The Knight

Chapter Five

Phil eyed the heaping mound of pancakes on the table, letting the comforting smell of honey and toast sweep through his nose. In front of the royal family lay a delectable display of berries, sweet cream, baked goods, teas, and everything else that made Phil's mouth water. Unfortunately for him, Phil couldn't indulge in the delicious goods, no matter how wonderful they looked.

He currently stood guard at the entrance of the dining hall, watching the royal family eat to their heart's content. He knew he was on duty, but the amazing smells made it hard not to pull up a chair next to them and dig in.

Luckily he had Johanna at his side, as she was accompanying Daniel as usual, standing nearby in case the young prince needed anything. She stood silently next to Phil, listening quietly to the nearby conversation.

At the table, King Marcus and Prince Adrian were talking quickly to each other, thoughts and debates shooting to each other like darts, but Phil was more focused on the smallest member of the royal line.

Prince Daniel sat quietly, eyes softly fluttering open and shut like butterfly wings, willing himself to stay awake. The sun peeking in through the sheer curtains seemed to do little to wake his heavy head, and his sweater was spilling over his hands and torso like a blanket, almost daring him to curl up and fall asleep in it.

Phil knew of course that Daniel hadn't slept well the previous night. Playing piano into the early hours of the morning certainly would hinder anyone from feeling particularly ebullient, but The Prince looked like he was struggling to even lift a fork to his mouth.

Despite his worry, Phil decided to focus his thoughts on the King and elder prince's conversation. Their tones were getting more exasperated and Phil was intrigued.

"Listen son, I didn't tell you because it wasn't worth getting you worked up about something so insignificant. No one was hurt and the civil military force handled it with haste; there is no more discussion to be had about the matter!" The King insisted, rubbing his aging temples with his thumbs.

Prince Adrian looked irritated at the other end of the table as he argued back.

"Insignificant? How on earth is a rebel ambush insignificant? I understand that no one was hurt but it's still a threat to the monarchy! You didn't even alert the palace guards! What if something were to happen?"

"The attack was two towns over! If it was a serious threat they would have come directly to the palace instead of wasting their time on burning a townhouse. Everyone is safe and that is all that matters. Don't you understand that, Adrian? The rebels already think of us as weak, we can't give them more reasons to believe that." The King said pointedly, willing Adrian to see his point of view.

Phil had figured something like this would happen soon. There had always been small uprisings and riots throughout the kingdom, usually for something simple like people protesting large companies to give their employees better wages, or citizens calling for assistance during the more poverty-stricken months, but this was The Salvation Order, and they were entirely different.

The Salvation Order was a group of rebels fighting to destroy the monarchy, and they were willing to use any kind of violence, fear, or manipulation to get their way. Their main motive was to dismantle the current royal family and replace them, but Phil thought that was completely mindless.

Why would they even consider replacing a perfectly good monarchy for people with no experience? And who would they think to replace them with? Rebels? Anarchy would rain throughout the kingdom to the point where they wouldn't even have citizens to rule over.

The reasoning behind their motivations also never quite made sense to Phil. They voiced that they were angry with the royals due to their lack of prioritizing the preserving the kingdom's longevity. With King Marcus getting older and Prince Adrian seemingly not in a rush to marry, the rebels saw the family as careless.