[Legend of Sun Knight] fic: New Horizons -That Person Now Returned- (7/9)
Title: New Horizons -That Person Now Returned- (7/9)
Fandom: The Legend of Sun Knight
Words: 1,535
Summary: Not long after Grisia assumes the position of the 38th Sun Knight, he spots a familiar face among the crowds-Roland, who has become a royal knight captain after disappearing from Grisia's life. However, trouble brews among the palace. This time around, is it Grisia's turn to look after Roland?
Notes: Ahhh, the end is nearing, yet I'm still revising Part 9. Only one day left of buffer. Gotta get it done before then. :3
Part 7
We searched room by room, even though I already had in mind one particular room. However, there was no possible way the prince would let us search that room right away. We would just have to keep being "thorough" to make it less obvious. I don't believe you can stop us after that!
We even searched the prince's room under his gaze and came up with nothing, which was actually relieving. If even our future ruler was rotten, then there was no saving the royal family.
The princess's room was similarly searched. Through my sensing ability, I discovered that she had a trap door hidden inside her walk-in closet that led down to a secret passage underneath her room, but as it had little to do with our investigation, I did not bring it up.
Finally, we came to the king's room. A quick sensing told me that this was indeed the room in question, the one with the odd hidden chamber I was unable to see the inside of. Whether or not our plan came to fruition would depend on what we found in that secret room.
How I wish to be wrong about what we may find.
The prince stepped in front of us and gave us a stern look, but Judgment just glared at him. Are you trying to compete with Judgment's glares? Dream on!
I shared a look with Judgment. It was time to put an end to this.
"Judgment Knight, it is still not too late to turn back," I said.
Judgment shook his head and commanded Roland's subordinate, Foot, to knock on the door.
The young royal knight rushed to do just that. He knocked lightly at first, before pounding much harder. Even the prince didn't stop him, though I could see the prince gripping his elbow. The prince was no idiot. By now, he must have realized our true intentions, and somewhere inside of him, he must have the same doubts as us. If not, surely he would have declared his father innocent. But the word "innocent" had very little to do with the king.
With no response from within, Judgment barked, "Open the door."
Foot flinched but followed his orders. The door was, of course, locked. He turned to look toward Judgment for instruction, who glowered at him. Between facing Judgment's wrath and the king's ire, Judgment was obviously scarier. Besides, his captain's safety was in question. Just as I was wondering how Foot would open the door, he lived up to his namesake and let his foot fly out, kicking the door open.
Blaze would have been proud.
I had to give it to Foot, a royal knight who had just dared to kick the king's door open. Next to us, the prince held his head.
Without further ado, we headed inside.
Within, the king was standing in front of the full length mirror I had sensed before and even had a hand on it. He seemed to be staring blankly into the mirror. Come on, no matter how much you look in the mirror, you'll only see a fat pig staring back. If I were him, I wouldn't want any mirrors in my room.
Don't tell me he was so mesmerized by his own ugly mug that he didn't hear our knocking?
It wasn't until we came closer that he suddenly jumped, as if he had been broken out of a spell. He spun around, eyes darting wildly at us, like a cornered animal. He quickly moved in front of the mirror. He was really making it super obvious and wasn't acting like a king at all.
Guilty. So, so guilty.
"What is the meaning of this?" the king demanded, but his voice came out more like a squawk.
"The God of Light bids us to-" I began to explain, but Judgment interrupted nicely, saving me from wasting my breath.
"We have reason to believe that there are nefarious acts going on in the royal quarters. Step aside and let us investigate, and we shall put these suspicions to rest once and for all," Judgment said.
The king paled at his words. "Son, guards, send them away! I am the king. You can't investigate my room like this."
The prince came over to his father's side. He shook his head and said, "The Judgment Knight is the highest authority presiding over justice. We can't stop him from investigating any leads he has." Hah, exactly. Public relations between the palace and the Church saved your skin thus far, but even this goodwill has stretched thin. "But rest assured Father, if they turn up nothing in this investigation, I will count this as an affront against the royal family from the Church of the God of Light. I will not forget it so easily, Sun Knight."
Hey, why aren't you blaming Judgment? Why single me out?
As I had thought, the prince was too shrewd. Whether or not Judgment was acting on his own didn't matter to him. He would still count it against the entirety of the Church of the God of Light, or would demand for me to compensate for my subordinate's transgressions.
Tough luck there, Your Highness. I have an entire palace as my witness. Judgment is only doing his job. Whatever compensation you demand can only be superficial.
Besides, our public act also served another purpose-he couldn't sweep this under the rug and pretend not to know about it.
Despite what the prince had said, the expression on his face was a troubled one. Even though he stood next to his father's side to support him, and had warned us that the royal family wouldn't forget or forgive us so easily, he clearly had his doubts too, wishing that his father would not disappoint him, yet afraid that he would.
After all, there were too many rumors for all of them to be false.
"Search the room. Leave no nook or cranny alone," Judgment commanded.
"Yes sir!"
