The End of Peace

The King of Caerleon didn’t stick around to entertain his guests; he left the moment after his short speech concluded. The attention, thus, fell to his son and next in line for the throne, Prince Pendragon.

Unfortunately for the prince, the attention he received wasn’t exactly what he desired. The dregs of aristocratic society, those who fed off of the romantic misfortunes of others swarmed around the prince to complain about their treatment at the hands of Vivian Greymoor. To make matters worse, his lover, Lady Veridian, soon grew tired of these gossip mongers and left to find better company.

“Can’t you do something about her?” I overheard one complaint, “She shouldn’t be allowed to discuss my wife’s affairs this publicly!”

Meanwhile, the rest of the Greymoor family dispersed to attend to their duties at the ball. Stefan and his father courted a number of political officials, offering information in exchange for their vote in the parliament. Vladimir entertained a few young eager scholars. And Eleanor did as she always did, carrying herself like a member of the old aristocracy.

Diane and Vivian moved about the hall, attracting the eyes and ears of others wherever they walked. Between her appearance and Diane’s influence, Vivian found herself treated no longer as the prince’s castaway romantic accessory, but as perhaps the prince’s biggest mistake.

“Your father is an admirable man,” someone said, “I don’t agree with his political views, but his strategy in parliament is daring and innovative.”

“I’ll have you know that Lady Greymoor acts as his advisor,” Diane replied.

“Really? Lady Greymoor, you must meet my son. He could learn a thing or two from you.”

See? This was the power of an optimized attribute build. With enough points into intelligence, Vivian proved herself to others as a capable strategist. With enough personality, she earned the affections of others. And with enough willpower, she acquired the resolve to shake off the envious stares of others.

While the prince floundered about looking for his lover, rumor filtered through the banquet hall that Vivian Greymoor had returned to the imperial court with a vengeance. She had cut down those who had wronged her and rewarded her admirers with insight and her attention.

More than one man, much to my chagrin, lined up and asked for Vivian’s hand and a dance. But every time, Diane gazed in my general direction, smiled sadistically as if to say “you owe me,” and stepped between the suitor and Vivian.

“My dear Sir Troilus,” Diane would say, “Don’t be silly. Lady Florence wouldn’t like you fraternizing with others.”

“Thanks,” Vivian would whisper afterwards, “That last one asked me to dance at the other party too. You don’t think he’s the secret admirer, do you?”

“Are you still on about this secret admirer business?” Diane laughed, “Look, I’m sure if they existed, your secret admirer would be even more pathetic than Sir Troilus.”

Thanks Diane.

With all this attention, part of me wondered if Vivian’s revenge had already been completed. The court had fallen in love with her, those who envied and conspired against her had been driven into the shadows, and the prince still hadn’t found where Lady Veridian fled to.

But the best was yet to come.

When the attendees had licked clean enough silver plates, the central floor of the banquet hall was cleared and a band of musicians entered the fray. They began to play a series of minuets, inviting the guests back to the center of the hall to dance.

At that moment, Vivian Greymoor approached Prince Pendragon, who had just been busy walking through the halls of the castle, unable to find his lost lover. She held her hands before him.

“Care for a dance, my prince?” Vivian smiled sweetly.

Normally, I imagined the prince would have flatout refused. But now, the court was watching in earnest, murmurs of encouragement rumbling through the crowd. It was as if amnesia had overtaken the crowd and they had all but forgot about the existence of the prince’s commoner lover.

“Maybe just this once,” the prince smiled meekly.

The prince closed his hand around Vivian’s, and together they joined the floor.

Vivian played the lead, guiding the prince through his trips and missteps as he relearned the rhythm of the music. She gracefully paced around him, twirling in and out of his arms, motioning at times for where she wanted him to go.

It was a dance they must have danced long ago, when things between them had been fonder. The prince, drawn in by Vivian’s entrancing gaze, found himself slowly losing himself to the memory of the routine. It was like rediscovering an old love, and he stepped forward passionately to take the lead.

