What the hell was that? Ras thought.
Just the day before, he had been a mercenary, prowling the streets of Prouss and selling his services to the highest bidder. Overnight, his life had changed. After being practically kidnapped and whisked away to Vif Arger, Ras had spoken with the emperor, who had personally made him a Guardian of Silver. What had happened was too far-fetched for even the most absurd fantasy.
The only thing Ras understood for sure was that two people were undoubtedly behind all this: Auriol, the crown prince, and Kanalayka Aluarche, legate of the Imperial Guard.
After the pair left the antechamber, and once no one was within earshot, Ras leaned over and whispered his grievances to Kanalayka.
“I think it’s about time you told me what’s really going on, don’t you?”
“What do you mean by that?” the imperial guardswoman replied.
Ras huffed. “Don’t play dumb with me. Me? A Guardian of Silver? Either there’s some funny business afoot, or the emperor’s finally lost his damned mind.”
Kanalayka didn’t comment on Ras’s irreverent remark. She simply turned to him with the same no-nonsense look as ever.
“I think you’re the perfect man for the job, given your credentials,” she said.
“Is this about my file again?”
“No, it’s about what I saw with my own eyes. There’s no one more fit to lead the Imperial Guard than a man who can crush an energized aura blade with his bare hands. I didn’t even think that was possible.”
Ras sighed. “That was just a parlor trick. It’s not so hard if you know what you’re doing.”
An aura knight’s sword was technically not stone but zirconium dioxide, fortified with alumina and other materials to form a supremely hard ceramic blade. This resulted in a weapon that was resistant to wear and tear, but in return, it was brittle and prone to fracture. The application of aura could make up for this weakness somewhat, but not entirely. Ras’s attack had simply taken advantage of that fact.
“I think most people die before they reach that level of skill,” commented Kanalayka.
“I’m just saying one feat of legerdemain doesn’t make me invincible. You saw how easily your partner took me down.”
But Kanalayka shook her head in response to his self-deprecation. “That was all thanks to her plan. She knew that disguising herself as the late princess would throw you off guard.”
“That doesn’t make it any less despicable.”
Ras glared at Kanalayka, but he was equally ashamed at himself for having fallen for the deception so easily. It was a dirty, underhanded trick, the likes of which the Imperial Guard rarely used.
But Kanalayka showed no shame. In fact, she was smiling.
“You still love her, don’t you? Even after all this time.”
“Love’s got nothing to do with it. Seeing someone dressed up as a dead woman would shock anyone.”
“Well, let’s just leave it at that, then, shall we?” said Kanalayka, still grinning.
Ras frowned and silently followed her lead, but he suddenly stopped when he realized they were heading toward the rear of the palace.
“Hold on,” he said. “Did we take a wrong turn? This isn’t the way to the city.”
“I’m not taking you to the city,” Kanalayka replied. “From this day on, you will be sharing lodgings with the crown prince.”
Ras’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “…What?”
It wasn’t as if Ras and Auriol were total strangers. Naturally, being trothed to a man’s twin sister brought a certain level of familiarity. One might even have gone so far as to call them friends—up until two years prior, at least. After Fiarca’s death, the men hadn’t even exchanged words. Before his wounds had finished healing, Ras resigned from his post at Central Command and went into hiding.
Auriol was given no time to grieve, either. He was instantly burdened with the court duties of his ailing father, and in the two years that followed, Ras made a name for himself as the Stallion. The two men had nothing in common, and expecting them to start living together was like the plot of a bad play.
“As a Guardian of Silver, you are responsible for the crown prince’s safety,” Kanalayka explained. “Of course that means you ought to be by his side at all times, does it not?”
“Says who?”
“Why, His Majesty, of course. Did you forget?”
“I don’t know if you remember this, but I’m on Count Veredica’s border patrol,” said Ras with a frown. “Your emperor can’t just go around plucking whomever he wants from the armies of his subjects.”
“Your father has agreed to our terms,” Kanalayka replied. “We compensated him quite handsomely, I might add.”
“You really thought of everything, didn’t you?”
Ras sighed so deeply he thought his guts would come out. He was starting to get a really bad headache.
“And what is it you need me for so badly?” he asked.
“I think it would be best if His Highness explained that part,” said Kanalayka, arriving before a nondescript wooden door.
Only the two guards who flanked the doorway hinted as to the room’s true purpose. If Kanalayka was to be believed, this was where Ras would be staying from now on—the private quarters of the crown prince, Auriol Ref Argenteia.
Kanalayka knocked, then entered without waiting for a response. Ras heaved another deep sigh and followed her inside.