The reunion of the three Royal siblings was currently being held in the Main Dining Room of the Palace. Each and every servant carefully helped in decorating the room just to please the three Royals. The menu was handpicked by Emperor Anastasius himself and the best chefs of Obelia were the ones assigned to cook each dish.
All this was done to celebrate and welcome the return of Prince Claude de Alger Obelia.
Odette and Anastasius were already inside the Dining Room, quietly chatting about the current plans regarding the Hunting Festival. Prince Claude was, meanwhile, nowhere to be seen. It seems as if he was running late.
"Shall we start dinner without Claude? We have been waiting for half an hour." Anastasius impatiently asked Odette.
She shook her head. "No, dear brother. We must wait for Claude. I haven't even seen him yet."
"He hasn't learned any manners from his four year expedition," he said to himself. "I should put him in etiquette classes again."
"Don't be that harsh, Anastasius," Odette reminded. "he's 16, just a mere child. Let him goof around."
"16?" he tried to recall. "At that age, I already became Emperor. Claude has no excuse for this behavior."
Instead of arguing, Odette nodded and called a maid. She ordered for the maid to call on Claude. A few minutes after, the second Prince arrived with an apologetic smile. He was wearing his training uniform with a sword at hand.
"Sorry for being late, Anastasius." the 16 year old greeted. "I had training with the Royal Knights. I almost forgot our lunch together."
"Seems you also forgot someone else joining us today, Claude." Anastasius reminded him.
Odette cleared her throat, causing Claude to look over at her side. His eyes instantly widened. He hasn't even noticed Odette's presence. It's been four years since he last saw his sister. She hasn't changed much, but Claude could feel that her mana gradually increased.
She smiled. "Please take a seat, Claude. We have much to talk about."
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Claude quickly apologized for not noticing Odette earlier. He took a seat beside Odette and told her everything about the four year expedition. Whenever Odette brought him letters during his trip, he felt an immense joy. He truly missed her sister more than anyone.
"I even managed to defeat Felix in a duel, Odette." he stated proudly.
"Very impressive, Claude. You've grown a lot and I am so proud." she replied. "You're still my baby brother, though."
She pinched Claude's cheeks and the younger man instantly blushed in embarrassment.
"I'm not a kid anymore, stop doing that."
"You sure act like one." Anastasius intervened. "Your four year expedition has done more bad than good."
Claude glared at his brother.
"Your stupid prep school just made you an asshole."
"An asshole that has manners, at least."
The second Prince stood up from his seat with a disappointed look on his face.
"Seriously, Anastasius, what is your problem? What do you expect me to be-- to be someone like you?"
Odette sighed. It hasn't been five minutes but it seems that there will be a fight between the two brothers.
Meanwhile, Anastasius nodded his head.
"You're a Prince, Claude. The Empire expects nothing less from you," he explained. "we'll be celebrating your 16th Birthday and your Return in High Society. Now's the time to form connections."
"That's what you want, but I plan on being a Royal Knight in the province of Siodonna."
"That's not your choice to make."
"But it's what you want-- isn't it? You reign as Emperor and expand the Empire, while me and Odette are thrown off to the side."
Anastasius stopped eating and slammed his fists to the table. He could feel anger boiling in his veins.
"I only want what's best for the Empire. I have been training Odette to utilize her powers for the Land of Shadows. Is that not we agreed on, sister?" he turned to the princess.
"Yes, that is our agreement." she replied in a calming tone. "so please, will the both of you settle down? Let's just sit down and talk to each other properly."
Claude bit his lip and apologized to Odette.
"Sorry, Odette. I trust you, but him?" he pointed to Anastasius. "I don't trust him one bit. Ever since we were young, Anastasius has been having these weird episodes wherein he feels like a different person."
Anastasius stood up from his seat. "You know nothing about that, Claude."
"I don't know a lot, but I'm sure that it makes you dangerous."
"Stop talking nonsense."
"You almost hurt Odette. You also killed your own mother."
Odette's eyes widened at Claude's reply. She looked at Anastasius.
"What is he talking about, Anastasius?"
Before Anastasius could talk, Claude immediately cut him off.
"I was a fool to think that we'd actually have a peaceful dinner together, just like we were kids." he suddenly said, grabbing his coat. "I'll take my leave."
Anastasius didn't even bat an eye as Claude left. He simply sat back down and continued eating, as if nothing happened.
Odette stared at him with disappointed eyes.
"Is it true, Anastasius?" she asked. "did you really kill mother?"
He didn't answer. The room was only filled with silence.
Odette sighed and stood up from her seat.
"If you don't want to talk, then I'll leave."
As Odette was walking away, Anastasius softly grabbed her wrist. She stopped at her tracks.
"It wasn't me, Odette." he said quietly.
She raised an eyebrow. "Then who was it?"
Anastasius wanted to answer Aeterenitas, but he couldn't. His lips were shut tight, as if someone was stopping him. Instead of saying the truth, he answered something else.
"She killed herself out of loneliness without father. I was the first one to see her dead as she overdosed on drugs."
A tear escaped Odette's eyes. "I don't know if you're telling the truth, Anastasius."
He was silent once again. Because of this, Odette let go of Anastasius' grip on her wrist.
