Lilith and her father sat across from Kieran. A long rounded glass table with white images depicting a flowing river separated them. Cool light, similar to dawn, shone through colored window panels.

The room had a cobblestone fireplace between the windows with a set of chopped wood tied neatly to the side. Through the doors to his right was the central hub of Loftus Manor, the reception hall that first greeted any and all visitors. In it were two curved staircases that framed the room they were currently in.

A servant entered while trying to balance a tray filled with teacups on one hand. He moved as if he were on a tight rope and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead as he set the tray down. He was young. Younger than Teal, most likely. The boy looked around fifteen, the age of adulthood in this world.

“Stop,” Mr. Loftus said. “I believe I already informed you of today.”

“But, Sir-”

“Get out.”

The boy awkwardly bowed and scurried away. A middle aged woman came to replace him.

“What was that about?” Kieran asked.

Taking the teacup from the servant, he said, “He is a young man we’ve only recently employed. He has exceptional skills in tracking and seeing as how we live so close to one of the largest forests in the kingdom, we brought him into our fold.”

“He would have gone to war otherwise,” Lilith added, taking a quiet and refined sip of her tea.

“Really?”

I saw a couple of boys his age in the village, though.

“Yes,” Mr. Loftus admitted, “Unfortunately, he is Colorless. My wife argued I should allow him to go to war so he might save whatever pieces of pride his family has left but I determined he would serve better here.”

Kieran held the cup until it grew uncomfortably hot in his hand. His blessings still hadn’t manifested yet and the more he learned about the Colorless, the worse it sounded. He already knew it was a taboo subject, he just didn’t know it was a taboo among taboos.

“I pray my daughter was tolerable during your ride here,” Mr. Loftus said.

Lilith hid her pout with another sip of her tea.

“She’s a great friend. I had a lot of fun,” Kieran responded. Lilith hid her embarrassment behind the cup, taking a big gulp.

“Wonderful. My daughter is young and has yet to learn about the vastness of this world. However, I pray you two will continue to be friends now and into the future just like your father and I.”

“My father and you?”

He laughed, “Yes, the king and I are close friends. When I was younger, I visited Telash City with my family in order to pay respects to The Archon and the warriors who participated in The Last Hold. His Majesty was hanging on the statue of The Archon’s arm when his father told him to get off. His Majesty obeyed and landed on me.”

He went on to tell more stories. One involved playing a prank on the Overlord who Kieran just met, Overlord Kaal’un. Another was when Kieran’s father accidentally bumped into one of the Water Maidens of Mist Mountain while on a diplomatic mission and pushed her into the water.

“He was clumsy and far from what one would think a king to be. One look at him now and no one would be able to tell he was that boy who climbed The Archon’s statue… Well, I apologize for my ramblings.”

“No, not at all. It was fun hearing about him, Mr. Loftus,” Kieran said. Mr. Loftus laughed again. He seemed like a rather relaxed guy. That was something he could get behind.

“Please, Your Highness, call me Lucian.”

“If you’ll call me, Kieran, then it’s a deal.”

He felt his neck grow hot from someone’s stare.

“I cannot do that,” Mr. Loftus said. “You are a prince. I will certainly keep it in mind, however.”

If you’re gonna say no, then don’t keep it in mind. It’s okay to say you’re uncomfortable. Though I guess that might be speaking casually.

“I got it,” Kieran said, with a sigh. “But I won’t let Lilith speak to me formally.”

Lilith shuffled in her seat while her father held back his laugh. Teal was the only one who ever spoke to him casually, though it took a while to wear her down, and since he failed on Mr. Loftus, he wasn’t about to let Lilith go so easily.

The doors of the main entrance opened and a middle aged male servant rushed into the room. He gave a deep bow to Kieran and quickly rushed to Mr. Loftus’ side, leaning in and whispering something. A flicker of worry flashed across his face. He stood, resuming the calm and friendly demeanor he had before.

“I apologize for cutting this welcome and our talk so short, Your Highness, but there is a matter I must attend to. The manor is yours to explore as you please but do be sure to be inside once it is dark out, Your Highness. Lillith will show you to your room whenever you wish. I will be taking my leave now,” he said with a bow.

