Crown Princess Reza Altieri glanced over at the empty seat next to her again. Each time she looked over at the gilded chair, she half expected the King of Iliad to materialize but it was not to be. Of the little she knew of him, she had not thought such a man would be regularly late to events. Although it was only the second time such a situation had occurred, the young Crown Princess could not help but feel slighted that it seemed to only occur when he was meant to be in her presence. She reached out for her ever familiar wine glass that had become a necessary companion for her, to ease her nerves. Her eyes carried on to the large crowd that had gathered in her fathers banquet hall. Another impossibly massive area within the castle that could easily sit a thousand, at the very least that is what she assumed given by the growing crowd all seated and engaging in deep conversation with one another.

  Her naming day was winding to a close and the final of the celebrations was a feast in her honor, where her praises would be sung by those who knew her. However despite the joyous atmosphere everyone participated in, she could feel the underlying sense of uncertainty for it was also expected that King Antares would make a decision on their union tonight. The closer the hour drew to that moment it was as though all gathered here tried their best to pretend otherwise, herself included. Even her mother and father who sat to her left could not hide their growing tension, which only further raised hers as she felt anxiousness wash over her like a cold bath. Over the last couple days things had not gone as smoothly as what everyone had expected, no doubt exasperated by the play her father put on the night before; the rumors she had heard about the meeting of the monarchs growing tenuous between her brother and King Antares. Added with his absence so far at the feast all signs pointed to the King of the Stygians spurning her hand and believing her unworthy.

  She should have been glad, it had been her desire for it from the moment it was announced to her, but Reza could not fully explain why it bothered her so. Feelings of inadequacy as well as falling short of expectation only further tensed her as she naturally compared herself to her sisters who sat further left of her. As always both Roderika and Enrieta looked regal, as they shared conversation between themselves. If either of them were in her position would the Stygian King be so unwilling to wed them? She could not help but wonder, her eyes lingered on them for a second too long before both sisters turned to face her. Roderika gave her a reassuring smile, while Enrieta offered a playful wink. She raised her glass with a smile in return and buried her worries with the sweet flavor of Stygian wine.

  Eventually her gaze turned to her brother, King Saturn who met her eyes with a warm smile before his ever familiar stoic expression returned as he engaged in conversation with their father. Whereas his wife, Queen Freyja looked lost in thought, no doubt her mind was occupied with thoughts of the Stygian King, Reza summarized. A hint of jealousy on her tongue one she quickly banished and chastised herself for having. Freyja had been nothing but welcoming and kind to her, her relationship with King Antares stretched decades, she could not imagine what it must have felt like to love someone so deeply and know they would never hold you again. Or did she? Her eyes wandered to the corner of the great hall, where Gawain stood valiantly like the knight he would one day be. Their gaze met for a brief moment, in which expressions of love were heavily displayed. She desired to be held in his hands so desperately. He was the first to look away to her disappointment, eventually she did the same, resigned to entertain herself gazing at the various nobles sharing laughter among themselves. It was odd she thought, the King of Iliad was not here and yet his presence seemed to cast such a great shadow over the entire feast. Reza wrestled between finding it a truly impressive feat, or annoyed that her father was not the only man that made those around him uncomfortable.

  “Forgive him Crown Princess,” King Satori Sugawara bowed slightly. His ever present smile gazing down on her. “I am sure the Stygian King will be here any moment.”

  She tried her best to be cordial, feeling her mothers gaze on the back of her head. “I am sure King Satori, there is no rush.” She lied.

  “Your mother can attest to it, but Stygians have a very loose relationship with time,” he chuckled.

  “You are too kind King Satori, it would be more accurate to say they struggle to grasp it at times.” She let out a laugh remembering an old memory of her time in the north. Seeing her daughter gaze at her as she did, she quickly recomposed herself with a soft blush.

  “What do you mean?” Reza asked the King of Ichika, now more curious.

  Satori thought for a moment, “Where do I begin?” he tapped his chin for a moment, “There was a time when I was in King Antares’, elder brother's care in my younger years. I will not bore you with the details, but I was bound to a boulder for several days because Lord Hyperion had forgotten to unchain me.” He laughed at the memory.

  “Really? How does one forget to unchain a child?” Reza could not help but giggle at the thought of the image now painted in her mind, especially given that King Satori was unable to release himself.

  “Quite easily, if you fall asleep for several days that is,” he said as though it was common knowledge.

  Her mother nodded in agreement and before long both of them regaled her with varying tales of their times around Stygians and their peculiar habits. She found the stories to be absurd yet endearing in their own right, nothing like the stories that her scholars had been teaching her days leading up to her naming ceremony. The Stygians she had learned about were cold, uncaring, distant and secular in their beliefs. However, the descriptions she heard from her mother and King Satori seemed to delve deeper into unique encounters and odd ones that they had met. Among those that they had described, Reza could not help herself but focus on one of them in particular.

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  “What was he like?” she looked between both of them, “Crown Prince Hyperion I mean.”

