The talent that his royal highness Prince Julien III the Prince of Corven possesses is simply unmatched--no, in fact it's downright unthinkable, even by Elise's standards.

Her Majesty the Queen Elise of Arden, that was who she was now, but before that, she was Lady Elise, the Duchess of Cernal. Though it didn't change the fact that she still held that title today, it was still interesting to consider the family line which she was a part of in the first place. The Ducal house of Cernal wasn't quite all that simple, unlike many of the other noble houses, inheritance was decided through merit. Bloodline still mattered, it always did in the world of nobility, but more than that, the way each possible inheritor of the Ducal house had to compete against one another was rather... barbaric. She could see why. But, it was quite effective, it made their ducal house continue to produce countless powerful Sages.

It further solidified the Kingdom of Corven to continue being one of the strongest Kingdoms of Magic. Something that was only a given considering it housed the Continental Academy of Magic, Avrora.

Even then... as she idly observed her firstborn son, she wondered just where exactly he'd gotten all that talent, much less ability.

She wasn't an idiot, if anyone knew magic best in this Kingdom, it would be her, and the things which her son, his royal highness Prince Julien had been doing for the past few years were simply unimaginable. Sometimes, she even wondered to herself if this was even real, but it was very clear.

This was reality. And her son... was definitely hiding something.

She would be an idiot to not see that. Though he had definitely been able to hide it incredibly well for a long time, everything was simply too good to be true. Talent had a limit, and from what she could see of his skills right now... it was more than just talent.

It was knowledge. Prior knowledge, even, it was as though to him, everything around him here was nothing new, in fact at times, she could even see how he almost treated everything around him as though it wasn't real.

It was bizarre, and if she was honest, it was rather scary to see that on your child. Her other child, her daughter and Julien's older sister, was a lot more normal compared to him. In fact, if she hadn't had a child before him, it would have been a lot more difficult to see just how different Julien was other than his unreal talent.

Elise sighed as she placed down her cup, staring at Julien's melancholic form.

He always looked up at the sky with that face, that face which showed his honest emotions. Regret, sadness, anger, acceptance, happiness, loneliness... it pained her to see him like this every time, but how could she have approached him about this? She didn't know.

Perhaps that was why she'd chosen Valerie as her son's fiancee in the first place. Truth be told, the circumstances around choosing her was a lot more complicated than anything, especially with how partners of royalty were decided in this kingdom. The reason why Elise had become Queen in the first place was rather simple, she was the most talented and powerful mage at the time who could suit the current Crown Prince at the time, Edwin IV of Corven.

Valerie was... her circumstances were actually a lot more complicated than how the usual tradition went. While Elise was definitely looking for a suitable person who would have immense talent comparable to either hers or Julien's (something which she wasn't really expecting much out of anyone really) she was also looking for someone who could be a great companion for Julien. If it were on mere talent alone, there were some choices more appropriate than Valerie, especially considering the age, but if there was something that really caught her eye in the daughter of the Darnum Ducal house, it had to be skill that she had. The skill she had was very much comparable to that of Julien, though her talent in magic was definitely lacking, her skills with the sword were simply unimaginable.

Though, even then, that wasn't quite enough for Elise, there was something else which really made her choice in Valerie final. It was when she had been talking with Valerie's mother, Lady Nora of the Darnum Ducal House, where she found that Valerie would have been the perfect fiancee for her son.

Nora and Elise went way back, they had been friends for a long time, and it just so happened that she'd chosen her daughter as a partner for her son. Though, much of the decision really became solidified upon hearing the situation which Valerie seemed to be in. It was very much similar to Julien's, in how it almost seemed as though she didn't see everything around her as reality, but still continued to work hard despite it all, and appeared to be working towards something which they couldn't quite see.

It was similar to her son, Julien. Many times, she would see him doing something that was rather unnecessary, but he kept going towards it and always seemed to create something new which she could have never imagined.

Seeing all of that, the choice was really clear, rather, she felt like an idiot for not choosing her sooner. It only made sense when her son had correctly guessed that Valerie would be his fiancee lately.

