Nearly ten years ago, life was simpler, but still very plicated. The people recovered from the rebellion, but the mark it left remained easily felt. It was somethialked about and people wished to ig more often. Life had stability again. They were fortable with their situation.

  Deep ihe marble and stone struct of the pace, a young voice screamed in pain. It was loud and pierg, threatening the very stone. Such stone was old and proud, unwilling to bend to the childishness ing from the voice, even if it pai.

  “I ’t take this anymore!” she voice, once more. They threhat they held and jumped up from the marble floor. “It doesn’t make any sense!”

  Across the rge chamber from them, an aging man stood with a full head of gray hair. He leaned forward and began marg in sileowards them. His features hardened with wrinkles making his expression more severe. Only a meter away, his feet stopped o the two things they threw. Loosely staring dowowered over them. “Pick it back up,” he ordered, in a grave tone.

  “But it’s too hard!”

  “Your lesson is not over until I say it is.” He started to lift his hand in a slow a. “I said, pick it up.”

  They whimpered a little uhe booming voibsp; It made him shrink away. “But you said I could stop whenever.”

  “Did you really think I would let you just quit?” His presence grew worse, darkening out much of his fabsp; Only his eyes remained visible to them.

  Tears formed in their eyes. They wao look away, but couldn’t turn. Something seemed to pel them to stay fixed on his eyes. It was as though being swallowed up by something cold and dark. Emptiness poured out into a deep endless void. “I’m really scared!” they cried, tears p down their face.

  All the tension popped in a sed, along with the shadow c him. “I’m so sorry, my dear!” He k down quickly, hugging her. She ed her tiny arms around his neck g into his shoulder. “It’s alright, Eudokia. Daddy will stop.”

  “Daddy’s too scary! Your face was really creepy!”

  Eudokia’s ho words pierced his heart, deeply turning his face blue. “Creepy,” he muttered. Hearing his daughter call him creepy made him want to cry.

  Chapter 200 – Rewind 2

  Once all of the emotioled down, the two sat on the floor. He handed over the things she dropped. Eudokia still didn’t uand them. “Why do we have to do something so hard? I thought you were going to teach me how to use my power, Daddy.”

  “These are part of your lessons as well, dear.” He patted her on the head. A warm smile grew across his fabsp; “I taught you all of the basics, but to advance you o grow a strong foundation.”

  “But how does logic games and number puzzles help?”

  He pointed down at the puzzle she tried to plete. Numbers suddenly appeared on the paper pleting the puzzle in mere moments, that Eudokia struggled with for what seemed like hours. “It’s not about solving the puzzle. It’s about holding the information in your head. That’s why I’m not allowing you to write any notes on the paper. You o keep it all in your head and always remember it. It is important with our power to be able to always know where everything is and what it is or else it ’t exist.”

  Eudokia o him. “I know that already, Daddy. I was meaning why these, the academy doesn’t used Sudoku for training.”

  Her father looked a little surprised to hear such a response. “How do you know what the academy uses for these exercises?”

  “Demmy showed me! I asked him after the st lesson.”

  He sighed at the thought of having been undermined. “I ’t believe him. He’s too ventional at times. It’s true that the academy has differehods for this and they’ve had millennia to refi, but it’s not always about doing what’s well tested.” The man o himself, it felt a little weak the way he backed up his words.

  She tilted her head to her side, a little fused by her father’s response. “Huh? Is it because you like Japan?”

  The question turned his face red in an instant. “What are you talking about, Eudokia?” Denial clearly colored his expression.

  “You don’t?” Her head leaned a little more. “But I saw Daddy pying and looking really excited in his closet.”

  Jumping up, he realized he was ered by his own daughter. She discovered his secret, that he thought he kept well hidden from everyone. “When did you?”

  “A while ago,” she answered quickly. Eudokia didn’t uand why he acted sely. “Daddy looked like he was having fun. You always have a sad look on your face, so I thought you liked it. Am I wrong?”

  She pletely disarmed him, but it was i and ear. He sighed and patted her on her head. “You’re n, dear.” He smiled a little for her. ‘I didn’t realize she noticed. I guess I ’t hide my emotions as well as I thought. I’ll have to try to remember to smile a little more for her sake.’

  A heavy knock came to the door. It rang out in a particur manner. Both of them seemed to know immediately who it was, as their expression ged. Eudokia jumped up, getting very excited suddenly. She rahe rge stone doors as they slowly opened. “Demmy!” Eudokia shouted enthusiastically.

  He looked down at Eudokia, a bit of a wriered his eyebrow. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much time to reabsp; She already leapt up and climbed up the tall man. “Lady Eudokia,” he uttered carefully.

  Eudokia pouted from her per his shoulder. “I told you not to call me that, Demmy! How many times do you have to keep telling you?”

  “Until you stop giving me niames, Lady Eudokia.”

  She crossed her hands in a huff, resistant to his request. “Demmy’s being a meanie.”

  He sighed to himself. Stepping into the room, he approached the ter where Eudokia left her father. “Your Majesty.” He straightened himself up in the presence of his King.

  The King’s faarrowed a little, uanding the difference of their stations. “Demosthenes, you had a safe travel?”

  “Yes, Majesty.”

  “Hey, no serious talk!” Eudokia leaned in, using her arm ed out arouhenes’ neck for support, to get iweewo. “Demmy just got back, Daddy!” She carried a rough look with puffed cheeks that only a child could pull off.

  “I’m sorry, dear. You ty shortly, but we o talk for a minute, alright?” He patted her on the head to fort her. She gred a little at him, doubting his words. “I won’t steal your time. I bet he brought you a souvenir back from his trip, right?”

