A/N
SPECIAL THANKS to @-thiflath- for creating this elegant front page for my book and also allowing me to use it!
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The young ruler of Arkesia stood inside the magnificent garden which adorned the front yard of the Elder's house, waiting for him to meet him there. The golden rays of the rising sun fell on him and made the embedded diamonds of his crown gleam and glisten with its soft touch. He was drawn in his thoughts, he could not get his mind out of what he had heard from his little brother Edmond and Queen Thanaliya at suppertime last night.
......
"Brother, did you hear the rumours which have spread from Elder Eckard's neighbourhood?" Prince Edmond had asked him while he was passing his favourite minced chicken dish. "Rumours?" King Zeeran lifted a brow at him. "What do you mean?"
"People are saying that Elder Eckard is going to leave our kingdom." Prince Edmond said with a sigh and shook his head. "I'm not sure if it is true or not, but I haven't seen him much in the palace these days. I'm worried that he has stopped visiting us lately."
"He informed me a few days ago that he is unwell and that he will not be able to attend the meetings at the palace for a while." King Zeeran told him. "I've appointed Healer Fahan and one of our nurses at the palace to check on his health condition every day, and I heard from them that he is getting better."
"Your Majesty," Queen Thanaliya said as she filled his goblet with some more red wine. "I heard from my trusted maid Wilma that his servants have been packing his things for some days now. And I hear that his carriages are parked at his front yard as if they are about to leave."
"Well, it is probably a villager gossip, my dear." The King said as he took a sip of his drink with a thoughtful look on his face. "He would have surely told me if he is planning to leave." With that, he got up from the dining table without finishing his meal and went to the royal library where he used to get lessons from Elder Eckard two years ago. And the words he had said on the day he had taught his last lesson echoed in his ears once again. "I've fulfilled your father's last desire, Your Highness." He had said in his deep voice. "Now I wish to be free from all the royal responsibilities."
.......
"Ahm..." He heard someone clearing their throat behind him and turned around to face the wise old man who stood behind him with the help of a supportive stick. King Zeeran's face brightened up as soon as he saw him. "Oh, how I missed your presence at the palace, my dear Elder Eckard!" He said as he quickened his pace towards the Elder, and the old man chuckled at him in a low rumbling voice. "You sound as if you had a difficult time at the palace, Your Majesty!" Elder noted him.
"Of course, you proved to me once again that I and my people will not survive without your precious guidance, dear Elder." King Zeeran stated with a smile.
"That can't be true, Your Majesty." The Elder denied his remark in a firm voice. "I'm sure that I've taught you everything about ruling a kingdom, and all of your lessons ended two years ago."
"Yes, you are right." The King said with a nod of his head. "Still, you have to accept that I need you beside me to watch over my steps."
"Pardon me, Your Highness." The Elder said. "You have to understand that I can't be there for you all the time. I've reached my retirement age, and I wish to have an ordinary life now... A life free from all the royal responsibilities. I believe I've talked about this to you a few years ago."
"What do you mean, Elder?" King Zeeran asked in an alarmed voice.
"I imply that I have decided to leave the Capital City of Arkesia, Your Majesty." The exact words the ruler dreaded to hear all these times came out of his mentor's lips as if they meant nothing to him.
"But it has been only two years since my lessons ended." The young king protested. "And it's been only a year since I took over the Kingdom of Arkesia. There's still so much left for me and my brother to learn from your experiences and wisdom. Besides, Edmond is still very young. He still has to master the art of fighting. No one in this Kingdom is better than you when it comes to combats. I wish you would stay here at least until he becomes a brave warrior."
"Your experiences will be unique and different from what I've experienced in my life, Your Majesty." Elder Eckard said with a prudent look in his old grey eyes. "And I'm quite sure that you will be able to handle every situation on your own. You will not need me to assist you anymore. As for Prince Edmond, I know that he is very intelligent even though he is young, and I'm quite sure that he will follow your steps and learn everything he needs to learn by himself. Also, I've appointed my best combatant Haman to teach him all the martial arts he needs to learn. So you needn't worry about him."
