Little children

As the door opened, Kira huddled in the corner of the room, cradling the little boy protectively. Even though those two had saved them, she remained wary of having strangers near her. Having learned from experiences. The two individuals stepped into the room and cast their gaze upon them, they stood quietly and watched them.

She wished with all her heart for the two rescuers to simply vanish, the soldiers have been on their door now and then, and then these two scary people again. She watched their every move and threatened to attack if they try something funny. Not only that, but she bit down her lower lip which was white due to lack of proper food, overwhelmed with emotions she couldn't shake.

Drey's keen eyes didn't miss this subtle movement, "It's remarkable how that tiny corner could accommodate both of you," Drey's alluring voice echoed in the compact house. The boy nuzzled into Kira's embrace, hiding his face.

Drey's frown deepened, watching the two silently, his fingers forming a tight fist. Rico approached them with his harmless smile, "We are not here to harm you two," he tried to soothe them into a relaxed mood. But the boy didn't raise his head to look at the man nearing them, instead, tears started to wet the girl's dress.

"Leave the little children alone, Rico," Drey said, his voice tinged with frustration as he watched the crying boy sniffing every few minutes. He cast a scornful gaze at them, they will now know not to be stubborn to his knights.

"We are not little children!" the girl retorted, her chin raised defiantly.

Both Drey and Rico turned to her, their expressions sharpening.

"It seems like the young lady has a sharp tongue," Drey taunted, causing the girl to clench her fist in anger. She desperately wanted to strike his handsome face, but her small hand limited her ability to do so.

"You…you, disgraceful creature! How dare you treat a girl in such a manner!" she shouted at him, her voice filled with outrage. Drey cast her a sly grin, enjoying her reaction.

"How dare you insult me after I showed you mercy and rescued you from the oppressive kingdom you were trapped in?" Drey feigned innocence, addressing the girl. He had enjoyed her reaction of showing her true self.

"As if you could have cared," Kira murmured.

"May I ask, how old are you?" Rico interjected, breaking the tense atmosphere that had begun to form.

"I'm eighteen years old, and he's Richard who is fifteen years," the girl corrected, her voice tinged with annoyance at being referred to as a child." We are not little kids," she warned them.

"Is that really the case? Why don't I see a body of a woman instead, of that of a small girl," Drey couldn't resist the opportunity to torment her further.

"----"

Kira was in disbelief at this man's words, had he just insulted her in front of a man and young Richard? The other man's grin only made her self-conscious. 'Did he just belittle a girl like that?' she thought to herself.

Rico smiled, 'did he just pick on a girl?'

"You'll only have tomorrow to rest. We don't offer handouts here," Drey said in a surprisingly calm voice. "Someone will take you to the farm tomorrow," he added, surprising the girl and the young boy.

"We don't want a free ride, we're willing to work!" Kira stood her ground, her anger raising. "Who does he think he is?" she cursed, confronting further him, she watched him head to the door.

Both the men let out a smirk, at the girl's boldness. 'Such high aspirations for a refugee,' they thought.

Drey didn't linger any longer, walking away without so much as a second glance in the cowered human being's direction. Rico, however, remained behind, still pondering over the girl's determination to stay in the mountains instead of accepting the offer of the castle that Drey had previously made on their last meeting.

Rico stepped outside the small house and trailed after Drey toward where the king's knights were stationed. But what he heard made him pause in his tracks.

"Arranged for an extra bed in the leaving area for the boy, he'll be sleeping there," Drey commanded in an irritated tone, causing Rico to pause in disbelief.

The knights looked at Rico, pondering over how they become involved in the lives of these two young children to the lint of separating them.

Without hesitation, they gave Drey a respectful bow and set about completing the task he had assigned. They would rather not linger and incur the King's wrath, they quickly went about their business. Rico approached the King, still in disbelief over the situation.

"King Drey of Rivea, shall we depart for the castle now?" Rico asked, not wanting to linger in the darkness anymore.

As they made their way to the horse, the sun was setting, they will reach the castle late as darkness was already approaching.

"Are you not going to attend the dinner? The lords must have been waiting for quite some time," Rico reminded Drey as he noticed him heading towards the stairs.

"I'm not going to waste my time on them right now," Drey declared as he approached the stairs and disappeared from the view.

"Did he just make the lords wait and then leave?" asked Jerome, who had just returned from the training ground. "Did Drey disagree with the old man?" Jerome questioned his brother. He remembered they were supposed to visit the old man.

"Who knows." Rico shrugged and walked away, leaving the surprised Jerome standing alone.

"Everyone here is just insane!" Jerome exclaimed, his voice echoing through the empty hall.

"You included," Rico called out from the staircase without breaking stride.

"Ugh! This castle was peaceful for a day, and now it's in chaos again since they have arrived!" Jerome grumbled, unable to contain his frustrations.

"Now I have to be the one entertaining the lords. I will make sure to deal with those two," he continued to converse with himself as he headed to the dining hall.

"His Highness will not be present at the meeting, I request that all of you depart," he spoke with a hint of annoyance, his irritation difficult to pinpoint since they haven't seen Jerome for a while.

"We've been waiting for quite some time now. Could he at least grant us a meeting as we are respected members of Rivea," one of the lords spoke as he watched Jerome turn his back towards them.

"If you are so eager to speak with the king, you are well aware where of his study room and his chamber is located," Jerome started before walking away.

"Uh!" The lords gasped in surprise when the four were left in a jar, to allow them to enter their discretion. The thoughts of approaching the King, known to be unpredictable and dangerous, left them all in a dilemma.

"Did he just leave us here to figure it out on our own?" one of them muttered under his breath.