Crowns of Heritage

Chapter 96-Secrets Revealed

(SAGE'S P.O.V)

I was lying on the floor exhausted after dancing for the last three hours.

“Princess, you won't be able to lay on the floor during the debutante.”, Massey said, and reached his hand out towards me.

After leaving the library, Hannah allowed us to take a break until it was time for the next lesson. Rosie, Lady Victoria and her personal knight and I were on our way to the dining room for lunch. When I noticed Peyton and Massey, talking to Captain Capilano. I decided to ask Massey to be my practicing partner after seeing him and Peyton in the hallway.

“Okay that's enough for today”, I heard Hannah say as she clapped her hands.

“I'm exhausted”, Rosie said as she sat on the floor next to me.

“I won't reprimand you two today, since you're tired but remember you can't behave this way in front of the other nobles”, Hannah said as she walked in front of us.

Unexpectedly, Lady Victoria sat on the floor beside us, which made the strict Hannah look a little appalled.

Hannah sighed, “Lady Victoria, please don't let the princesses' bad habits influence you as well”, Hannah said, while placing one of her hands over her forehead.

Lady Victoria just giggled a bit but didn't respond.

Hannah sighed again, “I will be returning to her Majesty's room to tend to her. You three did well today.”, Hannah said, with a slight smile on her face.

A few minutes later, Hannah and Massey left the ballroom, and Rosie, Lady Victoria and I continued to sit on the floor.

I turned my head towards Lady Victoria, “Lady Victoria, do you get along with the other young noblewomen?”, I asked, curiously.

Lady Victoria smiled a bit, “Please just call me Victoria, when it's just us. After all, we are relatives”, she said, “Besides my sister, I never really got along with any of the young noble ladies our ages, unless they were a part of the noble faction.”, She added.

“Do you know exactly how many young noble ladies are debuting into high society?”, I asked.

“I believe at least 20, I know some of the young nobles ladies from the Saylor Academy will be debuting”, Lady Victoria replied.

“The Saylor Academy?” Rosie suddenly said.

Lady Victoria nodded, “I also study at the Saylor Academy, after the debutante is over, I have to return to the academy.”, she said.

“Where is the Academy located?” I asked, curiously.

“In the Capital City, in the central region, Princess Kalia will also be studying there next year.” She answered. “By the way, where did you two study? I was only able to read a couple of my father's letters, he only mentioned that I finally had relatives around my age.”, she added.

“We were raised in the Free Nation of Katou, We graduated from an academy in a city named Maco”, Rosie and I replied.

“Oh, Katou, one of the fallen kingdoms”, Lady Victoria suddenly said.

Rosie and I looked at each other before turning back towards Lady Victoria.

“Fallen kingdom?”, I questioned, in curiosity.

I suddenly remembered my father mentioning something about the great war before the free nation of Katou was formed.

Lady Victoria nodded, “There were two fallen kingdom's to be exact. Both of the kingdoms practiced magic and sorcery.”, she said, “At the Academy, we learned about the destruction of the two fallen kingdoms. Most of the sorcerers were executed and some magic users went into hiding. In class, they never taught or told us what caused the war to start and we haven't found any books on it either. All we know is that the final war ended after your father won the great war. Nowadays, No one knows if they still exist or not, because sorcery and magic is so rare, unless you are a descendant of one, but you have to be careful or you might get some unwanted attention”, she added.

A thought suddenly crossed my mind, “What about the Winter lineage?I heard my father, Queen Malaysia, and Duke Winter are from a warrior's lineage, Rosie and I only learned recently about having an aura”, I said, “I even saw my father glowing at one point”, I said.

Lady Victoria showed us a serious expression.

“If I remember correctly, my father mentioned that aura is also a form of magic, but the Winter lineage mostly specialized in swordsmanship and was known for their madness for battle” She said, “Even now, my father mentioned that the nobles are still frightened by Prince Morgan and were very afraid of Prince Moises, especially when he's angry.”, she added.

Right, my father did mention something about the more we battle the more we will crave it, I thought.

