"Arenox was dormant for 900 years, until the last night."
The hallway was dead silent for a good few minutes.
Lucien had enough knowledge about artifacts that he could tell how Arthur had found him.
His brain was a mess, and he was trying to sort out his thoughts.
So much was happening one after another that it was taking a toll on his brain.
He sighed in relief as he realized that it was only due to Arenox that he was found out by Arthur.
Others can't find him unless they have something like that, which was very rare.
Unlike Arthur rats him out, his secret should be safe enough.
Haah!
"What about the second prince of Cythos?" Lucien changed the topic, trying to find more about the body he possessed.
This time, it was Arthur who was frowning and answered, "Last night, under the noses of several Titans, and even Paragons, the second prince suddenly vanished."
Lucien blinked. "Vanished?"
Being a former Titan, he could only imagine the terrifying perception of Paragons, which was supposed to be one step above Titans.
"Yeah, vanished," Arthur replied, his expression grim. "And that too from the Royal Palace of Solstice. During an official diplomatic stay."
Even though Solstice was now a Republic, the strongest family, the descendants of Cyrus' second heir, still had quite a lot of political power over the nation.
That simply was the rule of the strongest.
Lucien sucked in a cold breath, "That's an international incident."
"Exactly. The palace was thrown into chaos and a full lockdown. The higher-ups panicked. Cythos could've seen this as sabotage. Or in the worst-case scenario, a declaration of war. That's why the top brass immediately suppressed the news and mobilized quietly."
"And you too?"
"Yes, every Paragon that had ties with the government was ordered the same." Arthur answered honestly, "A small inconvenience if it could prevent a war."
Lucien raised a brow, remembering something, "And you posted a bounty on the prince?"
Arthur nodded awkwardly, "I had the permission from the royal palace. And the bounty was for alive only.
"Since the Royal family of Cythos keeps the identities of underage heirs a secret, it was safe enough to do that."
Lucien folded his arms, doubt clear in his eyes, "But Roland knew about this face."
Arthur let out a fiddly cough. "I would investigate that after this."
"So you were looking for the prince… and Arenox must've reacted when you reached this body."
Arthur gave a bemused nod and continued, "Yes, and I had news on the Pale Prince's grave robbery. I immediately connected the dots and guessed that you reincarnated in his body."
Lucien clenched his jaws at the word 'guess'. His eyes narrowed, and his tone that of annoyance, "So you planned these fights to test me?"
Arthur went silent, his hush giving Lucien the answer he needed.
"I'd remember this impudence of yours, Arthur."
Cough!
Arthur let out an awkward cough, worried about his future plans since the relationship between him and the Pale Prince had started bumpy.
"I–" Arthur paused and decided not to finish what he was about to say. "Then, I received a call from that goon, Musa, that he had found the Prince. They recognized his face, so I rushed over."
"And a bizarre thing like reincarnation was the first thing crossing your mind when Arenox reacted?"
Arthur's face turned solemn. "Resurrection and reincarnation sounded insane, even in my own head."
"And that's why you decided to test me?" asked Lucien.
Arthur affirmed, explaining his reason. "The second Prince of Cythos was infamous for being lazy, and he was also notorious, to say the least. You must know of it too from his memories, don't you?"
Lucien didn't deny.
Saying he was lazy and notorious was an understatement, but he decided not to ruminate on this topic for now and nodded.
"So, when I saw you fight like that, I was sure that it was indeed you, Prince Remiel." Arthur finished his explanation.
Remiel understood the reasoning behind his actions, but it didn't mean that he forgave him.
Arthur would pay a price for this, either now or in the future.
"So, you came to rescue the second prince," Lucien said slowly, "Only to find me possessing his body?"
"Bingo!" Arthur said with a small nod, "Two birds, one stone."
What followed this was an awkward silence and an awkward stare-off between the two.
"So… What now?" Lucien broke the silence, wearing his aloof face again.
"I want to make a deal with you, your highness." Arthur looked at Lucien with a sincere gaze.
"I'm not interested, thank you." Lucien was tired, and he couldn't bear any more of Arthur's games. "Let's just go back to the palac-"
"The deal includes Arenox and a secret about the spirit general you slayed." Arthur's words immediately made Lucien stop in his tracks.
"Speak." Lucien was still wary of this deal, but now it had something he couldn't refuse easily.
"It's pretty simple, actually." Arthur's voice was relaxed yet again. "You were not going to attend the academy, were you?"
Lucien didn't deny, as he really had decided against joining the academy.
He would much rather spend his time getting stronger and slaying spirits than go into some Academy with a bunch of brats.
"I want you to do it. I want you to attend the academy till you either become a Warden or some unforeseen circumstance forces you out."
Remiel was confused. "That's it? That's all you need in exchange for Arenox? Why?"
"The Maw. The Maw is growing, and it would reach another breakthrough in a few years at best.
"And I need your future strength, influence, and talent to pass a few bills regarding the improvement of the Academy, which I cannot do on my own.
"I don't just need a student. I need a symbol. Someone that others in the nation revere, fear, and envy. Someone who can bid for me, and provide me the clout needed for my plans."
Lucien wanted to, but he didn't pry further into his plans. He could tell that Arthur had something planned, and he wouldn't tell him no matter what.
"Deal. I'd do you some favors regarding the academy in the future." Lucien's ultimate goal was the annihilation of the spirits, and if Arthur wanted the same, he wasn't an enemy. Yet.
"Now it's your turn. Spill it."
Arthur nodded and presented the Arenox to him, "Here's Arenox, you can use it to awaken again."
"Awaken? With Arenox?" Lucien was perplexed. "But you could only awaken with live spirits–"