Avoid The Lead! [[COMPLETED]]

39. The beginning

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It was one of those rare, slow days…

Taze found himself with some unexpected free time and decided to take a stroll through one of the Palace gardens.

The gentle snowfall around him brought a quiet peace, and as the delicate snowflakes drifted down, he couldn’t help but think of Celia.

The clear and cold crisp air felt like her aura, and a soft smile touched his lips as he extended his hand, letting the tiny flakes settle in his palm.

"Your Highness!" A servant's frantic voice shattered the calm. "Aedian is under attack! There's a war in Aedian!"

Taze spun around, his heart jolting. "Under attack? By whom?"

"I-I don’t know, Your Highness! I was simply ordered to summon you to the throne room at once!"

'Summon?' Taze’s brow furrowed as he dusted off the snowflakes from his hand, his mind already racing.

The king typically 'requested' the presence of his closest advisors and family... It was rarely a 'summoning' for them, and the message usually went, "The King requests your presence!" or "The King requires your presence!"

But for Taze, when it was a 'summon,' it often meant one thing: his father was warning him that his character was under doubt and scrutiny.

And today, that could only mean one thing...

They suspected him of being involved in the attack on Aedian!

Wasting no time, Taze disappeared and appeared right in front of the throne room doors, but paused the instant his foot crossed into the doors.

However, he fully stepped in a split second later, careful to maintain his composure.

The atmosphere inside the throne room was thick with unease.

Nobles and mages lined the walls, their expressions a mix of shock, disbelief, and thinly veiled fear.

A few, however, showed a flicker of support, and Lord Scarlett, Grand Mage Sidian, and the other High mages from their group, all offered him a small, reassuring nod.

Taze bowed deeply. "Your son greets you, Father."

King Vien's expression was solemn as he nodded and waved for Taze to sit.

"Grand Mage Patiel, the Crown Prince is here," King Vien began, his voice even but heavy with tension. "Show us again what happened in Aedian."

Grand Mage Patiel smiled... a broad, almost too-friendly smile that made the hairs on the back of Taze's neck stand on end.

This was what had made him hesitate at the doors. An unsettling aura surrounded the elderly mage. A familiar but wrong aura.

'He's not Grand Mage Patiel!' Taze realized, careful not to give anything away with his expression. One quick glance at Grand Mage Sidian confirmed he was not the only one who had felt it.

The elderly mage waved a hand, and a pictorial orb materialized, similar to the one Arch Grand Mage Soren had used to reveal Taze's life in Elfsworth. But this orb presented a much grimmer sight.

As the visions unfolded, they watched as dark mages descended upon Aedian, wreaking havoc.

Aedian was one of Luxia's central cities, and it was the second richest city, second only to the Capital, Blixia.

It was a bustling trade hub, with a government and military that King Vien personally ensured were always up to par.

And the military was indeed up to par...