I got up from the floor, “ I need to go and speak with my father”, I said.

(DUKE WINTER’S P.O.V)

After Moises heard Lincoln had rescinded the exile and suddenly summoned his royal knights that left or were exiled with him back to the kingdom. Moises became angry and suddenly stormed out of the drawing room.

“Lord Dean, Sir Dell, follow me to the training grounds”, Moises said before slamming the door to the room.

“We're so dead”, Sir Dell said as he sighed.

I watched and Lord Dean sighed as well, “Let's go, you know how his highness gets when he's angry. He's going to beat the answers out of us while sparring”, he said, while sounding unenthused.

I started walking towards the door, “Whatever he asks, just tell the truth. Let's calm him down before he overwhelms himself”, I said.

“Yes, your Grace”, they both answered.

While walking out of the drawing room, we walked through the hallway until we reached a certain section of the castle, and started walking towards the back of the castle, when I noticed Peyton walking towards us in the distance.

“Is that Marianna?” I heard Lord Dean say as he walked behind me.

“it is Marianna!” Sir Dell said, as he was walking beside Lord Dean.

As we got closer to each other, Sir Dell and Lord Dean rushed over to Peyton who was caught by surprise.

“What are you two doing here?” Peyton asked, with a shocked expression.

Lord Dean and Sir Dell suddenly turned around and bowed towards me, “We apologize for our rude behavior, your grace”, they both said.

I chuckled, “It's fine, I'm relieved to see you all back together”, I said, “But let's focus on stopping Moises tantrum, before he injures the knights”, I said.

We continued to walk towards the training grounds and Peyton followed behind us.

A few minutes later, as we got closer to the training grounds. I could hear the loud groaning sounds in the distance. When we entered the training rooms, I saw multiple knights lying on the ground throughout the training ground.

Lord Dean and Sir Dell ran towards Prince Moises. Peyton was about to run over as well before I stopped her.

I sighed.

“Peyton, can you return to the castle and bring Natalie back here, my dear” I said.

“Yes, your grace”, she said.

(PRINCE MOISES P.O.V)

How dare that son of a bitch treat me this way, first you exile me without hesitation and now you suddenly summoned my knights back and plan to announce the rescinding of my exile during my daughter's ceremony, what the fuck is he planning, I thought as I stormed through the castle.

As I walked towards the training grounds, I noticed the knights were training and sparring amongst themselves.

“Your highness”, I heard Captain Capilano say as I walked into the training grounds.

“Hand me a sword”, I said and watched as Captain Capilano brought over a wooden sword.

“Do you need a sparring partner, your highness”, Sir Vero asked, as he walked over to where I was sitting.

Suddenly, multiple knights started coming towards me

“All of you, fight me all at once”, I said, I couldn't help but feel pissed.

Some of them hesitated while some of them didn't. They all got into a stance and I watched as they started to move around a little.

I gritted my teeth as I grinned a bit, “That's more like it”, I said.

Without a second thought, I ran towards them and started slashing them down one by one.

“Your highness, calm down”, I heard Lord Dean and Sir Dell voices.

I looked around and before I knew it, I noticed the multiple knights laying on the ground.

Shit, I thought.

Lord Dean and Sir Dell walked up towards me with both of their hands up.

I gritted my teeth again and pointed the broken wooden sword at them.

“Get me another sword and get ready to spar” I said.

Lord Dean stepped up first, while holding the wooden sword. While Sir Dell brought me another one.

“I'll answer any questions you have, your highness”, Lord Dean said.

Lord Dean and I ran towards each other and clashed swords instantly and looked at each other face to face.

“How did my father know, I was in the Sergio Region?”, I asked, as I grit my teeth again.

Lord Dean looked at me with a serious expression.

“Your highness, from the time you left the kingdom until the moment you woke up, the King knew your whereabouts”, he answered.

What?!, I thought.

Lord Dean and I stepped back from each other and suddenly clashed our swords again.

“How did he know?!” I shouted.

