The doors to the throne room stood closed.
Two elite guards barred them. Behind those doors lay the empire's heart.
But they did not enter.
Instead, the crown prince turned sharply into the throne antechamber. Max and Lek followed through.
It was smaller.
Gold trimmed the white walls. No crowds filled the space. Only a long carpet, a single chandelier, and two figures waiting:
An imperial scribe and the captain of the royal guard.
"Lock it."
The guards obeyed.
Silence fell.
The prince exhaled.
"We're doing this here."
The commander stiffened.
The scribe hesitated.
"Your Highness, the hall—"
"Will wait."
"I won't."
He turned to the player.
"Kneel."
No trumpet.
No herald.
Just command.
The player dropped to one knee.
The prince drew his red sword.
Steel moved.
"By authority of the Imperial Crown
and by my right as acting regent…"
No long titles.
No grand pceremony.
He touched the blade to Max's right shoulder.
"You have fought where many would have fled."
Tap.
Left shoulder.
"You have bled without rank, for the Empire."
Tap.
The prince paused.
His eyes hardened.
"And now I need you sworn
before others claim you."
The sword lifted.
"Do you swear loyalty to the Empire,
to its people,
and to the Crown?"
"I swear."
"Do you swear to answer
directly to me
as its future ruler?"
The player hesitated only a breath.
"I swear."
The blade tapped his chest.
"Then by my hand
you are made
Knight of the Empire."
No cheers.
Only the scratch of a quill.
The scribe wrote furiously.
"Recorded," he said.
"Witnessed."
The guard captain slammed his fist to his chest.
"Welcome, Sir."
The prince sheathed his sword.
"There." He grabbed the player's arm and pulled him up. "Congratulations. You belong to the Cloud Knights division now."
He stepped back, already turning away.
[You have received a title: Cloud Knight!]
***
On the Valiant guild's headquarters' rooftop, stood Mikena with an Asian boy who looked to be no older fourteen and a pink-haired girl with green eyes.
"It's getting boring here. I want to go to a city," Priam's sister said. Her light brown hair moved in the wind as she glanced towards two figures leaning on a railing at the rooftop's edge.
The boy looked at her, and then at the man wearing a white turtleneck shirt in the distance.
"Why don't we ask your brother to take us?" he asked.
"I know you're his biggest fan Tian, but don't you think that there's a chance that he has things to do that are more important than taking teenagers on trips?" the pink-haired girl said while looking at the distant figure.
"I'm sure he'd do something like that for me, for us," Mikena said.
"I think I heard that he's planning on fighting a boss on his own," said the other girl after she grabbed Mikena's shoulder.
"Really?!" Tian said with a smile as he looked at each girl.
"Tian!"
The rooftop was a garden of sorts. A player with a rapid growth ability planted and grew colorful trees, plants and grass in some places. There were a few benches and people sitting on them. On the north side was a massive cliff that rose far above the rooftop, while on the other ones was a view of the vast Roxi plain.
"Yeah, I know," said Mikena with a sunken expression.
"Hey, he'll bring the strongest people with him just in case things go wrong. Don't worry too much," the girl said, trying to comfort Priam's sister.
"I know Amila, I'll go eat something-"
"Hey guys." A tall man with brown hair who wore a white turtleneck shirt spoke behind Mikena.
They all turned towards him. "I'll be going on a trip so take care of my sister, okay?"
The two teenagers nodded with a smile. A hint of admiration was in their gaze as they looked up to him.
"Miki, I'll take us to the floating city after I come back."
Mikena smiled as he nodded. She hugged her brother. Paul Veritas stood a small distance away, waiting for Priam. The player kissed his sister's head.
Soon, the duo descended the stairs from the rooftop, into the building itself.
After passing hallways and people who greeted them, the two players entered a room. It was Priam's living quarters.
It wasn't gigantic or grand. There was a sofa with a glass coffee table in front of it. A large bed with red sheets and two pillows placed side by side. The two stood on a red carpet.
Paul looked around. "What did you want to take from your room?"
"This." Priam walked over to his bed and grabbed a long flower with many, many red petals and a red stalk.
Paul was visibly confused.
"Why do you even want to take the boss alone? No it's not why. How? How can you attempt something like that?"
Priam's expression turned somber. "It's because of this flower." The player took it and put it in his inventory.
Paul frowned. "What?"
"This flower can't wilt and die. It breathes lingering aura to stay alive. It endures forever."
Paul moved his head in a way that conveys the message "And?".
Priam looked at the player and then at his balcony's view of the plains. "The flower is like the love I feel for my wife. If she was here with me in this game, this is what I would give her. Fortunately, she's outside of this game."
"What does that have to do with-"
"I can't really live without her, Paul. I can smile, laugh sincerely, save people and help everyone, but I default back to a deep melancholy. I fight so that I get out, but it's also because, if I were to die, at least I won't feel this...void in my heart that comes in moments of quiet. I fight to avoid the quietness. This why I'm...I wouldn't say brave, this is why I'm so reckless."
Paul nodded. After a couple of moments, he said, "I'm sorry. My brother also has a wife outside this game. He's known her since childhood."
Priam looked back at Max's brother.
"I could guess that your brother also couldn't endure the quiet, mundane life. Killing that boss with just one other person is...impressive. And reckless."
"Yeah." Paul smiled.
"I don't fear monsters Paul. I don't fear the fight, I fear the quiet. The void in my heart that I feel when I'm not doing something, being with other people, fighting."
"A decent woman can help with that, who knows how long we'll be in this game," Paul replied as he sat down on the sofa.
Priam looked outside his room, at his balcony. Then he turned and walked to the room's door
"I have to go."
"Man, I just sat down. Fuck it, you need another insurance? I can stand by and help if you're in trouble."
Priam turned around and smiled. "Sure." It was a brilliant smile.