Adrian and Rose were walking down the hallway of the academy test site towards the entrance where their carriage was stationed, waiting for them. Adrian had a horrible expression on his face while Rose was walking beside him with her head down.
"How dare you! Are you trying to show you are better than ? Are you saying that I am so pathetic that even my servant is of a higher rank than ? IS THAT WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!?" While walking Adrian started speaking lowly while periodically raising his voice.
Upon hearing his anger-laced remarks, Rose trembled, her whole body shook, but still, she said, "No, Your Highness. I would never say that. I … I would never even imagine that." Rose defended herself as best as she could.
"Oh. Ohoho… Are you saying that I am lying then? AM I LYING ROSE!?" But Adrian was not in the mood to listen to her reason. Even if she ant what she was saying, which she did, Adrian's anger was more than that. Consud by anger and humiliation, and drowned in his inferiority, he was just looking for an excuse to let his anger out and Rose was the one who always took the brunt of his anger.
And it was no different this ti. "I wouldn't dare to say that, Your Highness. Please forgive ." Rose pleaded in a ek voice, tears flowing down her face. Rose's current appearance would garner pity from anyone but alas, Adrian was not that anyone.
"Then what? Huh? THEN WHAT!? If I am not lying, then doesn't it an that you are trying to show that you are better than by getting a better rank than ? Why did you get a better grade than if not to show that?
DO YOU KNOW HOW HUMILIATED I FELT WHEN EVERYONE THOUGHT THAT MY SERVANT WAS BETTER THAN ?!" Still consud by anger, Adrian was just looking for an excuse to pin all the bla on Rose. All so that he could punish her.
Rose trembled even more. She didn't know what to say. Nor did she want to say. She just closed her eyes to rember the young boy who would smile and share everything with her. That boy was her whole world. But now that boy had turned into a nightmare for her.
"Just you wait. As soon as we get to the mansion, I will properly punish you for disrespecting and humiliating your liege." Adrian told her but Rose said nothing in return as she knew replying would only prolong her punishnt.
They soon reached the carriage that had been waiting for them. A butler was standing outside the carriage near the door. When they approached the door, the butler opened the door for them and they entered with Adrian entering first and Rose entering after him. The butler closed the door as he wasn't allowed to sit inside and sat beside the driver.
While the carriage was traveling, the inside of the carriage was tranquil with no one making any sound. Even the sound from the outside couldn't reach inside so the inside was eerily quiet. But it was just the calm before the storm. For Rose and Adrian both.
Soon their carriage arrived at their destination. "Co to my room after grabbing the equipnt for your punishnt," Adrian said and exited the carriage. Rose only ekly nodded and exited behind him. They arrived at a luxurious villa which would make many envious. Yet the only ones living in this mansion were the children of the Cortum empire.
Even the nobles of a Kingdom wouldn't have such a mansion yet they had it all for themselves.
When they entered the mansion through the gate, a maid hurriedly ca to greet Adrian, "Good afternoon Your Highness. I hope you had a good day." She greeted him before she added, "Your Highness, a silver knight is here to et you"
Adrian was taken aback on hearing about this. A silver knight ant he was a mber of the 'Silver Sun Knights' and they were the strongest knights brigade of the Cortum Empire and served directly under the Emperor. Even the crown prince couldn't order them to do anything let alone him. They were led by the emperor's personal knight and guard.
A silver knight's presence ant that a ssage from the emperor himself had arrived. This was not a matter he could ignore. Forgetting all the anger and humiliation, he ordered the maid to lead him to where the knight was.
The maid led them to the reception room which was as big and wide as a big house. A knight was sitting on a sofa while drinking tea. Upon the entrance of Adrian, he stood up but didn't bow to him as the courtesy required for an imperial prince.
Adrian however wasn't angry at that fact but on the contrary, he was more worried than before. A knight not bowing to him ant he was at least at the level of a lieutenant, third in command in the brigade. A rank far above him right now. Lieutenants were usually S-ranked with only so being SS-ranked. A rank that far outstripped that of an imperial prince.
The Lux empire was highly militaristic. Though the mbers of the imperial family were respected, there were many positions higher than them. If you had strength, except the emperor, no one could order you around.
"Greeting Your Highness, the fifth imperial prince. I am tasked by His Majesty, the holy emperor, to escort you back to the empire as soon as your entrance test is finished. Please settle your affairs as we have to leave as soon as possible." The knight told Adrian without beating around the bush or wasting ti with pleasantries.
Adrian on the other hand was not the least bit offended. The man speaking to him right now was delivering the Emperor's words. Disrespecting him would an disrespecting the emperor. An action tantamount to suicide.
