A Kingdom Ablaze: Last Man Standing

I

Proximus is my name. You can call me Proxy for short.

Right now, this kingdom is in a limbo of sorts. The king has recently not attended any important events. This has been happening for the past year.

As I reflected on this thought, one of the pages in my empty books ripped itself out and rolled into a scroll.
I stopped writing my letter, grabbed the scroll, and unrolled it.

"A long time is a good time,
Yet my failing health wants me to go.
Today, I say goodbye as king.
A queen shall be crowned tomorrow."

You see, I am the type of guy to not accept change. This man's been king for thirty-two years and today it comes to an end. He's been good to the people and good at managing magic.

I did not react well to this news. I felt like I was going to faint. So, I rushed to my bedroom to take a rest. It was already turning night anyways.

*

I woke up to the sun shining through my bedroom window. The first thing I noticed is that my bedroom lantern has run out of fuel. I sighed. I forgot to extinguish the lanterns throughout my house. Perhaps clean your house before you rest.

Anyways. I grabbed my glasses and put them on. The surroundings cleared. I put on my slippers, and I spent the next few minutes arranging my bed.

Done. I then walked to my window and spent more minutes becoming one with nature. The sun was there to say "Hello!". Once I left my bedroom with my lantern, I sighed again. I forgot to clean my entire house. The dishes weren't washed, my desk wasn't cleaned, all the lanterns are extinguished, and when I looked back at my bedroom, the wardrobe is a mess.

That's when I noticed it. A piece of paper. Very curious, I picked it up and read it. Then I remembered. I dropped the scroll last night when I was going to sleep. I noticed another thing. An envelope. I realized this envelope was part of the scroll. This envelope only had one symbol in it: a crown. I decided to open it and read the letter inside.

"You have been invited
to the coronation of Queen Ciara
Of our great Kingdom of Wold

Green Top at 2.00 pm

Long Live Her Majesty!"

By the way, did you know that it was King Prometheus himself who came up with the name? Wold means "wide and old". A lot of the people liked the name, so it stays.

I realized I woke up very early. I still have 7 hours to prepare myself and go to this event. I decided to take a bath early.

Once I'm out of the bath, I went to the kitchen to cook myself a meal. Once I ate my meal, I took a rest.

5 hours later...

My pocket watch reads noon. Time to prepare. I rushed to my wardrobe and picked the best suit I can craft. Craft? I'm also the type of guy to be creative and colorful with my suits. I'll just pick one random suit and then pair it with other suits. After 5 minutes, I found the perfect suit. A purple beret and shirt, a brown coat, and a green kilt. It looks truly perfect.

In my bedroom lies a mirror and it's next to my wardrobe. I smiled at how I looked. Another chance to look at my dark red eyes. Next, I prepared my bag. Another 5 minutes is all it took. The only things I needed are my eyeglass wipes, a bottle of water, a book which contains paper, a pen, and a handkerchief.

Next, I brushed my teeth. Quite simple enough. I had one last look at all the rooms in my house to make sure they were all clean. I went ahead and picked up the envelope with the crown symbol just in case it was needed.

Out of my house, I go. Another time to be one with nature. I'm glad to choose a plot surrounded by trees, a mountain, and a stream of water for my house. I had to wait for my friend Thomas and my distant relative John.

10 minutes later, they arrive in a horse-drawn carriage driven by John. He treated horses like family and like friends. Anyways, they pulled up about maybe 2 meters away from me.

"What's going on, rocks?"

"I'm very well, John."

"You look fancy today."

"Yeah. My quirky side is showing."

Thomas then exited the carriage, went up to me, and shook my hand. We had some greetings. He asked me if I'm ready. I said "yes" indeed. He then gave this smile as if he was stalking me with the utmost obsession. I didn't think much of it.

We're now in the carriage and John started driving the carriage to town. John asked how my life was lately. We had some replies here and there. Then Thomas directed our attention towards the main event of the afternoon. We three started talking about how the former princess would handle this responsibility. Remember, she is Queen.

John then said that she looks fit for the job and seems innocent. Thomas all of a sudden made that smile again. I knew because I was sightseeing. My eyes happened to direct my attention to him.

Around 30 minutes into the drive, the carriage arrived in town. Yes. My house is that obscure.

After another 10 minutes of driving, we eventually come across nature again. After another 45 minutes, we arrive at Green Top. Let me describe this place.

It's a mountain. Yes. Yet this mountain is not what it seems. There is an entrance that leads us to the inside of the mountain. Inside is a very great scene, similar to being inside a cathedral. Before we can take in its beauty, a man stops us. He's an equerry dressed in a guard's clothing. He asks us.

"Do you have your tickets?"

There was only one thing I can do. I looked inside the envelope and indeed there was a ticket. The three of us gave our tickets to the equerry and all was easy. He led us to our seats. This guy seems nice, I must say.

We chilled in our seats. A few minutes pass and more people came to their seats. One of these people stood out as interesting. This person sat next to me.

"Hello, Proximus."

"Hello, friend."

"You're not going to believe this."

"What is it?"

"Do not trust her!"

Her? Who's her? She isn't referring to the Queen. Could it be her?

I shrugged her beliefs off and told her to give the Queen a chance. It is her first day, and she's adjusting to the new position. My friend Louis even dared to wear black to this event.

You see, Louis is a clairvoyant. She can see the kingdom in its distant future. If she is starting to shiver, she wants to say something. And so, when she told me to not trust "her", I already expected it to happen.

Louis, John, Thomas, and I continued to chat for the next few minutes. After what seemed like forever, more people continued to show up. Then we heard it.

It was a loud crash that shook the floor. We all knew what that meant. The entrance to Green Top has been closed by falling boulders. Then we heard a bell toll. Its sound shook the walls. Then organs started playing.

All stood up as a group of noblemen and noblewomen entered. Then three people entered. Among them is the Queen. The crowd clapped. Yet all four of us noticed that one of these three people is the equerry man. It turns out he is a personal assistant to her.

The Queen is a rather innocent person just like what John said. She has a serious face throughout the whole event. She has this signature brunette braided hair and black eyes that Louis said, "is as dark as night". She also looks quite young, maybe in her late 20s.

So, how was the coronation? I will not bother you with exact details, but I can spoil you with the important stuff. I can say that when the crown touched her head, the whole room cheered. The bell inside Green Top rang again, this time throughout the day as I would later learn. The whole event lasted an hour.

After the coronation, the boulders in the entrance of Green Top were taken away so all of us can exit. We all talked about how the kingdom can prepare for a new era. We did that until we arrived at the horse-drawn carriage. Louis goes for the front seat of the carriage while Thomas and I stay in the back seats. John drives the carriage.

Minutes later, Louis and Thomas were the first to get off. John and I talked about how beautiful the streets were and how development has shaped the city for its best future.

We then drove back to the hill where after retracing the way, I arrived at my house. Before he let me go, he told me one last thing.

"You need to start preparing, Proximus. It is just the beginning."