The wyvern hadn’t been fed on time.
She was used to getting her meal every single day, right at sunrise, but for some reason, no one showed up today to bring her the special mix of rare herbs, ground skulls, wild honey, dried bats, and incantations.
Starving, the wyvern snarled, breathed fire, and slammed her powerful tail against the walls of her stable with such force that the entire castle trembled.
“What in the world is going on? What’s happening now?” a tall, gaunt man bellowed, poking his head out of his room while hastily wrapping himself in a warm night robe.
Following close behind was an equally tall and slender woman in a lace nightgown, her bright red hair braided into two long plaits.
“Don’t worry, darling, don’t worry, you mustn’t get upset!” she repeated, trying to clutch his shoulder with her delicate fingers to stop him.
But the man had already stormed into the hallway. His eyes glinted with fury, and his face burned with rage.
The heavy stomping of guards and panicked voices echoed through every floor of the castle.
“Your Majesty!” A servant, running toward him, dropped to his knees and pressed his face to the floor.
“Speak!” the man growled.
“Kaitana has gone mad. She didn’t get her mix on time, and now she won’t let anyone near her… I tried to summon the prince, since he’s the only one who can calm the wyvern…”
“Then why isn’t he here?” the man shouted.
The castle continued to shake from the beast’s ferocious blows.
“I knocked on his bedroom door, but His Highness told me to get lost to the rocky spirits,” the servant whimpered pitifully.
“You’re all useless… Get out of here! I’ll talk to him myself!”
King Ector strode down the corridor with purpose, his gray brows furrowed in anger. Queen Estella, throwing a silk robe over her thin shoulders, hurried after her husband.
“Just don’t get upset!” she pleaded.
The king reached the prince’s chambers and pounded on the door with all his might.
From inside the room came the sound of commotion and a woman’s laughter.
The king struck the door again. The queen clasped her hands together in a desperate plea.
“Who’s out there making a racket now?” the prince barked in response to the threatening knock. “Get lost to the forest spirits, even if the Rocky Giant himself is laying siege to the city!”
The king’s face flared with anger.
Despite his advanced age, Ector was a strong man, hardened by endless wars with neighboring kingdoms and hunts for wild beasts.
With all his strength, he kicked the door, and with a pitiful crack, it flew off its hinges.
The queen gasped and turned pale.
His Highness, Crown Prince Advian, lay sprawled on a wide, canopied bed, stark naked.
Three equally naked young women wrestled beside him among crumpled black sheets, cursing at each other crudely and laughing hysterically.
They shoved one another away from the prince’s powerful frame, which gleamed with a magnificent bronze tan in the dim glow of the morning lanterns.
On the floor sat a golden tray with remnants of fruit and candy wrappers, alongside an overturned pitcher from which drops of cherry wine leaked out.
Of course, such a scene surprised no one. Prince Advian often crossed every acceptable boundary and disregarded all traditions and rules.
“Oh, it’s you, Father,” he drawled lazily, turning his head toward the doorway with annoyance. “What is it now?”
“Get out of here, you shameless wenches!” the king ordered, his voice thick with suppressed rage.
The women didn’t need to be told twice.
They quickly scrambled off the bed and, still naked, darted behind a curtain leading to the dressing rooms.
“Well, damn! You’ve ruined all the fun,” Advian grumbled, sitting up on the rumpled bed and smoothing his disheveled, dark auburn hair.
“Fun?” the king repeated menacingly, his nostrils flaring. “Don’t you hear what’s happening? And get dressed, now!”
Advian stood up, unabashed in front of his father or mother, stretched to his full height, and yanked a blanket off the bed to wrap around his lower half. Then he scanned the room for his clothes. Finding nothing, he grimaced and looked at his parents.
“Yeah, yeah, I hear it! Kaitana’s losing her mind. The incompetent servants didn’t feed her on time. Was it really worth interrupting my life’s pleasures for this? I was already planning to go to her…”
“You’ll push me to the point where I’ll have to whip you, son,” Ector said without a trace of emotion. “How can you be so irresponsible? Go now and calm the wyvern before she tears the castle apart. Our walls aren’t as strong as they used to be…”
“I’m going, I’m going,” Advian muttered discontentedly. “I’ll head out just like this! Send a maid to clean up this mess.”
He yawned and scratched his broad chest.
“Afterward, take a bath and dress like a proper prince!” the king commanded sternly. “I’ll be waiting for you in my study. We have important business to discuss.”
“Got it… You’ve ruined my morning, and now you want to ruin my whole day.”
“Don’t argue, my boy,” Estella interjected with concern. “Do as your father says.”
A mother’s authority was unquestionable.
With a resigned sigh, Advian approached, took Queen Estella’s limp hand, and kissed it with respect.
She, in turn, ruffled his thick hair with unspoken tenderness.
“Fine, Mom… One thing I don’t get—why’d you have to bust down the door?” the prince said, twisting his sharply defined lips before striding quickly down the corridor.
Within a few minutes, the castle stopped shaking, and everything settled down.
The royal couple returned to their chambers. King Ector’s mood was darker than a storm cloud.
“I have no idea what to do with our son,” he said to his wife with frustration. “We’ve got enough worries without him. Yesterday, Maril uncovered yet another prophecy. There’s little hope it’ll be the last.”
“That makes four,” Estella said, shaking her head.
“Maril will be here soon with the parchments. That’s why I need Advian. We must make the right decision to save our kingdom from ruin.”
“I’ll arrange for breakfast,” Estella said, looking at her husband with affection. “Decisions are always easier to make after a meal.”
“You’re right, my love,” Ector replied, gratefully kissing his wife’s pale, thin lips.
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