A middle-aged man with blonde hair and piercing blue eyes sat on a chair beside a young boy with white hair who lay in bed.
The man with gray hair behind him stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"Your Grace, it's time for you to rest. I will take care of His Highness."
Graham let out a deep sigh before responding.
"Alright."
With a soft touch, he ran his fingers through Adrian's hair one last time while holding the boy's hand with his other hand.
However, Graham's brows furrowed when he felt pressure on his hand.
Looking down, he noticed the boy's fingers clutching his hand in a tight grip.
Lifting his gaze, he watched his grandson's eyelids flutter before revealing a pair of bright cerulean eyes.
"Ugh!"
Adrian's hand shot up to his forehead when a wave of lightheadedness washed over him.
As soon as Ferdinand caught sight of the Prince awakening, he hurried towards the entrance with a sense of urgency.
"I'll go fetch a physician."
"Please do."
Graham answered without looking at him and Fredinand left the tent.
"Ian, are you hurt anywhere?"
Turning toward the distorted voice, Adrian's hazed eyes caught a glimpse of someone.
He blinked a few times to adjust the light, and then he could see a familiar figure.
"Grand—"
Before Adrian could finish his words, Graham enveloped him in a tight embrace.
As he was hugged, Adrian surveyed his surroundings and breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the interior of the tent.
Fortunately, he didn't slip into a coma this time.
And the fact that his Grandfather was here, he had a hunch that Asher requested reinforcement from the Emperor.
Since Lancaster fiefdom was the closest to the Refugee Camp, his presence was understandable.
Releasing him, the man cupped his face and stared directly into his eyes.
"Tell me, are you hurt anywhere?"
Graham's voice was laced with concern.
Adrian tried to feel whether there was something wrong with his body since he couldn't find any, and he shook his head.
"No, nothing…"
Graham breathed a sigh of relief and moved towards a nearby desk.
He poured a glass of water and handed it to his grandson.
"Thank you."
Adrian took it and drank deeply.
Lowering his glass, he posed a question.
"Grandpa, when did you come?"
"I came on the day you fainted."
Graham stroked his head once again.
"I'm sorry for making you worry."
"It's alright. I'm just glad that you're unharmed."
Adrian took another sip of water before asking another question.
"By the way, how many days have I been unconscious?"
"It's been three days."
"I see."
As the silence descended, Graham opened his mouth.
"I heard about your heroic story."
Adrian glanced at his grandfather disinterestedly, not quite sure what to make of the comment.
He knew what his grandfather was referring to, but he didn't see it as a heroic act.
He was just simply testing out his magic and it had nothing to do with saving lives.
But, of course, the people who witnessed it thought otherwise.
They saw him use his powers to defeat the enemy and hailed him as a hero—which was a big misunderstanding.
But, whatever.
Adrian didn't care about what others thought of him.
"I see."
Graham arched his eyebrows in wonder.
Usually, youngsters would be happy when people portrayed them as heroes.
However, the kid in front of him feigned ignorance and appeared almost annoyed by what he said.
—Step —Step —Step
Upon hearing numerous footsteps, Graham and Adrian turned their attention toward the entrance.
Soon, the flaps of the tent opened and Ferdinand, Nathaniel, and a physician entered.
The old woman approached Adrian's bed, and Graham rose from his seat, offering her more space.
"Your Highness, please excuse my rudeness."
She took his hand and began by checking his pulse with her Blood Controlling.
After a few moments, the Physician finished checking his body and she turned toward the others.
"I can say that His Highness' health is completely healed."
After a brief silence, she continued.
"There was no anomaly inside his body. However, since His Highness has just awakened, I recommend that His Highness eats light food and is given some space to rest."
The Physician veered around toward Nathaniel.
"Your Highness, it's time to change the bandage."
"Alright."
Adrian's eyes flicked to the black-haired boy, but his sight was obscured by Graham's figure as he approached the bed.
"Would you like to eat something?"
Graham offered and Adrian shook his head.
"No, I want to talk to my mother for now."
"Ah, you're right. Your mother is worried about you. I'll be heading out now, and don't hesitate to ask Fredinand if you need anything."
