Chương 75: Epilogue 2: Prince Aric Part 2

The royal family was halfway through lunch when Prince Aric arrived. The gathering had never been intended as a formal meeting. It was simply one of the rare occasions when most of the royal family happened to be in the same room at the same time. His father, King Argon, sat at the head of the long table, carving slices from a roasted pheasant while discussing taxation reports with a few of his advisors.

His mother, Queen Elara, sat beside him on his right, quietly listening while occasionally adding a comment of her own. Across from her sat his grandmother, the Queen Dowager Wittoria, the king's mother, on his left. Despite her age, the older woman remained as sharp and intimidating as ever. Her cane rested against her chair. Though Aric had seen her walk, he doubted she actually needed the thing.

His younger brother, Prince Lyth, sat near the end of the table, looking thoroughly bored while reading a book beneath the tablecloth whenever he thought nobody was watching. Between them, other nobles and advisors dotted the table, honored to be invited to eat with the royal family, while several servants moved quietly through the room to refill drinks and replace dishes, and a handful of guards stood watch along the walls. Aric entered without ceremony.

His expression alone was enough to make his father stop speaking.

"What happened?" the king asked, setting down his knife. Without answering, Aric approached the table and placed the four letters before him. King Argon unfolded the first letter. As he read, the casual atmosphere disappeared. The king's expression hardened visibly, enough for everyone in the room to notice. The king said not a word until he finished all four letters. He then carefully folded the papers together as the silence stretched on for several more seconds. Then the king looked toward his youngest son.

"Knight Henry." The knight standing behind Prince Lyth immediately straightened.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Take Prince Lyth somewhere else. Perhaps the library, where he has been spending so much time lately." Lyth blinked.

"What? Why?"

"Because I said so." Aric watched as his younger brother opened his mouth, then closed it. He was smart enough to notice the expressions around the table and wisely decided against arguing. He closed the book and rose from his seat. As Knight Henry escorted him from the room, the king separated the letters into two groups and passed them to his neighbors. His wife received two, and his mother received the other two. As the two women began reading, the king gazed around the room.

"Staff, please escort our guests to the blue dining room, where they can finish their lunch." The servants immediately froze, but they began escorting the nobles out.

"Maid Comina." The queen's handmaid stepped forward.

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

"Go summon Headmaid Celene." The maid glanced toward the queen, and Queen Elara gave a small nod. Comina curtsied and hurried away. The king waited until the room had mostly emptied and only a handful of guards remained before he spoke again.

"Sir Estophon." The enormous knight standing behind his father stepped forward. The man had served the king for nearly forty years, and Aric knew that he was one of the few people alive whom Argon trusted completely.

"You may stay. The rest of you leave." The remaining guards and servants departed immediately. Only then did his father return his attention to him.

"Who else knows about this?"

"No one," said Aric.

"Sir Deren and I found the body, but I alone have read the letters."

"Well done." The king nodded, pride entering his voice.

"At least one of my children isn't completely worthless." Aric winced at that, but the king ignored it. Across the table, the queens finished reading, having exchanged the letters between them, making sure both of them had read all four. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. His mother's face was drained of color, but unlike the younger queen, his grandmother looked furious.

"What do you think?" asked the king. He collected the letters and passed them to Sir Estophon, and the veteran knight read them silently.

"Have the boy drink poison," the Queen Dowager spoke first. Queen Elara shot to her feet.

"You can't kill my child over this!"

"The problem isn't that he slept with maids," the older woman glanced at her own son before adding, "Nobles do it all the time." Then her voice was cold as ice.

"The problem is the sheer recklessness and lack of forethought." She slapped her hand on the table.

"There is a cantrip specifically designed to prevent pregnancy. Every noble heir learns it before they turn sixteen," her eyes flashed with anger.

"Yet somehow your son never bothered." The room grew even quieter.

"That negligence resulted in the death of at least one royal child, maybe three."

"Your grandchildren," her voice softened only slightly. Queen Elara visibly flinched.

"This mess is only a symptom of the bigger problem," continued the Dowager.

"It's the lack of care and competency. This kingdom has stood for three hundred years. King Kavard would destroy it in a decade." The younger queen sat down slowly. Still, her determined expression showed that she refused to give up on her son.

"Then let's send him away for a while." The older woman scoffed.

"What?"

"To one of the country estates. Let's keep him away from the capital." She looked toward Estophon.

