Pressing the goblet to her soft-looking lips, Elianna finished the rest of her drink before putting it back onto the table. She eyed her plate, seeing that she was finished with her breakfast after quickly scarfing it down in excitement. After all, the quicker she finished eating, the sooner she, Nicholas, and Celine could go explore the city.

  Looking to her left, Elianna noticed that Nicholas was almost done eating as well and was finishing the final bites of his pancakes. Looking across the table at Celine, she observed her plate was empty as she leaned back into her chair, drinking out of her goblet.

  Lowering the goblet from her lips, Celine's sapphire gems flicked over to Elianna, and her lips curled into a grin. "Nicholas, I think Elianna is eager for you to finish eating."

  Elianna's face warmed a little, as she was right. She looked back at Nicholas as he took a bite and froze, with his fork in his mouth. His gaze flicked to Elianna, no doubt noticing her fidgeting in her seat, excited to leave already.

  Nicholas pulled the fork out of his mouth and chuckled, "I have like two bites left, don't worry."

  Elianna nodded and smiled at him, "I'm patient, take your time."

  Nicholas scoffed, "You're the least patient person I know."

  Celine chuckled from across the table, trying to hide her grin.

  Elianna felt her face turn warmer, and she crossed her arms, "I am not."

  "You're not exactly patient yourself, Nicholas," Freya chuckled. She grinned, "I can remember several times when you wanted to cut training short just to spend time with Elianna."

  Nicholas suddenly coughed and quickly swallowed his food, his face turning red. Celine looked to the side, while Elianna smiled a little.

  Nicholas cleared his throat as he casually shrugged and stabbed his fork into the last bit of his pancakes, "I guess that's true."

  Freya chuckled and smiled, then tilted her head slightly, "So, were you planning to go anywhere specifically in the city? Or, just look around?"

  Nicholas shrugged, "I don't know, maybe just walk around."

  "I say we go to the shopping district and look around there," Celine suggested.

  William nodded, "That's a good idea. The theater and a few arcades are in the district, so you can shop around and have some fun."

  Nicholas hummed, then looked at Elianna, "What do you think? Sound good to you?"

  Elianna smiled and nodded, "Sounds good to me."

  The sound of a chair scraping against the floor had all heads turning toward Tristan. Tristan brushed his hand against his royal apparel, seeming to smooth it out, "I think I'll be going."

  William looked at Tristan curiously, "What will you be doing today?"

  Tristan just causally shrugged, "Just hang out around the palace, I suppose."

  William leaned back into his chair, looking at Tristan, "You could go with your brother into the city and spend some time with him. You haven't seen him in some years."

  Elianna's heart dropped at William's suggestion, and she observed how Celine went wide-eyed across the table. When she looked at Nicholas, she noticed he had grown tense and visibly paled.

  Tristan scoffed, "As if."

  Celine and Nicholas both seemed to relax.

  Tristan turned and headed for the door without sparing another word before he left the room.

  William sighed as he brushed a hand down his face, before falling silent and sitting there for a moment. He had a thousand-yard stare, looking deep in thought as he eyed the empty plate in front of him.

  Freya eyed her brother curiously, "Will?"

  William's head snapped to his sister, brows raised high. He blinked before he smiled, "I'm fine." He looked at Nicholas, "Do you still have the credit keeper I provided to you?"

  Nicholas nodded before raising his hand and pulling a black credit keeper out of his spatial ring. "Yes, Father."

  Elianna's brows raised as she eyed the card with curiosity, as she had never seen Nicholas use it before.

  William nodded, "Good. Now, remember to stay with your guards and be safe."

  Freya smiled as she looked around the table, "But most importantly, remember to have fun."

  Nicholas, Celine, and Elianna all nodded. Celine then pushed her chair back and stood, looking at Nicholas and Elianna. "Well, ready to go?"

  Nicholas and Elianna nodded, with both of them looking excited. They stood up from their chairs and followed Celine to the doors.

  William and Freya sat there, watching as the three of them left the room, closing the door behind them.

