His Highness, Unmasking the Enigma

Elias laughed, enjoying the schadenfreude at seeing his friend struggle, "Don't worry, Ezra. It'll be fine. I'm sure the Grand Duke's not that bad. And if he is, well, at least it won't be just me alone with him." He smudged Ezra's shoulder using his elbow.

Ezra sighed and shook her head, not amused by Elias's humor, "Yeah, yeah, I know. But still, the Grand Duke is a tyrant, and he's known for having a short fuse. I just don't want to be on the receiving end of his temper."

Elias raised an eyebrow, "You're worried about his temper, but you're not worried about the fact that he's a tyrant? I would think that would be reason enough to be afraid. But if you're really that worried about it, I can come up with a plan to distract him from you."

"Dumbass! a plan to distract him? Are you throwing away your dignity or getting us killed?! whatever you're planning, stop it." Ezra was even more worried, she's just scared of facing the Grand Duke, after all of the rumors she heard around Thistledale…

"I almost threw my dignity once, in front of the Grand Duke." Elias abruptly said, "But you know what's even more shocking? The Grand Duke kissed the back of my hand!" then Elias presented his right hand where the grand duke had kissed. 

Ezra's eyes widened, "Real shit??" and Elias nodded in response. 

Ezra was shocked by Elias's story, and she couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had never heard of the Grand Duke showing any sort of affection towards anyone, let alone a commoner like Elias. 

"Why would he do that?" Ezra asked, still not sure if she believed the story. The Grand Duke was known for being cold and emotionless, so it was hard to imagine him showing any sort of affection towards anyone.

At that moment, Ezra had realized something: the Grand Duke's behavior towards Elias was different from what she had heard from others. He was even friendly with him, which made her even more confused. Ezra's mind was filled with questions: why was the Grand Duke acting differently towards Elias? Was there something she didn't know about Elias and the Grand Duke's relationship? Or was it just another one of Elias's jokes, meant to distract her from the current situation? She didn't know what to believe, but she knew that her curiosity was only growing.

"Honestly, I don't know." Elias pondered but nothing came to his mind, "But hey, I got traumatized as a result.. I tried to lie but the Duke caught me lying."

Ezra shivered in fear: How could Elias do that?! just how?? that's way too.. too bold of him! to lie in front of the Duke and get caught? 

Despite Ezra's concerns, Elias didn't seem to be too affected by his past experience with the Grand Duke. He seemed to treat it more as a funny anecdote than something that had seriously traumatized him. 

This was probably due to his habit of making light of anything that happened to him, even situations that were quite serious. Ezra couldn't help but feel a little jealous of Elias's ability to brush off difficult situations with humor. She often found herself getting upset over even the smallest of problems, which made her feel like she was weak-hearted. 

She wished she could be more like Elias, able to handle everything that came her way with grace and poise. But deep down, she knew that she had a long way to go before reaching that level of inner strength.

"W-What did the Grand Duke say?" she asked carefully.

"The Grand Duke said something like, 'You're still young and you already learned how to lie. Do you know that in my dormitory, liars are being tortured by making them eat their own tongue?' That's what he said, I almost pissed my pants when I heard those words leave his lips.. how could his lips be so sweet and soft when they sprouted such terrifying words.." Elias said.

The idea of the Grand Duke torturing liars was nothing short of horrifying. She also wondered what Elias would have done if he hadn't been caught lying. Would he have been subjected to the same torture? No one knew but the Duke himself. Ezra couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine as Elias spoke. 

She had heard stories about the Grand Duke's methods of punishment, but to hear it from someone who had actually experienced it was something else entirely. She didn't know how Elias could continue to be so cheerful after a traumatic event like that. 

"W-Wow, that's horrible," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "How did you survive something like that?"

Elias replied simply, "I just admitted the truth, that's why you got involved."

"..."

"..are you for real.." 

Ezra stared at Elias in disbelief. She couldn't believe that he had actually gone through such a horrible ordeal, yet appeared to be so calm and collected. It was like he was taking it all in stride, as if it wasn't a big deal to him. 

"How can you be so calm?" she asked, "I mean, the Grand Duke's methods are horrendous. I would have thought you'd be traumatized or something."

Elias shrugged nonchalantly, "I was, at first. But I realized that it's better to just admit the truth and get it over with. It's better than suffering under his punishment, trust me." Elias added, "And probably it's a pity, for him, I guess. I'm still young so I think he considered it? but my gut says that."

Elias looked at Ezra: she's truly scared facing the duke, she's trying to compose herself but Elias could see her through, he felt guilty for scaring her but it's funny to see this side of her. He sighed, "We'll be there in the morning, probably 8 o'clock, I'll meet you at your bakery." 

Elias went to grab his pocket money from the drawer and handed her over five copper coins to his palm. Ezra flinched a bit, "What's this for?"

"For the pastry I ate. what, is five coppers not enough?" He replied.

"No, don't pay, it's fine." she said as she pushed Elias's palm away, refusing to receive the five coppers. 

Elias cocked his eyebrow, "Are you going to betray me?"

"What? No! I'm refusing it because it's my fault anyway. keep your five coppers and save up. I'll just say to the Grand Duke that you paid me." She reassured Elias, "By the way, I don't know a single thing in formality, how should I address the Grand Duke?" she added.

"You'll have to address the Grand Duke by referring to him, 'Your Grace', also greet and bow at the same time. lower your head. and, the Grand Duke doesn't like it when he's talking to someone and that person is not looking into his eyes." Elias said simply, putting back his five coppers to his pocket money. 

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind." Ezra nodded, "Oh right. Do you know the Grand Duke's name?"

Elias paused for a moment before responding, Yeah.. What was the Grand Duke's name? I haven't heard it.. all of my life. 

"Actually, I don't think anyone knows his real name. He's always referred to as 'His Grace' or just 'the Grand Duke'." 

Ezra's eyes widened in surprise, "Really? That's... strange. Doesn't that seem a bit secretive?"

"I guess you could say that," Elias shrugged, "But I don't think it matters much. What matters is that he's the one calling the shots, and you don't want to get on his bad side."

Is his name as lovely as him, or does it hold a dark and twisted secret, Like the shadows that surround him, Like the secret that he keeps? Thought Elias, I wonder if your name is as beautiful as your reign?