Kings On The Horizon (Vol. 7-9)

296 | Guilty

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"SORRY ABOUT THE LEG," Max begins, lying on the clinic bed while River, Marcus, Hans, and the rest of the leaders and right-hand men surround him. "My strategy was mostly to hide and run, but you hit my stomach with a metal pipe so I got serious and ended up hitting you back, which I now realize was a pretty shitty move."

     "There's no reason for you to apologize. I'm not as good with battles since my twin was the one who would fight for us in the past, so I already expected that I wouldn't be as strong or as agile as Charles and the others," River explains to him. "Besides, I just sprained my ankle when I fell. No big deal. You, on the other hand..." River pauses and gestures at the patches found all over Max's body that are covering the purple bruises on his skin. 

     Max was chased, hit, and slammed against the rail of a metal ladder. It's a miracle that he's still awake after drinking all those painkillers the doctor gave him earlier.

     "But still–"

     "We're going to have a meeting during lunch break. We'll wait for you at the greenhouse when you're ready," Hans interrupts before Max apologizes to them again. "There's also something my brotherhoods would want to tell you regarding your proposal. I hope you can understand our concerns with an open mind."

    "Of course. Thank you for even considering it, Hans," Max says, still bowing his head to the prince despite the pain in his back.

     "We should give Max some time to rest now," Marcus then says, but Max shakes his head and sits up from the bed, Brave and Arjun immediately assisting him.

     "No, it's fine. I can still go to class," Max insisted. His protectors were about to protest, but then Max added, "It's been a while since I've seen my friends, so I want to go to class. I hope you understand my sentiments."

     "Max, we just want you to–"

      "You're not going to be able to stop him. You know that, right?" CJ then tells Krist while sitting on the edge of Max's bed.

     "Well, let us at least assist you to your classroom," Krist suggested, but Max was already standing from the bed by himself, ignoring everyone who was trying to help him.

     "A guard unit is already on my tail 24/7. I'd rather not be restricted like this while I'm in J.S High," Max explained, and all they could do was sigh at how stubborn Max was. They know Max enough to not pity him. They wouldn't have gone full out earlier if they thought Max was weak. But despite all that, everyone couldn't help but be worried.

     "I seriously think you should rest for a couple of hours," Hans said to him.

     "I told you, I'm fine," Max responds again. Master Joker was about to discourage him, but Brave swooped in and blocked their leader so he could no longer stop the young heir.

     "Ignore them, Max. They just miss you and want your attention, so go ahead and take your leave," Brave then revealed, making the leaders glare at him.

     "Don't want to admit this, but Brave is right. Just head to your class. You wouldn't want to be late on your first day back, right?" Marcus then agrees like the big brother that he is, and Max smiles, nodding his head as he finally walks to the exit, the rest of his protectors just watching him as he tries his best to walk a straight line.

     As soon as the door closed, everyone looked at Marcus with disbelief. They couldn't believe Marcus just let Max go like that when he needed to stay in bed for a couple more hours.

     "You're seriously too nice to your brother," Anthony tells him while chewing on gum.

     "I know, but let him have his way for the time being. That kid has been through so much in St. George Academy, so at least let him see his friends," Marcus tells everyone, and no one argues with him anymore. After all, they'd rather be a black uniform in the House of Pawns than and serf in the House of Bishops. They know how tough it was. Max did a pretty good job surviving that long and even saving the darn school in the process.