"Find Prince Veritas!"
With those words, every butler of the Duke scattered around and searched. The Duke himself went on to scurry around everywhere.
First, he checked the Prince's living quarters. He saw the usual bed, along with clothing, a few items, a desk, and such. Deeming it useless, Duke Alfar moved on from the tent.
'Where is he...?'
He then checked the other tents, there was one that contained the supplies that he gave last month, there was one filled with papers, and there was also one that contained various weapons.
However, none of them showed signs of the Prince.
Returning empty-handed in the middle of the camp, the Duke and his butlers reported the same occurrence.
"No sign of his majesty, my Lord.."
"Same situation for me too."
They gathered around and discussed the mysterious disappearance of the Prince. It looked as if a group of butlers were hurdling around in one spot and planning with each other.
That is until... Duke Alfar noticed something peculiar.
"Where is Butler Land?"
He frowned.
Immediately, they heard screams coming from a distance.
Gazing upon that direction, the Duke noticed a man wearing a suit and a black tie.
It was Butler Land!
"My Lord! I- I have.."
Anticipation grew in everyone's eyes.
"I found the Prince!"
*
In the dark stretches of a lonely forest, Duke Alfar and his 4 butlers carefully made their way towards the direction where the butler stated.
They headed southwest, passing through the river and going to the other side. Trees loomed all over in every direction, the dwindling sunlight was covered up by the notorious leaves of the lonely forest, and the air around the Duke felt cold.
Upon traversing this landscape for a couple of minutes, they saw remnants of a great battle. Trees were leveled, the ground was shattered, and in front of them was a wasteland.
And in the middle.. lay the body of an unconscious white-haired Prince.
Beside him, was a crumbled up body of a formidable abomination.
'The Gargoyle Knight..'
Seeing the body of the Prince sent Duke Alfar to be in an alarmed state.
"Your Majesty!"
He, along with his butlers, ran through the wasteland and headed straight for the Prince.
"He's.. still breathing."
Although faint, the Prince showed remnants of life. He was filled with bruises and deep cuts across his body. He was laying down the pool of his own blood, his clothes tattered, and he held his broken heavy stone greatsword with both hands, seeming as if he'd never let go of it.
Duke Alfar's eyes widened.
"He.. won."
Witnessing the destruction around them, the destroyed body of the Gargoyle Knight, and the sign of vitality by the Prince. The 5 of them concluded the fact that the Prince had finally felled the abomination.
Inside, they felt a celebrative spirit.
But, they must get the Prince to restore his vitals to normal once more. The celebrations would have to be saved for later.
2 Butlers carried the unconscious body of the Prince back to the camp. While the other two defended them. And as for Duke Alfar, he stayed to investigate the great battle.
As the 4 Butlers left, Duke Alfar headed towards the destroyed Gargoyle Knight.
"Astounding.."
In mere 3 months, the Prince was able to slay the Gargoyle Knight alone. Truly a feat that no individual could accomplish, and with great efficiency too.
Based on the claims by the Prince in the past month, he stated that he would master wielding the greatsword in a mere month.
And that.. he did.
Although Duke Alfar hadn't witnessed the great battle himself, he was sure that the destruction of the Gargoyle Knight was caused by the Prince's relentless blows.
As a Pure-ranked Soul, Duke Alfar was truly amazed by the potential that the Prince possesses. Even he was unsure that he would be able to fell the Gargoyle Knight in three months.
Maybe it was due to his utility-type Path, but Duke Alfar was still Pure-ranked, a realm that most mortals would hope to reach.
Upon admiring the scenery for a couple more minutes, Duke Alfar turned back and headed towards the camp.
Leaving the desolated land, he walked quickly without noticing a gleaming item.
It was a bright bracelet that once belonged to Prince Veritas of Elrod.
*
A few hours passed and the sun had already set.
Waiting for the Prince's awakening was the ever-so mundane-looking Duke.
He sat down near Veritas' bed with an emotionless expression.
Outside, the butlers were preparing a hot soup for dinner as it already turned evening and the moon was starting to rise up.
They've been here for half a day now.
The Duke sighed deeply.
