Tynesday, 4th of Septimus, 470th Year of the Fifth Era

The night had grown later and later at the king's dining hall. Most of the King's other courtiers had already taken their leave. But the king was still eager for conversation and his curiosities about Josias' homelands were yet to be quenched.

The king had allowed for the women among Josias' companions to take their leave. He even dispatched several griffin knights to accompany them home. Now all that remained in the banquet hall besides Josias and his companions were the king and his closest courtiers. The Archbishop, the Royal Steward, the Crown Prince, the Lord High Marshall, the Royal Adventurers' Guildmaster and Count Lorenz were among those who remained.

They had talked about a great many things, from the society of the Halak, the warriors of Goria, even to miscellaneous topics like that of the adventurer's guild.

Josias had gulped down what might have been his fourth or fifth glass of wine and his head was already starting to spin. He looked to his side and saw that Mateus was already slumped over the table, passed out. After only three glasses. If it weren't for the fact that the king found it amusing, Josias would've personally thrown his friend out for embarrassing him.

Johannes and Sadrach were still happily drinking. Those two were notoriously heavy drinkers. Sometimes Josias wondered whether their stomachs were made of steel. Hesekiel had actually asked permission directly from the king to play the piano in the dining hall. The king had readily agreed considering the musicians had already been dismissed.

The king even requested for Hesekiel to play something soothing to accompany their talks. Hesekiel obliged and started playing away. His whole body swayed with the playing of the music, either because of the entrancing music, the effect of the wine, or both. The king and his court were greatly impressed by his playing, clapping when the first song was concluded.

"Truly, these Hallackmen are all full of wonderful surprises!" The archbishop laughed. The man hadn't touched a single glass of wine, yet he seemed to enjoy the atmosphere just as much as everyone else.

In the middle of their chatting, the king asked for permission to bring his work to the dining room while they conversed. He said he had become restless as he left much paperwork undone. Josias found it absurd. He was the king. Why did he need to ask for the others' permission?

And just like that, a few servants had brought in front of him several piles of paper. Josias gawked seeing the king go through several documents at once, signing one paper, reading another, while also writing on another. He could write with both hands! But with how much he was working, it looked like he had even more hands.

Josias quietly put away his wine glass. He was positive he had been drinking too much. Even still, the king continued to work. All the while laughing and engaging in actual conversations with the others there. Josias looked around and saw that none of the king's courtiers found what he did strange. That means this must be a regular occurrence.

"Don't worry too much about it, Your Highness." The Crown Prince took a sip of his wine glass as he addressed Josias "My Lord Father is always like that. Sometimes I wonder if he'd actually kick the bucket from doing all that work. But I'm actually more certain that he'd die if he didn't."

The Crown Prince chuckled but Josias only looked at him in shock. How could he say such a thing about his own father? Even as a joke that was awful.

The crown prince seemingly noticed Josias' shock and quickly clarified himself, "I swear upon the Most Holy Trinity, I wish for no ill to come upon my father. In fact, my rather crass comments are born more out of worry than anything else. If it were up to me, I'd have my father live forever. Failing that, I'd rather he pass on the crown directly to my son. When I have one, of course."

Josias managed to calm himself down, but given his own experiences, deep down he couldn't stand those sorts of comments.

"Regardless of how my indolent heir carries himself, he speaks the truth, Your Highness." The king also noticed their conversation, speaking while his hands remained moving upon his documents. "It is actually quite a problem for me with how much he doesn't desire the crown."

"It is only due to my loyalty and faith in your abilities as monarch, Lord father." The prince bowed teasingly towards his father.

"It's due to your base laziness, don't even try to lie. You act like I haven't been your father for almost twenty years." the king retorted.

Josias snorted a laugh at the scene in front of him, but more than that. It was quite heartwarming.

"What I wouldn't give to still have those sorts of conversations with my own lord father." Josias said. He didn't know if it was the wine or the scene before him, but he could feel the tears start to well in his eyes. His heart shook for a second as he was reminded of his own moments with his father. "If I could trade all that I have now just for one more talk with him. To get one last reassurance…"

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The king had stopped working on his documents for a moment as he looked up to Josias with a sympathetic smile. Josias took a handkerchief to wipe his eyes before he laughed at himself. It was an embarrassing side to show the king and his courtiers. He even felt his brother Timo's hand on his back.

"I apologise for such unseemly behaviour, Your Majesty. It has only been a short time since… since my father had passed on. It was a tragedy." Josias said "But still, to show you such an embarrassing sight as a warrior, I can only ask for your forgiveness."

"...There is nothing to be forgiven for, Your Highness." King Albert said as he actually put his pen down and leaned back on his chair. He closed his eyes for a while before he continued. "I was barely seventeen when I lost my father."

The archbishop and some other courtiers made the sign of the cross as the king mentioned his father.

