The Flower of Soline

The carriage that stood before him was extravagant, unlike the carriage he had ridden in before. The white and gold stood out like a sore thumb, and Aether found himself cringing at the emblem that stood out on the carriage door.

Two guards came over with two horses following suit. The guards themselves were intimidating, but the horses who were built for war made them seem even more intimidating and ferocious. One guard stepped forward and handed the reins over to Leon.

Leon gave a short nod of confirmation before jumping onto the horse with ease. Aether expected that the other guard would have handed the reins over to him as well, but he was disappointed to find that the guard did not budge from his position.

Aether frowned and turned to his brother, ”Where is my horse? ”

Leons eyebrow raised and he smirked, ”You are too weak for a horse. Get in the carriage. ” he gestured towards the carriage and maneuvered his horse to the front.

Aethers frown deepened, ”I am not weak, I can ride. ” His words were true, he after all had to learn how to ride a horse in his last life, he was sure he could ride a horse in this life as well.

Leon didn even turn to face him, ”No. ”

Aether scowled, ”I can ride a horse, Im not weak. ” he repeated, but Leon still did not budge, ”Bro- ”

A hand grabbed onto his shoulder and pushed him towards the carriage. His father was behind him, a strange glint in his eyes.

”It is wise to listen to your brothers words. Though you carry the Frenzel bloodline, your body was not made for such a tenuous task. I expect you to act accordingly and not make a fool of yourself by attempting what is beyond your means. ” His father pushed him into the carriage.

He was met with soft pillows and blankets that were piled up on the cushions of the carriage seats. They looked abnormal, as if they had been placed here specifically for him.

”Now, be good and stay put. ” His father slammed the door shut leaving Aether alone in the carriage to gather his thoughts. He could faintly hear the horses as they gathered at the front.

Aether was not fond of where they were heading. The royal palace was one place he had wanted to avoid no matter what, but it was something he knew that he would eventually have to face if he were to survive in this world. He just wasn expecting it to be this soon.

The royal palace was located in the center of the Soline Empire. It was surrounded by four different sectors. Each sector was governed by a high ranking noble with a handful of nobles underneath them. This was designed so that if the Empire where to get attacked the Palace would be the last thing to be attacked. The attackers would have to go through not only a high ranking noble, who gained their position through their voracious nature during wars, but they also had to go through multiple specialized armies that had been placed under the jurisdiction of the high ranking noble.

His father happened to be one of those high ranking nobles and therefore governed one sector of the Kingdom.

Aether wanted nothing more than to look outside and observe the sector that his father had been governing, but the bolt on the curtains refrained him.

It seems like they are unwilling to let me have a look outside. he gazed at the bolt, or are they afraid of someone seeing me?

The thought left a sick taste in his mouth.

He swallowed and scooted back into the center of the carriage. He couldn blame them for keeping him locked in the carriage while they moved. He was a Frenzel who was not only powerless, but also held what they believed to be expansive knowledge. If he were anyone else looking for a foothold against the Frenzels, he wouldn have thought twice after meeting him.

His fist clenched. It was only time before people started to gather around him like flies, spouting nonsense and lies as they warmed up to him only to turn their backs on him in the future for their own gain.

It wasn any different then what his father was doing right now, but at least with his father he held an upper hand. With others it was hard to judge, but he doubted he would be able to hold his own against them.

There was a knock on the small rectangle sliding door in the front. Aether didn have to call out for a hand to slide the small viewing hole open and a pair of eyes to look in. The wrinkles and glasses gave Bert away and AEther found himself relaxing just a smidge at the mans presence.

”Young Master, I see that you have not yet used the blankets or pillows provided. Are they uncomfortable? ” His eyes shifted to the pile then landed on Aether. ”It doesn seem that you
e cold, but still it would be best if you wrapped up. ”

Aether peered down at the large coat he was wearing. He was detracted before, but this coat was not only made of animal fur, but it also had heating spells weaved into it. How would he be able to get cold when wearing this?

”Im fine. ”

Bert sighed, ”Young Master, you may think you are fine, but please remember that your body is weaker compared to others and not able to protect yourself from the harsh weather environments. Please, for me, use the blankets at least. ” Bert pleaded and reprimanded at the same time.

”Fine. ” Aether grabbed a single blanket and draped it around his legs. Immediately the blanket glowed red before growing warmer as time went on.

”Are we almost there? ” Aether asked, not wanting the conversation to end.

Berts eyes disappeared for a moment before returning, ”We are almost there Young Master, just a bit longer, are you hurting? Do you need a rest? Did I miscalculate? ” He mumbled the last part.

”Im fine, just bored. ”

”Of course. Then, ” Aether heard a soft rustling before a book was pushed through the small hole, ”perhaps this will keep you entertained for a while. Its nothing too advanced , but it should help pass the time. ”

Aether grabbed the book from him and cringed. It was a mathematical equation book that at first seemed to be designed for elementary school children, but with how his experience with math in this world seemed to be going, this was definitely a book for a more advanced class and Bert was purposely trying to play it off as if it wasn .

Obviously his father was trying to coax even more out of him, well too bad for him that his plan wouldn work. He placed the book on the side and decided to pester Bert for a little longer.

”Bert, are you also good with mathematics? ”

Bert narrowed his eyes, ”Well, not as advanced as the Young Master of course, but I was required to attend the Royal Academy with your father so I would say my abilities are up to par with your fathers. ”

”Wow, then fathers mathematical abilities must be advanced! ” Aether clapped his hands together and smiled brightly.

Bert hesitated, his eyes narrowing even further, ”What does the Young Master mean? ”

”Well, you said that this was an easy book right? ” Aether held up the book flipping to a page of equations.

Bert remained silent. Aethers smile only grew.

”Well, cough, the equations near the front of the book are easily solved, but the ones in the back are a bit more difficult for me. Im afraid someone with my skills would be unable to solve them. ” Bert averted his eyes.

”Oh? ” Aether tilted his head, ”I didn know you attended the Royal academy. ”

Bert sighed in relief at the change of topic, ”Of course. It was mandatory for the soon to be head butler to attend with your father. ”

”Was it hard? Did you take the same classes as father? ”

Bert laughed, ”No, no. I was considered too lowly to follow your father into those classes. I attend different classes, ones that were tailored specifically for head butlers such as myself. ”

Aether frowned, ”There are classes specifically for those training to become head butlers? ”

Bert laughed again, ”Not exactly Young Master, these classes…they are slightly different from the average classes that nobles were required to take. ” he glanced to the side, ”Things like self defense and…sword fighting for example were some of the many classes that I took. ” he shifted again.

”What was sword fighting lik- ”

”Oh! Look at that we are here. One moment and I will help you out, Young Master. ” Bert slammed the small hole closed.

Aether took a deep breath. He was sweating, but that could just be from the heat from the blankets. He gazed towards the carriage door, where noises of horses and shouting could be heard in the distance. He only hoped that he wouldn run into the Princes during his visit.