The Blind Prince

Chapter 13

Amir's Pov

I glower at my father. I can't believe he is doing this in front of me. He's supposed to be a King and a Father yet here he is with women crawling all over him as he drinks away the night. He does this every time Mahrajan comes around. My glare turns to Ja'far, Sharrkan, and Masrur as I hear them fussing about their juniors. Honestly, this whole thing is a pain. I slump a little in my seat, sighing deeply. What makes it even worse is that Aladdin is off having fun. He said I could come with them, but I know I would have ruined the fun.

"Wow," I hear the three men say. I notice that they're staring at my father. The women are sitting all around and on top him, begging to be next for god knows what.

"Whaa! I want to do that too!" I hear Aladdin yell from behind me. I turn a little to see him, noticing that Alibaba and Morgiana are also with him.

"Will you all just knock it off!?" I finally snap. Aladdin showing interest in women... it's just too much for me to handle right now. This festival is hard enough for me to deal with as it is. Everyone is quick to stop talking. Instead they all stare at me in surprise. I simply sit in my chair, arms crossed with a deep frown on my face. My father clears his throat to break the silence.

"Ah, the three of you are back. I was waiting for you," Father smiles at them. To my relief he begins to shoo away all of his women. "I have some people I want you to meet. Eight generals assemble!" With that simply order, the Eight Generals quickly come to their King. "I will introduce to you the guardian deities of Sindria, the Eight Generals, because we did not have the chance to introduce everyone to you before." I watch as father points to Ja'far. "This guy is, you know..." He trails off. I notice that his words are beginning to slur together.

"I was already introduced in Balbadd," Ja'far sighs a little.

"He's drunk," I simply state. My father either didn't hear me or chose to ignore me.

"He's Ja'far. Normally he is a parliamentary official. Even if he looks like this, he is strong because he is an expert in a unique assassination technique. So, he will be fit to be the next opponent in your training..." He trails off again, taking a very large drink from his cup. "Um Amir!" He abruptly shouts, causing me to jump in surprise.

"What?" I frown in confusion.

"You can introduce everyone else," He grins at me. My eye twitches as I glare at him. Once again, he is pushing his work off onto someone else.

"Fine," I mutter and stand up. I freeze before I can even introduce anyone as I realize something. Maybe now is the time. Maybe I should reveal that I can see the rukh now. I nod to myself before I shakily point towards Masrur. "This man is Masrur. He wields a sword, but he is not suitable to become Alibaba's master. When he was little he was a gladiator but he has not practiced swordsmanship and since he stopped doing that, he is quite rusty." I take notice that no one is picking up on that fact I pointed at someone who has yet to even speak. Maybe they're all too drunk to realize it.

"Sorry about that," Masrur says, void of any emotion.

"What is a gladiator?" Morgiana speaks up. I turn to face her. I wonder if she will realize it? She is rather smart and she doesn't act like she has been drinking.

"It is a hand-to-hand contest really popular in the Laem Empire. I think," Alibaba says.

"You're right," I nod slightly, watching as a large man walks up behind Aladdin and his friends.

"Did you call me, King Sinbad?" The large man asks. The three look up slowly, panicking slightly at the sight of the large man leaning over them. I smirk a little at that.

"One of the Imuchakk warriors of the extreme North's unexplored region, Hinahoho. He has a gigantic physique, but every one of his race is like that, so don't mind him too much." I smile a little as Hinahoho's children crowd around him. "Next is Dracon," I point towards the man. "He is a former soldier of the Partevia Empire. He also has the appearance of a dragon, but he was originally a human and a sincere man. There is no need to be frightened of him," I quickly move on to the next person. "You have already met Yamuraiha from Magnoshutatt and Sharrkan from Heliohapt," I practically skip them. They don't seem to mind very much as they are already bickering with one another. "Then we have Pisti from Artemyra and Spartos from Sasan. They are members of the royal family of our allied countries that we had to give refuge to, for one reason or another, or people that cannot remain in their country for personal reasons and now live here." I turn to face Alibaba once again. "Alibaba, you could say these people are just like you." With that I sit back down, happy that I'm done introducing people. I notice Aladdin is smiling at me. He probably realized that I'm trying to show people that I can see. Soon everyone is off having their own conversations.

"King Sinbad," Dracon steps forward. "It is good to play with women, but will you never change your mind and marry a woman?" I stiffen a little at the question, but my father doesn't bat an eye. I can't help but to agree with Dracon, but it also makes me wonder why my father doesn't have a wife. My father has never spoken of my mother to me and the generals don't know anything either.

"Yea, he is right Sinbad," Hinahoho agrees. "It is good to have brats around, you should have a lot of them too!" Hinahoho grins fondly at his children.

"What are you saying?" My father chuckles softly. "I already have Amir and all the citizens of Sindria as my family," He raises his glass to the people below, causing them to cheer for their King. I tilt my head a little as I stare at my father. I hope that someday, he will tell me why he doesn't have a wife and why I don't have a Mother.