Page 142 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
He wanted that kind of future for himself and for Alezya. For the north too, for the pariahs like him, for the Onyx Castle thathad been abandoned with its memories, and, maybe, to prove his family wrong too.
Kassein spent a while in the forest.
He didn’t know how long, but he stayed long enough that when he got out of that forest, his mind was made up for good. There would be no coming back from that decision and no giving up either.
This wasn’t just about changing his own future, but that of countless lives as well. His brother was going to be against it. His family might not understand, and he could already hear Kiera saying something about madness. Again, he might prove his infamous title as the Wild Prince right... except that this time, he had a reason for it. That reason was Alezya, and that was everything he needed.
He emerged from the forest, exactly the same as he had been when he’d walked in, but feeling different. Surprisingly, it didn’t take him long to find his sister; Kiera hadn’t moved, and was pacing at the same clearing they should have been training at that morning. Lorey was gone, but Tievin was still there, seated on a tiny rock and shivering with his arms crossed and swallowed by the layers of fur.
He stood so fast upon seeing Kassein that he almost fell forward before managing to find his equilibrium and running a sleeve to wipe the snot off of his red face.
“C-C-Commander,” his teeth kept clicking.
“I told him to wait inside, but he wouldn’t,” Kiera shrugged at Kassein’s frown. “Where the hell have you been? And you come back empty-handed too?”
“I’ve made my decision.”
“Oh,” Kiera grimaced. “Spill it. How bad is it? Who’s going to die today?”
Tievin’s face immediately paled, but Kassein ignored them, turning his eyes toward the mountains.
“...I’ll take the north.”
His words lingered in the air for a few seconds, during which his sister frowned in confusion, her nose scrunched, while Tievin’s mouth opened and closed several times, no sound coming out.
Without waiting for an answer, Kassein suddenly turned around and began walking through the camp. He ordered the first soldiers he saw to summon the generals for an urgent meeting and to relay the information that any tribespeople should be captured from then on, not killed.
The soldiers had just taken off when Kiera and Tievin caught up to him.
“What was that?” Kiera spat. “Take the north? Kassein, wait!”
He finally stopped in his tracks, turning to his sister with an unreadable expression. Kiera shook her head in confusion.
“What the hell? What do you mean you’lltakethe north? What does that mean?”
“The mountains, the Onyx Castle, the North Army, and all the villages. I’ll take it.”
“Take it? What the hell do you mean, take it?!” Kiera exploded. “You’re saying that like Grandma at the local market picking the fucking jam for her next brunch!”
“M-my lord,” Tievin squeaked, a bit out of breath, “Commander, have you considered that... maybe your brother, I mean, His Highness the Emperor, might not be quite keen on the idea…?”
“I’ll visit him,” Kassein spat, before turning around and resuming walking.
This time, Kiera was the one who almost tripped over herself in the snow.
“What did you just–? Y-you? Visit Kassian? We’re talking about Kassian, right? ...By the dragon’s balls, did you hit your head in the forest or something? Eat something you shouldn’t have? Mom did always say to stop eating random mushrooms...”
“I want a map of the Empire and all the reports you have on the tribes in the meeting tent,” Kassein told Tievin.
“When, Comman–”
“Now.”
Tievin nodded and ran off, doing his best to walk as fast as he could despite the snow reaching his ankles and his fur coats impairing him.
Meanwhile, Kassein was still walking toward the tent he used to confer with his men since Alezya’s arrival, Kiera going ballistic on his heels.
“You’ve gone mad,” she hissed. “You’ve finally gone mad. Kassian will tell you to fuck right off, Kassein! What do you think you’ll accomplish? What even is your big plan here? I know we mentioned the tribes might be willing to listen, but it was a fraction of them! And it could take years to get to them! Those people don’t want to negotiate with us; they hate us! And with all due offense, little brother, you’re not peace talk material!”
