After about half a day’s walk, they finally reached the capital of Elysium; A large city built on the slope of a hill, and suitably named Acropolis. On the very top of the hill, stood the grand castle Olympus. The houses in the city were almost stacked on top of each other and the streets were formed as platforms with here and there a staircase or a ramp so one could reach the next platform. None of the streets led straight to the castle, so they got to see a lot of the city as they slowly ascended the hill, platform by platform. The houses were painted in bright colours, and the people looked happy. Prince Emrys seemed to be on good terms with the citizens, responding to everyone who greeted him with a wave, a nod or even a friendly “good day!” They all addressed him as captain too.
“You're quite the social butterfly, aren't you, captain?” Rosemary said. The words were friendly, but her tone was not. Luckily Prince Emrys hardly noticed her hostility. “I like to show my trust in my people the best I can, that way I hope they'll trust me too. Oh, pardon me…” he stopped motioning at a small group of children to come closer. They giggled and walked over. Rosemary let out a startled sound, smothered by her hand, when the prince's horse suddenly moved closer to the children. They bowed politely for the prince, before spoiling the horse with pats and a few carrots. “You spoil her too much,” Prince Emrys said, “soon I'll be known as the prince on the fat horse!”
The children giggled at his joke, before taking their leave again, waving as they ran off. Prince Emrys waved back until the children had disappeared from sight, to which they continued traversing the roads towards the castle. “Sorry about that,” he said, “I don't know why my horse is so popular with those children.”
“Maybe it's not just the horse, but also you. It's like, impossible to hate you,” Lucas said, basing his theory on the smiles the people showed once they recognised the prince.
“You should see them with my brother,” Prince Emrys said, “everyone always flocks around him, wanting to hear of his adventures.”
“Don't you mean flocked?” Rosemary said. Lucas wondered if she ever even thought before saying anything. Prince Emrys’ smile wavered for a second upon being reminded of his brother's death, but it returned as bright as ever when they passed a market, which was filled with people who happily greeted him. When they finally cleared the market it was only a short ways before they reached the castle...or the castle’s gardens. They passed a large gate, guarded by two men wearing the same uniform as Prince Emrys. They saluted each other as they passed, and soon found themselves in a large field. Grassy plains, filled with beautiful flowers. Various sweet scents made their way into their nostrils, and bees curiously buzzed around them before moving on once established that they were not flowers. Prince Emrys helped Rosemary to dismount his horse, before handing the reins over to a stable boy, who then took the horse over a path that ran along the castle wall. Lucas and Rosemary followed the prince and his entourage over another, gravel path that led to another gate. “These are the Palace Gardens,” Prince Emrys said, gesturing to the various flowers and other plants, “it’s the only part of the castle that’s completely open to the public. Perfect for a lovely picnic, or a romantic stroll.” As they looked around, they could indeed see there were quite some people walking through the flower fields: Children playing in the grass, families sharing a meal on a large sheet, young maidens picking flowers…
Prince Emrys abruptly stopped walking when he noticed the previously mentioned maidens. He exhaled softly. “Pardon me,” he said, “I’ll be right back.” He left the path, taking off his beret as he walked over to the maidens. One of them, upon closer inspection, appeared to be an elf. Her skin was pale, almost white compared to the colours around her. Her honey brown hair was neatly tied up in a bun, held together with a braid. She wore a crown made of branches and pink flowers, matching her pink dress and the pink jewels of her silver earrings. Those same earrings matched with her silver makeup. The only thing that didn’t match with anything save for her hair colour maybe, were her golden-coloured eyes. The two maidens accompanying her, both wore light blue robes, and bowed while stepping back when Prince Emrys approached the elf and greeted her with a bow and offering his hand. The elf ignored the offer, looking down on the prince. Prince Emrys seemed somewhat taken aback by her attitude, but quickly composed himself as he pulled something from his jacket and presented it to the elf. Lucas and Rosemary saw something shimmering, and guessed it was a piece of jewelry. The elf took the gift, looking at it with an expressionless face, before handing it off to one of the maids behind her. She dismissed the prince with a wave of her hand, before walking off, holding her head high. Prince Emrys visibly slumped his shoulders for a second, before shaking it off and returning to Lucas, Rosemary and his entourage. “That was a complete disaster,” Rosemary noted. Lucas praised the prince’s patience when he smiled at her rude comment. “It was, wasn’t it?” he said as they continued their walk to the castle. “D’you fancy her?” Lucas asked, out of curiosity.
