Meria silently bit her lip and nodded. Her disappointment in the king was clear to see. On the other hand, Herscherik fully understood the reason for his father’s inaction from his glimpse behind the kingdom’s curtains.
Father can’t do anything.
Herscherik knew, just as he had with Ruseria, that his father wanted to help these people. The problem was that Grim was clearly under Barbosse’s protection. The testimony of these people would not be enough. Without irrefutable evidence, the king could not prosecute Grim because of Barbosse’s protection. If he had taken any poorly considered action, there was a good chance that Grim would torment his people even further. Barbosse would turn to retribution, too.
Nothing has changed. I’m still so... Herscherik was completely overcome with his own powerlessness.
He had studied, read, and sneaked his way into nearly every room in the castle for the sole purpose of acquiring irrefutable evidence. With that, his father could prosecute the nobles that acted like they owned the country. However, he had come to suspect that neither the long-reigning puppeteer of the country, nor his allies, had left any evidence lying around in the castle. Either that or they had concealed them too well for Herscherik to discover. He had uncovered numerous trails of corruption, but none of his evidence was airtight. Still, Herscherik had no intention of giving up nor of letting them keep winning this war for long. He, his father, the rest of his family, and all the people of the kingdom were all in danger.
Herscherik knew that he had nothing: no magic, no athletic talents, and no patrons. Precisely because he was born with no weapons in his arsenal, he focused on what actions he could take. The only weapons he had were the knowledge and experience he had carried over from his previous life. So, he searched for a way to use them, in order to reform, rebuild, fortify, and protect his country. This resolve had driven all Herscherik’s actions up to this day. He understood that he and the people before him were the same. They each took action in an attempt to protect those dear to them... and failed.
“So you abducted me to threaten Father.” Herscherik let out a long sigh into the silenced room. “Even if you did, Father can’t do anything. It would only make your position worse... You’re signing up for your entire families to be executed for treason.” That was the consequence for harming royalty. Despite the minister ruling the nation from the shadows, the end result of kidnapping a prince and blackmailing the king must have been evident to even a child.
“...I understand. Give me some time.” Herscherik looked around the room. He met the eyes of each and every person there, all immobilized and speechless. He nodded with conviction. “I’ll take care of it before winter.”
This declaration astonished Meria, the other residents of Ruseria’s land, and even Kuro, who was the only one in the room that noticed the subtle change in Herscherik’s tone. Now, he spoke like the oldest sister of a household rounding up all of her siblings.
“I made a promise to Count Ruseria.” Herscherik produced the antique pocket watch the count had gifted him.
All of his people knew that their beloved count had never allowed himself to be parted from that precious keepsake.
“...Lord Ruseria,” someone in the room whispered.
Tears formed in the eyes of all of Ruseria’s subjects who were present. Their loving count was no longer with them and neither was his family. His land and his people were left behind to be ravaged by tyranny. The gravity of it all was weighing heavy on their hearts.
“I want you to trust me.” Herscherik’s eyes shone with determination, just as they had when he’d accepted Ruseria’s pledge of loyalty.
The Seventh Prince returned to the panic-stricken castle on the evening of the day following his disappearance. It was a guard at the front gate who had first discovered the prince and his nanny. He had received the nanny who was carrying the prince as she walked up to the gate, her hair in disarray and near to fainting. When the king received the news, he pushed past his objecting advisors and ran out to the gate to embrace his faltering son. The king’s pale face was drained of any color it had. It was clear to see that the king had not slept a wink the previous night.
The nanny gave her story to the king. Someone had infiltrated the royal quarters and abducted her along with the Seventh Prince, as they were both in Herscherik’s room. They were taken to the kidnapper’s hideout, but the nanny had managed to escape with her charge.
A team of knights immediately headed to a cottage far from the castle town that the nanny claimed to have escaped from. While they could see that some people had been in the cottage, they were unable to identify the kidnapper. The abduction of Gracis’s youngest prince had concluded with his miraculously safe return.
In the dimly lit room, Herscherik was sitting on the sofa, gazing at the flames dancing in the fireplace. After being away from it for a day, his room felt exceedingly spacious with no one else in it.
I had my own condo. I should be used to being alone, but... maybe I crave attention more than I realized.
Herscherik let out a chuckle, having realized how much he had relied on Meria. He recalled the events that took place after his return to the castle.
Herscherik had kept the truth a secret, despite his father’s inquisition. If he had told the truth, everyone who had a part in his kidnapping, and everyone in their families, would have been sentenced to death. Herscherik maintained his story. “All I remember after waking up is that Meria brought me home.”