The royal knights scattered to search the room. After all the rooms we had searched together, they had gotten it down pat, and no longer did anyone freeze at getting commanded by the Judgment Knight. They turned over all the pottery, opened all the marble cabinets, and searched under all the rugs. However, no one had gone to search the full length mirror by the wall, as the king was still standing in front of it to block it. I shared a glance with Judgment and flicked my eyes at that particular wall.
He gave me an almost imperceptible nod and barked at the royal knights, "You there, search that wall."
Foot jumped but still moved over and began feeling his way around the wall.
"What insolence!" the king suddenly screeched. "What gives you the right to accuse me like a criminal in my very own room? Out! All of you, out!"
Bingo. There must be something behind this wall you don't wish us to see.
Judgment merely raised an eyebrow at the king's screeching.
"Enough," the prince said with a frown. "You are upsetting my father, your king. You give too little trust to him."
I nearly wanted to snort in laughter, but I turned and coughed into my glove instead. Your Highness, have we ever been given a reason to trust your father? That our kingdom is still standing is already a blessing in and of itself.
Judgment gestured at the mirror and said to the prince, "Shall we find out if that trust is deserved?" He then turned and commanded the knights, "Remove the mirror."
All color vanished from the king's face. "No... you can't. You can't! You can't do this! I am your king!"
No one paid him any attention.
A king is a king through his actions. Shouting your title at someone to make them acknowledge you just shows your incompetence. How would anyone be willing to swear their loyalty to someone like you?
Although these thoughts ran through my mind, my eyes were trained on the mirror. Just what will we find beyond this mirror? Is Roland truly confined within?
As I watched, the king suddenly turned and hugged the mirror. "No, no, no! You can't do this! You can't!"
This... this is just unsightly. How desperate can you get? Have you no dignity at all?
I shared another look with Judgment.
"Father, let them investigate. They won't find anything, will they?" asked the prince, who placed a hand on his father's shoulder and gently guided him away from the mirror. Perhaps he couldn't bear to watch his father act in such a way anymore.
The king's hand lingered on the mirror, but he let his son lead him away, his body shaking with each step.
Neither Judgment nor I made any comment over the king's behavior. Judgment just ordered once again, "Remove the mirror."
With the king now out of the way, Foot and the others followed Judgment's orders and began removing the mirror, revealing the hidden room behind it.
Any words I might have spoken died before they could form.
We all stood, shocked to our core, staring at what was revealed.
How could anyone be so cruel?
to be continued
This entry was originally posted at https://lucathia.dreamwidth.org/364351.html. You can comment here or there.
Fandom: The Legend of Sun Knight
Words: 1,535
Summary: Not long after Grisia assumes the position of the 38th Sun Knight, he spots a familiar face among the crowds-Roland, who has become a royal knight captain after disappearing from Grisia's life. However, trouble brews among the palace. This time around, is it Grisia's turn to look after Roland?
Notes: Ahhh, the end is nearing, yet I'm still revising Part 9. Only one day left of buffer. Gotta get it done before then. :3
Part 7
We searched room by room, even though I already had in mind one particular room. However, there was no possible way the prince would let us search that room right away. We would just have to keep being "thorough" to make it less obvious. I don't believe you can stop us after that!
We even searched the prince's room under his gaze and came up with nothing, which was actually relieving. If even our future ruler was rotten, then there was no saving the royal family.
The princess's room was similarly searched. Through my sensing ability, I discovered that she had a trap door hidden inside her walk-in closet that led down to a secret passage underneath her room, but as it had little to do with our investigation, I did not bring it up.
Finally, we came to the king's room. A quick sensing told me that this was indeed the room in question, the one with the odd hidden chamber I was unable to see the inside of. Whether or not our plan came to fruition would depend on what we found in that secret room.
How I wish to be wrong about what we may find.
The prince stepped in front of us and gave us a stern look, but Judgment just glared at him. Are you trying to compete with Judgment's glares? Dream on!
I shared a look with Judgment. It was time to put an end to this.
"Judgment Knight, it is still not too late to turn back," I said.
Judgment shook his head and commanded Roland's subordinate, Foot, to knock on the door.
The young royal knight rushed to do just that. He knocked lightly at first, before pounding much harder. Even the prince didn't stop him, though I could see the prince gripping his elbow. The prince was no idiot. By now, he must have realized our true intentions, and somewhere inside of him, he must have the same doubts as us. If not, surely he would have declared his father innocent. But the word "innocent" had very little to do with the king.
With no response from within, Judgment barked, "Open the door."
Foot flinched but followed his orders. The door was, of course, locked. He turned to look toward Judgment for instruction, who glowered at him. Between facing Judgment's wrath and the king's ire, Judgment was obviously scarier. Besides, his captain's safety was in question. Just as I was wondering how Foot would open the door, he lived up to his namesake and let his foot fly out, kicking the door open.
Blaze would have been proud.
I had to give it to Foot, a royal knight who had just dared to kick the king's door open. Next to us, the prince held his head.
