"Brother, I'm cold..." The small child wrapped his coat further around him to prevent the chilly atmosphere seep through his body.
"Don't worry, brother will find a place we can rest after this," he reassured and ruffled the child's hair.
Gage nodded his head weakly before closing his eyes and leaning his head into his brother's chest.
The clouds were rumbling as a heavy rainstorm was about to come. Despite the season being summer, it still felt like winter considering the gloomy weather and the occasional showers that occur here and there.
Raphael shifted in his spot as he observed the visible surroundings.
Where can they rest? He did not know.
They were the family of a traitor in the kingdom and instead, the authorities from the Kingdom had chosen to let them go and become fugitives on the loose rather than detain them in the cellar.
Raphael had lost it all.
His name, status, and wealth. He was no longer the young duke of the Taron Kingdom nor was he a high-ranking noble in the territory.
He, along with his young brother, were now runaway criminals.
It only took a short moment for everything to happen.
Raphael's father had betrayed the throne and turned against the kingdom. It was an unforeseen event for him and that made his life take a complete turn.
How long had they been roaming around places now? He wondered.
A month? Raphael couldn't keep track of the time. He was too focused on raising his younger brother in the wild.
They cannot even go to houses or any other kingdoms because the war is still ongoing even though it simmered down. Territories are still sensitive about taking anyone from the other kingdoms especially if it was Taron.
A kingdom greatly eyed by the Empire of the North and that had recently fought a hard battle against the invaders.
Raphael and his brother were set free as fugitives wandering in the wilderness looking for ways to survive.
"Brother will find you a place to sleep at, Gage," he comforted the young child in his arms and continued to walk.
"Haah..." His knees wobbled for a second as he too was tired and exhausted from all the things that happened.
The former young duke was even thinking it would've been better if they were detained as prisoners in the dungeons rather than fugitives in the wilderness. At least through that, they would have shelter and food to eat.
But instead, they were set free and stripped off of everything they had.
Everything became a total mess for him and he did not know what he should do.
Rumble~
The skies produced a threatening sound again making the young duke hurry in his steps.
Trees after trees, valleys after valleys, the field of lush green were surrounding him and it did not help that it was about to rain.
Raphael needed to quickly look for a shelter so his younger brother would not suffer anymore.
'Just a house... even an abandoned one...' He shivered when the coldness started to crawl inside his worn-out clothes.
'I'm so tired...' He groaned but his eyes pondered over his younger brother.
Gage was the one who will be most affected by all of this. He was innocent. Only a young child who did not have any clue what happened.
Raphael cannot bear to see his brother suffer.
Even if his feet had started hurting so much, Raphael continued to move forward. His huffs produced a cloud of breath and his pants of exhaustion created a series of unwanted thoughts inside his head.
He wanted to give up.
It had only been a month but living in the wild was the most dangerous thing a human being could do.
Magic beasts were always coming out in every direction and were trying to attack the two.
Raphael had defended to the best of his abilities but his sword was also taken away from him.
They were kicked out of the Taron Kingdom with nothing but clothes.
Some might find living in the wilderness easy but it wasn't the case for these two. They cannot freely hunt fruits and other consumables without triggering the magic beasts and monsters in the surrounding places.
The young duke desired to rest and stop for a moment but the rain will soon fall.
He did not care if he gets drenched or sick but with his younger brother in his arms, it couldn't happen.
With a sharp stick in his hand while Gage was being cradled with the other, Raphael heaved a deep breath before walking again.
His steps were slow and painful. Every movement he made, a pang of pain would course through his body and produce a groan from him.
"Please... just a house to sleep in..." He begged particularly towards no one but the wind.
His words were desperate and his actions were forced. Raphael was hungry too. It had been quite some time since he had eaten because he would give everything to Gage.
The child was his priority and the only reason he was keeping forward.
But the world seems to have weighed upon them. Raphael's vision started to get blurry and his entire body trembled.
Unknowingly, his knees gave in and he came crashing on the ground.
Thud!
He wrapped Gage in his arms securely as his last resolve since his body gave up.
"B-Brother!" The young child panicked when his brother fell to the ground. Gage too was trapped under Raphael's body.
"Brother! Are you okay?! Brother!" Gage tried to wake him up but Raphael was too dizzy to respond.
And that did not end there.
A small drop of liquid fell on the young duke's face wherein Raphael had finally lost it.
The single drop was then followed by another. Until the droplets of water became plenty enough that the young duke was getting drenched.
It finally rained and they were still in the open field with no houses nearby.
"G-Gage..." he managed to speak and the small child immediately responded.
"Y-Yes, brother!" Gage was already crying and Raphael knew that too. Even if his brother's voice was tough, the occasional sniffs and breaks in his voice made Raphael identify that Gage was crying.
