"Poor little prince, now he has no one by his side," they murmured, although Gilbert knew they cared less about his well-being. Normally, he would not let rumors get to him, but now he could not help but despise them.

A few weeks ago, he was mourning his mother's unexpected death. It was due to an illness that the royal doctors could not name that took her life. Now that same unspecified illness had taken his father's life away from him—or so he was told. It was honestly a mystery to Gilbert because just a few days ago, his father was fit enough to lead a whole country.

Now he was dead.

Something does not add up. Gilbert was still at the young age of twenty-one, but he was not naive. He is the successor for goodness sake! He can't be ludicrous or it will lead to the downfall of his beloved country, Wyvern. He can't tarnish his father's image of having ruled Wyvern with good hands. In other words, he can't be a disgrace.

Now that both of his parents have departed, he is now alone, and the crown will be soon passed on to him. He did not even have enough time to mourn for the deceased king because Gilbert was already bombarded with duties he must fulfill before the day of his coronation. Gilbert hardly saw his father over the past few days. The chief of the royal court had kept Gilbert away from the king, saying that his father was too sick and that he cannot afford to let the prince get infected as well.

He needed to know the truth to have peace of mind. To know that, Gilbert decided to confront Sero, the chief of the royal court. The young prince navigated the palace halls with haste and swerved from left to right in order to avoid servants who were busy with work due to the king's sudden death. They were preparing for the coronation event, a responsibility Gilbert still couldn't grasp. He was ready of course, he was trained for the position since he was still young, but he didn't expect the situation to be like this.

When he arrived, Gilbert came to an abrupt halt at the chief's entrance due to various voices communicating inside. The prince could not help but eavesdrop as he did not have an ounce of trust in his father's royal court.

"...that means the young prince is next." Gilbert heard them muttering, thus increasing his interest. The mentioned prince slowly leaned towards the door and eavesdropped with his ears on the door.

"To announce his awakening, the prince will be stabbed on the day of his coronation."

"That will create chaos, a perfect time to spread the news of our Lord’s near awakening," one of them said, their voice slightly high pitched. It was then followed by an ear-grating laugh that almost made Gilbert flinch.

Gilbert's eyes widened in horror. He was the only prince around to be crowned, and so he was likely the one they were talking about. Cold beads of sweat rolled down Gilbert's forehead as he started to have mixed feelings: anger, terror, distress, and curiosity.

But they were not done chattering. Gilbert leaned his upper body's entire weight on the door and listened intently.

"Everything is going according to plan, the poison created by you was perfect!" Gilbert could feel their grin when declaring that, and he had never felt this furious in his entire life. All he ever wanted was to barge in and beat the crap out of whoever had murdered his family, but Gilbert knew he had to learn everything first. So he restrained his urge and resorted to painfully digging his nails on his palm.

"Now that the king and queen cease to exist, the prince is alone and vulnerable, making the crown easy to snatch."

Of course, it was about power, it always had been about power. His family had experienced various perils and attempted assassinations, but this time, they had prevailed.

and they were not done.

"Long live to the Lord of the dead—" but Gilbert had been clumsy, accidentally losing footing and slipping, thus he had slammed his hand on the door to regain balance. The loud slam halted their conversation just as when they had revealed their master.

Gilbert did not waste any time, he bolted away from the door. He ran like he never had before, not minding the sudden strain it gave to his legs. He turned around a corner just as the door to the chief's quarters burst open.

"Find this rat or our cover will be blown! Now!" Sero barked and the cook who was assigned for his father's meals scrambled off in fright. If he was afraid of Sero or of the thought of getting exposed as an accomplice of the Evil Lord, Gilbert will never know.

One thing he knew for sure, the Lord of the dead was already gaining consciousness, and he was out for Gilbert's head for the crown.

As the young prince ran from the scene, he couldn't help the smirk that made its way to his cherry red lips. Despite his anger and frustrations, he at least now knows who he is dealing with.

He has no plans of letting them have things go their way. Gilbert first needs to think of a plan and quick, he had not much time left before the coronation. If the Lord of the dead woke up anytime soon, then Gilbert was against a powerful being.

"Damn," he muttered after creating distance between him and the chief's room, his frustrations doubling. Why now? He thought.

Shaking the negative thoughts away, Gilbert raised his head. There was no time to lose. He had to think quickly, otherwise, they would have his head before he could have the chance to stop them. Not only will his head be taken, but his citizens will also be in the face of danger.

If only his father was around. Maybe Gilbert wasn't ready to take over yet.