“Not quite,” Prince Emrys admitted, “that is Princess Lorelei of Arathmel, my bride to be,” he explained, “our marriage was arranged, and she’s not been too happy with it. I invited her to stay at our castle for a few moons, in the hope that we might at least get along before the wedding, but it’s been hard to break the ice.”
“We saw that,” Rosemary said, “she acted like the jewelry you gave her wasn’t expensive enough.”
Prince Emrys completely discarded his regal composure as he slumped his shoulders again and groaned. “I spent all my allowance that I’d been saving up since last winter on the kingdom’s best craftsman to fashion her a necklace that would match her tastes and add to her beauty. The most detailed silver decoration that had ever existed, and the most beautiful rose quartz crystal on earth, said to have belonged to Aphrodite herself...and she calls it grotesque.”
“She sounds like a keeper,” Rosemary said. Lucas jabbed her arm with his elbow. She shot him an annoyed glare, while Prince Emrys took a deep breath and straightened his back. “Never mind,” he said, more to himself than the others, “she’ll warm up to me some day. She’ll have to…” He shook his head. “There’s more important matters at hand now. Please, wait outside while I announce you to my father.”
They’d gone from the gardens, over a drawbridge to cross a dried-out moat, onto a courtyard, and into a large entrance hall. The prince disappeared through a pair of large, double doors, leaving Lucas and Rosemary behind to admire the inside of the palace. They could imagine not may peasants had ever made it this far. The light grey marble floors reflected the sunlight that fell through the windows to every corner, making it seem far brighter than it was. A maid entered the hall, nodding politely at them as she passed, before climbing the grand staircase that led to an upper level, splitting up in a corridor in the form of a balustrade to the left, and another staircase to the right. On the wall at the split, hung a huge portrait of the royal family, depicting King Arthurus and his two sons. The king and Prince Enoch looked very much alike; both clad in red, their dark brown locks of hair wavy and combed back, and their grey eyes somehow emitting a kind of power, the likes of which that just sends shivers down your spine when getting but a glimpse of it. Prince Emrys, however, was the odd one out. He was clad in dark blue, his hair was lighter brown and falling more to the side; His eyes were ocean green, soft and kind, emitting warmth and a more pleasant feeling when looking at them. His expression was softer compared to his brother and father. Had the late Queen been in the portrait, Lucas guessed Prince Emrys would’ve shared more similarities with her than with the rest of his family.
Meanwhile, in the throne room, behind the large double doors Prince Emrys had disappeared through, the named approached King Arthurus, who was snoozing on his throne. His elbow resting on the armrest, and his head resting on his fist. His golden crown, embedded with red jewels, had slipped a few inches from its place. Prince Emrys knelt next to his father’s throne, placing his hand on the arm that was resting on the king’s lap. He awoke with a start and a snort, sitting up straight as he quickly cleared his throat, looking around somewhat bewildered as he said: “Take him to the dungeons and let him sleep on it….wait. This isn’t the trial…”
“The trials were this morning, father,” Prince Emrys said, “you must’ve dozed off towards the end. No one is here but me.”
King Arthurus adjusted his crown as he looked around to confirm Prince Emrys’ statement. No one was there indeed, so he yawned without restraint, scratching his bushy beard. Feeling more awake, he turned to his son, finally recognising him. “Emrys. When did you return?” he asked.
“Just now,” Prince Emrys answered, “the ambassador has not yet heard of Queen Eurydice, neither have we heard back of Sir Reynaert or the Lady Ysmeina.”
“Oh Lord,” King Arthurus sighed, “silence from the elves is never good… Is there more bad news, or are we moving on to the good news now?”
“A Mister Lucas and a Miss Rosemary Miller wish to have an audience with you,” Prince Emrys slowly said.
“You know the rules, my son. If peasants wish to speak to me, they must submit a formal request with the—”
“Yes I know the rules, father, I wrote most of them,” Prince Emrys interrupted, “but they bring news of Enoch, so let us make an exception for them. It’s not like you have anything better to do now. You’ve already had your afternoon nap it seems.”
“I’ve had half of my afternoon nap, thank you very much,” King Arthurus grumbled, “but fine. I’ll hear them out. How do I look?”
“You look far more regal than you actually are,” Prince Emrys said, a playful smirk appearing on his face as he stood up so he could let Lucas and Rosemary enter. King Arthurus rolled his eyes, and shifted in a more upright position as he adjusted his crown. After making sure there were no crumbs or anything caught in his beard, and brushing his moustache into the right position with his fingers, he was ready to receive the peasants who were about to deliver the most devastating news a parent could receive...