But for Vivian, the dance was about letting him go. For every step he took forward, Vivian weaved a step and a half back, always swaying slightly out of his grasp, but still close enough that he could smell the lavender perfume on her bodice. It was this dance of push and pull where the prince must have learned what he had lost, for a forlorn gaze settled into his eyes. The music came to a close and a few onlookers applauded, though most simply saw two individuals moving slightly out of sync with one another.

The prince looked up and noticed a woman in the corner of his eyes. It was Miss Veridian, who had just returned to the banquet hall and exited as soon as the prince laid eyes on her.

“Guin! Wait!” Prince Pendragon cried and burst from the room. I was sure Vivian hadn’t planned for this misunderstanding when preparing her plot for revenge, but it served as icing on the cake.

Vivian breathed a deep sigh. Beads of sweat, mixed with fresh tears, dripped down her nose. The nimble dance she performed had stolen her breath so while the audience focused on the prince chasing after his lover, Lady Greymoor stole away to collect herself.

One of the side doors led to a balcony overlooking the city. There was a cool windy breeze that night, and Vivian leaned over the ivory balustrades breathing in the free air. But after a moment outside and realizing that no one else was around, she cupped her face between her hands and began to cry.

With the moon holding vigil over the sky, surrounded by thousands of other twinkling lights, I suspected that this was the moment. Those must have been tears of joy. Finally, her affair with the prince had ended, and with her mind clear, Vivian realized that her future looked bright. With the city lights dressed in warm golden hues, she would look down and recognize that a part of her had been there for her all along.

Yes, it was me, the magical bracelet.

“It’s finally over,” Vivian sniffed, “I thought I would feel happier about it, but it feels a little empty, actually. Like, after all of this, what’s next? I saw the prince’s face, that look of dejection. It felt good, but maybe I had staked too much of myself on the outcome.”

Vivian raised her arm and swirled her bracelet around her wrists.

“Still, I have you to thank, my charming little bracelet,” she smiled, “I really feel like you came through for me when it mattered. You always gave me the right advice these last few weeks, and I listened. And it worked.”

I knew that my moment had come.

“It’s like,” Vivian laughed, “I mean it’s crazy I’m talking to a bracelet, right? But maybe you are looking out for me in your own special way. Sometimes, and this is insane, and you can’t tell anyone about this, but I sometimes think of you as a real person. Like a sage or something that I can rely on. Or, who knows, maybe you’re actually the secret admirer. Yeah, that could be it, right?”

No, no, not a sage. A sage was an old man. I preferred being the secret admirer, just not the one that Diane had described.

“I mean, why can’t we test that?” Vivian’s eyes lit up like the stars. An idea had come to her, and if it was what I was thinking of, I liked it, “You’re always putting together these new little designs for me, right? Make one right now if you’re listening to me. Maybe it’s all just a game of pretending I need to let go, but there’s just this warm feeling in my heart, and it feels real. So, if there is someone in here, listening, and always giving me the right things to do, encouraging me, I want to know. I want to know that you’re there.”

Yes! Oh, how I longed for this opportunity! This was it, the climax of the event where I could shove it in the goddess’s face. Yes, I had optimized Vivian’s attribute build. Yes, I had built her into a social powerhouse. And yes, she recognized my worth and we were ready to take our relationship to the next level.

I dug through the numerous widgets I had prepared and beta interfaces I had never published. It didn’t matter at this point which one I chose, because any one of them would be enough to convince Vivian of my existence. But I wanted to savor the moment and choose the right one. I decided on one of the old emoticon widgets and attached with it an expression of my feelings.

♡ ´･ᴗ･ `♡

Then, just as I prepared to launch it into production, the belltower above the castle exploded. The old stone crumbled and buckled, and fire spewed from its insides and painted the city lights a hellish red.

Then the ramparts on the outer walls caved in, then the cathedral below the castle erupted into flames, then the windows beside the balconies shattered into millions of pieces, and then the cacophonic screams of the capital city of the Caerleon Empire roused the silence of the night and for the second time in only two months, the world as I knew it seemed to come to an end.