  “Did you really, Demmy?” Eudokia’s eyes perked up immediately. She turned her attentioo Demosthenes in anticipation.

  The pace of the two was a little difficult for him to keep up with, even though he was used to it. Demosthenes dug out of his pocket a small box ed up carefully. He prese to Eudokia. “It’s popur currently in Japan I’m told.”

  She accepted the gift. “Will you py with me after you’re doalking?” Her eyes darted between the box ahenes. Aed glow of curiosity filled her eyes. She desperately wao know what was inside, but she had to be sure.

  “I will.”

  “Promise?”

  “Promise.” The warm smile on the young child’s face made Demosthenes grin a little. He lowered her down to the ground, allowio run off. Once she was far enough away, he turned back to his King. The old man was already oher side of him w to the doorway. “Majesty.”

  “Eudokia seems to have grown very fond of you retly, Demosthenes,” he ented, as they walked slowly.

  Gng at his King, Demosthenes read the se, while responding. “I just wish she’d call me my name.”

  The King ughed a little hearihenes pin about his daughter’s whims. “It’s an improvement over her st one, Demon.”

  “I guess, your Majesty.” He did have to agree with the man. The st name made Demosthenes feel a little self-scious. He wasn’t sure if it had a source, as Eudokia never gave him a reason. She only called him by it for the st few months in the same cheerful tone. It made it difficult for him to know if she was afraid of him. Demosthenes wasn’t blind to the impression others had on him, being too serious.

  “Still, getting more excited to see you over her own father,” he muttered. There was a hint of him pouting a little, strange for someone ruling a kingdom.

  It wasn’t something he was really pleased with, but Eudokia’s nature made it difficult to just ignore her. “It’s only because you’ve gotten stri your training with her.”

  “Because you haven’t been as tough as you o be her. I tehe academy, but I know about what happens in there. I ’t do anything about the prejudice, but I prepare her for the challenges she’ll fabsp; It’s my duty as her father to make sure she’s able to survive. Even if she doesn’t uand the reasht now.”

  Demosthenes nodded in agreement. It was somethiried to mirror in his training with her, but it was difficult somehow. “I know…” He didn’t uand how the King could ma. There was something about Eudokia that Demosthenes couldn’t get past. The threshold of the room was finally behind them. He drew the doors closed.

  When the clear ring of the sealed doors sang out through the hall, the King leaned against the wall. He broke out into a sudden fit of coughing that he didn’t seem to be able to stop. Mere moments passed, but he looked even older than before. Sweat covered his face.

  “Your Majesty!” Demosthenes shouted, as he went to help. It eventually calmed down, but he looked worse from the experienbsp; He helped his King through the hall and to a nearby baly. The King alreferred the fresh air and sight of Atntis. It seemed to calm him down. “It’s getting worse, isn’t it?”

  He took a deep breath in before replying. “It just seems that way. I keep it all back with my power when I’m with her. So it just built up.” It ainful, but he did feel better at least. Out of the er of his eye, he caught Demosthenes looking at him. He khe look he gave him. “Don’t look at me like that, old friend. We both knew how things would end. More importantly, your report.”

  It was back to business. “Yes, your Majesty. I delivered yift as you requested.”

  “That’s good,” he said, a little grin came across his lips. “The seal will remain in pce for another few years. How is he doing?”

  “He’s very lively and spirited.” “I’m gd. It was the right decision to leave him with Tomiko and Isamu. They’ll be able to give him a happy, peaceful life away from all of the threats here in Atntis. I only imagine what those old men would do if they knew of him. I have too many enemies.” He stared off at the towers popping up throughout the deructures of the capital. The white stone of the city masked the darkness in an aura of majestider too easily seen as purity. He knew how dirty the storuly was, such things weren’t suitable enviros frowing up. “Speaking of enemies. What are they up to?”

  “I put a stop to aeam. They still look to be ied in him, despite their failures. However, they have given up for n to recapture him, but they are monit him.”

  A grim expression appeared on his fabsp; “I fear Japan may be no safer than Atntis for him, but they at least won’t want him dead.” His eyes stared off to the horizon. “Though they only want him because they tio fail without him.”

  Demosthenes agreed with him. He didn’t have the intimate uanding of the people as the King did, but he had seen enough to know how they would absp; “They are patient. I believe they’ll keep trying. There is something driving them.”

  “It’s true. They are quite desperate, but they’ve been at this for a very long time. So a few years won’t mean a lot to them.” The King turned away from the baly to look at Demosthenes. “Promise me, old friend. Watch over him. Protect him until the day es.”

  “Your Majesty!” Demosthenes spoke with some surprise in his voibsp; The tone of his words made it seem like a final request. “You’ll see him again! You’ll be able to expihing to him then!”

  He dropped a hand ohenes’ shoulder. “It’s fine. I’m dying and I don’t know how long I’ll st. I’ll hold out as long as I until he bees an adult and I tell him everything. He at least deserves a happy childhood before learning the truth. However, if I don’t make it. I entrust my will to you. He’ll o know the truth.”

  Demostheared at his King for a while. He heard the words, but felt uo say anything. It was important to him. Everything they worked for had to succeed. Demosthenes uood the grave situatioood within. “I promise, your Majesty! He’ll be the oo save Atntis.”

  “Thanks, old friend…” Trailing off, his voice seemed to weaken at the end. His eyes closed almost as if something relieved him of a great pressure. The stress disappeared from his eyes. Silence filled the baly until it became awkward. Demostheretched out to touch him. “Oh and try to learn to be a little less rigid. No one likes a sti the mud.”

  A fttened and slightly annoyed expression painted Demosthenes’ fabsp; He made him worry for nothing. “I’ll try.”