“My word, but you’ve grown into a fine, strapping young man, lad!” Faraz exclaimed, happy to see Noah.
“And you, Lord Faraz, remain as insufferable as ever, I see.”
“Ha! Nineteen years old and you’ve still got a tongue sharper than a dagger...”
After the council concerning Claudia’s resurrection had concluded, Noah found himself in the company of Faraz, Ashbal’s trusted retainer, within the chamber reserved for the attendants of honored guests.
Ashbal and Stuart were both occupied, formally dining with Claudia’s father. Stuart had looked rather pale beforehand, yet as a prince of an allied nation, he could hardly refuse the hospitality extended to him.
The alliance between Avianoia and Ashbal’s Kingdom of Sharavia had only been forged in the wake of Claudia’s magical slumber. Many credited Noah for its formation, just as Ashbal had earlier. Noah believed otherwise—everything had been woven together by Claudia’s own hand.
“And here I was thinking you might show a bit of joy at seeing your dear Uncle Faraz again after a year and a half apart.”
The man sighed dramatically, clutching his chest as though he suffered a terrible wound. It was true that they had not seen one another in some time, the reason being the shifting circumstances within Ashbal’s royal court.
“Are Her Majesty Naila and the prince faring well?”
“The palace is utterly besotted with the little one. Utter chaos, it is—but the pleasant kind.”
Because Ashbal had been required to travel for diplomatic matters despite his wife’s pregnancy, his most trusted confidant had remained behind at court. As such, while Ashbal himself visited this land on a regular basis, Noah’s encounters with Faraz had become a rarity.
With a casual shrug, Faraz leaned his elbow upon the armrest of his chair, propping his chin upon one hand. “His Majesty has grown into a fine human being, you know. Sharavia owes you and your princess a debt of gratitude.”
“I am humbled by your words,” Noah replied, bowing his head slightly.
Beyond the search for a means to restore Claudia and the clandestine inquiries into the Kingdom of Lemilsia, Noah had also sought Ashbal’s aid in dismantling cursed artifacts that had been unearthed in foreign lands.
Alone, he could never have fulfilled all that Claudia had wished for.
“You still regret it, don’t you?” Faraz asked softly.
Noah lifted his head at that. “You refer to the matter you spoke of three years ago, I presume.”
“Ha!” Faraz’s smirk deepened, though there was a peculiar protectiveness to his expression. “If you know what I’m talking about just from that, then I suppose I was right all along.”
Noah frowned slightly, displeased at his own misstep. He knew precisely what Faraz was referring to.
“So, you’re in love with your master, are you?” Faraz had asked him.
“My feelings for her would only stand in the way of the life she wants to live.”
Later, he had warned Noah, “If you keep denying it, you might just end up regretting it someday.”
“That is not a concern of mine,” Noah had replied.
Of course, Noah hadn’t considered a future where Claudia would lie unconscious in a magically induced slumber.
Faraz watched Noah as he silently pondered his own feelings, and then, struck by a sudden realization, Faraz’s eyes widened.
“Surely, you didn’t go and confess your feelings for her right before she went to sleep?!”
“I did not,” Noah replied curtly, swiftly refuting the notion. “I would thank you not to entertain such misguided notions.”
And yet...
Before Claudia had closed her eyes to this world, he had placed a kiss upon her lips.
That act had been a transgression—one unbecoming of his status as a mere servant.
He had no intention of justifying himself, though he did regret his youthful ignorance.
And yet, if asked whether he regretted it, the answer would always be no.
She will awaken. I am certain of that. And when she does...
“You don’t seem to realize it, lad,” Faraz said quietly, his kind eyes watching Noah. “Three years ago, you outright denied loving her. But just now? The only thing you denied was confessing it.”
But Faraz’s words did not reach Noah’s ears, for at that very moment, a sudden commotion burst forth.
The chamber doors flew open, and one of Noah’s men swiftly entered, snapping into a formal salute.
“Forgive the intrusion, Captain Noah! Lord Faraz!” he said, his expression taut with urgency. “A message from His Highness Prince Ehrenfried. Following the conclusion of the council, word has arrived from his informants within Lemilsia.”
“Speak,” Noah commanded.
“Yes, sir! It appears that Lemilsia has been preparing for war!”
Noah’s brows drew together as he absorbed the weight of those words.
The knight continued, “If the reports hold true, Lemilsia will soon launch an assault upon the Kingdom of Avianoia.”