Who Made Me The Secret Crown Prince

Episode 3.

"Your Highness," Valeria uttered with hesitance as she sat up with her senses returning to her, fearfully looking at the knelt prince in front of her. She was unable to meet his eyes. "You... You saved me."

"Most of you. I can't fully heal you yet with my current state," Aeternitheos replied in a displeased tone with a slight cough, brushing himself as he straightened up to stand.

The young prince didn't need to explain further, as Valeria looked down at her right leg, just below the area where she was stabbed. 

Despite this outcome being non-life threatening or that this would not leave her now incapacitated, it left a mild impairment and would pose an inconvenience in Valeria's daily life. The minor flaw manifested as a slight weakness in her leg, affecting her dexterity and mobility.

Aeternitheos decided in a split second as he was healing Valeria that it was not worth the risk of his mana becoming unstable and exploding, in an attempt to perfect the process, which would only kill Valeria instantly. The damaged organs were easier for Aeternitheos to manipulate. Still, human nerves were delicate, and while the threads were carefully and skillfully weaved back mostly in place, as well as having such a monstrous amount of mana, his magic was not fully developed yet at the age of two.

"Valeria Ravenscroft, from this day onwards, you will be dismissed from the Obsidian Palace," Aeternitheos announced with a stoic expression that revealed little of the intricate emotions.

Valeria's gaze met the cold proclamation, and her eyes welled up once more, reflecting the ambient light with unshed tears. Her lips trembled, and a broken sob escaped from the depths of her throat, the sound echoing through the vastness of the grand hall like a mournful melody.

Overwhelmed by despair, Valeria instantly folded herself, pressing her forehead onto the cold floor, essentially begging at the prince's feet. Her desperation hung in the air like a palpable force, a silent plea for mercy in the face of an impending exile.

"Your Highness, please. I beg your pardon for my insolent and foolish behaviour. I beg your pardon for stealing your treasures. I deserved dying. I owe you my life for saving me, so I have no right to ask for such a request, but I must implore you not to dismiss me. Please, please do not dismiss me. I can still stand. I can still walk," Valeria pleaded, her words interspersed with sniffles and desperation. "Just give me time. I need this."

While it was true that this was an injury time could heal, time was something Valeria could not afford right now. The Obsidian Palace was now filled with the stench of death, and Aeternitheos knew this was only just the beginning.

The prince's gaze remained inscrutable, his features betraying little of his thoughts. "Why?" Aeternitheos delicately asked, his tone gentle enough to coax but firm enough to send shivers down her spine.

In the delicate dance of this conversation, a single lie could seal her fate.

"My brother... I need the money for my brother," Valeria begged, her voice rushed and desperate, the heavy weight of this sincere plea catching on the significance of her words. "I just got him back after losing him. I just need to pay them off. I need to pay them soon."

Slavery was the obvious answer to make sense of what the old woman was prattling about, as well as extreme debt. Aeternitheos was almost surprised that the effects reached nobles, but in an Empire like the Obelian Empire, he assumed the Ravenscrofts were simply powerless nobles with empty titles.

Desperate, Valeria attempted to rise, but the lack of feeling and control in her weakened leg caused her to collapse to the ground. Her cries merged with the hallowed echoes of the palace, resonating through the grand hall like a heartbreaking symphony of despair and pleading.