Chapter 58: Who is That?

By the time they reached the meeting grounds, the field was already alive with movement.

Knights stood in clusters beneath their respective banners. Different crests gleamed against polished armor.

The Sunward Sentinels’ gold and white.

The Goldflame Order’s burning insignia.

The Dawnward Bloom’s softer, elegant sigil.

Before they could properly step forward and announce themselves, Ezra slowed.

He felt like he needed to say something.

“Your Highness.”

Aurien stopped mid-step and turned back to him. “Yes, Captain Ezra?”

Ezra drew in a steady breath.

’I might regret this,’ he thought.

“I owe you an apology,” he said plainly. “If I ever treated you as though you were weak.”

He paused, then corrected himself. “No. Not if. I did.”

Aurien blinked.

Ezra kept his gaze level. “I will be honest. I was not…particularly fond of you.”

Aurien let out a small chuckle.

The sound caught Ezra off guard. It was not offended. Not cold. Just amused.

That, somehow, made Ezra more flustered than anger would have.

“However,” Ezra continued, pushing through it, “you have grown. And I can say now that you are anything but weak.”

A faint side smile tugged at his lips. Not a full one. Just enough.

It might have been the first genuine smile he had given Aurien.

Aurien’s eyes widened slightly. “That is…quite sudden.”

“I know.” Ezra exhaled softly. “But it felt right. You have been nothing but kind to me. Even when I made it difficult.”

He looked away briefly.

“I should have been grateful that a prince like you wished to befriend me.”

Aurien had made it obvious, over the years.

Ezra had simply pretended not to notice.

Even now, after five years apart, Aurien had approached him with patience instead of resentment.

“I suppose,” Ezra added quietly, “I am trying to be more open.”

The words felt strange leaving his mouth.

’Since when do I explain myself like this?’ he wondered. ’To HIM of all people?’

Aurien smiled, and as expected, a faint flush crept up his cheeks.

That had not changed.

Aurien had always been easily flustered by the smallest compliment.

For years, Ezra had found it odd.

Now, it felt…almost endearing.

“You saved my life, Captain Ezra,” Aurien said softly. “You have always been someone worth admiring. Whether you realize it or not.”

Ezra did not know what to say to that.

“It was unfortunate that this kingdom lost you for five years,” Aurien continued. “But you seem…lighter now. Less burdened.”

’Am I?’ Ezra wondered.

Being back here did not feel light.

It felt complicated.

Heavy in new ways.

But then—

’Lior.’

The image of his son’s bright smile flickered in his mind.

And despite everything, it steadied him.

“The vacation was necessary,” Ezra replied lightly. “Even the coldest of knights require one.”

Aurien laughed. “You can make jokes now?”

“Do not get used to it.”

Aurien’s laughter grew a little warmer.

Ezra felt the corner of his mouth twitch again.

’Now I truly feel guilty for dismissing him all those years,’ he admitted inwardly.

What he expected to be an irritating walk had turned out to be…pleasant.

Informative.

Surprisingly easy.

Unfortunately, they had arrived.

Aurien’s men noticed him immediately. The Goldflame Order straightened at once, shoulders squared, posture rigid.

’Disciplined,’ Ezra observed quietly.

“This has been enjoyable, Captain Ezra,” Aurien said, inclining his head slightly. “We should speak again. For now, I must attend to my knights.”

Ezra bowed properly this time.

Genuinely.

“That would be delightful, Your Highness.”

And he meant it.

Aurien was not what Ezra had assumed.

He was observant. Patient. Far more capable than Ezra had given him credit for.

And, if Ezra was being honest—

He might also be a valuable source of information about everything that had happened during those five years.

’There you go again,’ Ezra scolded himself lightly. ’Turning a decent conversation, and finding ways to insult him.’

Old habits did not disappear overnight.

Still.

As he stepped toward the Sunward Sentinels’ formation, Ezra slowed.

’Eh?’

His foot hovered mid-step.

Something felt…off.

He glanced back at Aurien, almost absentmindedly.

And froze.

’Who is that?’

The prince he had just spoken to, the soft-spoken one who flushed at compliments and laughed easily, was gone.

In his place stood someone else entirely.

Aurien’s posture had straightened. His shoulders were squared, chin lifted just slightly. The warmth in his features had drained away, replaced by something colder. Sharper.

Commanding.

“Where are the others?” Aurien’s voice rang out across the field.

It was not loud for the sake of volume.

It was loud because it carried authority.

Ezra blinked.

’That voice…’

It was deeper. Firmer. No hesitation.

Several of the Goldflame knights stiffened immediately, exchanging uneasy glances. A tall man stepped forward. Broad-shouldered, bearing the crest of captain on his uniform.

“They have not yet arrived, Your Highness,” he said, bowing.

“Zaide,” Aurien replied, exhaling through his nose. “I am disappointed.”

The word alone felt heavier than a shout.

“You left Dawnveil without all your men present? How does that occur?”

Zaide lowered his head further. “My apologies, Your Highness. I assumed we were to arrive individually, not as a full order.”

“How could you assume that?” Aurien snapped.

Ezra felt it.

That shift.

“You are called an order for a reason.”

The reprimand was precise. Not hysterical. Not emotional.

Controlled.

Sharp.

And no one dared speak.

Ezra stared.

’He…he’s not soft at all.’

This was not a spoiled favorite prince hiding behind kindness.

This was someone who had been leading men.

Someone who expected discipline.

“How unfortunate,” Theron Brightshield muttered quietly from beside Ezra, “they’ve awakened the beast.”

“The beast?” Ezra murmured, not taking his eyes off Aurien.

Theron jumped slightly. “C-Captain! I didn’t realize you were—”

“Answer me.”

Theron swallowed. “Prince Aurien has a reputation. Well, I’ve only heard about it through the footmen. He is patient. Very patient. But when he snaps…” He hesitated. “He truly snaps.”

There was weight behind the second word.

Ezra watched as Aurien dismissed Zaide with a curt gesture, already issuing further instructions.

Not once did he raise his voice again.

He did not need to.

’When did that happen?’ Ezra wondered. ’Is this actually real? Or a facade?’

Because the Aurien he remembered had been gentle to a fault.

Easily flustered.

Easily dismissed.

And more or less, a coward who disliked confrontation.

This version?

This version commanded without effort.

Ezra felt something shift inside him.

Not fear.

Respect.

Before he could ask Theron anything else—

“Well, well. We meet again.”

The voice came from behind him.

Lazy.

Familiar.

Infuriating.

Ezra froze.

His eyes twitched.

He bit the inside of his tongue on instinct.

The knights in front of him stiffened immediately, then dropped into bows one after another.

’Oh, fuck,’ Ezra thought.

He did not have to turn to know exactly who stood behind him.

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