"I understand."
With that, Graham and Fredinand left the tent to give him some privacy.
As they left, Adrian glanced toward the boy who was sitting on a bed across from him.
Nathaniel was having his bandage replaced by the Physician.
Curious about what made his brother hurt, Adrian asked the old woman.
"Ma'am, what happened to him?"
The Physician turned to him and smiled.
"His Highness Prince Nathaniel was struck by a poisonous arrow on the battlefield."
"I see."
Nathaniel furrowed his brows, his annoyance written all over his face, and immediately spat his mind.
"Why did you ask her while you can ask me?"
Adrian shrugged insouciantly and responded.
"Well, it's up to me."
"What?"
Nathaniel's lips quivered in annoyance but before he could open his mouth, the Physician was faster.
"Your Highness, it's done."
"Alright, thank you."
"Please don't forget to take the medication."
The Physician reminded him and Nathaniel nodded in acknowledgment.
"I understand."
Once the Physician had left, Nathaniel put on his clothes and made his way over to Adrian's bed.
He took a seat beside his brother and asked.
"So, how are you feeling?"
"Pretty good. Yours?"
"Same as you."
Adrian leaned against the headboard and posed a question, his blue eyes fixated on Nathaniel's shoulder.
"How did you get that wound?"
The black-haired boy rolled his eyes boredly.
"Adrian, this is a war. You can't expect me to come out unscathed."
Adrian shrugged and steered the conversation in a different direction.
"How was the war?"
"Hehe."
With a chuckle, Nathaniel's mischievous grin crept across his face, signaling that he was plotting something.
"It was doubtlessly that the victory was ours! Your bravery on the battlefield was instrumental in securing our win! Oh, our esteemed War Hero!"
"..."
Unfazed by his brother's teasing, Adrian asked another question.
"So? Do you find the one behind the attack?"
"Tsk."
Nathaniel snapped his tongue in annoyance upon not getting the reaction he wanted.
He took out something and handed it to him.
"Here."
Adrian accepted the object without hesitation and began to examine it closely, turning it over in his hands.
A coat of arms was depicted by two delicate roses, intricately engraved to capture every petal and thorn.
Between them stretched a gleaming sword, its sharp edge glinting in the light, and atop them perched atop the roses was a regal crown.
It was a national coat of arms of the Kearny army.
"Do all enemy corpses have this emblem?"
"Yeah."
"All of them? Even the corpses in the forest?"
"Yes."
However, unexpectedly Adrian began to guffaw without any reason.
"Pfft, ahahah!!"
Nathaniel, who saw him laughing out of the blue, was taken aback and his forehead furrowed.
"What the hell Adrian?"
"Look at this? Isn't this funny? Pfft, ahaha!!"
Adrian showed him the emblem and continued to laugh merrily as if he was watching a comedic opera.
Nathaniel looked at the emblem but failed to see anything amusing about it.
It was simply an emblem of their enemy.
He couldn't understand what was so funny about it.
As Adrian's laughter showed no signs of stopping, Nathaniel became irritated and snapped.
"Stop laughing like an asthmatic hyena and explain it to me!"
Adrian abruptly ceased his laugh and turned to him with a sour expression before showing him again the emblem.
"You don't find it funny?"
He looked at him in disbelief.
"I don't."
Nathaniel answered curtly and Adrian put on a disgusted face.
"Tsk. My brother is such a bore."
Nathaniel's lips quivered in annoyance and let out a low growl.
"Say that again and I'll smack your head."
Adrian rolled his eyes in boredom, and when a thought kicked in, he asked.
"By the way, do you happen to know of any reliable mercenaries in the Kearny Kingdom?"
Since his older brother was a regressor, he should have had some knowledge in the field that he was not familiar with.
"Why?"
"I need to assign an important task to them."
Although he didn't understand why Adrian suddenly needed them.
But, if it was related to the Mercenary business, he could leverage his relationships with other Mercenary Agencies in the Kearny Kingdom.
"So, what do you want them to do? I can call them for you."
"I want them to…"
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This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