The evenings were getting colder.

At least the warmth left on the leaves by the golden sun filled the forest with their scent, the ones calmly flowing to the ground on their first and last journey promising a calm night. The gentle wind was decorating the bushes with gossamer, making me twitch every time it happened to get into my face.

"I really hope things have calmed down enough by now..." Kristya muttered, extending her hand to try and catch one of the leaves and failing. I smiled at the small pout that followed.

"They should've, it's been a few days... Although I suppose the assassination of a king is not something his subordinates recover from very quickly."

"I guess we'll see when we get there."

I nodded and focused on the path ahead.

I didn't know about the castle, but things in our village were slowly returning to normal after my surprising return. The amount of attention I was getting became less and less every day, my presence once more turning into something natural for everyone. It allowed me to spend every second I had with my family and with Elithia, trying to win back the time we lost.

Kristya received a warm and hearty welcome among the villagers. Old Zaafiel offered her a place in his hut, as he was in need of a helper and maybe apprentice, but when she learned that there was a bell founder workshop around, all debate became meaningless. It was the closest thing we had to a blacksmith, and the owner promised to allow her to experiment with excess material and his tools in exchange for help in everyday work. I knew she didn't make a mistake with her decision when I saw her beaming just three days after. Even her at first amused employer was now completely bewildered by her creativity and enthusiasm.

But even with the days being busy, I couldn't get Tavris' words and our plan to go back to the castle out of my mind. And now, the moment finally came. We already had a small plan, a part of our way into the castle already prepared without anyone knowing, but it somehow didn't calm my brain much...

I rubbed my arms as the last sunrays evaporated from among the tree trunks, casting a spell of darkness on the forest. Autumn had made itself at home for good by now... I was really grateful for the warmer shirt my dad borrowed me, my old ones long too small for me.

Most of the walk passed by in silence. The fact that we were about to sneak into the deceased king's chambers wasn't conjuring up much of a mood. If he was still alive and I was still convinced I was a prince, I might have one day actually tried to pull this kind of prank on him. Maybe I even considered it at some point, but the thoughts I had during the period of my memory loss were becoming more and more like a blurred dream now... Or maybe it was me who somehow accidentally stepped into someone else's dream and was just a figment of their imagination for a while...? Was it the real Calthraval's dream perhaps...?

I shook my head slightly. I really needed to set my thoughts straight... The memory loss was long behind me, I couldn't allow it to influence my grasp on reality...

Weirdly enough, the breach in the castle's outer walls was still there. I suppose no one really cared to seek an explanation for what happened. It was done now, and their minds were probably focused on finding the assassin and me, or any proper substitute for the throne.

But just as we were about to slip through it, I stopped. But I didn't actually realize it until Kristya put her hand on my shoulder.

"Sig...?"

I blinked myself back to reality and gave her a startled look. "Sorry, I... I don't know what happened..."

When I took a step forward and put my hand to the cold wall next to the hole, something froze my legs in place yet again. Then I understood.

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And so did Kristya. "Hey... you don't need to worry," her voice was soothing and warm. "Even if someone should grab you and mess with your head again, I'll be there to pull you right back out in a heartbeat."

I let out a small sigh, some of the tension melting. "Promise...?"

"Promise."

We snuck onto the castle's premise, sticking to the walls' shadows and checking the surroundings before every leap from bush to bush. There was little light coming from the massive building, and even less from the moon. For some reason, the brightest gleam came from the throne room's tall windows...

"What's going on there at this hour?" I heard Kristya's whisper behind my back.

I didn't answer at first. Something unpleasant suddenly clutched my heart. "I think I know..." I hesitated before adding: "Can we... wait a moment...?"

"What? Why, we shouldn't waste..."

"Please..." my voice sounded worrying even to myself. I wasn't sure if I was ready for what was about to happen...

Kristya gave me a concerned look, but nodded nevertheless.

We didn't have to wait long. First, the lights in the throne room suddenly started moving. It was so subtle that we didn't notice until the windows started to dim. The creak of the castle's huge front door that soon followed from our left sounded like a crack of thunder in the silence around. Following it, the quiet hum of a few dozen voices spilled out into the darkness, and the lights that were inside just a moment ago started to fill the yard with a hazy glow.

"Wait..." Kristya's whisper broke through that silent song. "Did we actually come here on the day of..."

"The funeral..." I finished for her, my voice creaky. "But... where are they going...?"

She gave it a short moment of thought. "Ah... I think they'll go to the Spruce Hills. I don't know if anyone ever told you, but there are tombs of kings hidden underneath..."

"They didn't..."

Kristya's eyes watched the procession for a few moments, before her eyes wandered up to the dark mass of the castle towering over us. Then they hesitantly returned to the yard, and eventually rested on me. "Do you... want to go with them...? We should have enough time afterwards, and even if not, there's always the next night..."

"I do..." I never even tore my gaze away from the gathering.

Kristya had to basically pull me back to the breach in the wall. We circled the castle from the south, heading for the road leading to Ioreth. There was a chill trapped among the tall grass that seemed to try and freeze me in place again... She led me through some small, gently marked paths probably laid by kindred pathfinders through other people's gardens, maintaining a safe distance from the procession, the lament never ceasing to ring through the woods.

Once the cortege stopped on one of the many hills out in the open space, a pyre already prepared on it, we hid in a cluster of trees growing on the next elevation. We didn't hear any of the speeches, prayers and pleas that were spoken around the king's body, just distant murmurs that sounded like voices from beyond calling him to join...

If I was there, I know what I would have said... To our kingdom, he was a good ruler... He cared about his people's welfare, his judgment always just... But he had flaws too... I remembered myself thinking he was cruel many times... Ruthlessly intolerant to any crime or disobedience, and every revolt, however tiny and insignificant, was drowned in unnecessary puddles of blood... In the end, he was just human... flawed and following his emotions sometimes... He mourned the passing of his wife years after she vanished... I could tell by his eyes every time she was mentioned... And shortly after I appeared in his life... he was trying his best to seem like a father to me... Now that I knew the truth, I could tell he was failing miserably, but he was trying... comforting me at least at the beginning... maybe comforting himself by doing so too, trying to forget the loss of his real son...

Something cold trickled down my cheek, then the other...

"Sig...?" came a concerned whisper from my right.

I wiped the tears away, but they just got replaced by fresh ones. "Sorry... I just... when I think that this happened because of me..."

"You can't think like that... this wasn't your fault."

"I know, but... I'm the reason he was killed still... Because he tried to protect me from someone..."

Kristya's hand gently slipped into mine, chasing away some of the night's chill. "We'll find out why..." she said softly. "And we'll find the one who did it..."

The twigs of the pyre lit up, the flames making their way to the bigger logs supporting the motionless body of the man I called my father for two years... The moment they touched him, I got up, letting go of Kristya's warm hand.

We both bowed and stayed like this for a good few moments, my heart feeling like it was being torn apart by guilt... When I straightened up again, my eyes followed the column of smoke that was rising towards the clear sky like the brand of some turning point. Was the real Calthraval still somewhere close enough that he could see it? Did he know what it meant...?

Even if he didn't... one thing was certain. I turned to look in the direction of the royal castle, it's proud towers peeking out from behind a thin screen of silent trees.

There was at least one of the king's sons still out here to find out the truth...