Keiser had honestly thought it would be a slow night.

Ever since the royal brigade had been called back to the capital in a hurry, barely a day after their return from the last expedition, he'd been hoping for at least one proper night of sleep. A warm bed in Hinnom, a quiet meal, and maybe a moment where his bones didn't ache from cold or battle.

Instead of standing under another freezing sky, half awake and listening for anything that might lunge out of the dark. His companions had offered to keep watch before, but he never took that kind of comfort anymore. The first time he trusted others to watch his back, he was the only one who came back.

So he stayed half awake.

And when those same idiots somehow let a Gula form and nearly reach Hinnom, he decided he'd rest his case, literally and figuratively. Some people, he thought grimly, were just born to make his life harder.

And that was only half the mess.

The village itself had turned out to be in an even sorrier state than he'd expected. They couldn't even get past the gate at first, apparently, the missing prince had decided to lock everyone out, from both sides no less.

The first prince's fiancée and the tenth prince's vassal eventually figured out a way to open it, though not without giving everyone else a headache. He still remembered standing there, dumbfounded, as they sliced open their own palms and started scrawling blood-soaked symbols across the stone walls of the gate.

Some kind of crude runes, messy, uneven, but that was enough to work.

Keiser could only stare while his companions whispered about 'taboo arts of mana' and 'bloodscripting,' like they were at a damn lecture. All he could think was, 'why do royals always have to make everything so complicated?'

The gate eventually gave way, or rather, apparently reform the invisible barrier he hadn't even realized was there. He'd only known it existed because when he kicked the air or struck it with his sword, he could feel it crack like glass under pressure.

They'd barely gotten through when a messenger bird arrived, cutting their short-lived victory even shorter. Orders from the capital. Urgent. Immediate return.

And that was how Keiser found himself once again lying on the rough planks of a wagon instead of a bed, watching what was left of the royal brigade doze in awkward positions as the wheels rattled beneath them.

Two days. Two miserable, sleepless days on the road.

He stared at the faint glow of the moon through the canvas roof and sighed, muttering under his breath,

"Royal business never lets you rest, does it…"

When they finally made it back to the capital, Keiser's first welcome wasn't by ceremony or gratitude, but by the sheer incompetence of the knights stationed at the gates.

The so-called capital guards had decided that the returning royal brigade's wagon was fair game for a 'routine inspection'. In reality, they were just trying to ransack the cargo and squeeze the wagon drivers for a 'late night fee'. Apparently, someone in their ranks had invented a new form of extortion and decided to call it a 'right'.

Keiser jumped off the wagon before the wagon drivers could even finish stammering an apology, cracking his neck as he walked up to the armored idiots blocking their way. Behind him, his companions didn't even bother to get up, instead, they started betting on how long it would take him to break the knights' formation.

It didn't even last half a minute.

By the time he was done, the would-be extortionists were sprawled on the cobblestones, groaning and clutching their ribs, helmets dented and pride shattered. The drivers stared wide-eyed. His companions laughed and started collecting their bets.

After that brief but satisfying warm-up, Keiser finally got the full explanation, and it made absolutely no sense.

Apparently, the noble council had ordered a capital-wide lockdown during the nights, claiming it was to maintain 'order' while the King's Gambit and some sort of upcoming auction, or political stunt, depending on who you asked, will take place soon. They said it would 'attract undesirable elements,' so their brilliant solution was to make everyone else miserable instead.

Keiser could only grit his teeth as he listened to the council drone on, a room full of pompous old men and women, dripping with perfumes and self-importance, talking like their words could polish over their incompetence.

There had been brawls, riots, rumors, and half a dozen 'unapproved duels' in the streets already, but the royal brigade, as usual, was told to stay out of it. "Not their jurisdiction," the council said. "Let the capital knights handle it."

And of course, 'the capital knights' were the same bunch he'd just beaten into the pavement.

Still, despite his objections, he couldn't refuse the final order, what was left of the royal brigade would be stationed within the palace walls, 'to ensure the monarch's safety.' As if the palace didn't already have an entire legion of personal guards, runed walls, and more wards than any sane person could count.

Keiser only muttered under his breath as he adjusted his sword belt, "Right. Keep the king safe… from what, his own damn nobles?"

He honestly thought that after coming back from hell, both literally and figuratively, he could finally return to his real job… serving as Gideon's personal knight.

He had even met his lord once since their return. Gideon had been busy as always, muttering something about 'preparing a surprise' for Keiser's twenty-fifth birthday, which was, apparently, soon, take nine days or less.

Keiser had just stared at him flatly and said, "What's the point of a surprise when you're practically telling me you're planning one?"

Gideon froze mid-sentence, scratching the back of his head like a guilty child and not the same age as him.

Ebony burst out laughing from behind them. "Yeah, your highness, that's, uh, the opposite of a surprise!"

Yuka, ever the patient one, just sighed and face-palmed while mumbling something about how she deserved a raise for putting up with them.

For a brief moment, Keiser thought maybe, just maybe, things were settling back into something normal. The same kind of chaotic peace he'd grown used to… Gideon's impulsiveness, Ebony's constant teasing, and Yuka's exasperated babysitting. It almost felt like family again.

Until two sweaty old men came barreling toward his station on a wagon.

He had been stationed at one of the quieter sections of the palace wall, a wide-open area most people avoided because of how exposed it was. Perfect for some peace and quiet, away from the chatter of his subordinates. That peace shattered when the wagon came blasting out of a narrow alley that wasn't even wide enough for it to fit through.

Keiser barely had time to blink before the old men started shouting, "He's here! He's really here!"

He reached for his sword, ready to cut the reins before they crashed, but the two somehow managed to yank the horses into a sharp skid, dirt flying, and the wagon jerked to a stop just inches in front of him.

Keiser stared. The two men panted, drenched in sweat and looking half-dead from exhaustion.

He exhaled slowly, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"...If this is another surprise, I swear I'm burning everything this time."

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