They've already used high-leveled potions on Veritas, his wounds have already healed but the exhaustion must've been so great that it still made him slumber deeply.
The Duke spent hundreds of White Elrodite for those high-leveled potions, but it was a cause for emergency. They also tried searching for the Prince's potions but they were all gone.
They also patched up his wounds, cleaned his bruises, and gave him remedies.
The Prince laid on the bed with layers of bandages in his body.
When suddenly.. The Duke noticed small movements from the Prince.
He tensed up and in a matter of seconds the Prince slowly opened his eyes.
"Your majesty.."
Duke Alfar tried reassuring the Prince but he let him recuperate first.
He needed to recall the situation first.
The Prince had an emotionless face and his eyes were hollow as if devoid of life.
After a few minutes, the Duke spoke to him again.
"Your majesty, are you feeling alright now?"
The Prince slowly glanced in his direction, clearly confused about the situation.
"I.."
His words were weak and pale.
"I'm alright.."
The Duke breathed a sigh of relief.
"For starters, you should rest in that bed of yours. A hot soup is being made by my butlers, you should eat up."
The Duke stood up and headed to the outside.
"Ah- also, congratulations your majesty."
The Duke adjusted his tie and headed back to the campfire.
Left alone in the tent, the Prince merely laid down with a lifeless look in his face.
He spoke somberly:
"...congratulations."
*
In the morning.
The gloomy forest was struck by the soft sunlight, signalling the moment when everyone in the camp would awaken.
That's right, the 5 of them stayed inside the camp in order to take care of the Prince. They planned to leave at dawn when the sun rose on the horizon.
They would come home bearing great news, and would witness the birth of a new legend.
Duke Alfar was the first one up in the morning. He wore his classic mundane suit and his black hair was laid down. Usually, he pushes it back but this morning, he did not have any time to.
He needed to check if the Prince was doing alright.
As he traversed through the camp, he saw the messy-haired Prince standing in the middle of the area.
He was where the campfire burned brightly, looking lost and confused.
He had hollow eyes and a somber face, looking at the direction of the ruins.
"Your majesty!"
The white-haired prince turned back in the direction of the voice.
"Lord Alfar.." he said calmly.
"You are up early? Is everything alright?"
"Yes. After a great slumber, I could finally feel whole again."
"That's great."
The Duke thought that the exhaustion faced by the Prince yesterday must've been so tiring.
"You see, your majesty.. me and my butlers decided to leave this morning."
With indifference, the Prince said:
"I see."
"Seeing as your trial is finally done, would you come with us back to the Southern City?"
It was as if two being devoid of emotions were talking to each other. There was no hint of any enjoyment in their words.
"I would not." The Prince mentioned quietly.
Perplexed by this, Duke Alfar was curious about the Prince's words.
"Please elaborate."
"I'll stay here.."
The Duke's eyes widened.
"May I know the reason why?"
"I still need to explore the ruins."
It was peculiar, but the Duke accepted this reason.
"I see. Then, we would come back in another month. Or would you like it to be earlier?"
"No need. A month is plenty."
There was a great feeling of distress deep within the Duke. However, he could not go against the Prince's words.
"I understand. Then in a month it is.."
He lightly bowed at the Prince.
As he was about to leave, the Duke abruptly stopped in his tracks.
"May I ask.. your majesty. Who was it that greeted you first when you arrived at the gate of my manor?"
The Prince pondered for a second before finally answering with confidence in his words.
"It.. was you. Lord Alfar, you were the knight that I fought."
Immediately! The Duke sent a high kick towards the Prince's head. It was a blow devastating enough to incapacitate any normal person!
There was a cold fury in his eyes as he landed the strike.
"It's impossible for you to know that."
However, the Duke's strike merely passed through the Prince's head as if it were air.
The Prince stood still even though the Duke attacked him, he then grinned widely.
"How so? Isn't your Path, Profusion?.."
A quick jab struck fast onto the Prince's head, passing through like air once more.
"Who the hell are you?!"
The Prince raised his arms widely as if to proclaim something greatly.
He laughed hysterically and it echoed across the forest.
"I am Orpheus of the Song!"