"When are we supposed to move?" Ezra asks, a bit more tightly than he meant it to be, as if he was in pain just asking it, like the words themselves were difficult to push out.

Of course, it didn’t go unnoticed by Kaelis, whose eyebrows knitted together slightly as he studied Ezra’s expression.

"I know it might be upsetting, Captain, but it’s for the best." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"I know, Your Highness. You don’t have to patronize me," Ezra says, trying not to snap, his tone controlled but just barely.

’Stop sounding like you understand me,’ Ezra thought, his jaw tightening. ’You don’t.’

Everything was a game to Kaelis.

"I’m not—" Kaelis takes a deep breath, stopping himself before continuing, his voice more grounded now. "You need to move as soon as possible, preferably tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Ezra asks, stunned, the word leaving his mouth before he could soften it.

It felt too fast.

And too sudden.

"Tomorrow," Kaelis confirms, nodding his head without hesitation, as if there was no room for negotiation.

Ezra wanted to fight it.

The thought rose immediately, instinctive, sharp.

He couldn’t even wait to tell Helios that he was moving before he came back?

Helios had to find out once he got back.

That alone—

That alone would cause something.

They were already in an argument.

Tension already hung between them.

Ezra already knew this wouldn’t fare well with Helios.

’He’s going to be pissed,’ Ezra thought, his chest tightening slightly. ’Or worse...he won’t care because of our fight.’

But...

As Ezra glanced at Lior, who seemed to finally understand what was happening, that they were going to move to a safer place, his small face more thoughtful now than confused—

Everything else felt smaller.

Less important.

Ezra had to take a deep breath, steadying himself, forcing the frustration down where it wouldn’t show.

Then he slowly nods his head. "Okay, that works, but..."

"But?" Kaelis asks, watching him closely.

"Can it be after my tea party with Princess Alyce?"

Kaelis’ eyes widened a bit, visibly caught off guard by that.

"You’re having a tea party with Alyce? And I thought you two talking wasn’t surprising enough." He crosses his arms against his chest, his expression shifting into something more curious. "Why is Alyce suddenly interested in you?"

’It’s none of your business,’ Ezra thought, his lips pressing into a thin line before he let out a small sigh instead of saying it out loud.

"He apparently wants help convincing Prince Helios to marry her this year. I’m guessing it’s because they aren’t getting any younger."

The words felt strange leaving his mouth.

He didn’t like saying them.

Didn’t like thinking about it.

Kaelis just laughs, the sound light, almost too amused for the topic, like what he said didn’t carry any real weight.

"Why are you laughing?" Ezra asks, his brows furrowing slightly, his gaze sharpening as he watches him.

"I wish her luck. Helios doesn’t seem like he has any plans to marry her in the next decade, or at all." Kaelis says it like it was a joke, leaning back slightly in his chair, one arm resting lazily against the table, but there was something in the way he said it that made it clear he meant every word.

Ezra didn’t laugh.

Not even a little.

His expression didn’t shift into amusement, didn’t soften, didn’t follow Kaelis’ tone. Instead, something in his eyes hardened, his shoulders straightening slightly as if he had to hold himself in place.

If anything, Ezra got a bit mad.

Almost...defensive.

"Prince Helios wouldn’t do that, and you know that," Ezra says, narrowing his eyes a bit at Kaelis, his voice steadier than he felt, but firmer than before, like he was drawing a line he didn’t want crossed.

Kaelis, in return, just smirks, the kind that didn’t argue, didn’t push, but didn’t back down either.

"Do I know that?" Kaelis asks, tilting his head slightly, studying Ezra like he was trying to understand how far he would go to defend that belief. "The Helios I know doesn’t give his so-called marriage a single thought. When asked, he’d answer he didn’t really want to be bothered by marriage."

He says it plainly, without emphasis, without force, which somehow made it worse.

Ezra’s fingers pressed against the table, the subtle tension in his hand betraying him for a brief second before he relaxed them again.

"You’re exaggerating."

The words came out quickly, almost instinctively, like he didn’t need to think about them before saying them.

Kaelis’s smirk doesn’t fade.

"Am I?" he asks, leaning forward just slightly now, his gaze fixed on Ezra’s face. "What else do you think I’ve exaggerated if you actually think I did?"

Ezra didn’t answer.

His eyes flicked away for a second, not enough to look like avoidance, but enough to break that direct line between them.

His jaw tightened slightly, the silence stretching just long enough to make the question linger.

Because answering that meant going through everything.

Everything he had seen.

Everything he had chosen not to question.

"After everything you’ve seen and heard, not just from me..." Kaelis continues, his voice quieter now, not teasing anymore, his expression shifting into something more serious as he holds Ezra’s gaze again. "...aren’t you exhausted being disappointed?"

The words didn’t sound loud.

But they landed that way.

Ezra’s breath caught just slightly, his chest tightening before he could control it.

His hand stilled completely against the table, the tension in his shoulders no longer subtle.

For a moment, he didn’t move.

Didn’t speak.

His gaze stayed on Kaelis, but it didn’t feel steady anymore, like something underneath it had been shaken.

"I’m–"

Ezra wanted to get mad.

But Kaelis was right to call him out on that...again.

Ezra always seems to forget that his perception of Helios was different than others, but why was it that other people’s perception of Helios felt so...wrong?

It didn’t make sense.

Why was Helios much better with him than with others?

"Where do we start with the investigation?"

Ezra just completely changed the topic.