Reborn (2)

Emerging from the cellar, my new property discovered a spacious living room furnished in cream tones. Most of the furniture here was made of old wood. He was initially taken aback by the simplicity and serenity of the place where he had been held captive. A happy family could have lived here, it was not a criminal hangout. No one would have thought that the door we had just passed through had teleported us miles away from the cellar, which must have been in some insalubrious ruin... But I'm afraid that's not how teleportation works.

Disturbed, he turned to look at the basement entrance because something had caught his attention: all traces of an opening had disappeared. The automatic door had slid silently open and perfectly completed the continuity of the house's supporting wall. Only a small thermostat box, remained as if nothing had happened.

“But, how-! Is this an illusion spell?”

“This?” I said as I knocked on the magic temperature controller. It's just a simple backdoor mechanism. The house has a double-bottomed wall on this side, and if I put my finger there, the wall slides out by itself. Don't you have this sort of thing at Hiven Palace? It's quite common among the nobles with all the illegal things they do at home...

“Of course, I see! It's most ingenious... Uh, no! I didn't mean that-! I was talking about your secret passage, not my palace! Don't get me wrong, I- I don't know if the noble residences have that many, that is to say... it's not very legal with regard to the architectural standards of the country, you see...”

“Relax, there are no burning dragons around! I already know the answer anyway, I'm just surprised that you're such a stranger to these mechanisms. Where did you live during his last years?”

The prince stammered out some kind of answer, which he never finished, as I had already gone off in the direction of a long corridor with many doors lined up. He wisely followed me, taking in the layout of what would be his new home for the rest of his life.

Compared to the prince I had kidnapped, this boy was unrecognizable. He himself struggled to recognize himself, touching the mirror at the sink as if to make sure the glass was real.

His hair had grown slightly in volume since it had been stripped of some of its weight. These new curls emphasized his childish side, as he tried to make them disappear by pulling on their tips. Now we had a family resemblance as we shared almost the same hair color. This fact seemed to bother him greatly. “My hair...” he complained in horror. I don't want to be mistaken for your elder!

You don't have a say in this, midget.

“My bad, I had nothing else in stock. Besides, it's better for you to look like my sibling than a walking target. Consider yourself lucky!”

He no longer challenged my idea because we both knew that the damage was already done. I decided to move on, dragging him out of the bathroom before he broke the ice with his narcissism. I dragged him into the kitchen with a strong hand instead. My property lit up like the happiest of properties as I realized we were about to eat.

I led him by the shoulders and settled him on a high stool in front of a raised work surface. While he sat quietly, I served him breakfast on a tray. Justine, who was usually behind the stove, was absent. She must have gone to the Central Bank of Anesiah to get her beloved bounty. The boss could make this money work on digital accounts, but driven by a certain paranoia, she always kept a few thousand francs hidden all over the house.

What a strange habit! Who needs to keep such reserves except for a Yegass on the eve of his hibernation?

Thinking of the bounty money also made me think of the mess that the orchestrated death of the prince must have caused. Curious, I grabbed the remote control to turn on the TV on the wall. I came across the only channel in service, also known as the national channel, where the eight o'clock news was playing following government propaganda messages.

“Asyrians, good morning everyone! We are back for our morning news with Pascal Genbert. Back to you, Pascal...” announced the host following an introduction that featured a white swan adorned with a crown on a purple background.

We continued to chew our pastries and dip the toasted bread in our milk. It was one of the few times I was interested in the news that was on at that hour. Our attention was completely held by the exclusive of the day.

“This is indeed a most disturbing breaking news that has just reached us following the hacking of our broadcasting network an hour ago! We have learned that during the night, Prince Nathan was kidnapped from his room at Hiven Palace. He was then brutally murdered and the Revolutionaries claim to be responsible for this act in their pirate message. They are said to have cooperated with the notorious and terrible ‘Killer Wind’, although their motives have not been made explicit. We immediately show you the image sent to us by them. We are all deeply shocked and moved by this sad news for the future of the kingdom. The Council of Ministers requests that an official funeral be held as a matter of urgency, despite the absence of the body and the alarming health state of the sovereign...”

