Reunion
Stunned like never before, Noname slowly lowered the knife down. His eyes opened wide in surprise, and his heart started pounding within his chest at an abnormal speed.
"Please don't hurt me sir... I.. I promise to give you whatever you want." The ignorant Prince pleaded in fear, not recognising his own brother a single bit.
Noname's eyes were already filled with tears, as he could not hold back his emotions, but still, he did not utter a word.
"I'm sorry..." the prince pleaded again, but this time with a changed perspective in thoughts. ".... I didn't mean to refer to you as a dangerous person... Perhaps you own this side of the forest, then I'm sorry for trespassing. I was just looking for..."
Noname was already panting heavily at this point and could no longer hold back the rush of emotions within him, he interrupted his brother by dashing towards him with great speed, landing a tight hug on him.
"....My br.... my brother!" The Prince realised that all this while, it was his own twin brother he had been conversing with. He gave Noname an even tighter hug, and they both shed tears, for it had been three consecutive years since they set their eyes on each other.... As twins, these few years felt like thousands of ages.
"How long has it been brother? A decade? A century?" Noname asked as they clung to each other in tears.
"Long time no see brother," The Prince replied as they finally let go of each other.
"I must say Fuku, you've grown... You've really grown!"
"Did you say grow? I was the one who didn't recognise you at first sight."
" Come on!... it's not like i've outgrown my age!"
" I'm serious brother! You look like a man! Just look at your buildup, you look older than me now.... you literally HAVE outgrown your age!"
"Seriously, enough already, it's not like wrestling bears and dehorning wild pigs with my bare hands is a big deal!" Noname hyped himself, drowning in the pleasure of being praised!
"Wrestling bears?!" The surprised prince asked in amusement.
" Well, let's make the 'S' silent for now since I've only wrestled one, though i'm planning on taking out another that dares come my way!"
"Broooo!..." The Prince exclaimed in utmost wonder. "... h..how did you do it?"
"I'll explain on the road! " Noname responded as he excitedly led the way.
"Please do! If we possibly come across a bear on the way, then it would be a better experience since the teaching would be more practical and realistic!"
"What!... do you want me to die!.... I need some prep time first!" Noname exclaimed.
"Ha ha... I was just joking..." The prince responded humorously. "...Besides, I already noticed that you probably weren't out here today for any wild purpose.... your braid tells everything." The prince said, holding back his laughter at his brother's braided hair.
"Oh, these... They were done by Lady chan."
"Oh!... got to admit, they're funny though... Speaking of Lady Chan, how is she and our baby brother?"
"They are all well-to-do... I mean, since they are the only family I've got, I have to give it my all in taking care of them, especially since Lady Chan won't be here forever; old age will be knocking on her door any time soon, even though her physical appearance remains glamorous as ever!"
"I can't wait to see them!" The Prince said excitedly.
" Weeelll, we aren't headed home right now!"
"Huh?"
"Yeah, there's a lake nearby that extends into a river. I would like us to discuss more while we sail around."
"... A..Are you talking about the Royal Blood Lake?!" The Prince enquired with uncertainty.
"Yes!" Noname replied with a rather contrasting certainty.
"Don't you think it might be... dangerous?" This question was thrown, with a fearful gaze, at Noname.
"Ha ha, don't be a silly head, I have been swimming in that lake for years now, and i'm still alive. Whoever added the word 'Blood' to the lake's name might have just been humorously trying to sound horror at that point in time!"
" Okay.... if you say so." The Prince responded with an even more intensified fearful expression, his instincts were holding him back, but he just couldn't resist his brother's request, not at this crucial point in time. Noname felt the uneasiness around his brother, so he came up with a divergent question to take his mind off his worries and keep them a bit busy on the road.
"So tell me, have you made any recent laws lately?"
"What?" The Prince asked as he didn't seem to understand what his brother was talking about.
"Don't tell me you've forgotten so soon!.....your laws of mischief and all that..."
"Ohh .... ^So he still remembers that up till now?^ .... About that....!"
"Hang on!..." Noname interrupted, holding up his index finger in the air. "....you didn't tell me about the first law of mischief...I'd like to know about that one!"
"Weeeell ...." The Prince scratched his head, trying hard to remember. ".... if I can still remember.... it's something that has to do with my own definition of mischief!" He said and immediately snapped his fingers—
"..... Aha, that's it...