“After you were exiled, he ordered me to follow and protect you from the shadows”, Lord Dean said.

What?!, I thought again. “What do you mean protect me, when did that son of a bitch ever cared about me!” I shouted.

“Moises”, I suddenly heard Natalie and my mother's voices.

I looked over in their direction and saw Natalie, my mother, Sage and my grandfather standing a few meters away.

It was as if all my strength left my body when I dropped down to the ground on my knees.

(NATALIE'S P.O.V)

I was sitting on the side of Queen Malaysia's bed, while Na'mah and Doctor William checked her temperature. The little fever and headache she had finally went away after resting for a couple of hours.

“We are still testing your blood, and trying various ways to find out what type of poison and antidote was being used.”, Na'mah said as she looked directly at Queen Malaysia.

“I appreciate you and Doctor William helping me”, Queen Malaysia replied, with a slight smile towards Na'mah.

Queen Malaysia turned towards me, “Are you planning to leave tonight?”, she asked

I nodded, “I will since Moises agreed to your request” I said.

Suddenly, we heard a knock on the door and Na'mah walked over to answer it. When she opened the door Peyton and Sage walked into the room.

“Natalie, hurry, Prince Moises is going crazy”, Peyton said.

“What do you mean?”, Queen Malaysia and I asked at the same time.

“He's angry about King Lincoln and is currently sparring against the knights. At this rate, he might injure the knights if he doesn't calm down.”, she said.

I got up from the bed and started rushing towards the door.

“I'm coming as well”, Queen Malaysia said.

“Your Majesty, are you sure you're able to move right now?”Hannah asked.

“I'm fine, Hannah”, Queen Malaysia said as she got out of the bed. “Come, we have to calm him down”, she said.

“What's wrong with father?”, Sage asked, in an anxious tone.

“Just follow us”, I replied.

Queen Malaysia, Sage, Peyton and I rushed through the hallway towards the stairs.

We hurried down the stairs to the first floor, and made our way towards the back of the castle. A few minutes later, we continued rushing towards the training grounds. Upon entering the training grounds, I noticed the knight laying on the ground and some were helping other knights.

I noticed Moises in the distance clashing swords with another man.

“Is that Lord Dean?”, I heard Queen Malaysia say as we approached the area, Moises and the man were in.

“Who is Lord Dean?” I asked, as I looked at the tall man who was as tall as Moises but less muscular and had long light blue hair.

“Moises' childhood friend and his former captain of his royal knights”, Queen Malaysia said, “He's also Princess Sylvia's uncle” she added.

I could hear Moises shouting and the surrounding area felt cold, and I could feel myself shivering a bit as I got closer.

“The King ordered me to protect you from the shadows”, I heard the man say.

What?!, The king did what? I was appalled.

All of a sudden, I watched as Moises dropped down to his knees.

“Natalie, Go, Hug him now”, Duke Winter said, “As his destined partner, you're the only one who can calm his madness”.

Without a second thought, I ran towards Moises and dropped down to the ground and embraced him in a tight hug. Moises body felt cold as ice, and he suddenly passed out as he laid his head on my shoulder.

“Why is his body so cold? It never felt like this before” I said as I placed my hand on his face.

Unexpectedly, I felt someone place their hand on top of my shoulder.

“It's because of our lineage, if we overwhelm ourselves with madness, we'll suffer from a coldness type of disease or rather a curse. It's the reason our name is Winter”, I heard Duke Winter say.

“His body will return back to normal in a few hours”, Queen Malaysia said.

I bit the inside of my lip a bit and looked at Lord Dean.

“Watch over him for me, I'll be leaving to head to the palace” I said.

King Lincoln if I don't kick your ass, my name isn't Natalie, I mumbled.

(NATHAN'S P.O.V)

“Hey, wake up”, I heard someone say.

I groaned as I opened my eyes, the back of my head was throbbing as I tried to glance around. I noticed instantly the room was dark.

What the hell, I mumbled.

“It's about time, you wake up”, I heard the person say again.

“Who the fuck are you?”, I asked, while getting annoyed.

