'Now then, let's see what this is about'
With that thought, Ezra pushed the doors open to the view of an expansive hall with a red carpet laid across it, with the Imperial crest - two swords crossing a shield - sewn onto it with golden thread.
At the end of this carpet stood the throne of the Emperor in all its glory, basking in colors of red and white as it gave off a clear presence.
On this throne was the Emperor, with his hair and beard flowing freely. His visage was covered in dark blue clothing and his head rested on his left palm, expressionless.
Our eyes met the moment I entered.
Standing by his side was the Royal advisor, and beside him was the knight I was all too familiar with. He was most probably the cause of why I had been summoned.
His expression, as well as his eyes, were screaming malice and rage from far away.
I couldn't care less though, because he and I knew that he couldn't touch me. In fact, he didn't dare to express his hostility outwardly as he was in the presence of the Emperor.
The three men seem to have been discussing something, but halted it due to my arrival.
Naturally, as a prince, I had been taught etiquette since I was born.
As I drew close to the Emperor, I went on one knee, lowered my head and gave my greetings.
"Ezra Miller bows to the presence of the Emperor"
Silence.
For the first few seconds, the hall turned as silent as an empty room while I waited for the Emperor's reply.
"Hmm…get up, my son"
I couldn't pinpoint whether his "Hmm" was good or bad, but I got up without delay, raised my head and looked straight at him, or rather, straight in his eyes.
I was not able to discern his thoughts from his face, which was to be expected, but he seemed to not care about my gaze as he began to speak.
"Ezra. I have been getting strange reports these past few days and you have been called to give clarification"
"Of course, your majesty"
"I told you to call me father"
"Forgive me for such blunder, Father"
The Emperor nodded lightly.
"What's this talk about you having poisoned blood? And why did I not know of it"
"It's an ability…I shall say I stumbled upon to be accurate. I was looking through a couple of potions in Sir Bard's lair when I stumbled upon one that seemed to have something to do with removing mana blockages and increasing bone strength…and since it was in the lab of the head alchemists, I deciding to try it out by pouring a bit on my body"
"After that, Sir Bard found me and had to use poison to neutralize it before my body was damaged. He said it was unstable…and I somehow ended up with the poison blood ability"
I said all this while my eyes were staring dead straight at those of the Emperor.
"Hmm…"
The Emperor's voice trailed off as he stared at his son, mind whirring.
'Honestly, I should have him punished for such reckless attitude…yet, I'm having second thoughts now'
The Emperor suddenly fired a question at me.
"Is that so…what do you think of it then?"
Naturally, he was talking about the poison blood ability, and to keep my momentum going, I replied in less than ten seconds.
"Well…I was a bit skeptical at first, but it's actually not that bad. As I learned, poison is actually a very useful ability as it has numerous uses depending on the situation. I believe the Emperor needs no other words, as the power of poison has proven itself over the years, with Beckham Stuart at the helm"
My last words, or more specifically, the name, must have caused a stir, because the gaze of the Knight Lugard changed. Even the Emperor's already cold gaze turned even colder.
It was expected, because from what I had read within the royal library, the man was a natural disaster, a plague, and most importantly, the most fearsome poison user in Lexon at a point in time.
It was at a time when the current Emperor was yet to be born, or at most, was in his infancy.
Nevertheless, the damage the man brought was nothing to scoff at, and it was why Knights of Lexon now hated poison users very much.
It was already proof of his power as the man became a legend even after his death.
He also caused the number of poison users to increase sharply across all three continents.
But enough about that.
The Emperor only stared at me deeply, before speaking…
"You are not wrong…but I would warn you not to speak that name so lightly when around others"
'Hmm…' I nodded. It seemed I still had a lot to learn.
"I have heard you. Now, what about your reported disapproval of the Knight beside me?"
He was talking about the confrontation between me and Knight Lugard.
My eyes turned cold at this statement as I stared the person in question right in the eye and spoke-
"Father, will all due respect, I do not believe Sir Lugard is qualified to teach anyone"
-before turning my gaze back to the Emperor.
Silence.
The hall once again descended into silence.
I could see Lugard clenching his fist from the corner of my eye. His expression gave away the rage he was feeling inside.
But what was there to worry about? He'd not dare to utter a word in the presence of the Emperor without permission.
The Emperor, though, gave me an interesting look and spoke.
"Explain"
"Father, Master-rank or not, Sir Knight is too arrogant, too loud, and the first impression he gave me was practically screaming 'incompetence'. I believe that, with time, all such traits might be washed away, but I would like an older and more patient person to teach me"
Right on cue, silence descended once more, before…
"Hahahahaha…"
The Emperor burst into laughter as he held his palm above his mouth to muffle it a little. But who was he joking, there was no hiding his weird expression that almost seemed like he would cry.
As for Lugard thought, if his anger was only flickering at first, now it had exploded.
His face became red, veins popping out on his head.
One thing was for sure though, we had officially become enemies.
No, we were already enemies since he was working for the three witches.
The Royal advisor though, stayed silent without a change in expression from the beginning. Only his eyes moved, and they were locked onto my figure.
I also knew that the only reason I was able to say these things without restraint and without being berated was because, to them, I was a five year old.
It was evidence that being a child had its own perks.
The Emperor had stopped laughing, but I wasn't done talking.
"Father, Sir Knight almost killed me"
It was the straw that broke all forms of laughter from the Emperor's face.
"What did you say?"
