The Frozen Throne

Ring's Memories Part 1

A cease-fire is declared between Niflheim and Ilium, Ardyn visits the kingdom personally to negotiate the end to hostilities. He expected to see Requiem, the king of Ilium, however, the man he found there was not the person he expected. Instead, Ardyn's eyes saw an extremely young king, who was the carbon copy of his father. Everything about that young man resembled Requiem, the only difference between them was their eyes.

Although the king of Ilium was chosen by the crystal and gained immortality, one day he suddenly disappeared, and the queen broke the news that her husband the king had passed away. Everyone mourned his death, but it was not certain that Elicia's words were really the truth about what happened to the king. Ardyn wanted some answers about what really happened with Requiem, but he must not show that he had a relationship with the king. So when Ardyn visited the kingdom to negotiate, he kept silent on unrelated matters, only talking about the ceasefire.

But even if the king was such a young man, his eyes were suspicious of Ardyn's words, as if he saw the man's true intentions. It was as if those mismatched eyes saw what was inside Ardyn's mind, reading his every next move. Although that was what it seemed like, Yozora was only cautious because his mother told him; "Never trust the words and intentions of Ardyn Inzunia."

To loosen up the heavy atmosphere a bit, Ardyn suggested. "How about we have a cup of tea together, Your Highness? After all, we must form a strong bond between our future alliance and a moment to relax."

Yozora didn't expect such a thing, so he wasn't sure what to answer. His eyes traveled from Ardyn to his royal knight who was at his side, seeking an answer from him. Raiga nodded slightly, allowing the king to accept Adyn's proposal.

"So, shall we go to the garden? It's a nice comfortable place to relax." Yozora suggested, hoping Ardyn would agree to the idea.

Ardyn removed his hat, held it close to his chest, then bowed. "It would be a pleasure to accompany Your Majesty."

In Yozora's eyes, the man in front of him was nothing like what his mother described him, maybe she was wrong. But it's not that he mistrusted his mother, maybe Ardyn is just pretending to be a good person. Yet everything Ardyn said and did came from his heart. Although that only applied when talking to Yozora, since his hostility towards the queen was crystal clear.

That is why, at the tea break, Yozora, the soon to be king, asked Ardyn about the reason why he hated Queen Elicia so much. Compared to his mother, Ardyn actually decided to tell Yozora a story, a tragic one. He had never talked to anyone about his distant past, so he hesitated for a moment.

"I am deeply sorry, your majesty, it seems that I would not be able to speak of such events. But I am a very close friend of your father."

This didn't surprise Yozora, as his mother told him about the relationship between Ardyn and Requiem. But that was all, she simply confessed that they were both friends since they were little, nothing more than that. However, the prince could see a cloud of sadness form in his mother's eyes every time she mentioned anything related to the relationship between the king and Ardyn.

"Do you know how the king died?" Yozora looks at the cup in his hands. "The Queen refused to tell me what happened to His Majesty."

Ardyn took a sip of tea, "Once again, I must apologize. I was never informed that King Requiem passed away, so the moment I saw his highness sitting on the throne, a harsh reality pierced my chest like a sharp sword."

Yozora opened his mouth to speak, but his mother's sudden voice cut him off. "It seems that the negotiations ended a long time ago, you must not take more time from the king."

The atmosphere suddenly became heavy, it was as if everything ended up being swallowed by a thick layer of darkness. But Ardyn decided not to cause a commotion, resigning himself to continue talking to Prince Yozora.