Ray stared at Max from inside the net.
For someone who had spent his entire life hearing terrifying stories about the first prince of the Eternal Night Kingdom, Max didn’t look quite as frightening as he had imagined.
Ray had seen his face countless times before.
Everyone had.
The newspapers were practically obsessed with the two princes.
“PRINCE RAY ALDERHEART SAVES VILLAGE FROM BANDITS!”
“PRINCE MAX OBSIDIAN CAPTURES RAMPAGING MAGICAL BEAST!”
“LUMINOUS PRINCE RAY USES SUPER STRENGTH TO RESCUE FARMERS!”
And, of course, every article about one prince was usually followed by an article about the other.
Their kingdoms had turned them into walking symbols of the rivalry.
Ray had seen Max’s picture so many times that recognizing him was easy.
Still…
Seeing him in person was different.
Ray tilted his head.
“So you’re really Max Obsidian.”
Max’s sword stopped halfway upward.
“And you’re really Ray Alderheart.”
Ray blinked.
“Wait. You knew?”
Max lowered his sword slightly.
“Who else would sneak into my room wearing a Luminous Realm cloak?”
Ray looked down at himself.
“Oh.”
He had completely forgotten about that.
“Fair enough.”
A loud voice suddenly echoed from the hallway.
“Who is in there?”
Both princes froze.
Ray’s eyes widened.
“Oh no.”
Max clicked his tongue.
“This is your fault.”
“My fault?! You were the one trying to kill me!”
“You broke into my room.”
“Fair point.”
The footsteps grew louder.
Ray looked toward the door.
“If they find me here, both our kingdoms are going to have a field day.”
Max sighed.
“I don’t need that headache.”
He walked toward Ray and sliced through the net.
Ray dropped to the floor.
“Ow! My poor—”
“Get up.”
“You could at least help me.”
“Why would I waste my energy on you?”
Ray pouted.
“Some prince you are.”
Max walked past him.
“Follow me.”
Ray hurried after him.
“Wait! Where are we going?”
“Somewhere you can explain yourself without getting us both caught.”
Max placed his hand against a hidden wall.
Dark magic spread across the stone.
A doorway appeared.
Ray’s eyes widened.
“Whoa.”
Max glanced at him.
“Try not to touch anything.”
“I wasn’t going to.”
“You were thinking about it.”
“…Maybe.”
They stepped inside.
The door vanished behind them
Ray looked around.
The room was small but strangely comfortable. Books covered one wall, magical objects covered another, and several strange weapons were scattered across a table.
“This is your secret room?”
“Yes.”
“It’s actually kind of nice.”
“Don’t get comfortable.”
Ray sat down anyway.
Max sighed.
“You have about five minutes before someone notices something is up.”
Ray leaned back.
“Then I better make them count.”
Max crossed his arms.
“Go on then .”
Ray looked at him.
“I told you. I wanted to meet you.”
“Why?”
Ray shrugged.
“Because tomorrow we’re going to the same academy.”
Max raised an eyebrow.
“And?”
Ray hesitated
He had been thinking about this all day.
The grudge and rivalry between their kingdoms was everywhere. In the newspapers. In the palace. In the way their people talked about each other.
And now that he was finally sitting across from the person he had heard about his entire life, something felt… different.
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Comments
☆•tayraleth13•☆
Hurry up and give us the next chapter, pretty please with a cherry on top!
2024-05-28
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