“Are you Nathan?” The person said.

I spat on the ground, “Shouldn't you know that, why else would I be here”, I said.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of something opening. When I looked ahead, I noticed a person walking towards me with a lit lantern in their hand.

When I moved a little, I noticed one of my arms was chained to the wall.

“I asked, are you Nathan?” He asked again.

He suddenly walked forward and placed the lantern closer to his face. The little light on his face and I noticed that his face looked familiar.

Wait, why does he look like, my thoughts were interrupted when he bent down in front of me.

“Yeshiva?” I questioned, no he wouldn't be here, I thought.

“Ah, I guess you know my brother”, he said, “I'm Jemas, Yeshiva's younger brother. I've been disguising myself as a guard, "he added.

“I'm Nathan”, I said, as I raised my body up, “Where the hell am I? I said.

“A private prison quarter”, He said, “By the way, sorry for attacking you. I had to keep up with my disguise” he added.

“What the fuck” I said, “Who the fuck put me here?” I asked.

I felt as he placed his hand on my wrist that was chained up and suddenly my wrist was freed.

“Count Livens and Prince Marshall”, he said.

My eyes widened.

“This prison is filled with rebel members,” he said.

Shit, Christian, I thought.

“Where's the young man that was with me?”, I asked.

“Do you mean Count Livens' nephew?” he asked, “He's fine, my squad members incapacitated him and took him to another cabin. You're lucky, they planned to attack the eastern rebel group but they thought it was empty until we spotted you leaving the cabin.”, he added.

I rubbed my wrist, “How do we get out of here?”, I asked.

“No worries, follow me. My squad members will work on releasing everyone before we leave the area. We were ordered to head to the northern region, by the chief” he said.

I started to follow behind him and he climbed through a tunnel that was behind a hidden door.

We crawled through the tunnel for twenty minutes until he reached the other side. When we climbed out of the tunnel, I noticed we were near an abandoned mansion.

“Where is Count Livens and Prince Marshall?”, I asked.

He turned slightly towards me, “You shouldn't worry about Count Livens anymore.”, he said.

I was confused, Why not?” I asked.

“Because Prince Marshall is planning to kill him”, he said, with a serious expression and started walking ahead of me.

(SAUL'S P.O.V)

After tracking the unidentified woman for the last 12 hours. I found myself in a secluded village near the border where the Western border and Northern border meet in the middle.

The village was quiet and the sun was starting to set.

I'm exhausted, I should find somewhere to rest for a bit. I mumbled.

I looked around as I walked towards the village.

Now where did she go, I thought as I glanced around.

“Are you a traveler?”I heard a male voice and looked around in their direction and saw an older man.

“I am, but I'm looking for a place to rest for a bit before heading to the border.”, I said.

“The border”, he said, “They may have a spot in the village clinic. As this is a small village, the villagers may not welcome a stranger into their homes”, the old man said.

“Where is the village clinic, Sir? I asked, politely.

The man pointed in the direction, “Ask for Paige, the village doctor.” He said.

I nodded to him and started walking in the direction of the clinic.

A few minutes later, I walked to the shabby clinic and glanced around.

“Mister”, I heard the familiar voice.

I looked over and saw a middle-aged woman with greyish-white hair. It's her by the familiar voice, it's the woman I've been tracking.

“Mister”, she said again.

“Oh, yes, the old man I've met in the village said you might have a spot, I can rest in for a bit before I start traveling again”, I said.

The woman sighed, “The village chief is always sending someone here” she said, “Follow me”, she added.

She turned around and I followed her to a small room that only had a bed.

She gestured and I walked into the small room.

After the woman left, I waited for a while before peeking out the door. When I didn't see her, I discreetly walked through the clinic and suddenly heard the woman's voice.

“Macy, I'm back”, the woman said, “I promise I'll find your son”, she added.

The woman suddenly turned around when she noticed me standing by the door.

“Macy.. As in Macy Livens?” I said as I looked at the sickly woman lying on the bed asleep.