"As you say, Sir. We will leave as soon as I take so rest. I am quite tired from the test." Adrian replied to the knight. He didn't know his na so he addressed him as 'Sir'. He didn't ask for his na because if the knight didn't ntion it first, he was not going to tell Adrian his na even if he asked. He asked for so ti as he still had to punish Rose.
"You can rest once we arrive at the Imperial Palace, Your Highness. It's not wise to make His Majesty, the Emperor, wait. Let us depart now, the teleportation circle is ready." But Adrian's request was rejected by the knight without any regard. Adrian could only swallow back his complaints and nodded.
***********
"You called for chairman." The young man said to the man behind the desk. His voice was laced with annoyance. Anyone could tell he didn't want to be here. But he was and he was going to keep it in. At least until he could bear it in.
The man made a faked hurt expression and said, "How many tis do I have to tell you to call Dad?" Although it looked like the man was hurt, the young man knew that he was far from hurt. He was just enjoying everything inside; the young man could tell. Still, he decided to ignore that remark.
"Then give pocket money 'Dad'." The young man said while pressing on the word dad to deliver his sarcasm-filled intentions. The man only smiled at his remark and said, "How much, my dear son?"
"Five million." The young man replied and the expression of the man visibly changed from smiling to 'Are you serious?' one. "Kuhum…. Even though I am your father, in the company I am your superior and you will address as such."
Taking back his previous statent as he had never said it. The right eye of the young man flinched repeatedly at the shalessness of the man for taking back his words in less than a minute.
"What do you need for, Sir?" He asked, emphasizing the word sir to relay his reply.
"What are you in such a hurry for? Do you have a date? Who is it? Is it the girl from outside your office?" The older man asked a string of questions in a serious deanor which was nothing more than annoyance for the young man.
"To get back to my work. No. NO. NO!" He replied with a slight difference in tone which rose gradually but there was no change in his expression.
"Is that so? Well, if you're so defensive about it…" The older man said in a suggestive tone, deliberately not finishing his sentence.
"What have you called here for?" The young man finally asked, losing a lot of patience but he still kept his voice and expression respectful and soft.
The older man pushed the books in front of him and said, "I need you to read these by tomorrow morning and give an honest review."
The young man was puzzled but still moved ahead and picked the top book. [The second life of the Regressed ssiah.] The title of the book read.
Without much banter, he simply picked up the books and turned to leave. He didn't want to read the books but he knew that not reading them would bring him even more headache.
From his experience, when it ca to his father, giving in was better than standing up to his ridiculous antiques.
"You're in a hurry." The older man comnted but the young man gave no reply. While he was going for the lift, it opened and a girl erged from it. The girl was around his age and his height.
She was wearing an elegant sky-blue dress. Her long raven hair was flowing down her shoulders and ended below her waist. Her skin color was milky white.
The peculiar thing about her was her covered face. Except for her eyes, the rest of her face was covered. Her green-colored eyes stared at him in puzzlent and she asked, "What's that?"
"A way out." He simply replied before walking out. The girl contemplated for a bit before she rembered her objective for coming here and approached the older man.
"Aren't you supposed to be in Utah?" The man asked leisurely. The girl didn't reply but instead slamd a piece of paper on the table.
The man was lightly puzzled and looked at her with questioning eyes. "I was down in the R.A. when I found this amongst the top executive files." She sarcastically used air quotes to emphasize the 'top executive' part since nothing but rubbish was in there.
"What is it?" He picked it up and read it. "It's your will." The girl replied before he could check properly.
"Oh yeah." He nonchalantly said before looking at her, "What about it?"
"I don't see my brother's na on it." The girl replied with a straight face despite knowing that the old man was playing.
"What?! That can't be right! Let check." The man made an honest reaction in return but the girl's expression didn't change in the slightest. She wasn't having any of it.
"Oh, I know now." The man said after a few minutes and continued, "It's not there because I didn't put it there."
"Would you please stop, Dad? I am adopted. Not him. He is your son." She said loudly as if fed up with the old man's attitude.
"Exactly." The man replied with no leisureliness and nothing but seriousness on his face as if his earlier attitude was all a lie.
"He is my son." The man said in the sa stern attitude before it vanished completely and his earlier easygoing deanor returned. "Go ho now, oh daughter of mine. Your mother was yelling at when you spent the night in the office yesterday."
The girl huffed, turned, and left in great dissatisfaction. When she was gone, the man said to particularly no one, "Be ready to initiate the process, Anderson."
[Yes, Sir] ca a reply from nowhere.
Reviews
All reviews (0)