It was sad to say, trouble had always been following after Aspen and Rey.

No matter where they went, it stalked behind them and breathed right into the back of their necks. Berating them to stop drawing attention to themselves was like ruffling the feathers of a Black Wing Possessor, taunting them to fly for over ten minutes—no pun intended.

And thus, the moment they barged into the court chambers, Albert Finnegan, for the umpteenth time, flared his nostrils as his preoccupied scowl set in, his brown eyes looked as though they were about to bestow them the death penalty with all of his soul. Judging from his reaction, I guess the knights told him about everything...

And without any sense of contrition, the two rascals flashed their impish grin, because... what else were they supposed to do?

"Don't worry! We made sure we don't go berserk this time," Aspen assured. "Those bandits are the one compensating for everything. We have witnesses to prove our innocence."

That did not budge Albert's expression in the slightest, but hey, at least he clarified something. Rey, on the other hand, casually slumped into his seat and lifted his boots on top of his table without any care. This guy... truly respect and decency are foreign concepts to him.

It was so shocking the princes or better yet, the king, had not yet picked up some of his misdemeanors.

"I swear to the gods, if I see your stupid stunts racking up most of our expenses again..." Albert growled, his finger drawing a line across his neck. "I'll chop you to pieces and feed you to the animals..."

Last time he threatened to catapult both of us from the cliff, and then the other time he wanted to decapitate us. Aspen could only guffaw quietly as he assumed his seat beside his best friend. It's getting more and more violent each time.

"Oh no, I'm trembling in my boots!" cried Rey, flinching in such an exaggerated manner. "But I bet they're going to fight over my meat. Like, who doesn't want to ravish my body? I kind of want to see; too bad it's illegal."

"I don't want to hear that, especially from the likes of you!" Albert snapped, shooting up from his seat and placing his hands on his hips. Aspen could imagine all the fumes escaping out of his colleague's ears.

"Eh... have I really done anything illegal?" Rey jutted the bottom of his lip, while his raised brows hid beneath his tuft of bangs. He leaned back in his chair. "Aside from making you lose your mind, I guess."

"You're the cause of literally every hassle and grievances!" Albert exclaimed, gritting his teeth and brushing his midnight hair he sloppily pulled back, causing some of his bangs to fall into the right side of his face. "You slacked off reading some strange books, rarely turned in your reports on time, kept using your stupid Possession and caused heaps, and heaps of mischief in the town! Then you have to drag Aspen into every single one of them!"

"Hey, hey, they're not strange, okay? These books, right here..." Rey lifted one of them, pointing and tapping on the cover. "They're like my beloved teachers. They give me all sorts of knowledge and understanding of this world we live in."

"Well why don't you put that knowledge into some use, you indolent bastard?"

"Maybe that's why you were not able to resolve cases, must suck being so uptight all the time," Rey went on, his mouth opening wide in a yawn. He completely ignored Albert's insults. "I'll let you borrow them then, free of charge."

"You really want me to hit you, huh?"

Listening to their bickering can go for hours long. Rey was not the type to give up on arguing; he would retort and retort showing no signs of stopping, then combined with Albert not having any of his remarks... it was consequently endless.

Aspen sighed profoundly before he faced his own tasks—all kinds of scrolls were also piling up on his desk, but not that he was going to finish them all today, anyway. After all, he was not even supposed to be here. The royal court was far from his expertise; the field was where he would have thrived, where he would be training his sword alongside the knights, where he would be practicing the incoming trials.

Obviously, Father heartily opposed the idea; going as far as to throwing him into this court division without warning. Even as Aspen pressed on why he was adamant on the resistance, there were no explanations, no reasons, nothing—just an evading gaze.

I never understood my father at all. Back then, till now. Aspen squinted his eyes and folded his fingers, glowering at the scrolls as though they were going to make Father change his mind. It was not just being a knight he was against; wielding a sword was also the bane of his existence. Why is he against it? What's so bad about knights? What's the worst it can get?

What kind of history does he have against the sword?

"Aspen, I got something for you!"