“Have a safe trip, Overseer Loftus,” Alexandra said, returning his bow. Teal quickly followed suit.

With a single look, the male servant from earlier and the maid who had served the tea, both bowed as well. The servant followed Lucian out the door and the maid disappeared upstairs. Lilith pushed off the lofty couch and landed with a clear knock.

“Your-”

“Kieran.”

“Right, um… would you like to play- uh, accompany me for a walk outside?” Lilith asked.

“Sure!”

After a while spent outside, they came back to a table already laid out with dinner. A well dressed man with large ears and the beginnings of a beard waited for them. He looked around Teal’s age, and was essentially a younger version of Mr. Loftus. His shoulders were broad and his hands looked unusually rough for a noble’s. Lilith’s brother bowed.

“Greetings, Your Highness. My name is Lucas Loftus. The youngest son of the Loftus House. I apologize that I was unable to welcome you earlier in the day.”

They had to be picking names that start with L on purpose. I guess they like that alliteration.

“Good evening, Lucas. I’m Kieran. If you could refer to me by my first name.”

“I cannot do that,” he said abruptly. “As a member of…”

Great. I can be casual but no one around me can.

“I understand but at least try to speak a little less formally with me, please,” he said with a sigh. “Wait, where’s Teal?”

“She went for a walk,” Alexandra said.

“A walk? At night?”

“Yes. We should eat. The food is getting cold. Teal will join us when she is ready.”

Much of the dinner was spent in silence. The knife in his hand was unsteady for the first couple of minutes as he tried to ignore the presences beside and across from him. Neither Alexandra nor Teal had ever eaten with him and it left him with mixed feelings. He enjoyed that no one bothered him during his meals but was also a slight bit lonely since it reminded him of his past life.

Other than the constant peeks from Lucas and Lilith as they tried to gauge how much he liked the food and Teal’s absence, the meal went fine. “Thank you, for the food. It was quite good,” he said. It would have tasted better if they acted normally but he didn’t want to make them worry about the next meal. He also worried about the poor cook who’d be on the chopping block if he said something negative.

“We are glad it suited your tastes, Your Highness.”

“I was wondering about this when we met, but why were you gone the whole day?”

“Oh,” Lucas set his plate off to the side and the Colorless servant took it away. “I was investigating rumors related to The Corrupted so I spent most of my time speaking to the villages under our protection.”

Kieran shot a look at Alexandra who casually drank her water. Though her plates were empty and the water in her glass slowly emptying, she always seemed too preoccupied to return his questioning gaze.

Fine. I’ll just pretend I know what he’s talking about and ask Teal in secret later.

“Did you find anything?”

“I am ashamed to say it. After a whole day spent searching we could not find the source,” Lucas said. “I swear I will not let this incident interrupt your stay at our manor.”

“You don’t need to go that far.”

Within the lull of the conversation, a light blue streak flickered past one window and then another. Seeing the lack of dishes left, he wiped his hands and mouth off with a napkin before excusing himself from the table. Alexandra did the same and he heard her steady steps trailing closely.

“Where are you going?” She asked the moment he didn’t turn at the stairs.

“For a walk.”

Calloused, rough, yet small and slender. The moment her hand touched his shoulder, he locked up as if hit with a taser. It didn’t hurt. She wasn’t putting much strength into her grip but the weight was like a thousand pounds. One wrong move and all of it would crash down on him. He was used to Teal’s touch but not hers.

“You have heard the situation surrounding the Loftus land. It is not safe for you to be alone at night. It so happens to also be past your usual bedtime.”

“Uh, I need a lullaby?”

“You are not a child.”

She herded him to his room and refused to leave until he climbed into his bed.

"Good night, Young Master."

"Yeah, good night."

When the door closed, Kieran counted to sixty. He pushed the curtains out of the way and tested the windows to see how far out they opened, which, to his surprise, was wide like a door.

That’s a bit unsafe isn’t it?

In spite of his better judgement, he yanked the sheets off his mattress and tied them to a corner of the bed frame. He pulled on it to make sure it was sturdy. It soon went from a single knot to a double and a triple.

I think it’s good now but maybe I should do four knots just in case? No, it might already be too short.