Though, it really made her wonder just how her son knew all of this in the first place.

At this point, she gave up trying to understand, knowing that it would only confuse her even more.

She trusted him, and she was glad that her decision in choosing Valerie seemed to be right.

... At least, she hoped it would be right.

Julien and Valerie still had to meet after all.

As Elise thought of that, she heard something beep beside her, making her turn towards the butler who was holding a glowing crystal ball in his hand.

"Your majesty, Queen Elise, Lady Nora of the Darnum Ducal house seems to be calling you." the butler said, as she nodded, a light screen appeared above the glowing crystal ball, also called the communication device.

Elise smiled as she saw Nora's face through the device, the woman on the other side seeming to be in their living room. "Nora, it's good to see you."

"Good to see you as well, your majesty, Queen Elise." Nora giggled, "I've just finished telling Valerie about the upcoming meeting."

"Oh. How did she react?" Elise raised her brows, interested to see how Valerie might have reacted.

"She didn't seem as surprised as I'd expected. Rather, it seemed more as though she had been waiting for it." Nora said, looking a bit worried, "You haven't told her anything, have you?"

"No, you would have known if I did." Elise said honestly, and it was true. Nora was quite a skilled mage as well, things like those wouldn't arrive there unnoticed. "Rather... it also seems as though Julien expected it as well."

"Troubling... it's as though they'd experienced all of this before."

"That's how I feel as well." Elise sighed, "Though I believe confronting them would be rather difficult, if anything."

"Indeed. I had attempted it before, but it seems... maybe this is only something they'll only be comfortable with if it's each other."

"I hope so, Nora. I truly hope so." Elise frowned, "Now I'm worried, what could have possibly happened in the future to make it come to this?"

Nora frowned as well, and they went silent for a while, before she finally shook her head with a sigh, "I don't think speculating will be of any use for us. Rather, perhaps it'll be better if we were to continue being vigilant."

"Indeed. We can only hope that we'll make the right decision." Elise nodded, "They deserve this, more than anything."

"To a brighter future... we'll see each other in a few days, okay?" Nora smiled, reassuring her in the end.

Elise smiled as well, "Of course. I'll see you later. Goodbye."

"Yes, your majesty." Nora giggled again, and the communication device stopped glowing.

As the call ended, she couldn't help but glance at her son who seemed to have fallen asleep as he rested against the large tree near the pond.

"Your majesty."

"It's fine. I shall take care of my son myself." Elise said, walking towards Julien who was sleeping peacefully against the tree.

At times like these, she couldn't help but smile, for whatever his soul may have gone through, it was still rather clear that the body of a child couldn't quite handle the load which he was putting on it.

"My dear prince... you don't have to push yourself, you know? You're not alone." Elise whispered as she crouched down to brush his hair. Her smile widened as he seemed to lean into her touch more. "It's okay, mommy's here." she whispered to him as she picked him up into her arms.

Watching him like this... it made her remember that he was still very much a child. No matter how he may have acted. "Mother..." he mumbled under his breath, making her pause, "I... I'm sorry... I... failed you..."

At those words, she couldn't help but frown and feel sad. What happened to him that he'd think this way? She held him close to herself as she kissed his head, "Its okay, my prince. I forgive you." she whispered close to him,

"Mother... I... I love you..." he mumbled in his sleep, tears seeming to form on his closed eyes. He must have been having a bad dream.

She smiled at him gently, kissing his head once more. "Mommy loves you too sweetie. Now rest, mommy will be here for you." she whispered to him her eyes closed as she tried to prevent her own tears from pouring out as well, "Mommy will never leave you. Promise." she didn't really know what she was saying anymore, but she hoped that it would calm him down. She hated seeing him like this after all.

Nothing was more painful than seeing your child suffer without being able to do anything about it after all.

As she held him close, he started to calm down again, sleeping peacefully now.

As she looked down at him, she couldn't help but whisper to herself, "Oh my sweet prince. This world does not deserve one as pure as you."

It really didn't. This world... it was nothing but a mess.