That statement promptly snatched a drowning Aspen out of his lake of thoughts. Peering to the side revealed Caleb Sanlyre, a fellow friend from his previous school whom Aspen also had the luck to share work with. He was iconic from his short but spiky auburn hair with long forelocks parting in the middle, alongside dark freckles scattered across his pale complexion.

"Ah yes, what is it?" Aspen asked.

Despite the bags—he had been frequently releasing his Possession lately—underneath his dark eyes, they gleamed with might as he bestowed him a scroll. "Your application to the trial of the knights just got approved today!"

Aspen blinked rapidly, and as soon as he comprehended the news, he shot up on both of his feet, nearly toppling over his chair. Everyone's gazes quickly zoomed towards him, but not that it mattered anyway, because the process that might have taken weeks or even months of waiting... was shortened to merely a few days.

"What, are you serious?! That's incredible!!" Aspen did not bother stopping himself from grinning ear to ear. A burst of excitement coursed through him as he then snatched Caleb's recoiling shoulders. "I felt like I handed over my request yesterday, I thought I was going to wait forever for it!"

"Ah um, about that... yes, Albert and I were astonished too." he elucidated, clearing his throat. "Apparently we were told someone sped up the process. We're not sure who... we just received the consent today."

"Oh... someone did?" He cocked his head, quickly taking his hands off Caleb, before he rubbed his chin.

Who could that be? Was it Mother? She was not in charge of handling these kinds of trials though, for she was one of the queen's advisors. However, she had been quizzing him about his swordsmanship and whatnot lately, so that could be a possibility.

I should thank her if so. His heart warmed up at the fleeting image. Unlike Father, Mother was the polar opposite; she would smile, hum and nod to all of his protests. She would listen and stand by the sidelines, wishing that the gods would be in his favor.

"I don't understand you. Your parents are the highest council members, you could simply skip the trials, that's what other knights do." Albert folded his arms. "You don't have to go through such a hassle."

"I've heard that millions of times, thank you very much." Aspen rolled his eyes. That was what everyone had said to him, and the recurrence had him bored to tears. If he could cheat, then was the point of the untold practices he did with Rey, and the copious amounts of sweat and stamina he had shed?

"I'm still participating in the trials. I'm going to prove myself and that's a final say."

Albert groaned. "You're making it hard on yourself. You know how insanely difficult the trials are? None of our classmates passed, and even to those who made it to the final test... they were all knocked out by that absolute god of a swordsman. It's beyond impossible."

Prince Ira. Even Aspen had to confess, he hitched on his breath as he grasped on the sides of his cloak. His heart pounded hard and would have soared out of his chest if not for his ribs.

"Ah yes, the king's moody duplicate." Rey grunted. "If you told me they were twins, I would have believed you."

Albert's death glare would have obliterated Rey on the spot if it was ever tangible. I nearly forget he dislikes him too...

"Leland was an example..." Caleb trembled. "He was brutalized within five minutes..."

Indeed, stories of his other friends getting swept over by the third prince without remorse have circulated fast among the community. And what made Aspen's blood run cold... there were no records—yes, zero records of a victory against Prince Ira. And that's why many knights have chosen the most convenient way off these trials.

"I know. I know all of it," Aspen murmured, as he rubbed the hilt of his sword, feeling the patterns of the sigil. "That's why I have been practicing since then. I have been sparring for god knows how long. I'll still have to try."

Albert huffed and rested his chin on his hand. "Whatever floats your boat."

Caleb laughed sheepishly before he handed the papers. "Anyway, Aspen, you're ready to go. Your first day will be starting next week."

"Heh... if it was me, I would have authorized him in just a few minutes," Rey announced, in muffled words as he buried his face right into the stack of papers.

"You would have lost Aspen's scroll in that clutter and it would have yellowed by the time you found it," Albert snarled. "Also, don't you dare sleep in here!"

Rey quickly tilted his head towards him. "Now, now, that's a slander. For this man right here, I would move mountains."