  Once they were gone, Freya looked at her brother, tilting her head slightly, "You okay?"

  William sighed before he leaned his head back and stared at the wall, "Where did I go wrong, sister?"

  Freya's brows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

  William shook his head slightly, "With my sons. How did I fail and allow this hate between them to manifest?"

  Freya's gaze softened, and she reached out, gently grasping her brother's forearm, "You can't blame yourself."

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  William scoffed and looked at his sister, "Can't I? Perhaps if I had been more involved when they were younger instead of being busy with my duties..." He shook his head, "I don't know."

  Freya sighed, "Do you remember what father used to tell us?"

  William raised a brow, "Stop playing in the mud?"

  Freya laughed before she shook her head, "No. That we shouldn't linger on the past, since we can't change it. We should look towards the future, and see what we can accomplish."

  William's eyes fell, and then he smiled and nodded. "Ah, yes, that." He chuckled, "He was always a wise man."

  Freya nodded and smiled, "That he was. It's not too late to try and fix the relationship between Tristan and Nicholas."

  William nodded, and the two of them fell silent for a moment before Freya cleared her throat and stood up, "Now, what do you say we go relax a bit. It'll be a nice change of pace for you."

  William nodded and stood up, "Sounds good, let's go."

  ***

  "Oh, that sounds nice," Josephine said as she spoke with Nicholas, Celine, and Elianna at the edge of the garden.

  Elianna nodded energetically, "I'm excited to look around and see how different this city is from Tri-Union City."

  Nicholas was about to speak, but Celine jabbed him in the side and said, "Don't ruin it."

  Nicholas nodded, rubbing his side, "Noted."

  Josephine chuckled and smiled, "Well, you three have fun."

  "We will," Nicholas said, as he gave Josephine a goodbye hug.

  Celine and Elianna also shared a quick hug with Josephine before they began to make their way toward the front gate, with their guards following them from behind. Nearing the front gate, Elianna could see through the bars and noticed a significant group of knights and mages standing at the ready, with several more on horses behind them. In the center of the horses was a beautiful blue carriage with golden trim, surrounded by several more regular-looking carriages in front and behind it.

  The guards standing at the gate bowed as Nicholas, Celine, and Elianna approached, then opened the gate and stood to the side. Walking outside the wall surrounding the palace, all the guards and mages who were waiting for them bowed before stepping out of their path to the carriage. Standing beside the carriage were two individuals, a male knight and a female mage, both in Gavarian uniforms. The male had a golden triangle on his collar, signifying he was a lieutenant, while the female had four golden leaves, signifying she was an experitor.

  The knight and mage bowed at Nicholas, Celine, and Elianna as they approached, and the female spoke first.

  "Good morning, I am Experitor Okena."

  "I am Lieutenant Zen."

  Okena and Zen both stood straight, and Okena said, "We will be in charge of this excursion today, Your Highnesses and Lady."

  "If you need anything, just let us know, Your Highnesses and Lady," Zen added.

  Nicholas nodded and smiled, "Thank you. We wanted to go to the shopping district today."

  Zen nodded, "Then that is where we will go, Your Highness."

  Okena looked at the guard standing beside the carriage's door and motioned to him. The guard nodded and quickly opened the door, then stood to the side.

  Elianna beamed at the carriage with excitement, as she was finally going to be able to see Zasaly City. But as she stared at the carriage, her gaze flicked to the corner of the carriage's roof, seeing a raven as black as the night sky sitting there. Elianna's head tilted slightly, seeing the raven perched there, with its head looking in their direction. If she didn't know any better, she would've thought that the raven was watching them.

  "Lia?"

  Elianna's head snapped toward the voice, seeing Nicholas was already a few steps ahead, and Celine was already walking toward the carriage. Nicholas smiled at her, "Coming? Or were you just going to stand there and stare?"

  Elianna playfully narrowed her eyes on Nicholas, "Careful, or maybe I won't go as easy on you during the next training session."

  Nicholas grinned and chuckled with sarcasm, "Oh, like you actually hold back."

  Elianna just smirked as she proceeded to walk past him.