..... Fuku's first law of mischief states: 'When an individual's wisdom is employed for personal gain, the observed risk imposed on others is directly proportional to the amount of mischief!...
....well, something of that sort..!"
"Wow...". Noname exclaimed in genuine surprise. ".... that's....a law!..... What about the third law?" He asked stroking his chin.
"....I don't know... it's not like I've had the enthusiasm to do anything mischief-related ever since you left!". His fairly happy mood, which Noname had instigated, once again switched back to an unenthusiastic expression. "..... Perhaps you could assign a third law!" He added.
Noname noticed a sudden change in his mood and realised that his own absence in the palace had left a big empty space in the prince's life. This void, as it seemed, was so personal that no one else could fill it. Noname understood that their separation had changed something forever, leaving a little hole that MIGHT never be closed. He quickly resorted to answering his question in a rather contrastingly happy manner.
"I'm not really good at these theory stuffs but since the ball is now in my court, I would say....
...The third law of mischief:
'The grandest mischief is that which is imposed by nature itself, as long as 'FATE' remains constant! "
...Noname expected a reply from his brother but surprisingly got none; the Prince, instead, remained silent on hearing Noname's words. "... aren't you going to commend me?" Noname inquired.
"Brother?!...". The Prince asked. "...was that law a bear? Because... you killed it!"
Noname understood that his brother meant a compliment, so he responded, saying—
"Ahhh, what can I say! Fate in collaboration with nature has taught me a lot of things..... Speaking of nature, we're almost at the lake!"
They walked a short distance and finally got to the lake.
" Brother!..." the prince called out to Noname. "...The sun has almost set, and Look! I can see what seems to be thunder clouds!"
"Don't worry; we'll be back before the rain starts. Besides, the thunder clouds are still far up ahead." Noname told his brother in assurance. They then got on a small boat, which was one of Noname's craft, and sailed off. (It took Noname approximately one year to make the boat, even though it was made from scratch ☻)
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The 'Royal Blood Lake' was no ordinary lake; It extended into a river, acting as a source!,...yet it never ran dry!. The source from which the lake was replenished was a mystery that no one knew ... Although, some say that its source was from an underground channel, but the lake, being extraordinarily too deep, could not let that fact be confirmed. What also marvelled people was the fact that the river from the lake flowed with a tremendous velocity, but the lake itself was always calm on a normal day. Surprisingly, the only people who knew the very much that needed to be known about the lake were the King, the council, and, by a means best known to her, Lady Chan!
◇ ◇ ◇
There was a moment of silence on the boat as they got farther away from land, not until the silence was broken by Noname, who was already covered in his brother's silk cloak.
"Tell me brother, what is it like to be a crowned prince?"
'^What?... ^' ... The Prince thought, not initially understanding why Noname asked...
'^why would he ask such a question?.... but to think of it, if I were to be in his shoes, and something that was supposed to be shared between the both of us was limited to him alone, not having the opportunity to know what it's like might prompt me to ask how it feels.^'
So then the prince answered—
"It's good, It's really good ... I mean, I can have anything I wish for; I don't work hard for anything because almost everything has already been prepared for me. I'm safe, and my future is certain and as well secure...
Being a crowned prince is even better, as you have the ability to command – Tell one GO, and he goes... tell another COME, and he comes.
That is what I, at least, know being a prince is all about.... Except that personally, I'm not really enjoying the palace anymore...
Ever since Dad hit me, I've always had a feeling of hatred towards him; his presence alone irritates me... Sometimes, I wish he would just die!"
"Woah, woah, you really have a barrel full of grudges that I don't know about!"
"Please don't get me wrong brother... Not that I'm that of an unforgiver, but... the very fact that he didn't forgive you, even though you did nothing, still bites my emotions... and until he does, I'll never forgive him too - Mercy is reciprocated with mercy!"
After the prince's speech, another moment of silence arose, after which the prince, this time, broke it with an unexpected question, similar to the energy of his brother's own question...
"W..w....what is it like to be cursed?!"
This very question made Noname give a quick stare at his brother.
"Sorry if I triggered your anger, please forgive me." the Prince instantly pleaded politely.
"It's okay. There's no problem...
...Even if I don't want to answer, you're the Crowned Prince, You can command me to speak... and I'll have no choice but to speak!"
'^Why is he talking like this?...' The now confused prince pondered to himself at his brother's response. '... Is he..... still mad at me?^'