Neon followed the King and the small group through the quiet corridor until the palace opened into the Royal Garden.
Darkness slipped through the archways, rustling the leaves.
Lanterns lit the stone path, their glow stretching shadows over the neat hedges and pale flowers.
Princess Lea walked beside him, her white eyes forward, though every few seconds she flicked a glance toward him before looking away again.
The Royal Advisor trailed behind them with his hands folded behind his back, and King Arden walked ahead, his younger frame moving with a calm authority that felt strangely out of place amid the world’s chaos.
The King stayed quiet at first, letting the silence linger, and the garden’s gentle atmosphere wrap around them.
Then, without looking over, he asked, “Neon, do you know why I chose to reveal our relationship today?” Hearing the King’s question, Neon let out a short chuckle.
“Nooo,” he said, voice dripping with sarcasm, “why don’t you enlighten me, Your Majesty?” The King’s lips curved ever so slightly, as though a smile was on the verge of escaping.
He stretched out his hand toward a cluster of pale blossoms, letting his fingers graze their soft petals before speaking.
“That’s the reason…
right there.” He plucked a flower, idly twirling the stem between his fingers as he walked.
“You’re genuine,” the King said without a hint of pretense.
“You’re not pretending to be someone else or trying to change how people see you.
That makes you a pretty remarkable young man.” Neon rolled his eyes, shifting his weight as he moved.
“Oh…
when will you quit beating around the bush and just say what you mean?” The King laughed softly, the sound warm and amused.
“The point is, you are important,” he said, as before, asking for Neon’s advice had hardly been necessary.
He already had his own Advisor, after all; Not only that…
he was the King, and such a title wasn’t simply given to just anyone.
Still, with the world changing, as he’d said before, he needed all hands on deck.
From the start, he knew the most important thing was understanding how the world around them had shifted.
But it was clear he had other reasons for revealing Neon’s true status in the Kingdom.
He stopped by a stone bench, turning fully to face Neon.
“The reason I revealed our connection was to make a statement…
You know, everyone has their specialties,” he said with a faint smile.
“Yours is your…
watchful eye.” Neon blinked once, expression unreadable.
“You see through people,” the King continued.
“And that’s something I want close to me as this new world unfolds.” Then, with a shameless smile, he continued.
“So, Neon… would you just marry Lea and make sure we’re bound together forever?” Princess Lea’s cheeks turned bright red, her pale eyes going wide as she whipped around to face her father.
“Father!” she burst out, her tone sharp with embarrassment.
With the Kingdom in turmoil and the fate of the world uncertain… No one could have imagined the King would be so brazen right now.
“I told you already!” She said as she crossed her arms, “I don’t want to marry him anymore.
I’ve changed my mind!” Neon stared at her for a moment, then let out a short laugh, shaking his head before laughing again, louder this time.
“You know…
King Arden, I actually thought you were going somewhere with all that nonsense.” At his words…
the King only smiled.
Neon stepped away from them, moving toward a patch of flowers near the fountain, his fingers brushing lightly along the petals as he spoke.
“Alright…
We should contact the Kingdom’s top scholar.
I think testing needs to start immediately.” He paused, turning back toward the King.
“Also… is the kingdom’s prison nearby?” The King’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Well….
Arden doesn’t have its own prison.” The Advisor nodded as he finished the King’s words.
“Young Neon, the Eden Council oversees a centralized prison system….
It’s located in the middle of Eden.” Neon gave a single nod, his expression calm, though he felt a wave of relief inside.
He knew as well as anyone that the Eden Council was a coalition of five kingdoms, including Arden, that together formed the Continent of Eden.
‘Well, that takes care of one of my immediate worries…’ he thought, not even wanting to imagine how much worse the chaos would get if there were actual criminals released into the Kingdom.
—- After Neon’s short discussion with the King, the focus immediately shifted to testing.
The plaza was drowned in darkness so complete it felt primordial…
as the only light came from the lanterns—hundreds of them—hung along the outer barricades and carried by guards.
The air was cold, and still, the kind of stillness that made every breath feel louder than it should.
The plaza itself had been fortified, its perimeter lined with soldiers standing shoulder‑to‑shoulder, rifles held tight, eyes scanning the darkness beyond the light’s reach.
Lucien stood with Maylene, Alan, Alice, Duke Rockelle, Duchess Moria, Lord Shanks, Atlas, and more than fifty other nobles and officials, all gathered in a tight formation.
King Arden stood at the center of the plaza, the lanterns behind him casting him in a sharp silhouette.
Neon stood on his right, hands tucked casually into his pockets, his posture relaxed despite the tension radiating through the crowd.
Princess Lea stood on the King’s left; behind them stood the Chief Advisor, his hands folded neatly behind his back, and beside him stood Samuel More—the Kingdom’s top scholar.
His eyes flicked between the equipment scattered across the plaza.
A massive computer was hooked up to several white pillars and other devices designed to track speed and other measurements.
The King lifted his chin and spoke with a steady voice.
“Testing will begin now,” he said, “And it will continue for an indefinite period.” Though he said it would last indefinitely, everyone present understood it would end as soon as they discovered exactly what they had become.
With a deliberate motion, he gestured toward Neon.
“Neon will be in charge of the testing phase.” A wave of shock rippled through the assembled officials, their faces shifting from puzzled to outright incredulous as the King went on.
“The goal is straightforward.
We need to understand the meaning behind the information on our status screens and, more importantly, how we’ve changed.” He paused, letting the weight of his words sink into the dimly lit room.
“From this moment on,” he declared, “consider Neon’s words as my own.” As the words hung in the air, an even deeper silence settled over the plaza.
Duke Rockelle’s jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing with clear irritation, while Duchess Moria blinked in surprise, her lips parting as she struggled to grasp the King’s decision.
Meanwhile, Lord Shanks tilted his head ever so slightly, regarding Neon with a newfound, almost probing curiosity.
The rest—Lucien, Maylene, and the others—looked more bewildered than ever, but Atlas… Atlas couldn’t keep it in any longer.
He burst out laughing, the sound loud and unrestrained, his shoulders shaking as he leaned forward slightly.
“Oh, this is great,” he said, wiping at his eyes as he smiled at Neon.
“I just know he didn’t think everything would come out like this.” Atlas knew Neon had never gone out of his way to hide his connection to King, but he’d never flaunted it either.
The Kingdom of Arden saw him as nothing more than a womanizer, and his parents thought he lacked ambition, so he let them believe what they wanted.
As for himself, even with his royal connection, he had no idea what he truly wanted to do with his life.
To him, it was nothing remarkable—just the effortless result of his natural charisma.
To Atlas, however, it seemed like a waste not to see Neon finally put to use the influence he had cultivated over the years.
After all, why hold a connection to the King—a link so coveted others might kill for it—only to let it gather dust?
Neon showed no visible reaction.
He let out a quiet breath, his stance easy, his eyes calm, and without hesitation, he moved forward into the lantern-lit shadows.
“Samuel,” He said as he arrived in front of one of the tools.
“Explain to us…
how all this bullshit works.”