Claude has met his match, someone who could not only rival his menacing and dominating aura but make him feel just as desperate and helpless as she once did. Everyone keeps telling him that this was a mini version of him, who stood before him withou...
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7- Flowering Marks of Bruises and Scars
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Aeternitheos greeted with a deadpan expression, refusing to lower his head or offer a bow as the figure of authority approached. "Blessing and Glory upon the Sun of the Obelian Empire."
The air around them crackled with tension, transforming the initial bleak morning into an immediate battleground. Claude locked eyes with Aeternitheos, who met the penetrating gaze with an unwavering resolve. The charged atmosphere seemed to amplify the sparks that flickered between the two, a silent clash of wills.
Felix, standing nervously in the middle, shifted his gaze back and forth between the emperor and the young prince.
"You defied imperial orders when summoned and Felix says you requested to leave at first light without my permission," Claude's snarl cut through the tense air, his frustration palpable. "Even towards the very end, you don't fail to irritate me."
"I'm simply occupying myself with more important matters, Your Majesty," Aeternitheos replied with an indifferent tone, his words echoing with a subtle defiance.
Claude, seemingly amused, prodded, "Finding your way out of this war?"
"I'll see this war through," Aeternitheos declared with unwavering determination, a challenge laced in his words.
There was a pause before Claude's tone turned darker, a veiled threat lingering in the air. "...Even if it means you will die?"
Aeternitheos met the emperor's gaze, his jewel-red eyes holding a glimmer of defiance and offence at those words.
"Who says I'm dying?" Aeternitheos chuckled, his tone nonchalant, almost mocking. "Or does my death scare you, Your Majesty?"
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Claude glowered, caught off guard by the young prince's bold response. His eyes flickered, a mixture of irritation and something else.
Aeternitheos noted this look with a glare, his voice laced with an edge of bitterness, "Let's not pretend you cared about my life before. Why start now?"
Protests at the tip of his tongue, Claude's jaw tensed, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the young prince. The air between them crackled with unspoken tension, the weight of past grievances and unspoken truths hanging heavily.
"I have no intention of dying in this war," Aeternitheos continued, his tone unwavering. "But even if I did, let me remind you: it wouldn't be for you, Your Majesty."
Claude's expression hardened, the façade of imperial stoicism barely concealing the turmoil beneath. The emperor, usually composed and in control, found himself at odds with the unexpected resistance from a two-year-old prince.