  Nicholas' smile faded as he watched her, "You don't, right? Right?" He began to follow her toward the carriage, "Lia?"

  Elianna chuckled to herself, hearing Nicholas behind her. As she approached the carriage, her gaze curiously flicked to the raven again, seeing it was still sitting there. The raven's head turned toward her before it let out a screech and flew off. Elianna shrugged before she climbed into the carriage and sat down across from Celine.

  Nicholas climbed into the carriage and sat beside Elianna, giving her a playful glare. The door to the carriage closed as soon as Nicholas was seated, and they felt the carriage sway as the driver took their seat.

  Looking out the window, Elianna watched as the guards on foot scrambled out of the way. She heard Zen yell something, and a moment later, the carriage jerked forward. Elianna stared at the palace, watching it fade out of view as they left the area and headed into the city.

  Continuing to look outside, Elianna watched as they rode past several large brick buildings, which ranged in muted colors. She noticed that the roofs of the buildings were different, with some being flat, some angled, and others domed.

  Along the sides of the dark gray cobblestoned roads were sidewalks filled with people. Their attire varied, reflecting their differences in social status, but they all seemed to stop and bow as the carriage passed. She noticed how one group seemed deep in conversation until one of them pointed at the carriage. The group then quickly turned to face the road and bowed in respect.

  "Are they supposed to bow as we ride past?" Elianna asked, then looked at Celine and Nicholas, who were both looking out the window.

  Nicholas looked at Elianna and nodded, "Yeah. It's one of our customs." He sighed, "I just hope this doesn't ruin your experience in the city."

  Elianna tilted her head slightly, "What do you mean?"

  "People usually act differently around royalty," Celine began, and looked at Elianna. "You might find some of the people stiff as a board, or just staring at you."

  "Some try to avoid us, while others are eager to talk to us," Nicholas shrugged. He looked at Elianna, "It can be a little annoying."

  Elianna smiled, "Well, let's just make the best of it and have fun. Okay?"

  Nicholas returned her smile and nodded, "Okay."

  Elianna looked back out the window, watching as they rode by buildings and individuals. As they continued through the city, she observed how the number of people on the sidewalk began to increase. Then, she noticed how the carriage began to slow before coming to a stop. The carriage jerked, then the door opened with a guard standing to the side.

  The guard respectfully nodded, "Your Highnesses and My Lady, we have arrived."

  Nicholas stood up and began to climb out of the carriage. "Thank you."

  Elianna's heart beat with excitement as she watched Nicholas climb out. Once he was cleared of the carriage steps, Elianna exited the carriage and stepped onto the cobblestone road. When she looked up and around, her eyes widened in awe.

  The road before them was crowded with individual stands where vendors sold a variety of items. The buildings on both sides of the road were all of a muted color, ranging from single to double stories. On top of some of the buildings were statues of beasts and humanoid figures, some of which had wings. The large crowd of people who filled the street before them all seemed to stop and were staring in Elianna's direction with wide eyes.

  Celine climbed out of the carriage, saw the crowd, and leaned toward Elianna, "Told you they'd stare."

  Elianna shrugged and looked back at Celine with a smile, "Doesn't bother me." Her eyes flicked up, and her brows raised as she watched another raven land on the corner of the carriage.

  "Your Highnesses, My Lady."

  Elianna looked forward, seeing Zen and Okena approaching them, while guards began to exit the carriages.

  Okena nodded to the three of them, "We're ready when you are."

  Nicholas nodded, then smiled at Elianna, "Come on."

  Elianna nodded and followed Nicholas and Celine as they began to walk toward the crowd and the shopping district. The guards around them all turned and began to walk toward the district as well, surrounding the three of them on all sides. Looking over her shoulder, she noticed that Okena and Zen were walking right behind them, staying close. Then, when her eyes flicked to the carriage, her brows raised, seeing that the raven was still there. A moment later, the raven flapped its wings and flew high, and Elianna followed it with her eyes, watching as it flew into the shopping district.

  Elianna shrugged and looked forward with an excited smile, eager to explore the Zasaly shops.