Aspen smiled at his comment; well, this was one of the many reasons he did not mind calling Rey his best friend. While he did clearly remember he had been there for him since they were children, his other memories... have long faded into oblivion, replaced with nothing but mere fuzziness and blur. And trying to force myself just makes my head hurt...

"But right now I don't feel like working..." And Rey was already back to his shenanigans. "...I used all of my powers... I feel like my job is done for today..."

"No one asked you to use your renèi!" Albert instantly smacked the book in Rey's head.

"Wait, wait... so back to this, none of you guys knew who sped my request up?" Aspen interrogated, but only heads shook and shoulders shrugged. Putting that aside, other than Mother... who else would it be? It couldn't be someone from this division—they were not allowed to interfere. They must have recognized him, so it should be someone he had interacted with...

"It's me."

When a completely different voice chimed in, all the men's attention—even Rey's—diverted to a figure emerging behind the wall. Then, the man's immaculate white vest embroidered with golden brooches and aiguillettes had Caleb and Albert instantly tightening their expressions, standing up and straightening their backs.

His raven black hair slicked to the back with a few forelocks dangling onto his forehead. With deep brown eyes crinkled in their corners, they heavily accentuated his sharp facial features. Such a charisma could only belong to one person that nearly blinded Aspen.

Truly the firstborn, Ace Ezèkiel Elysian, the deserved heir for the throne, could rival the sun and putting it to shame.

"Your Highness!" Caleb and Albert exclaimed simultaneously and bowed, as Aspen did the same. Even Rey hoisted himself up from his slackened position, although he remained on his seat and placed his arms behind his head.

"How were you managing things over here?" asked the crown prince.

"We are currently discussing the issue regarding the current drought in the north of the province. We have reports of food and water scarcity, and we have asked our men to provide the villagers with adequate supplies." Albert explained as he handed a neatly rolled scroll to Prince Ace. "Everything has been well, Your Highness."

"Ah, I've heard. Good work." He smiled as he took it. "My brother, Prince Emerson, recently visited the village to inspect the situation. He has reported much less the same."

As Prince Ace, Albert and Caleb were busy discussing such events, Aspen was busy... contemplating. Contemplating on how out of everyone, the crown prince was the mastermind—he was way down in the list of suspects. To add more, his name never once flashed across his mind at all, but then here he was, casually admitting to his actions.

Sure, he had many interactions with Prince Ace thanks to Father's connections. He had assisted him with cases, political affairs and so forth, preventing Aspen's brain from convoluting from all the mess. However, if he remembered correctly, not even once Aspen shared his goals and career with Prince Ace, so how was he made aware?

Who told him everything? Father? Yeah, that was self-explanatory. There was no one else he could think of other than him.

Then if so, he should have made familiar with Father's strong dissent, and he would most likely follow suit. Prince Ace had the complete power to trash out his request without hesitation, but instead, Aspen's first day of the trial was coming up soon.

Not that he was complaining.

Far from it, actually, but...

"Your Highness," Aspen called, brushing his red cloak off any visible wrinkles. As Prince Ace turned towards him, he slightly lowered his head. "Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to participate in the trials. I'll be carrying them to the best of my ability."

"It's no problem at all." The prince raised his hand as dimples dug onto the sides of his cheeks. "Best of luck."

"I appreciate that, but..." Aspen scratched his head; he got to word his question as politely as possible. "I was wondering... what is the reason you accelerate my application?"

Prince Ace's entire body now faced Aspen.

"Ah, it's not like I'm ungrateful or anything!" He immediately said, "It's just that... it threw me off guard, and I also do have..." he scratched his cheek. "... some personal difficulties."

In other words, Father... will do anything to intercept and delay it even longer. Aspen tightened his lips in a straight line, balling his hands into fists.

"It's interesting, isn't it, Aspen?" Before Prince Ace could form a single sentence, Rey chiseled into the scene, flipping on his capelet before he slammed his hands on the table and rose on his feet. "It is highly unusual for a prince to suddenly meddle with the business of someone he barely knew, unless... you did know all along and have been listening in."

