The Story of Dhanvanthri

five

The Lonely Prince

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The door was slammed open, in walked a frighteningly familiar young man. With cold, blue eyes and pale blond hair that had the slightest bit of curl to it. He strode into the conference room with confidence like none other. He was an Emperor, and the whole table knew it. It was a silent declaration he had made, entering into the place and taking a seat directly across a man who could be his clone.

"Presenting, Emperor of Trunia Empire." The knight by his side proclaimed. "Dhanvanthri de Alger Obelia."

"Hello, father." The man smiled sharply. His hands were smooth as they tapped away on the table. "Good evening, shall we begin the meeting? Terribly sorry for my late return."

This was Dhanvanthri, the brother of Athanasia. He should've been the crowned prince but was abandoned as a child when he was kidnapped. Such a poor boy, growing up alone, it was a lonely life for the prince.

"Impossible." Someone muttered.

Dhanvanthri spared them no regards, immediately moving forward to discuss the items beforehand. "Trunia and Obelia's peace contract is expiring soon. I'm here to discuss the matter of whether or not we will renew it. If we renew the peace treaty, I will be drafting up a new contract to propose with."

"Nonsense!" Someone stood up. "The Trunia and Obelia peace treaty has been set in stone for centuries!"

"Is that so? I don't care." Dhanvanthri stated bluntly. "I'm the Emperor of the country, my word is the law. Frankly, the contract is outright barbaric with Trunia on a significantly less beneficial ratio. If you don't agree with the new proposal, it's simple."

"We go to war." He declared thunderously, voice steeled with frost as he glared down at the men at the table. "Shall we see once more, who is more powerful between Obelia and Trunia? Our Emperor proposed a treaty centuries ago for he longed for peace."

"Hand in the proposal first," Claude finally spoke. Dhanvanthri gestured for his knight, who stepped forward and placed a file onto the table. He pushed it over, tossing it as if it was something as insignificant as the dirt beneath his feet.

Claude flipped it open, with a raised brow, "You're demanding fixed trades. The rates are fixed as well."

"Of course," Dhanvanthri hummed. "We have been in a fixed trades business for centuries, but I have discovered a disgusting thing. Your trades may be fixed but your rates sure do fluctuate a lot. Tell me, do Obelia face inflation once every three months? You must be despairing in poverty right now, then."

"How dare you slander-!"

The knight by his side was instantly alerted, ready to draw his sword. Dhanvanthri pushed him down, jerking him to move back. Obediently, the knight followed as ordered. He took three steps back and remained still, no sign of his sword being drawn.

"Hush," Dhanvanthri smiled at the man who had protested. "The grown-ups are talking. Be silent, mutt."

It was like cold water had poured over everyone. The protester, in particular, felt akin to a leashed animal. His voice wouldn't and refused to reappear no matter how hard he tried, cold sweat began trickling down his spine.

"Slander, slander, slander," Dhanvanthri made a 'tsk' sound. "You speak without knowing the facts. Your tax demands from us, to continue proposing a peace treaty, have been steadily rising by 0.2% once every two weeks. Do you think us Trunian are fools?"

"Noah," Dhanvanthri called out. The knight beside him, Noah, stepped forward ready to receive any orders. Dhanvanthri held out his hand, "Hand me the purple document."

"Yes, your majesty." Noah nodded. He stepped out of the conference hall for a moment before returning shortly after, a scrolled up parchment with purple ribbon in his hand. It was placed down on Dhanvanthri's hand before Noah stepped back once more.

"Do you know what this is?" He asked the participants with what should be a pleasant smile but only terrified them all the more. Only Claude was unaffected, staring down at Dhanvanthri will equal iciness.

"What is it?" Duke Alpheus demanded.

"Dogs do love barking, don't they?" Dhanvanthri asked aloud, rhetorically, with a mocking tone. He dropped the parchment on the table and unrolled it, revealing paragraphs of data. "This is the accumulation of taxed goods we have been forced to sign by Obelia for the past sixty years. Shall I take this as a breach of contract?"

"Or will you repay me with compensation?" Dhanvanthri grinned bloodthirstily.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The knock on the door broke the silence in the room. Dhanvanthri's bloodlust dropped and his face returned to a stony look. Noah was instantly on guard, stepping forward to be by the Trunia Emperor's side. Dhanvanthri waved him down as the door slowly opened to reveal a brunette, beautiful and possessing sparkling, jewelled blue eyes.

"Jennette," Claude called out. "You're late."

"Father!" Jennette smiled. Then, she turned to look at Dhanvanthri. Jewelled blue eyes met one another and Jennette was shocked. Dhanvanthri paused, staring at the girl as if she was an insect beneath his feet before looking away.

He thinks, 'The girl reeks of foreign dark magic.'

"My apologies for my tardiness," Jennette bowed towards Dhanvanthri, the obvious guest of 'honour'. "It was not my intention to arrive this late. Might I ask whom our guest is?"

"You may not," Dhanvanthri responded curtly. He turned back to the meeting, "I have little time to continue arguing with you dogs. Do return our proposal, signed, within a months' time. If Obelia does not respond as so, I take it as you're declaring war against Trunia and will respond in kind."

Dhanvanthri stood up and turned away, glaring down at Jennette for a split second before chuckling. Once he was out of the room, he whispered aloud, to Noah, "That girl reeks of dark magic."

"Your Majesty," Noah nodded. "She is your sister?"

Dhanvanthri chuckled darkly. "Oh no, that's no sister of mine. That thing is a creature."

"Request for a meeting with the Magician of the Tower, Noah," Dhanvanthri ordered soon after. "It seems that there are so many rats licking the alleys of this Empire. Then again, with a disgusting ruler like Claude, it is to be expected."

Noah bowed. "Yes, your Majesty."

- Lonely Emperor; Chapter 17 'The Reunion'

And Athanasia woke up, clutching her head that was hurting. She couldn't remember what her dream was, but it felt important. Soon, she felt drowsy once more and fell back asleep.

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A/N: Wahoo! Thoughts?