BAM!

Elion’s entire body jolted forward, while a noble in the back gasped, and another leaned toward his companion.

"Is... is that allowed...?"

"It should not be," came the quiet reply.

At the front, Alexander pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I apologize, he seems even more energetic than usual," he said flatly, not even looking at anyone in particular. "But this is... normal."

"IT IS NOT NORMAL," an elderly noble muttered under his breath.

"I HEARD THAT TOO!" Melroy barked instantly, without even turning his head.

Silence followed as Melroy turned back to Elion as if nothing had happened, his smile widening into a toothy grin.

"So... "

He clapped once.

"Let’s test something."

Elion barely had time to register the words before Melroy moved into a sudden lunge, far too fast for someone who looked that relaxed a moment before.

His hand shot toward Elion’s shoulder, and Elion reacted purely on instinct with a slight shift of his weight and a small turn of the torso.

The King’s hand passed through empty space, and for a split second, everything froze.

"OOOH!"

Melroy’s eyes lit up like a child who had just discovered fire.

"YOU SEE THAT!?"

He spun, pointing wildly at the nobles lining the hall.

"DID YOU SEE THAT!?"

"...We did, Your Majesty," someone answered while sighing weakly in exasperation. Melroy grabbed Elion’s arm, this time successfully, and spun him around as if showing off a prized weapon.

"This! THIS RIGHT HERE!"

He thumped Elion’s chest.

"This is what I’ve been asking for!"

Alexander frowned, stepping forward slightly.

"Asking for... what, exactly?"

Melroy stopped spinning and turned, pointing directly at his son. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"SPARK!"

"...Spark?"

"YES! SPARK! PASSION! INSTINCT! CHAOS!"

He swung his arm back toward Elion.

"Look at him! He moves like someone’s trying to kill him even when no one is!"

Elion crossed his arms,"...That’s because something usually is trying to kill me."

"EXACTLY!" Melroy spun back to Alexander, jabbing a finger at him. "And you!"

Alexander straightened instinctively.

"What about me?"

"You walk like you’re attending a tea party every single day! Why do you not act more like a warrior!?"

Alexander’s brow twitched. "I am a prince."

"AND HE’S A WARRIOR!" Melroy shouted, jerking his thumb toward Elion.

Elion blinked.

"Why do I feel insulted?" He said out loud before he could stop himself.

"You should feel proud!"

Before anyone could react, Melroy grabbed Alexander by the shoulder and physically dragged him over, planting him beside Elion.

"Stand there."

"...Father."

"I SAID STAND!"

Alexander cursed under his breath and stood stiffly.

Melroy stepped back, crossing his arms as he looked between them like a craftsman inspecting two very different tools.

"Alright," he said. "Now... fight."

"...What?"

"No."

"Just a brief exchange!"

"No."

"Just a tap!"

"No."

Melroy sighed dramatically, dragging a hand down his face.

"Fine... fine..."

He started pacing around, then he suddenly snapped his fingers.

"I’VE GOT IT!"

Alexander immediately tensed. That tone, when coming from his father, never led to anything good. Melroy pointed at Elion.

"You!"

Then at Alexander.

"You’re going to become his teacher from now on."

"...Excuse me?"

Both of them spoke at the same time. Melroy grinned.

"Alexander, my dear son," he said, resting a heavy hand on his shoulder, "you could learn a thing or two from this one."

Alexander’s eye twitched.

"...From him?"

"Yes, from him!"

Melroy leaned in, whispering loud enough for the entire throne room to hear.

"He has survival instincts, a survival skill. While you have noble etiquette, a useless skill."

Alexander inhaled slowly as he tried to hide the embarrassed look on his face, "...Those are both important skills to have."

"ONE OF THEM KEEPS YOU ALIVE!" Everyone looked on in silence, unable to believe what they had just heard. Melroy straightened abruptly and clapped his hands once.

"Decision made!"

He pointed at Elion like a judge passing a final sentence.

"You’re his teacher now."

Elion stared at him. What was he supposed to say? Was he even allowed to refuse? He doubted it.

"...For how long?"

Melroy shrugged casually.

"A while."

"That’s not specific."

"Well," He paused briefly, as if really considering a reasonable timeline, "Until I’m entertained." He finally said.

"...That’s worse."