"If you'll excuse me," she looked back at him. "I have to console Claude first."
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Lucas spent his time as a cat more often than he did as a human. It was way more easier to regulate his mana and less people took notice of him. He was still, of course, regarded as Princess Odette's Divine Pet who had magic. Lucky for him, there were no wizards that could sense his mana or identity.
Speaking of wizards, the current ones were weak. Lucas couldn't even feel an ounce of mana in the Palace except for Odette's. Unlike a few hundred years ago, when he reigned as the Empire's Strongest Wizard, there were plenty of capable individuals who could cultivate mana.
All that changed when Lucas sensed a particular presence in the Empire. It didn't come from a group of people, it came from just one person alone.
Lucas couldn't really pinpoint exactly what or who they were but it was a damn strong presence. It could even rival his own mana.
"What the hell? Why is there a cat in here?"
A sudden voice asked. Normally, Lucas could sense a stranger approaching him in no time. His eyes widened and he looked around to see a young man that had the same hair and eyes as Odette's. He had a lean but tall build and he wore an outfit that was fit for a Prince.
"He must be Odette's brother," he said to himself. Though, to others, they'd only hear a meow from a cat.
The young man then raised an eyebrow. He knelt and looked at Lucas curiously.
"You can talk?"
Lucas eyes widened. The Prince could understand him?
"You understand me?" he asked.
"Uh, yeah. Who are you? And how do you know Odette?"
"I'm her Divine Pet. I act like her bodyguard, y'know?"
Claude nodded. "What's your name?"
"Lucas," he answered. "are you a wizard, by any chance?"
"No. Why do you ask?"
Interesting, Lucas thought to himself. Why was this young man wasting his potential? He could practically make the Empire his along with the amount of mana he possesses.
"I've taught the strongest of all Emperors, like Achilles. Do you know him?"
"In history books, I guess...." he replied. "why are you telling me this, anyway? You're just a cat."
"You're as strong as him. Even stronger, I bet."
Claude chuckled. "Sure, like I believe you."
"His attitude's the same, too. The kid's got talent, really. A shame that he died young."
"Emperor Achilles died because his brother, Aeterenitas, betrayed him. Didn't you know?"
"Achilles still went down as the greatest Emperor of all time."
Claude just shrugged.
"I guess so, yeah."
Lucas sighed, "Kid, what I'm trying to say is that you've got potential to be Emperor. I've seen plenty of Royals but none were as strong as you."
"No thanks," he replied. "Anastasius can reign as Emperor all he wants."
Lucas was silent.
"Let me hold your hand."
"Huh? Why?"
"With a mana like yours, I can see the future with just touching your hand."
"Fine," Claude gave the cat his hand. "don't try anything funny or else I'll finish you."
Lucas placed his paw over Claude's hand and the magic started. Claude simply waited for Lucas to finish, which took him more than a few minutes. The cat had his eyes closed for almost 10 minutes.
Claude was starting to grow pissed.
"Are you finished yet?"
Lucas was, meanwhile, struggling to find the right words to even comprehend what he saw. He opened his eyes.
"It's... it's nothing, pretty much normal."
"What do you mean normal?"
"Your future is what you'll want it to be," he lied to Claude.
In truth, it wasn't. It was so far from that. Blood, Throne, Death, Love, and Life was what Lucas saw in Claude's future. It made him shiver.
"Can I go now?" Claude asked Lucas.
"Yeah, uh, no you can't,"
"Why? I have to train with Felix!"
Lucas placed a paw on Claude's forehead, making him fall and sleep on the ground.
"You'll wake up and forget meeting me. It's for the best, kid," he said to the sleeping Prince.
He sighed to himself. "Hopefully, history doesn't repeat itself."
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Odette searched Claude everywhere, but to no luck, he was nowhere to be found. She was about to give up until she realized that she didn't search in one place: the Royal Gardens. Quickly enough, she saw Lucas seated on a chair.
"Lucas!" she greeted the cat.
He snapped his fingers and turned into a human. He wore a white long-sleeve shirt and a pair of pants. His long black hair was tied into a ponytail and he stood a couple of inches above Odette.
"Hey, Princess. I missed you." he smiled and hugged her.
Odette smiled at Lucas and hugged him. "Someone's clingy today,"
"Nothing wrong with cherishing my time with my favorite Royal, yeah?"
She rolled her eyes. "If you want something, you can tell me. Anyway, have you seen my brother?"
"I think I saw him nearby."
"You've already met Claude?"
"I walked by pass him awhile ago, but I haven't talked to him yet."
Her and Lucas started searching for Claude. Odette then saw Claude asleep on one of the Garden Benches. He was sleeping soundly, even snoring. Seems as if he was tired from his trip back to the Palace.
"Well, I guess I won't wake him up," she said. "it's a shame. I bet you two would've gotten along."
Lucas chuckled. "Do you want me to teleport him back to his room?"
"No need!" she answered. "He'll be fine just here."
"Very well," he offered his hand to Odette. "let's ge training for the Hunting Festival, shall we?"
TO BE CONTINUED.....
NEXT CHAPTER TITLE: "The Start of the Hunting Festival"
a/n: foreshadowing af. and i'll start writing on odette's pov next chapter, still not sure. anyway, thoughts? reactions? predictions?