The First Prince hurried down the western corridor while his dark coat brushed the polished floor. Since his father and every significant noble had gathered inside the throne room to celebrate a fortunate commoner, he never looked back.
Humiliation tightened the prince's jaw until his teeth genuinely ached.
'Father emptied the whole court for that stray while my own heir seat sits empty.'
The prince had spent his childhood learning treaties, bloodlines, and the exact depth of every bow demanded by rank.
None of that training mattered once Hajin appeared with enough force to make centuries of protocol bend around him.
At breakfast, the King had called the commoner useful three times and his own heir shortsighted twice.
The comparison continued even after the prince stopped answering, as though silence proved every accusation.
He had skipped the audience deliberately. The experiment would grant him leverage or destroy the evidence before anyone noticed his empty place.