  If she knew very little of the Stygians and their king, then of Hyperion Xerxes it was as though he were from fabled legends. Of her lessons, even her teachers knew not what kind of man he truly was, but all seemed to be in agreement that he was destined and deserved to be the next Emperor of Aurum even if they did not come out and say it. The way they looked as they spoke of him in hushed tones, as though they did not want to fully acknowledge the man but carried smiles and childlike glee, only raised her curiosity about him. The rumors she was able to coax out of them spoke of him as a man who despite all the late King Barranagan Xerxes had done was said to surpass him and even one day in strength too. It was he who sought to one day open Iliad again, unite the nine realms in truly one goal and belief. A hero among heroes, such lauded praises and admiration only fueled her desire to learn more about him. However, as many things about the Stygians, very little was known, only those of the deep north could satiate her appetite for knowledge. Or those who knew him personally.

  Lady Tereza softened in her mood, “I… I never met him.” She admitted, slightly sad at the realization. “King Satori would be better versed in that topic as being his former pupil.” The Black Witch of Lunaelia turned her face to him along with her daughter.

  “My master was…” Satori bore a deeply painful smile, as decades worth of memories came flooding back. “He was like most Stygians, expressionless, solitary, enjoyed his own company and never quite seemed unnerved by anything. He took everything in stride, by all accounts the man was terribly boring. Like his father,” he glanced at Tereza, who looked away with a painful smile of her own. “But all manner of people seemed to flock to his side, be it Stygian, human, Beastmen or even the odd Nephilim. It was as though despite his proclivity to his own isolation, he was a unifying thread that brought all life together, a lynchpin of hope. A man destined to rule not just Iliad, but Aurum herself.”

  King Satori, gazed into his chalice and swirled his drink around as though it were a gateway into the past.

  “However above all else, despite the many things you will ever hear about him, his lauded impossible strength, or the many rumors exaggerated or otherwise.” He turned to Reza with the brightest smile he had shown all night. “The only thing worth knowing about Hyperion Xerxes is that he loved his baby brother Antares most of all.”

  Reza found herself moved by the words of the Enlightened One, the assuredness in the way he spoke of him filled her with a great desire to meet the man that could be talked about so highly.

  “Then why did he leave him?” the question escaped her lips before she realized it.

  “Reza!” Tereza called out.

  “Sorry, I mean, I didn’t mean to..” she looked down embarrassed at such a personal question. She had gotten too comfortable with the King of Ichika.

  It was a question that all throughout Aurum asked: why did he leave? He who was destined to inherit everything, to rule unopposed by all, blessed by all things. All who had heard of him, from royals to the common folk and everyone in-between. The question had crossed their minds at least once. The man who had been given it all and gave it all away, stripped himself of divinity to travel beyond the seas of Aurum. None could understand it, along with who had been responsible for the death of Queen Myrra, it had been one of the greatest unanswered questions that still plagued Aurum some seventeen years later. Many came with their own claims, their own reasonings as to why the Crown Prince of Aurum would abandon her and most of all the Stygian people.

  Of the very little Reza had been able to learn about Antares, in the short time she had known him, with the play the previous night and now speaking with King Satori. She had come to understand his disdain for the sea she loved so much. Where she saw endless possibilities and the freedom to go in any direction one pleased. She was sure for him all he saw was an entity that took from him, his first love, his gallant soldiers who fought for him, and his dearest elder brother he loved so much. Perhaps it was because of the wine, but Reza felt sorrow for the Stygian King who had lost so much over the years. The air of reclusion that surrounded him had begun to make more sense to her. Her original thought of him after their time at shore still rang true in her head but there was more to it. Antares Xerxes did not want love nor to be loved, because all that he had loved had been taken from him.

  “No, no it is quite alright!” King Satori reassured both Reza and Tereza that he took no offense to the remark. “It is a question all of Aurum has asked one time or the other over the years.” He set his chalice down and looked out into the crowd of seated nobles. “Truth be told, even I do not know.” He lied effortlessly. “My master was not one for sharing all his reasonings.”

  A subdued silence fell over them as the banquet carried on. The memory of the last conversation the King of Ichika had with the man who raised him painfully returned despite his wishes for it not to.

  “You know oftentimes, it is said that Fate chooses those who are destined for greatness. People look at these select few and lament at how all was done to grant them the riches and power they possess. Yet one never asks if those chosen desire the destiny given to them. For if people were to know the price paid for it, the sacrifices made, many would look at those destined with kinder eyes, with more pity than they would a wounded child.” Satori moved his flowing hair away from his face, his eyes glowed with an ancient power. “To be Fate's chosen champion is to experience a destiny worse than death.“

  “I...do not understand,” Reza looked at him wanting to.

  The Enlightened One laughed a warm smile as he waved his hand dismissively. “Forgive me child, I ramble when I drink.” From the muted look he saw from Lady Tereza, it was enough that she understood his words.

  Crown Princess Reza wished to protest for she was sure that his words held profound insight within them. However before she could do so the crowd rose to their feet in growing celebration.

  King Satori rested his hands on his lap. “Ah, it seems our final monarch has made his long awaited appearance,” he looked on proudly yet face guilt ridden.

  Fate's latest champion, King Antares Xerxes had arrived.