One of the photos I had taken and sent to the client a few hours earlier appeared on the screen. The image, including his face, was mostly censored so as not to offend the public. In front of us lay what looked like a real corpse, but was in fact a staged scene. A body lying on concrete with its face butchered and covered in blood to make you sick. To tell the truth, I had used a real face cut out and placed it over her pretty face smeared with cattle blood. I was glad to have a neutral face in the magical storage area because it had finally paid off.

The prince dropped his spoon into the bowl of milk, which splashed onto the raised table. Suddenly, he was not really hungry anymore “I- this is disgusting what you did to me! How do you expect me to eat after such a sacrilege?”

“Forgive me, Sir Nathan, but this is the price to-”

“Edwoyn! Call me Edwoyn! E-D-W-O-Y-N!” he shouted to cover my voice.

So sudden was his outburst that I found myself staring at him as one would stare at a colossal beast roaring its most intimidating cry while sending streams of slime into your face.

“...Elton?” I repeated a little confused.

“Please call me by my fourth name, Nathan, George, Meleor, Edwoyn, and Jonasse. It's decided! I don't want to be called Nathan anymore! I cannot bear the weight of this cursed name after what you have done.”

He was making funny expressions as I waited for him to finish his act.

“Do you have any other confessions to make, just in case?”

I was going to rename him ‘Capricious’ at this rate. Never tired, he dared to dictate terms to me when I was not in the mood “If I have to change my identity, I prefer to be called Edwoyn. Sounds like a knight name. No one knows this name yet, except for my family. I'm sure it will be very suitable!” he boasted, puffing out his chest.

I didn't know what to say to this absolute egocentricity. This idiot had already forgotten the morbid image of his alter ego to navel-gazing... All I could understand was the ingratitude he expressed towards me. After all, I had put my life on the line and disobeyed my mentor to get him out of his hell! I didn't like his attitude, he deserved a good slap in the face. I accepted his whim with silence, already thinking of the appropriate punishment.

“In order to keep the monarchy in order, Prince Nathan's cousin, Eliott, will be appointed provisional governor until the originally scheduled coronation date in four months...” continued the TV.

“My cousin is taking over, before the next coup d’Etat by the Revolutionaries... Why are they targeting my place so relentlessly?”

The boy seemed to worry a lot about his cousin. They must have been close, knowing that he would probably be the next to die must have devastated him.

You deserved it, narcissic brat.

Unaffected by his disillusionment, I lowered my gaze to the milk dripping down his ceramic “You assumed it yourself, probably a coup d’Etat. I don't know their intentions either. All I can tell you is that they are prepared to ruin themselves for your title. What else would they want to do but rule from such a position?”

“Their rule would be nothing more than terror! They must be a group of fanatics who believe they can control the world with violence. The government will get rid of them quickly, they are already in their sights.”

Their name, their tactics, and their means did not suggest such primitive intentions. I watched them start a second revolution, not caring whether it would ignite or not this time. In any case, I kept my suspicions to myself.

It's not my fault he's too stupid to understand the obvious.

To change the subject, I thought about what I had planned to do today. No killing, just some shopping and a first training session for the prince. It was going to be a relatively peaceful day, unlike the rest of the kingdom. I then told Edwoyn the planning.

“Yes, I urgently need a new outfit,” his hostile green eyes glared at me for a second before returning to the wall screen. “Otherwise I won't be able to fulfill our contract!”

No wonder he was so angry, he had been in his pajamas reddened with animal blood since last night! The problem was that he couldn't go out in that grotesque outfit even though the blood had dried. The thought of him walking down the street made me laugh.

“There's nothing funny about that! It's your fault that I have nothing to wear...”

“Of course, what a drama! You're far too handsome to wear any of my ugly clothes. I'd have lent you some if I'd been worthy...” I taunted him with a sweet tone.

“Get lost, you and your rudeness!”

We finished our lunch in opposition, each trying to belittle the other. While the kid didn't think of helping me out of habit, I cleared the table in a hurry. Eventually, I noticed that I, too, had been in my work uniform all night. My puffy-sleeved outfit with the wide neck warmer intimidated the prince every time he addressed me. In short, I also had to review my wardrobe before going out in public...