"But Elder, I certainly need you here!" The King said desperately. "It is your guidance and support which gives me the strength and confidence to rule this entire Kingdom! Without you, I will be lost as a fallen star! Please change your mind and stay at my palace. I'll do whatever you expect me to do for you!"
"You know very well that this old man doesn't require anything from you," The Elder said with a sigh and turned away from him to face the pleasant garden. "I've fulfilled your father's last desire. I've taught you everything you need to learn. I know it's time for me to leave now. Please, do not force me to stay here any longer, Your Highness! Because I am certain that one day you will realise, it is the best thing I've ever done for you!"
"How could your absence ever benefit me, Elder Eckard?" King Zeeran said with a confused look in his steely grey eyes, and then his expression became grim. "You are more than just a mentor to me, you've filled the void of losing my father all these years. I've always looked up to you the same way I would have to my father. All I need from you is to see you from where I am and listen to your voice. You can be free from all the royal responsibilities, Elder Eckard. I'll see to it that you have a quiet life as you want. But please, don't leave me."
The Elder sighed again and shook his head in a refusing manner. He was still facing the opposite direction, away from the King, so that he could not see the emotions that passed on the elderly man's face at that moment. "Ahm." He cleared his throat to wipe out all the emotions that surged through his mind. "It is true that I've always treated you as a son of my own, Your Majesty." When he spoke, his voice was stern and steady, suggesting that he was rigid in his decision. "But I'm afraid that I'll become your weakness at some point."
"I find it hard to see what you mean, dear Elder." The King said with confusion and desperation mixed in his voice. "You are the strength that keeps me as one of the powerful Kings to rule these territories. Your mere presence gives me the courage to face all the challenges I happen to encounter each day. I feel like I can defeat a whole army alone if you just stand by my side! I find it difficult to spend even a day without talking to you, Elder Eckard. Because you are very important to me, you know that well!"
"You will understand when the time comes, Your Majesty," The Elder said as he turned to face him, his expressions were tough and he was looking straightly into his grey eyes that resembled the colour of silver crystals. "You have to trust that everything I do will be in your best interest. That is all I can say for now."
"Of course, I trust you, and I do believe that your decisions will always be reasonable and beneficial to me and my people." The King said quickly. "But I fail to see why you had to make such a tough decision... You can see it is hard for me not to have your presence at Palace Anavil even for a day, Elder Eckard! You haven't visited me for a whole week now, and it felt like a whole year to me! And to think of your retirement... No! I can't accept this from you, Elder. Please forgive me. But I can't let you leave."
The old man chuckled in a low, rumbling voice and coughed in his hand before starting to speak again. "Now... now... Your Majesty!" He said with a shake of his head. "You sound like a small boy requesting his mother to stay by him until he finishes playing his favourite game, which will take rather a very long time to be over. I can sense that you are feeling nervous about taking over the kingdom on your own. But you'll get used to facing all the odds alone. What would you do if I became seriously ill? Well, I'm sure that you'll do your best to heal me by using the best healers in the kingdom... But what will happen if I suddenly die? Then you'll be forced to stay strong on your own, won't you? I want to see you being the most powerful King in this territory. I want to see you making strong decisions on your own, and I want to watch you ruling the Kingdom of Arkesia just the way I expect you to govern it. That is why I made this decision, Your Highness. It would not happen if I did not stay away from you."
"Then promise me," King Zeeran said through his gritted teeth as he set his stretched hand in front of the Elder, who looked at him with confusion. "Promise me that you will not ever leave the borders of my kingdom! Go wherever you want and do whatever you wish if that is what you want. But do not ever leave my Kingdom!"
"I would pledge to you if you would make a promise to me in return." The Elder said as he let out a long sigh.
"What is it?" King Zeeran asked him in an impatient voice.
"I would stay in your territories as long as you do not try to find me." Elder Eckard said as he gazed into the King's silver-grey eyes. "I will return when I know it is the right time for me to come back. But you should not send your spies after me until then. Would you agree to that, Your Majesty?"
King Zeeran closed his eyes tightly for a moment and took in a sharp breath before closing his hand over the Elder's creased hand. "I vow to you, Elder." When he spoke, his voice sounded calm. "I will not try to find you until you decide to show up. You have my word!"