The wine was terrible.
Or rather, the one pouring of it.
Made it that way.
Or maybe it was the cunning eyes watching me with those sly smiles.
I took another sip anyway.
Around me, the grand hall of Solarian's Castle was alive with laughter.
Golden goblets clinked.
Everyone was celebrating.
As if they had anything worth celebrating.
What did they do besides sit in their giant castles all their lives?
Pathetic.
Nobles.
Heads swayed along with the music playing near the far wall As if they actually understood what art itself meant.
Nobles leaned across the enormous table, shouting over one another, as though the louder they spoke, the more important their stories became.
And I was no different from these leeches.
I smiled.
Especially at the lady sitting beside His Majesty.
She had spent the last ten minutes singing some beautiful love song in my direction.
Beautiful voice.
Beautiful face.
Beautiful intentions.
Of course, none of it had anything to do with the power and status I had spent my life chasing Like a dog.
Of course not.
I smiled anyway.
I've always been very good at smiling.
For the sake of survival.
I had to be.
"Ah, Mitch!"
Lord von de Cedric slammed his goblet onto the table.
The old nobleman was red in the face, his stomach shaking beneath his embroidered coat.
That coat alone probably cost more than a soldier's lifetime earning.
Yes, my liege.
You big, fat fucking pig.
Obviously, I only nodded with this accursed smile of mine.
"You've outdone yourself tonight!" Cedric boomed.
"Tell us that dragon story again!"
I stared at him.
Again?
I had told that story sixteen times this month.
Sixteen.
If I heard that story one more time, I was going to become the dragon and burn this entire table down.
"It wasn't exactly a dragon, my liege," I said.
Yes, how would a fat pig like you know the difference between a dragon and a wyvern?
He again burst out laughing.
"Listen to him! The man kills a dragon and still complains about his limb!"
"I never said I killed it."
"You absolutely did!"
"I said I fought it."
"And survived!"
"Mostly."
The table erupted.
I laughed along.
Of course I did.
That was what everyone expected.
A hero should laugh when people praised him.
A sword prodigy should look proud.
A famous writer should enjoy having an audience.
And unfortunately, I was all three.
At least, that's what everyone in this room believed.
"Raise your glasses!" another noble shouted.
"To Mitch Hurrier! The kingdom's finest swordsman!"
"And its most seamless storytelling!" Lady Isolde added.
More laughter.
I raised my goblet.
The same way I once raised my hand to beg these same nobles for a copper coin.
For survival.
"To me, apparently."
Everyone drank.
I didn't.
I simply watched the wine swirl inside my cup.
For a moment, my reflection stared back at me.
A stranger wearing my face.
For years, I had dreamed of nights like this.
Recognition.
Respect.
People remembering my name.
So why did it feel like I was sitting inside a golden cage ?
"Mitch."
A hand landed heavily on my shoulder.
Sir Alaric.
The old man leaned closer, his cheeks red from the wine.
"What would we do without young lads stories?"
Old man.
At your age, people are stories.
And you're worried about mine?
For a second, I almost answered honestly.
I don't know about you.
But without you, I'd probably enjoy this dinner a little more.
Instead, I smiled.
"Sir, you flatter this humble servant."
Alaric laughed so hard that wine nearly came out of his nose.
"Servant?"
I loved that part.
Still hoping I'd marry your daughter, aren't you?
"You're almost a child to me," he said, patting my shoulder.
I chuckled.
This time, for real.
"Did you meet Aaisha?"
"Not yet."
"I haven't seen her either."
"Hasn't she arrived?"
How would I know, old hag?
I was about to take another sip when the great doors of the hall opened.
The room gradually quieted.
A girl entered.
Emerald green dress.
Large, round glasses.
Dark hair falling neatly little over her shoulders.
For a second, I forgot to breathe.
"...There she is," Alaric said.
Huh?
That scary little punk?
That's...
I stared at her .
The majestic view in front of me.
Nahhh ... No. Nope . That Muscle head boar.
Absolutely not.
This couldn't be the same girl I'd heard about.
Where was the awkward little menace everyone had warned me about?
The girl in front of me looked....
Beautiful.
Annoyingly beautiful.
I quickly looked away before I embarrassed myself.
Then I looked back.
Damn it.
There was a tiny mole beneath her eye.
Why had I noticed that?
Stop looking.
I looked again.
I'm an idiot.
Aaisha reached the table and gave a small bow toward His Majesty.
Then she walked toward us.
Toward me.
Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhh
Wonderful.
Just wonderful.
Before she could reach her seat, someone hurried past and bumped into her.
She stumbled slightly.
Another girl stepped into the hall behind her.
Dressed entirely in black.
Crimson lips.
A calm expression.
She looked around the table before her eyes landed right next to me.
Then she smiled.
"Can I have a seat beside you, dear?"
Dear?
I hadn't even answered.
She sat beside me.
Just like that.
I slowly turned my head.
The crown princess.
Beside me.
Of course.
Like father, like daughter.
The same confidence.
The same complete disregard for even a little bit of my personal space.
Across the table, Lord von de Cedric began chuckling.
First that long Ass hair name and this chuckling !!
I can't stand him.
And
I knew that laugh very well.
He was already imagining wedding bells.
Fantastic.
And there it was again.
That familiar feeling.
Everyone was looking at me.
Not at me.
At the sword prodigy.
The writer.
The hero.
The charming bastard who had somehow become famous before thirty.
Nobody seemed interested in the man underneath.
The man I actually was.
And perhaps that was the most ridiculous part.
I had spent my entire life trying to make the world remember my name.
Now that they finally did...
I desperately wanted them to forget it.
Me
Everything .
I slowly placed his goblet on the table.
"I think I'll get some air."
The Greattt von de Cedric said
"Already?"
Lady Isolde raised an eyebrow.
Another self center noble but at least she raised her child well .
Ivan Another prodigy.
"Don't tell me the great Mitch Hurrier is tired of us."
Yes, My lady .
Pretty much Tired.
"Never."
I stood with a smile waving my hand like I cared about these bastards.
"My Apologies. Ladies And Gentlemen."
I walked away toward the loggia before they could say anything else.
I jumped down.
leaping through the tree next to me.
The smile finally disappeared.
Finally
I exhaled.
Cold air hits my face.
The emptied garden below with this big fountain with elegant lotus's hanging around.
The castle gardens were quiet compared to the hall.
Moonlight spilled across the stone paths, and somewhere in the distance, water trickled from a fountain.
I stood there for a while.
No cheers.
No questions.
Just silence.
Me,
Melancholic structure of this garden and
Moonlight.
A little too much.
Before I knew I was much more away from castle.
I looked back at the castle.
Then at the road beyond the gates.
I Can't stand it anymore.
The words sounded ridiculous.
I bid a silent farewell to the fatass Cedric and old man.
Actually, nope.
Neverminded.
I Left.
I, Me, Myself, My Attire,
Some Little coins in my pocket
And that was it.
No servants.
No carriage.
No farewell.
And, most importantly,
no audience.
or grand exit.