Aspen whirled, his red cloak gyrated, gawking at both the prince and his best friend. What do you mean?

"Hey, show some courtesy! You are at the presence of the crown prince!" Albert bared his teeth, but Prince Ace was not at all offended by such an informality. He did not even deny Rey's claims, his expression simply loosened up as he cast his gaze on the floor.

"When Aspen and I were at his father's chamber last week, you were the one stalking outside, weren't you? You were pressing against the doors as if you were about to burst in, but your movements caused your golden lacings and brooches to glitter; it was easy to spot you." Rey chuckled, tucking in a small, lazy grin.

Ah, yes... that time. Aspen had yet another beef with Father when he had the audacity to demand giving up being knighted—even his stinging words plucked his nerves. Their string of quarrels must have spilled out of the chamber, echoing across the hallway for all the passing maids, workers and even the princes like Prince Ace to pick up.

Rey bobbed and placed his hands on hips. "The fact you're working on the background and then to declare your involvement out of the blue, means you have been aware for a while—you're just waiting for Aspen to finally send his request to the court."

Prince Ace gradually exhaled a profound breath. "I was aware, yes. Unc..." he abruptly coughed. "Sir Whitlock have been considering placing you in charge of overseeing civil and criminal cases. He had been requesting for suggestions, but the other nobles and the council have said your eyes are dead set on something else; a knight."

Only an exasperated sigh was the proper response. It's already spreading like wildfire... huh?

"And unfortunately, I did... catch on the disputes between you and your father. Anyone can immediately tell you've always wanted to be working on the field, Aspen." Prince Ace strolled towards the blond-haired man and threw a weak smile. "I understand your determination in carrying your own hopes and dreams, but are burdened by responsibilities you can't stand..."

His voice slowly weakened while he hung his head, allowing a prolonged silence to take charge of his conversation. While Rey quickly perked up at this pause, Caleb and Albert simply stared at him, waiting for his continuation.

"Your Highness?" Aspen frowned as he stepped forward, his hand instinctively reaching out, but upon realizing, he forced it into a halt midway. No way was he going to unceremoniously touch the prince without his consent, but he sounded like he was off the track.

"Ah, forgive me, I got a bit carried away." The prince dismissed and waved the back of his hand, acting as though nothing happened. "And that's why I... decided to have it approved before your father saw any of it."

As much as Aspen's swollen curiosity implored him, it would be extremely inappropriate to abruptly barge into his personal life. However, when some kind of realization dawned upon him, his heart suddenly throbbed and sank.

The civilians and the royalty had always held Prince Ace with such high acclaim and respect. As he made public appearances, he would smile and wave at them, greet them, acknowledge their existence. Everyone had unanimously concurred, the Elysian kingdom would flourish under his rule, but... has anyone ever reached out to Prince Ace himself?

That enervating tone of his and the way his lips faintly trembled... it made him appear as though he was distressed.

Regardless, he pushed those thoughts aside—for now—and bowed towards him, not once, not twice, but three times.

"I can't express how much I'm grateful for your thoughtfulness. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!" Aspen exclaimed, showing off his teeth. "I owe you a bunch... perhaps a share of my delicious, premium beef will do?"

"Why would he accept that, he doesn't need it!" Albert snorted, his hand smacked on his face, even both Caleb and Prince Ace could not hide the stifling laughter slipping out of their lips.

"Food is the way to the soul. He knows what he's doing," Rey simpered as he suddenly wrapped his arm around Aspen and subsequently roared out a yawn, not bothering to close his mouth obviously. "So... Aspen Whitlock, are you ready to confront the three-days worth of exam that will change your life forever and ever?"

It was finally here.

This was no longer a dream, but reality.

There was no turning back.

In spite of this, all sorts of hesitation and second thoughts faded off Aspen, replaced by a widening smile, furrowed brows and a firm nod.

"Bring it on."

***

A/N: And here we go, Aspen is more than ready to get to the exam! Wish him the best of luck everyone! ^_^ Thank you so much for checking out this fanfic and hope you enjoyed this longer chapter. Let me know what you think!