The departure of Arvin, Kylen, Vian, Tania, Ziona, and Anna left behind a tense silence. Gone was the idle small talk, gone were the fierce arguments. All that remained was the suffocating atmosphere of a family that had just been torn apart.
Every pair of eyes in the room remained fixated on the spot where the Fifth Prince had just disappeared. It was difficult for them to swallow the reality of what had just transpired. The King, the absolute ruler of Flamort, had just permitted, and even indirectly let go of, Kylen to leave and marry a man.
Amidst the freezing silence, Queen Fentiloa turned her head. Her eyes, which usually radiated an elegant calmness, now gleamed with undisguised disappointment as she stared at her husband.
"Why did you let them leave?" the Queen's voice broke the silence. Her tone was quiet, yet every word demanded an explanation.
King Galeo closed his eyes for a moment, raising a hand to massage the bridge of his nose, which throbbed with pain.
"I had no other choice, Fentiloa." King Galeo answered, his hoarse voice hinting at extreme exhaustion, both physically and mentally. "My head is pounding. I need to rest for a while. For the time being, I will entrust all of the kingdom's bureaucratic affairs to Ramond."
Without waiting for further responses from his wife or children, King Galeo rose from his chair. With heavy steps dragged by frustration, the ruler of Flamort left the dining room, leaving his family to drown in a confusion that now felt incredibly hollow.
After their father's departure, the gazes of the royal princes and princesses automatically shifted to the Queen.
"Mother, what should we do now?" Cylenciel broke the silence, his voice trembling with a mix of anger and disbelief. The Fourth Prince's eyes radiated a demand for certainty. "Are we truly going to sit back and let this disgraceful thing happen just like that?"
"I agree with Cylenciel, Mother!" Ashlandio chimed in sharply. He clenched both his fists on the table. "Ever since that foreign man set foot in this palace, everything has descended into chaos! Why don't we take decisive action against him?"
Hearing the outburst of emotion from her two sons, Queen Fentiloa took a deep breath. She looked at her children's faces one by one with a cold yet firm gaze.
"It's better if you do nothing." the Queen answered firmly, brooking no argument. "Remember this well, he is a direct descendant of the Vedegra family. You know exactly what that name means. It would be incredibly dangerous for this kingdom if we were to recklessly do anything to him."
Queen Fentiloa immediately stood up from her chair, looking at all her children once more.
"Just let the two of them leave this place. Your father has weighed everything and made a final decision. Whether we like it or not, we all must follow his words."
The Queen began to walk toward the exit, leaving the four princes and two princesses still rooted to their respective seats.
"But, what about their same-sex marriage, Mother?" Helena suddenly called out, her voice slightly shrill with panic. "By allowing this, aren't we basically inviting shame in front of the other nobles?"
Queen Fentiloa's steps did not halt. Without looking back, she answered in a flat tone, "You don't need to worry about matters that far ahead. Leave it to your father and me to handle the reputation of this family."
After the Queen's departure, only the six siblings remained inside the vast dining room, along with a few palace maids who were still on standby.
The air thickened once more with a fresh tension. Shadows of ego, pride, and fear began to creep into their minds. All six of them seemed to arrive at the same conclusion: all this chaos stemmed from the arrival of Arvin Vedegra.
Unconsciously, a deep-seated hatred began to take root. They quickly made Arvin the scapegoat for the collapse of their family's order, particularly Prince Ashlandio, Prince Lucasion, and Prince Cylenciel.
Beneath the anger apparent on the surface, they had their own respective reasons.
For Prince Ashlandio and Prince Lucasion, this marriage was a dangerous political threat. The thought of Kylen returning to the palace in the future, fully backed by the military might and influence of the Vedegra family, made their chests rumble with paranoia.
"What if Kylen intends to seize the throne?"
That was what they were thinking.
The fear of losing influence during the future succession of the throne made the two princes view Arvin as an enemy to be wary of.
However, Prince Cylenciel's reasoning was far more personal. His anger did not stem from a fear of losing the throne, but rather from a bruised ego and a wounded sense of possession. All this time, Kylen had been his shadow. His twin brother was always passive, obedient, and never had the courage to oppose him. Yet today, for the sake of a foreign man, his twin brother dared to look him in the eye and even defied his words in front of the entire family.
Cylenciel stared blankly at the empty chair previously occupied by Kylen. His hands clenched tightly as a result of churning anger.
Just you wait, Arvin Vedegra. Cylenciel swore inwardly, his eyes narrowing as they radiated a burning vengeance. When the time comes for me to ascend the throne and become the king of this kingdom, I will certainly settle the score with you!
Even though their logic was acutely aware that the sole purpose of Arvin's arrival was to propose to Kylen, the poison of resentment had already seeped too deep into the veins of the three princes, blinding them to any form of empathy.
Far from the suffocating, heated atmosphere of the palace dining room, the mood inside Kylen's bedchamber felt vastly warmer and much more comforting.
Kylen stood in front of his large, wide-open wardrobe. Assisted by Arvin, he was packing all his clothes and precious belongings.
Kylen picked up the clothes he wanted to take one by one, then placed them into the magic bag hanging at his waist.
The packing process went smoothly and efficiently. Arvin's presence by his side made everything feel effortless and swift.
After ensuring that all the items he was bringing were safely stored inside his magic bag, Kylen closed the wardrobe doors softly, then turned to look at his husband.
"I am ready to leave this place!" Kylen murmured softly to himself. "Thank you for giving me a sanctuary since the day I was born."
Then, he promptly invited Arvin to head for the door, leaving behind the room that had been the silent witness to his life for over a decade.
As he walked beside Arvin through the palace corridors, Kylen's heart beat rapidly. The pain born from his family's rejection slowly faded, replaced by an overwhelming wave of anticipation. His mind was now entirely focused on what would happen next.
He looked forward to the Life-and-Death Contract symbol that would soon be permanently etched onto the back of his right hand.
I truly cannot wait for that white contract to be engraved on the back of my hand! Kylen thought with fiery enthusiasm.
As he continued walking down the palace hallways for the very last time, the bluish-white-haired youth occasionally glanced down, staring at the still-flawless back of his right hand, imagining the contract symbol that would intertwine his destiny with the man walking beside him for all of eternity.