"Princess Eleanor sadly passed this morning," Graham relayed solemnly, "His Majesty has summoned you to his stu-" study…
Graham wasn't given the opportunity to get all of his words out, Prince Alexander already dashing for the castle at full speed. "Your Highness!" He called to the retreating back of the older Prince with panic, "Please put a shirt on!"
His words fell on deaf ears, the Crown Prince's figure rapidly diminishing up ahead. There was no chance for Graham to catch up, so he decided to leave the issue of the half-naked Prince to his menservants in the castle, going off to find the second Prince.
Prince Silvan. The second Prince was one of the High Priests of the country so there was only one place he would be… at the temple.
The white pillars of the temple reflected the sunlight, making it look like it was carved out of white gold. Graham stopped outside the temple, not just anyone was allowed within the hallowed halls, especially not someone like him who didn't even believe in the Faith.
Well, it was more accurate to say he was a previous believer, with their budding alliance with the country of Vampires, it was rather counterproductive to remain in a religion damning them.
A group of disciples soon passed by, and Graham was able to call to the white-robed youngsters. "Could you summon Prince Silvan for me?"
As the King's courtier, Graham was well known in the country, so after bowing respectfully to him, they hurried into the temple.
Graham braced himself for when Prince Silvan would show up, the second Prince was the polar opposite of his older brother. While Prince Alexander had a simple disposition and was easy to approach, Prince Silvan looked far older than his age, his unique blue-green eyes holding a world of complexities.
"Did my father summon me?" Prince Silvan asked as soon as he stepped out of the temple, going right to the point.
The second Prince was dressed in robes befitting a High Priest, the heavy gold cross around his neck had a sharpened tip because it wasn't a cross but a stake carved out of gold.
"Please come with me to the side, Your Highness," Graham nervously invited, "The news is quite sensitive."
Prince Silvan narrowed his shrewd eyes but silently followed him some distance from the temple. "My sister is dead." He spoke before Graham could, turning around and heading for the castle without another word.
Graham had no choice but to hurry after him, Prince Silvan's white and gold robes sparkling in the sunlight. He had every right to be wary of the second Prince, those unsettling eyes seemed to see right through everyone and everything.
He hadn't told the second Prince about where he had been summoned to but he confidently strolled right to his father's study, saving Graham the trouble of directing him.
When Prince Silvan stepped into his father's study, his father and older brother were already in there. His father was seated heavily on his throne like chair, looking like he aged several years since when they had breakfast a few hours ago.
Alexander on the other hand was pacing anxiously, blond hair ruffled from how frequently he had pushed his hands through them. He didn't have a shirt on, and without the sword strapped to his hip, Silvan already knew that he had been summoned in the middle of a spar.
"So Eleanor is truly dead," Silvan broke the heavy silence. On his way here, he had hoped that when he arrived, he would be told that it was simply a scare, and she had merely fainted.
"It's a month to her eighteenth birthday," King Rolfe finally spoke, stress lines parallel to each other on his forehead.
Silvan scowled, his sister was dead and all his father cared about was the alliance with those damned Vampires. "Eleanor is dead." He repeated, dead-eyed.
"And she was betrothed to the Prince of Vampires, seeing as you have so conveniently forgotten." Alexander chimed in.
Silvan looked at the both of them like he was seeing them for the first time. "Couldn't that wait till her body cools at the very least? She is more than a bargaining chip." He bit out, each word covered in layers of frost.
King Rolfe massaged his temples, "Silvan…"
"I'm going to perform the cleansing rites for Eleanor." He said stiffly, turning around and sweeping out of his father's study in a flurry of priestly robes.
Alexander turned to his father after the departure of his younger brother. "For someone who resolutely refuses to take any political responsibility, Silvan sure has a lot of strong opinions." He muttered, a dark look on his handsome face.
Rolfe just waved a hand to dismiss the argument, he had expected that from Silvan. That child never did what he was supposed to. Now that Eleanor was dead, he didn't expect much to change, if anything, his rebellious behavior would only worsen.
Alexander gritted his teeth but said nothing, he would never say it out loud but he always felt that his father favored Silvan the most. His arrogant younger brother always got his way, yet he was adept at playing the victim.
"What are you going to do about the alliance, father?" Alexander moved closer to take a seat.
Princess Eleanor's marriage to the Royal Vampire was crucial to the alliance between the two countries. It was supposed to strengthen the ties between the humans and the Vampires but now the very worst had happened.
The failing health of Princess Eleanor had been kept a secret from everyone, most especially the Vampires, so they couldn't just come out and say that the bride that they had been waiting on for well over a decade was dead.
King Rolfe was silent and that was because he didn't have an answer, short of a miracle, the only thing that could be done was to go to the Vampires on their knees and beg for leniency.