Morning came with the sound of trumpets.
Prince Juno and Prince Largos arrived with their banners flying proudly in the air as they made their way to the Stone Temple Monastery to meet with their youngest brother, Prince Simon.
The two princes showed up in an armor of gold and silver, their chargers clothed in splendid satin, worthy of the nobles who rode them.
They were followed by their knights and pages, and the whole procession filled the main hall of the Stone Temple Monastery where Prince Simon sat on a wooden chair behind a long table.
"Brother Simon!" Juno exclaimed as he walked across the hall towards his younger sibling. "This is a blessed day that we finally meet again, and you..." he looked at his brother, dressed in a simple while tunic. "You, safe and sound and away from all harm!" he finished.
Simon replied by raising himself on his wooden clutches. He stepped forward and welcomed his eldest brother with a tight hug.
"Brother Juno! Brother Largos! You have no idea how glad I am to see you!" we said, voice wavering. "I thought I would never lay eyes on you again, much less, get back to our kingdom in one piece!"
"Nonsense!" Prince Largos went to Simon and embraced him as well. "I never once doubted that you would be victorious in this endeavor! You are our brother after all!"
"So, tell us, what exactly happened that night?" asked Prince Juno.
"It's a long story," said Simon with a tearful grin. "Please take a sit, his Reverence is kind enough to prepare us some food as we celebrate our reunion!"
Prince Juno eyed the old rickety wooden chair Simon pointed to him.
Largos sat down first, pulling the chair closer to his younger brother, and fussed over him like a mother hen.
"I see your left leg is still injured, haven't the Stone Temple Priests healed it yet?" he asked.
"I'm afraid not, it's only been four days, after all, and they said that it would take about a week to heal a crushed leg completely."
"What about other injuries?" Juno asked, eyeing his brother closely. "Did you not get any other wounds, aside from a crushed leg?"
"Oh, I had a gash on my right brow, and several scratches and bruises, and even cracked a rib, but the healers have taken care of all of them."
"Any other wounds?" Largos asked again. "Any burns or cuts?"
"No, I wasn't seriously burned, and the behemoth doesn't really have any weapons that could cut me..."
"I see..." Juno mumbled.
"Seeing that you are already fine, I suggest we get on our way." Juno suddenly stood up. "We should leave as soon as possible. It's a three day trip back to our kingdom, after all."
"I guess you're right, brother," Simon said timidly.
He was hoping that they could stay a little bit longer so that he could show his brothers around the temple and introduce them to the priests he had befriended. But then again, it's not like he could just tour them around the place.
"Ready the horses, we shall leave at once!" Prince Juno called out to his retinue.
"H-horses?" Prince Simon asked hesitantly.
"Of course. Did you plan to travel on foot?" Prince Largos asked with a sarcastic grin.
"I-I was hoping that you could prepared a carriage for me, since my leg is still injured..."
"And why would we – "
"Well, of course we did," Juno replied, cutting Largos off. "Unfortunately, we left the carriage back in town. The trail up the monastery was too steep and ragged, after all."
Simon looked at his eldest brother.
He remembered that the Stone Temple has carriages of its own for transporting goods, surely his brother's carriage is built much sturdier to climb the steep trail up the monastery?
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CHOICES:
What would Simon do?
If you decide to mention the carts in the monastery – go to Part 12
If you decide it's okay to accept the horse ride – go to Part 13
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