He descended the rope with a white knuckled grip. The excitement of sneaking out at night clashed with his fear of heights. He was only two stories high but it seemed worse because it was. There was ample ceiling room between floors meaning the stories were higher. When he made it to the ground, he looked up at the room he climbed down from and silently beat himself up.

How the flying fuck am I going to get back up there? I really didn’t think this through did I?

A warm, stinging sensation radiated from his palms. Three days spent relaxing in the carriage wasn’t enough time for his blistered and bloodied hands to fully recover. He shook the pain away, taking in a breath of the air still tinged with a little winter coldness.

At the back of the manor, he saw Teal with the two royal guards She emitted a blue glow from her hands and had her eyes closed. Thin ethereal strands swirled around Teal, distorting the light around her like heat in the summer.

The air around Teal quivered, ruffling her hair and dress like a gentle wind. She let out an audible breath and turned to the guards. Kieran strained his ears. He couldn’t make out what they were saying from that distance so he leaned out a little more. All of a sudden, he felt a tickle in his nose.

“Kuhk…”

He pinched his nose right when he was about to sneeze.

Ahhhh. Screw this body and allergies. I had none before!

“What was that?”

“I-I’ll take a look.”

Teal rounded the corner and her eyes almost popped out of her head. She did a double take and he held a finger to his lips. If he wasn’t so cross with himself for getting found out, he would have laughed at her expression.

“Is someone there?” one of the guards asked.

“N-No! Nothing at all… I’m finished with the spell so why don’t we go inside and eat?”

“You should go first, miss. We’ll do a round or two before we call it a night.”

Teal quickly urged Kieran away from the back and toward the front of the manor. She did stop when she saw his method of sneaking out. The way she gawked at it had him riled up with childish pride.

“Hide behind me,” Teal said as she opened the front door. The lights in the dining room were still on and the wood burned brightly in the fireplace. He couldn’t spy Lilith anywhere. Her brother, on the other hand, sat listening to one of the manor guards with the Colorless servant standing close by.

“Welcome. You’ve finished?” asked Lucas.

“Yes,” Kieran could feel her smile. “If you could please have the food delivered to my room I would be very grateful.”

“Of course.”

Teal awkwardly strode toward the stairs, keeping her movements wide in order to hide him. Once on the second floor, they could breathe. The rest of the way should be smoothing sailing since most of the servants were focused on the dinner.

“Gosh, what were you planning when you snuck out of your room like that?”

“I was looking for you since Alexandra wasn’t saying much. She lied to me too. She said you were taking a walk,” he said. He didn’t expect her to be so exasperated.

“Teal.”

She immediately pushed him behind her. Both of them did their best to stay still.

“Yes ma’am?”

“Did you set up the barrier?”

“I did. There were no abnormalities and I will be able to tell right away if anyone enters the manor’s premises,” Teal responded.

“Good. Inform me immediately if an unknown presence enters,” Alexandra said. “Have you eaten yet?”

“Um, no. Not yet, ma’am.”

“Then do so. I know I was the one who told you to set up the detection barrier but I never told you to miss a meal. The Young Master was worried. If you have the energy and if he is awake, let him know how you are faring. That is all.”

“Thank you. Good night, ma’am.”

Alexandra closed her door.

“Haaah… If she’d found us out, we’d have been in for a hefty punishment,” Teal said.

“Good thing she didn’t.”

Teal helped him untie the sheets and pull them inside before anyone could see them.

“You shouldn’t do something like this in the future. It’s dangerous,” Teal said.

“Even though I was only worried for you?”

“...Yes, even if you were only worried for me. You’re a prince. We may call you “Young Master” but that’s because we directly attend you. You are too important to risk yourself for others. There are so many things you can do when you’re older, so don’t rush things.”

“I might be a prince but I don’t think I’m much different from you. If I was a bit less lucky, I probably wouldn’t be a prince at all.”

Honestly, though. I have to remind myself sometimes that I’ve hit the jackpot in this new world.

Teal tucked him into bed, a shadow of a smile left in her expression, further hidden by the darkness. “Sometimes when I talk to you, Young Master, it doesn’t feel like I’m talking to a child.”

“It’s because I have such great teachers.”

She laughed, “Good night, Young Master.”

“Good night, Teal.”