Alexander closed his eyes briefly, exhaling through his nose.

"This is not necessary."

"IT IS EXTREMELY NECESSARY!" Melroy barked.

Then, just as suddenly, he relaxed again. A smirk tugged at his lips.

"Besides..."

His gaze flicked between the two of them.

"It’ll be fun."

Elion rubbed his temples slowly.

’...I really should’ve stayed on the battlefield.’

He thought quietly, letting out a slow breath, and dragging a hand down his face as the absurdity of this whole situation finally settled in on him.

"...Before we get carried away with whatever this is supposed to be," he said, glancing between Melroy and Alexander, "am I not needed back on the front lines?"

He asked, trying to find himself a way out of this weird situation. The room quieted slightly. A few nobles leaned in, nodding their heads hysterically in agreement. After all, that was... a reasonable question.

Melroy, however, seemed to think otherwise.

"Ah!"

He pointed at Elion as if he had just said something amusing.

"A responsible one, too! I like you more and more!"

"That doesn’t answer my question," Elion replied flatly.

"It does!" Melroy shot back immediately. "You’re not needed there. For the moment."

"For the moment?" Elion’s eyes narrowed slightly, "...Please explain."

Melroy waved his hand dismissively, turning halfway back toward his throne before stopping mid-step, as if remembering something important.

"Oh, right, I should sound like a king for a second."

He cleared his throat dramatically, speaking in a much deeper, exaggerated tone...

"I will be dispatching multiple high-ranking mages to reinforce the front lines."

He paused for a bit and dropped the act entirely; it seemed to take a lot out of him to do just that much.

"And they’ll be more than enough to hold things together."

A murmur rippled through the nobles. That was no small commitment.

Elion studied him for a moment.

"...You’re that confident?"

Melroy’s grin widened.

"Confidence is for people who hope things go their way."

He turned fully now, his gaze sharpening just slightly.

"I don’t hope."

A brief silence followed before the grin returned to his face.

"Also..."

He raised a finger.

"I’ve got a plan to end this whole mess in about two weeks."

That got everyone’s attention, even Alexander blinked lightly as his ears perked up a bit more.

"...Two weeks?"

"Yes."

Melroy stretched his arms casually.

"Give or take a few days, depending on how slow the other leaders are at nodding their heads."

Elion frowned.

"...And this plan is?"

Melroy stopped stretching and slowly turned his head as an amused smile found its way onto his face.

"The best way to deal with a pestering insect..."

He raised his hand and brought it down in a chopping motion.

"...is to cut off its body."

There was a brief moment of silence before someone in the back coughed awkwardly

"...Don’t you mean its head, Your Majesty?"

Melroy blinked as he realised the man was right, and then he waved his hand.

"Same thing."

"It is not the same thing," the noble insisted weakly.

Melroy pointed at him.

"If you cut it enough times, it becomes the same thing."

Elion stared at him; he felt like facepalming, but he fought the urge to do so.

"...You’re saying you want to go straight for the Demon King."

"See, this one gets what I’m trying to say," Melroy’s grin widened again. "Now that’s why I like you."

He leaned forward slightly, resting his chin on his knuckles.

"Why waste time swatting flies when you can burn the nest?"

Alexander exhaled slowly.

"...And you intend to do this in two weeks."

"Yes."

"...After the council of kings approves."

"Yes."

"...And in the meantime..."

Melroy snapped his fingers and pointed at Elion again while looking at the prince.

"He’s teaching you how not to die."

"...I see."

Elion rubbed his temples again.

"...This just keeps getting worse."

Melroy clapped his hands once, the sharp sound echoing across the vast hall.

"The council of rulers will convene here next week," he announced, his voice carrying easily, "for the finalisation of our operation to end this war once and for all."

A ripple moved through the gathered nobles as the shocking announcement spread through their ranks.

Ending the war?

Is such a thing even possible right now?

The war has been going on for years. How are we supposed to end it in such a short time?

"The heroes will play a significant role in this operation," he continued without addressing their obvious concerns, his gaze flicking briefly toward Elion. "Until then, Elion, I wish you the best during your stay here in Haven."

He leaned back more comfortably in his seat.

"I trust my son will make time to train with you himself. I might be preoccupied in the coming week."

Alexander stiffened slightly at that.