"I... I'm sorry... brother could not find a house for you..." He apologized and Gage cried harder.
"It's... hic... It's okay, brother! L-Let us rest here until we can look for a house!" Gage clutched Raphael's dirty clothes and wept there.
'No...' Raphael could not do that.
He can't rest under the rain because they would both get sick and having a child with him getting sick was the worst possible scenario for the two of them.
"Brother... haah... brother will find a house for you, okay?" He spoke and tried to get up.
They cannot build a temporary shelter using wood and leaves either. The biggest threats, which were the beasts and monsters, are lurking in every place and they would get killed if they stayed or created a house.
It was a fight of time for the both of them and Raphael knew that.
His arms trembled when he tried to lift himself. He was tired. Too tired to think of anything else but lifting himself off of the ground.
"F-Fucking tired..." he managed to curse out when he forgot in a split-second that Gage was in his arms.
"Brother...?"
"A-Ah, I'm sorry, Gage. Brother did not mean to say a bad word..." This time, he was able to lift himself from laying flat on the ground but not completely.
Raphael was kneeling as the rain continued to pour down on them.
"Haah..." He sighed in defeat.
They were completely wet now and Gage would be surely sick the next day.
"Brother..." Gage called and tapped his chest but Raphael was too busy of thinking about what to do next.
"B-Brother!" The call resonated in his ears again and Raphael scrunched his eyebrows.
"What is it? Brother's thinking of what to do-"
"Look!"
Gage pointed in a direction and Raphael's eyes followed immediately.
"There are people!" Gage exclaimed happily and the young duke's eyes widened.
Indeed, from a distance from them were people but that did not alleviate Raphael's worry.
They were not affiliated with any kingdom nor were they riding in fancy carriages. They were runaway fugitives who had the worst criminal record a person could get from a kingdom.
If someone were to find them, Raphael was already looking forward to what would happen.
"N-No..." he panicked and his body rose from kneeling. He embraced Gage tighter in his arms as he took a step back.
If someone were to capture them, Raphael knew the worst possible outcome.
They would be turned into slaves or killed on the spot.
"Brother, they're approaching us!" Gage spoke again excitedly but Raphael's head was ringing with alarms.
Step
Step
Step
Each step he took was painful enough for him to cry but he couldn't. The nervousness coursing through his body blocked off his sense of pain and instead, rose anxiousness.
'Run... I should run!' He thought.
He turned his body when the people from the distance walked further towards them.
But before he could do so...
"Sleep."
A finger touched the back of his neck and Raphael's consciousness immediately disappeared.
---
Groaning, the young duke tried to open his eyes and as soon as he did so, his vision started spinning.
"Are you awake, human?" The voice located beside him asked but Raphael could not answer perfectly.
'They captured us...' Dread filled his senses and Raphael lay there weakly.
But then, another thought arose in his head.
'Gage!' He quickly opened his eyes and turned his head.
"You're awake. Stand up now, someone wants to meet you," the person spoke and Raphael groaned in response.
"G-Gage... W-Where..."
"The little human is not here as of the moment," the man spoke once more but Raphael's heart pounded in his ears.
He knew the dangers that could happen to a child like Gage.
Raphael used the last drop of his energy to stand and quickly eye the man that was wearing a black cloak.
"Give me my brother back!" He screamed and ran to attack the cloaked person but Raphael did not even touch him.
The person disappeared like the wind and reappeared beside him.
"Quit wasting your energy, human. The world will die if the king gets bored. Hurry up!" The cloaked stranger spoke in a frustrated voice too but Raphael's actions were opposing.
"GIVE ME MY BROTHER BACK!" He tried to attack again but the stranger avoided him easily.
Instead, the latter grabbed Raphael's arms and twisted it in a painful manner earning a pained scream from the young duke.
"Listen to me you little shit," the person glared at him and Raphael shivered in fear when he saw the dangerous gleams in the other person's eyes.
"Your brother is not harmed nor is he in danger. Rather, I would follow what I say if you do not want him to die." The stranger then glared at Raphael.
"His majesty is waiting for you, human. If you make him wait any longer, you don't know how dangerous it would be!" Releasing Raphael's arm, the stranger then gave him one more furious glare before grabbing the young duke by the hair.
The cloaked stranger then dragged Raphael out of what looked like a prison room.
"A-Argh!" He groaned in pain.
"Fuck this," the stranger cursed before releasing the young duke's hair.
"Stand up!" He commanded and Raphael followed.
Based on the stranger's words alone, the only thing Raphael could do was follow whatever he said. If his brother was indeed safe, he should do everything.
