifferent about it, but she was not.
'It's not right to mock others' condition!'
"Hump!" Sophie harrumphed. "Why do you care about your useless brothers anyway, Your Highness? They are younger than you, and even though they received their blessings, not even a single one of them has the talent to become a Warlock or an Archmage!
And they are not your legitimate brothers! They are only a cousin of yours!"
"Exactly. One of them had a chance to become a High-Rank Mage as a result of awakening a middle-grade affinity with the fire element, so they felt entitled. Furthermore, with their current position, they believed that the crown prince's position should pass to them, not to a cripple.
Hence, even if my father is the Emperor, as I'm the only son he has, they still believed, especially the concubines of my Uncle, that it would be better to pass the crown to them. After all, they still carry the family's bloodline."
Her Young Highness's last word was akin to the sting of a bee, leaving an agonizing wound in her heart. Tears formed in her eyelids, threatening to flow in her cheeks. In the end, it did and dropped to the ground. The moment a single tear began to slide, another and another followed like an endless stream.
She wept silently, but her actions left unescape to her Young Highness.
"Don't cry." As expected, his voice brought tranquility to her overwhelming emotions. "Believe in me. This will be temporary. Someday, you will not only see me standing with my feet but in a higher place in which I will be recognized by everyone."
Tears finally halted to drop, but her eyes were still swollen.
With her eyes full of admiration and anticipation, she said, "As expected, Your Highness. I believe in you."
"Sophie?" Her Young Highness called out to her.
"Your Highness?"
Sophie finally became conscious of her surroundings.
Familiarity washed over her, and realization soon followed.
They had already passed her Young Highness's chamber.
Her cheeks burned in embarrassment and quickly apologized while stuttering, "I-I'm sorry, Your Highness. I was engrossed in my emotions."
Her Young Highness sighed and replied, "Forget about it. Despite your carelessness, Sophie, you are so adorable."
The heat on her cheeks inflated, and wished to burrow her head in embarrassment. She turned the wheelchair one hundred and eighty degrees slowly and gently and proceeded to her Young Highness's chamber.
The distance they exceeded was not far, and after seconds of pacing, they halted before the palatial-looking door leading to Luke's chamber.
"Excuse me, Your Highness," said Sophie softly as she unclasped her hand from the wheelchair's camber and bowed to Luke before opening the door.
What greeted them appeared like another world. It was eerily dark, where there was no single light that could be seen. It was even hard to distinguish if it was a room or a basement, much less it was a chamber of a future crown prince.
Yet, Sophie has a stoic face as she enters.
Despite her innocent and adorable appearance, she was brave to walk into the darkness.
She acted like she was extremely familiar with the room, walking towards the emptiness, grabbing something, and twisting it.
The windows opened, and the grace of the moonlight bathed the dark room, illuminating the exquisite objects, and it was indeed a chamber for a noble to rest.
Sophie smiled, sauntering towards her Young Highness, and then bowed.
"Please have a wonderful rest, Your Highness," she said while pushing the wheelchair inside.
"Leave this to me," ordered her Young Highness softly.
Then her Young Highness placed his hands on each wheel, pushing the wheelchair by himself. Sophie silently left, not forgetting to bow, and then closed the splendid door.
The Young Highness stopped the wheelchair, even though he was still quite far from the bedchamber.
He closed his eyes until half an hour passed.
In the middle of silence, the embrace of the shadows, the moonlight that barely illuminates the vast chamber, the Young Highness opened his eyes.
The previous pitch-black, gentle, and exuberant eyes were no more.
It was replaced by soulless eyes.
The earlier gentle side vanished, and it was surprisingly colder and mystifying.
He tightened his grip on the armrest, and his body moved like he was about to stand.
If Sophie witnessed the staggering sight, she might have gotten panic-stricken since all she knew… her Young Highess's legs were crippled.
It was impossible for him to walk.
But now… the Young Highness was standing.
With the same impassive face and soulless eyes, he took the first step.
And then another.
He was heading in the direction, not to the bedchamber.
But to the windows.
Along the way, he mumbled with a sigh,
"It's been five days."