The Third Prince Of Darkness

I approached the long white dining table and looked at the emperor. I gave a small nod as a greeting.

"I salute Emperor Exdarth Matteon of the Tamerid Empire" I said.

Emperor Matteon scrutinized me carefully. His deep and penetrating gaze lingered on me for a few seconds. During this time, I had the chance to examine him. Despite his advanced age, he had a strong build and looked like a handsome man in his thirties. The determination and experience in his eyes showed what years had brought him. His majestic robe seemed like a symbol of his power. The silence became heavy and intense. Then Matteon slowly nodded, and a slight smile appeared on his face.

“Prince Ethan,” he said in a deep, resonant voice. “I have heard a lot about you through my daughter Evangeline. It is interesting to see a man who has impressed her. Evangeline does not easily take a liking to someone.”

There was both paternal pride and a warning in his words. While expressing his love for his daughter, he implied that if I made a wrong move regarding her, I would pay the price. I had to be careful with my words. I was facing a man who could easily kill me and then destroy my entire kingdom.

“Your Majesty, Princess Evangeline is indeed a special woman,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “The mere chance to walk the same path as her is a great honor for me.”

He seemed pleased with my words. His smile became a bit more pronounced. “I hope you act with the awareness of this honor. The Tamerid Empire is a great power, and my most precious assets are my daughters. To earn your place beside her, you must be not only strong but also wise and loyal.”

I wanted to say, "Hey old man, aren't you exaggerating a bit?" but of course, I didn't say that because I still loved my life. I knew how cautious I needed to be to deal with him.

“Your Majesty,” I said in a calm voice, “I will do my utmost to earn my place beside Princess Evangeline. I fully understand the power of the Tamerid Empire and the value of your daughter.”

Matteon’s eyes were fixed on me again, but this time there was a hint of softening in his gaze. “Good. Keep that in mind, prince. Everyone has a place in this world. Once you find yours, you must know what it takes to protect it.”

Yes, now that I had received some empty advice, let's flatter him a bit, so he thinks it's very wise. After all, you enjoy the feeling of superiority, don’t you, Matteon?

“Indeed, wise words, Your Majesty." I said in a calm tone.

Emperor Matteon seemed pleased with what I said and gave a slight nod. There was still deep determination in his eyes, but it was now somewhat softened. I was reminded once again to be careful and measured when speaking with him.

“Prince Ethan, it will be interesting to get to know you,” he said, his voice now softer but still carrying an authoritative tone. “But now, let’s move on to eat.”

With Emperor Matteon’s invitation, everyone at the table moved to begin the meal. The atmosphere seemed to have calmed down and relaxed a bit. However, I noticed that the emperor was still watching me closely. No matter how cautious I was, I had to remain alert. At the table, Evangeline went to sit close to her father. The princess leaned towards her father, whispered a few words, and then smiled at me, nodding her head.

During the meal, I listened to Emperor Matteon’s conversations with the nobles and participated in discussions from time to time. It was clear that everyone was curious and attentive towards me. As the meal progressed, Matteon’s gaze frequently rested on me. Though it was hard to understand what he was thinking, I continued to maintain my calm demeanor.

Finally, as the meal came to an end, Emperor Matteon slowly stood up and addressed those at the table. "Before I leave, I would like to propose a toast to this historic alliance between Tamerid and Asina on my own behalf and on behalf of King Richard, who is not here at this time."  he said, lifting the large goblet he was holding with both hands.

In this country it was customary for the toast giver to drink from as large a glass as possible. Along with me, everyone lifted their goblets, big and small, to join the emperor.

“TO THE ALLIANCE!” the people at the table shouted, and everyone drank their drinks in one go. After drinking his goblet with great pleasure, Emperor Matteon walked into the palace with his gigantic frame. Since I had no reason to stay here any longer, I stood up and walked towards my room too.

••••

In the evening, I got up and walked towards the door that had just been knocked. A few female servants came from outside, and I stepped aside to let them in. The servants bowed respectfully and entered, closing the door behind them. After asking for permission, the servants began to undress me. Although some inexperienced servants blushed at the sight of my penis, they performed their tasks as professionally as possible, Because of  stern gaze of the older servant who watched from the side. Fortunately, this time I managed to control myself; otherwise, one servant in a precarious position might have been struck by my shaft.

“Is there anything else you need, Your Excellency?” asked the older servant with a meaningful look.

“No, thank you,” I replied. After all, there was no time, and the wedding was about to begin.

After the servants finished their work and left in turn, I checked myself in the mirror, admired their work, and then went outside. I was wearing a dress that was a mix of light blue and dark blue, and on my fingers I was wearing a ring with the royal emblem. I would say I looked pretty good. This time, without the previously assigned knight, I walked towards the room just adjacent to the main hall where the wedding would take place. I approached a few knights standing by two pairs of magnificent doors. When I arrived, they respectfully greeted me and opened the door.

Inside, all of the Asina royal family members were present except for Richard and Umala. While Fiona and her children stared at me as usual, I took a seat next to my mother and Isabella, who were sitting by the door. At that moment, my little sister Odette ran and sat on my lap. Although Luciana shot her daughter a stern look and told her to behave like a princess, Odette ignored her and hugged me.

“It’s okay, Mom. She can act as she likes within the family, but let’s not behave like this in public, okay?” I said to Odette’s sweet little face.

“Don’t spoil her too much,” said my sister Violet.

Meanwhile, I noticed Kayle peeking at me from behind Isabella and realized that I had still forgotten to speak with him. However, I would handle that later.

“Where is Father?” I asked.

Everyone looked at Fiona as if they had agreed on it beforehand. Fiona, though a bit surprised, answered.

“He’ll be here shortly,” she said in a low voice.

“That’s good,” I simply replied.

Ignoring the hostile glances from Liam and Fiona’s other children that they failed to hide, I began to stroke Odette’s head. Before long, the door opened and Richard entered.

“It’s our turn,” he said.

As a royal family, we couldn’t just enter; we had to wait for the Tamerid family, the hosts, to enter first. I slowly stood up and surveyed everyone in the room. As members of the royal family, tonight’s wedding was not just a celebration, but it was also part of a grandiose show of force. I kept my eyes on Fiona for a moment, then turned to Richard. The king approached us with his usual serious and determined demeanor.

“Luciana, Fiona, and Isabella will stand immediately behind me, and everyone else will line up behind us from the youngest to the oldest. Understood?” he asked.

Everyone nodded, and Richard, with his stern jaw, smiled as he turned around. “Let’s go,” he said. I immediately stood next to Lugoar, with Fiona’s other daughter and Kayle and Violet right behind me. Richard and I left the room and arrived at the grand and ornamented door nearby. As we approached the door.

Everyone nodded, and Richard, with his stern jaw, turned around with a smile and said, “Let’s go.”I was standing next to Lugoar and Odette, Fiona's second son Thaerd and Kayle and Violet were right behind me. Fiona's other two daughter and Liam were at the back. Richard and we left the room and came to a large, ornate door nearby. As we approached the door with grandeur, a voice from behind it echoed through the silence.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please direct your attention. The esteemed members of the Royal Family of the Great Asina Kingdom are arriving!”

With these words, the door opened, and although I was at the back, my eyes were momentarily blinded by the sudden bright lights. When I refocused my eyes, we began to walk into a grandly decorated hall, which was probably as large as a football field. All eyes were on us, and considering that many of the continent's most important people were here, it was rather intimidating. While this was not a problem for me, it must have been quite daunting for Violet and Kayle. We began to walk into the hall, led by Richard, amidst the splendor of the Asina Kingdom.