"'The Reformer John III' they called him. He was named 'Defender of the Protestant Faith' when he threw out the last of the pope's legates from the court." The king chuckled as it looked like he was staring off into the ceiling "The church said such a pious ruler and staunch christian would be granted a hundred years of prosperous rule. He barely made it to three years. I was just old enough to escape having to be assigned a dreaded regency, but still young enough to feel completely lost without his guidance."

The king looked at Josias and gave a faint smile. "I won't pretend to know how it feels like for you. Nor will I ask you for the details. But, I see a kindness in you that makes me feel both glad and saddened…"

The king took a deep breath and sighed before he asked for a servant to take the documents back to his office. He looked at Josias once more before speaking. "I am glad to see such a bright young man in front of me. O Josias, Prince of Goria, you shine as bright as the sun and stars. But I am saddened. Saddened to see what reigning over a throne would do to your kindness."

As the king said that, he stood up from his chair as he gave everyone a final smile. "I only pray that the Lord keeps His countenance upon you, young prince. And with that, I thank you all for obliging me with such wonderful company. But the night has grown late and I wish not to keep you gentlemen here from your wives any further. Lord Steward, if you may escort the kindly gentlemen out."

"As you wish, Your Majesty." Count Geoffrey bowed.

Before they were ushered out of the dining hall, the king said one final thing to Josias. "You have made a great impression upon me today, Prince of Goria. I hope to hear of you more often. Only good things, of course. Have a lovely night, gentlemen."

With that, the king gave a quick bow of his head as he left, carrying a few important documents personally.

Josias and the rest of the companions were kindly escorted out of the palace along with the other courtiers. Johannes and Sadrach were given the laborious task of hauling Mateus and dragging him along. The drunk lightweight was already starting to spew all sorts of incoherent nonsense. Josias would be sure to give his companion a piece of his mind tomorrow.

Count Lorenz's carriages had been parked at the palace complex's large forecourt. The coachmen immediately alerted themselves as they drove up to the palace's main facade. Johannes and Sadrach had hauled Mateus into one carriage with Reverend Nalom. Josias and Reverend Timotheus along with Hesekiel joined with Count Lorenz on the other carriage.

The trip was a relatively silent one, with Josias resting his head on his hand as he looked out the carriage window. The usually bustling city was now very quiet. Perhaps because they were in the noble district with all the pretty buildings, the city grew a quiet charm to it. The blue light of the moon only further enhanced the beauty of the streets.

"Are you okay, Your Highness?" Count Lorenz was the first to break the silence as he called out to Josias. Josias was slightly startled but he gave the man a nod and a smile.

"I'm absolutely fine, Lord Count." Josias reassured Count Lorenz "It was truly just a passing feeling of emotion. I apologise in advance if I've embarrassed you with such a display in front of the king, Your Excellency."

Count Lorenz clicked his tongue as he shook his head. "You're fine, Your Highness. In fact, I'd say you've ingratiated yourself to the king far more than you'd imagine. As you can tell by how he talked to you, he has a soft spot for losses like that."

"The king seemed a lot… kinder than I'd anticipated." Josias used this opportunity to talk of the king and deflect the conversation that way "You could tell a lot about a person by how he treats his family. And his children all seemed to respect him."

Count Lorenz chuckled. "The king was only a little princeling when I first met him. Back when the Last Emperor so graciously allowed me to marry his daughter. Albert wasn't even crown prince at that time. He'd always been more of a shy and reserved boy. His father's death out on that hunt… It changed him a lot.

"He'd taken it upon himself to finish all that his father couldn't. And in his early reign, he was absolutely ruthless and methodical. He became colder and his directives were filled with little to no sympathy for anyone he perceived to be in his way.

"While he said at the table that the last papal legate was exiled during his father's reign, the first two years of King Albert's rule were filled with purges and witch hunts. He was fully convinced his father's death was caused by the catholics.

"Now, Bertie has always been a genius. He didn't just go out and start persecutions at random. No, he was methodical. Paid communities to spy on each other, to report anyone harboring a secret papist priest. He used covert operatives to conduct his investigations. Even at your age, he was absolutely brutal. Dozens of priests were burnt at the stake, charged with treason. Hundreds more along with their flock fled.

"To see a teen watch a man burn with such a sordid sense of satisfaction…"

The person Count Lorenz was describing didn't at all fit the picture of the king he'd just met a few hours ago. "What changed?" Josias asked.

"He got married and fell in love." Count Lorenz answered matter-of-factly "When the Nordein Princess arrived to marry our king and become his queen, no one really thought anything of her. Not even our king. She was demure, shy, of little words… But she was saintly in her virtues. Had a good head on her shoulders too. I don't know if it was her influence, or if it was something else, but the king truly cut back on his excesses and cruelty after that."

Josias smiled as he was immediately reminded of his own wife. It was truly in the darkest of times did he truly appreciate having a companion of equal yoke like Serena. She was one of the reasons God had given him to live for. What more could he even ask for?

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