"Oh wow, well that alone doesn''t signify a big thing though." He continued to munch on his food as if he was deprived of it during the expedition when i know that he is not. If I knew better, he has the same food while going out on an expedition, it''s kind of a perk of being a royal deputy. Now going back to what he said, a thought sparked in my head. I stopped eating and looked at him.

    "Alexander, the prince of the sea is already here and not only that but we are also going to have a face off during the upcoming Grand Clash which will happen the day after tomorrow."

    Zoren immediately stopped eating, dropping his spoon and fork before looking at me with wide eyes..

    "He''s here!?"

    I nodded as I went on in munching the pancake which by the way is out of this world. Aside from mother who usually makes pancakes for me when she was still here, the thought giving me a pinch in the chest, those pancakes would always make my grumpy attitude go away.And I would do anything for me to be able to taste them back. So when mother passed away, nobody saw me smiled for a decade up until I started hanging out with Kaval and Dianne. Apollo on the other hand, we were not that close but we still hanged out and had some few laughs. Only then were people started to see me smile faintly.

    And other than those four, Zoren, was the one who could always brighten up my day whenever I woke up on the wrong side of the bed which in my case is always everyday. I wouldn''t throw a huge smile of course because the first five years when mother died, I did not give any other emotions to be displayed but emptiness and anger.

    Zoren on the other hand would make me feel better by resembling the things that mother did for me when she was still here. Zoren, as funny as it may be, was the one who was like a mother to me within the past hard years. I remember him dragging me out of bed despite me being so fuming mad for him forcing me to go and take a shower.

    It wasn''t just his pancakes that made me feel less worse during those times. But it was his efforts that made me feel that I wasn''t alone in going through all of this stuff which I barely did.

    Some may wonder as to what happened to my father after my mother died. Did he look after me? Was he there for me? Did he see my cry and weep all night? No.

    I might have described my father to be strict and all about the well-being of the kingdom but also kind and loving to his family in private. Well, when mother did die, he completely changed.

    He became so outrageously thirsty for avenging my mothers death. The queen''s demise that almost led the whole kingdom to ruination as father during the first three years, he was more than a wreck. No one saw him. Not even me. He locked himself up in their room and all I could see was the palace workers who would bring a bunch of liquor to the main door where he would get it without showing himself.

    The first three years since the demise of the queen, my mother, the kingdom was without king. Many died from starvation as no proper orders were given to help those who are in the slums. The gates were closed and boarders were tightly sealed.

    The central town of the kingdom which was once so very lively was then dead and filled with stray kids. My father being able to influence the whole kingdom, not a single ray of sun shone through the thick clouds that hovered over Inferno for three years. Everyone was cold and was starving.

    The royal council could not act as they need permission from the king to move on their own but father, being so much of a wreck at that time, planned to kill the kingdom along with him.

    Whenever the council would ask for his permission, he would never answer. Sometimes he would just say;

    "This kingdom is already done for. Let it go. The Queen has fallen, the mother of this kingdom has perished."

    I hated him for that. At some point of me growing up with no one to talk to but Zoren, I came to realize that it was okay even if he was not there for me for as long as he was there for the people.

    One night as I secretly left the palace and went to the central town. All I could see were people on the streets dying. They all looked so very skinny and poor. They looked filthy and those who did live in a nice and comfortable shelter did nothing but stayed inside as they fear that the people outside would take their foods which they too ration. No source of income was established at that time. Nothing to sale as boarders were closed and resources were already consumed fully.

    The Kingdom of Inferno went downhill in such a small span of time. Back to when I was walking around central park where people did not even bother to look at me as they no longer recognized the prince of their kingdom. Heading back to the palace, an old woman stopped me in my tracks as she held my foot with her hands. I stopped and looked at her. She was slumped on the cold pavement as the only thing she had to prevent the cold from seeping into her was a sack and her frail cat who shared its body warmth with her.

    "Your majesty." She spoke silently and frail. Her eyes were barely open and I could see the mist that formed whenever she heaved a breath. I knelt down and looked at her.

    "The king your majesty? Where is he? The kingdom needs him." She spoke with her eyes tearing up.

    "Look at the place around you your majesty. Everyone is hanging by a thread as we all can only wait for the help of your father. If only he could open the boarders and give heat to his people, we might be able to lift the kingdom all on our own as he heals but it seems like we are going to die along with what once stood as the mighty kingdom of the fire king."

    "Your majesty. Queen Fera, she gave care and love to us as her subject as your father gave protection and order to the kingdom. But when she passed in an unfortunate situation and in an unexpected time, the kingdom was immediately deprived of warmth and care as the king retreated back into his castle and left his people to die all alone."

    "Your majesty, your mother loved this kingdom dearly as we loved her the same. Now that she is gone, it is such a shame that it seems like her essence in this kingdom will also vanish in thin air. Do not take this into an offense your majesty but as a question from an old woman who is about to meet her demise, would your mother, Queen Fera, if she see''s us. If she see''s this. Will she be happy?" The woman spoke and ended with a question which shook me to the core. Simple as it may seem her words but the meaning an the reality behind them was a slap to my face. If only father could her what she had to say. If only.

    I stood up and used my telepathic ability to summon some guards. After a while, a few men arrived and looked at me before saluting.

    "Get this woman inside the palace. Give her heat and food. Clothes are also preferred to be provided too. That is an order from the Royal Prince." I spoke and sprinted back to the castle. At this point, I was walking straight to where father is supposed to be. I do not care if he is not going to show himself but he will answer not only me but the people of this kingdom. I banged my fist at his door but no one answered. I continued to do so until I felt my bones cracking from the force. Seeming like he won''t answer, I released a surge of hell fire despite being untrained at the time and burned the whole door down. The structure came crumbling within seconds and it revealed the other side of the room.

    "I will not heed to your request Hade. This kingdom shall fall just as how the queen did. All of you can kill me here and then but I will no longer reside as king."

    I stared in silence before walking out.

    I came and went out as if nothing happened masking the hurt in my chest. I cleared my mind and summon the royal advisor who heed to my command in no time.

    "Your majesty."

    "Tell the royal council that the prince of the kingdom will reside to the throne in the absence of that worthless king. Now!"