Without further ado, we headed inside.
Within, the king was standing in front of the full length mirror I had sensed before and even had a hand on it. He seemed to be staring blankly into the mirror. Come on, no matter how much you look in the mirror, you'll only see a fat pig staring back. If I were him, I wouldn't want any mirrors in my room.
Don't tell me he was so mesmerized by his own ugly mug that he didn't hear our knocking?
It wasn't until we came closer that he suddenly jumped, as if he had been broken out of a spell. He spun around, eyes darting wildly at us, like a cornered animal. He quickly moved in front of the mirror. He was really making it super obvious and wasn't acting like a king at all.
Guilty. So, so guilty.
"What is the meaning of this?" the king demanded, but his voice came out more like a squawk.
"The God of Light bids us to-" I began to explain, but Judgment interrupted nicely, saving me from wasting my breath.
"We have reason to believe that there are nefarious acts going on in the royal quarters. Step aside and let us investigate, and we shall put these suspicions to rest once and for all," Judgment said.
The king paled at his words. "Son, guards, send them away! I am the king. You can't investigate my room like this."
The prince came over to his father's side. He shook his head and said, "The Judgment Knight is the highest authority presiding over justice. We can't stop him from investigating any leads he has." Hah, exactly. Public relations between the palace and the Church saved your skin thus far, but even this goodwill has stretched thin. "But rest assured Father, if they turn up nothing in this investigation, I will count this as an affront against the royal family from the Church of the God of Light. I will not forget it so easily, Sun Knight."
Hey, why aren't you blaming Judgment? Why single me out?
As I had thought, the prince was too shrewd. Whether or not Judgment was acting on his own didn't matter to him. He would still count it against the entirety of the Church of the God of Light, or would demand for me to compensate for my subordinate's transgressions.
Tough luck there, Your Highness. I have an entire palace as my witness. Judgment is only doing his job. Whatever compensation you demand can only be superficial.
Besides, our public act also served another purpose-he couldn't sweep this under the rug and pretend not to know about it.
Despite what the prince had said, the expression on his face was a troubled one. Even though he stood next to his father's side to support him, and had warned us that the royal family wouldn't forget or forgive us so easily, he clearly had his doubts too, wishing that his father would not disappoint him, yet afraid that he would.
After all, there were too many rumors for all of them to be false.
"Search the room. Leave no nook or cranny alone," Judgment commanded.
"Yes sir!"
The royal knights scattered to search the room. After all the rooms we had searched together, they had gotten it down pat, and no longer did anyone freeze at getting commanded by the Judgment Knight. They turned over all the pottery, opened all the marble cabinets, and searched under all the rugs. However, no one had gone to search the full length mirror by the wall, as the king was still standing in front of it to block it. I shared a glance with Judgment and flicked my eyes at that particular wall.
He gave me an almost imperceptible nod and barked at the royal knights, "You there, search that wall."
Foot jumped but still moved over and began feeling his way around the wall.
"What insolence!" the king suddenly screeched. "What gives you the right to accuse me like a criminal in my very own room? Out! All of you, out!"
Bingo. There must be something behind this wall you don't wish us to see.
Judgment merely raised an eyebrow at the king's screeching.
"Enough," the prince said with a frown. "You are upsetting my father, your king. You give too little trust to him."
I nearly wanted to snort in laughter, but I turned and coughed into my glove instead. Your Highness, have we ever been given a reason to trust your father? That our kingdom is still standing is already a blessing in and of itself.
Judgment gestured at the mirror and said to the prince, "Shall we find out if that trust is deserved?" He then turned and commanded the knights, "Remove the mirror."
All color vanished from the king's face. "No... you can't. You can't! You can't do this! I am your king!"
No one paid him any attention.
A king is a king through his actions. Shouting your title at someone to make them acknowledge you just shows your incompetence. How would anyone be willing to swear their loyalty to someone like you?
Although these thoughts ran through my mind, my eyes were trained on the mirror. Just what will we find beyond this mirror? Is Roland truly confined within?
As I watched, the king suddenly turned and hugged the mirror. "No, no, no! You can't do this! You can't!"
This... this is just unsightly. How desperate can you get? Have you no dignity at all?
I shared another look with Judgment.
"Father, let them investigate. They won't find anything, will they?" asked the prince, who placed a hand on his father's shoulder and gently guided him away from the mirror. Perhaps he couldn't bear to watch his father act in such a way anymore.
The king's hand lingered on the mirror, but he let his son lead him away, his body shaking with each step.
Neither Judgment nor I made any comment over the king's behavior. Judgment just ordered once again, "Remove the mirror."
With the king now out of the way, Foot and the others followed Judgment's orders and began removing the mirror, revealing the hidden room behind it.
Any words I might have spoken died before they could form.
We all stood, shocked to our core, staring at what was revealed.
How could anyone be so cruel?
to be continued
This entry was originally posted at https://lucathia.dreamwidth.org/364351.html. You can comment here or there.