That's the only thing he can hold onto. He cannot escape and his body was weak.
"Follow me," the cloaked stranger started to walk in a luxurious hallway and Raphael followed quietly.
His thoughts were all around the room as he thought about Gage's state.
What should he do to escape the place? After getting Gage back, Raphael needed to leave the place and not jeopardize their security any longer.
Gage was his remaining family member and losing the child would be his biggest regret in life.
He then looked at the walls.
Plenty of paintings was dangling from the corners and every wall he saw. The place looked extremely new and well-taken care of.
Raphael tried to look for any exits or passages but the only thing he could see was the spacious hallway ahead of them.
'I'm trapped...' He gritted his teeth in frustration.
Is this where he would end? As a slave in the hands of strangers?
He could not fathom as to how everything had come to this point. Raphael had been guarding the borders against the invaders from Cresencia when his forces had lost and he had come into hiding in the ruins.
Yet when he returned to the kingdom, all the strong enemies including the beastmaster that he could not defeat were slain.
Not just that, everything became ruined when he knew his father had been a traitor who turned against the kingdom.
"I...Is this where I'll die?" He inquired and the stranger stopped walking.
"Depends on the king. He's quite ruthless and I am sure your head would be chopped off." That made the young duke's spine shiver in fear.
"W-Why does your king want to meet me?" he asked again and the stranger heaved a sigh.
"Don't know. To use you as a toy for pleasure? Maybe he wants to dissect another human and study your body parts? Not that the other king would be pleased to see His Majesty playing with you though," the cloaked stranger spoke again and the words alone were enough to threaten the young duke.
A toy for pleasure?
A material for dissection?
Raphael wanted to run away and just die but the latter option would ensue that desire of him. He dreaded the first option too.
But going back to the sentence...
"Other king?" He inquired for the third time and now, the stranger did not speak anymore.
Instead, Raphael saw the man walk again into a wider hall where there was a door covered with expensive gems.
The cloaked stranger knocked on the door and Raphael flinched when a gust of wind appeared making their clothes flutter.
"Your Majesty, the person you have requested has arrived," the words were making Raphael's stomach churn in an unpleasant way.
His heart pounded in his ears and his mind started to get hazy once more.
'Gage...' His jaw tightened.
But for the sake of his younger brother. If he could get Gage back and secure his safety, Raphael would do whatever he can right now.
Slowly, the doors creaked open without the stranger touching them. Until it fully departed to create a pathway for Raphael and the stranger, the young duke was shifting uncomfortably in his spot.
"Come inside, human. His Majesty is waiting for you," the cloaked stranger urged him while walking forward without any hints of fear.
The young duke gulped before he strengthened his resolve and walked inside the room.
The world might have looked down on Raphael and his family for the past month. He has suffered and bled whereas everything was a product of bad luck.
Now, it felt like things have finally gone for the worse and the clueless young duke will finally face his demise.
Raphael's steps headed inside the dark and eerie room where moonlight cascaded over the windows. His eyes roamed the place and he can see the faint objects on the corners such as glimmering stones.
His breath hitched when a cold breeze passed by him and he jumped in fear when the silence was interrupted by a shifting sound.
That's when he decided to look ahead and his eyes widened.
He could not make out what was in front of him due to the darkness and the distance but as he slowly approached it, Raphael's breathing became hard.
His hands started sweating and shivers were running down his spine.
It was a throne that was completely black.
And sitting on the throne...
His pounding chest became even more prominent as words were taken right out of his mouth. The closer he got, the more Raphael's vision got better.
Maybe everything had been unfortunate for him.
He stopped walking when he was near enough to the black throne and he could finally see the figure sitting in it.
Thud!
He fell to his knees as he panted exasperated breaths.
The former young duke could not believe what he was seeing. He wanted to believe that this was all a dream and he would soon wake up but he couldn't.
This was the reality in front of him and Raphael had no choice but to succumb.
"Why do you look like you're seeing a monster, Sir Raphael?" The person sitting on the throne spoke and Raphael had so much fear inside his body for a split second.
The authority alone was enough to make him tremble.
But a monster? Raphael thought otherwise.
No monster was as beautiful as the person sitting on the dark throne.
It was just as he remembered. Moonlight seeped through the windows and it illuminated the person's figure and appearance.
"I..." He tried to speak.
Like a god looking down on things he could easily crush, the person was eyeing him the same.
His beautiful appearance that placed the beauty of fairies into shame.
His aura that made kings and emperors fall to their knees.
His appearance that made the gods jealous.
With a dragon sitting on his lap while his gentle hands caressed its head, he looked astonishing.
"It had been a long time since we last saw each other, young duke." The white-haired king smiled at him.