"We can send Sir Estophon with him. He can teach him how to behave, teach him how to be a better king."

"Why bother?" the dowager replied.

"The boy is worthless."

"He is not." The queen's voice cracked.

"He is good with nobles." The older queen didn't look convinced.

"Didn't he negotiate that loan from Lord Kelroth?" That finally earned a reaction from the king, as a grimace crossed Argon's face. Aric knew exactly why. The kingdom's finances were in poor condition. Tax collection had been declining for years as most nobles kept failing to meet their obligations. The fact that the crown had needed to borrow money from one of its own nobles remained a personal embarrassment for his father.

"If I may speak," Prince Aric finally said, "while I am horrified by what my brother has done, I also have no desire to inherit his position." The Dowager snorted.

"I would rather serve the kingdom as a knight than as a king." Aric ignored her and continued, "I think it's better to prepare Lyth for the throne, and if Kavard fails to be educated, we can both abdicate to Lyth at the same time."

"As if Kavard would abdicate without causing a rebellion years later." His grandmother looked thoroughly unimpressed. Aric was about to justify his point when Sir Estophon finally spoke.

"More immediately, we need to decide what to do about Sir Salvek."

"What are your thoughts on the man?" asked the king. Estophon folded the letters.

"I never trusted him," the royal guard said.

"He has accumulated considerable influence within both the Royal Guards and the Knights." The veteran knight glanced toward Aric.

"He has acted as a mentor to many younger officers, including this prince."

"That is true." Aric nodded.

"Some of my men have also informed me that he regularly borrowed several guards for some private project."

"What sort of project?" asked the king.

"Some kind of luxury establishment." Estophon's expression darkened.

"A brothel," the dowager translated bluntly.

"A brothel catering almost exclusively to wealthy clients," the knight nodded, "including Prince Kavard." The king's eyes narrowed.

"If he is involved in this," said Aric, "then he is no longer a mentor of mine." The discussion was interrupted by a knock at the door. Moments later, Headmaid Celene entered, carrying a ledger beneath one arm. She curtsied.

"Your Majesty." The king gestured toward a space beside the table.

"Celene. Are you aware of any missing maids?"

"Yes, my king," the headmaid said, her jaw tightening. Aric looked at her, surprised.

"After Prince Kavard accused one of my girls of being an assassin, I began investigating." She placed the ledger upon the table.

"And I found this."

"What am I looking at?"

"This is Headmaid Hesta's signature." The headmaid pointed at several entries.

"Hesta is barely literate. That is why I normally handle all paperwork."

"Yet somehow she personally signed the transfer papers for those maids." She tapped three names. Prince Aric looked over her shoulder and wasn't surprised to read: Mara, Amelia, and Carry, the same names in the letter he found with Thadwick.

"Why do you think that matters?" the king asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Because those girls vanished," Celene said.

"The paperwork freed me from conducting exit interviews," she continued.

"At the time, I thought it was strange. Now I think it was deliberate."

"What are you implying?" asked the king in a cold voice. The headmaid met his gaze directly.

"You know me, Argon." The use of the king's name would have shocked anyone outside this room, but Aric knew Celene had served the royal household since before the king inherited the throne. She and Maid Comina were almost a second and third mother to him.

"I would do anything for my girls," Celene's voice shook.

"And Maren is not an assassin, no matter what Prince Kavard says." The king studied her for several moments, and then he handed her the letters. The headmaid began reading. Halfway through the second letter, tears appeared in her eyes. By the third, her hands were shaking. By the fourth, she collapsed onto her knees, sobbing. Aric stepped forward and placed a hand on the headmaid's shoulder. King Argon slowly stood. When he spoke again, his voice carried the authority of a monarch.

"Estophon." The knight straightened.

"Take your most trusted men and summon Maid Hesta and Knight Salvek to the throne room." The king paused, then added quietly, "And summon my son as well."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Estophon nodded.

"It will be done."

"Also, secure Thadwick's room. Search every inch of it," The king looked at the letters.

"In case there is more incriminating evidence."

"Father," interrupted Aric, "I should accompany him." The king raised an eyebrow.

"I left Deren guarding the room." The prince hesitated, then added, "I gave him orders to kill anyone who attempted to force their way inside." A moment of silence followed. Then the Queen Dowager leaned back in her chair with a big smile on her face.

"Told you." She pointed her cane toward Aric.

"This one would make a better king."