The journey was long, and the days were even longer. Though Azureth was close to his destination, he felt he was the furthest away he could be. His mind screamed for sleep, and his body ached. His eyes felt heavy as they opened and shut. A few more hours, he thought. His allies would help him in this town if the mass amount of money his father would likely offer for his head did not bribe them. There were kingdoms that would take the king up on that offer. As far as Azureth knew, most knights and warriors wanted to fight him to test their strength. They called him the Demon of the Battlefield. His own troops used that nickname whenever he walked by. A shame they were all gone now. Auareth quite liked a few of them. They had spirit, unlike the older more renowned troops.

Zura slowed to a stop. Her ears pricked up. When she resumed her walk, her steps were hesitant, almost too careful. Azureth looked around, searching for whatever she might see. Then he spotted it in the woods nearby. A bounty hunter. A smile crossed Azureth’s lips. His father sure worked a lot faster than Azureth thought the old man would.

Azureth rested a hand on his blade, prepared to draw it at any time. If the hunter came closer, they’d be in for a surprise. He hummed a light and playful tune to himself as Zura walked over yet another hill. Although the greenery was becoming tedious, the prince considered it a relief compared to being drenched in blood. It reminded him of the fields back home in the south palace, except they had more life. His sister would run through the daisy fields and turn around to look at him when she got too far. He wondered what she thought of father’s plans. Did she approve of killing him even though they had good memories together? Or were those memories only good to him?

A heavy sigh escaped his lips. He supposed he would give her one chance to defend herself. and this town would be the perfect place to do such a thing. He glanced at the woods, checking to see where his follower was. It seemed they moved quickly as he couldn’t spot them. At least that meant they would be a challenge. How exciting. Enjoyment coursed its way through the prince. He urged Zura into a trot. She moved over the hills with great speed. If the hunter was going to run, two could play that game.

The thundering hoofbeats echoed in Azureth’s ears, yet the hunter was nowhere to be found. He wasn’t sure if he should feel relief or fear over that. Perhaps it was not someone his father sent after him. His gut twisted at the idea. Mercenary wasn’t completely uncommon this close to a new battlefield. It was just strange to be in the woods instead of the open field, unless that bounty hunter had something to hide. Most mercenaries were proud of what they did. Boasting a kill to a stranger was not below them. Boasting what they did to the person before they killed was not uncommon either. Their actions disturbed Azureth greatly, but they were perfect for hunting a princeling abandoned by his father.

The town came into his view. All Azureth could think about was the cheap bed that awaited him in a tavern room. It was better than nothing, and currently getting some rest that wasn’t terrible was on his mind. He could care less about the bed bugs that would likely come for him in the night, because they were nothing compared to the beasts and bandits that lurked in the night. He slowed Zura down to a walk. Though it wasn’t early, it’d be strange for an armoured man to burst into the town like the battle nears closer to this safe spot. He set the reins around the horn of the saddle. His hand reached into the sack that had the severed head and helmet in it.

He pulled his helmet out from it and placed it on his head. It didn’t matter if his face was shown or not. His black and red lined armour gave him away right away. Yet there was comfort in keeping his face hidden. They couldn’t kill him with an arrow unless they were precise. Daggers did no damage to him. It took a master swordsman to slash through this armour. It was rumoured to be forged in dragon fire, but the one dragon that did exist would not do such a thing. Perhaps it wasn’t the only artefact he carried on himself, but that’s only if Azureth chose to listen to such foolish rumours.

He hopped off of Zura as he approached the town closer. The townsfolk that were out and about looked at him, and put their head down immediately. Azureth knew this movement well. They were afraid, which meant everything would come easy to him, or he’d be chased away. Zura followed close behind him without him needing to lead her. The black beast towered over the townsfolk. Her nostrils flared. He took her to the water trough that was available to all travellers and gave her the chance to drink. Who knows how long they’d have to travel next. If he got the information he needed, the path to their next location would be clear.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” he said to a mother with her child that walked by. “Where can I see someone to send a package to me?”

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She quivered at the sound of his voice. Her body shook violently as she pushed her son behind her. “Just four shops down,” she barely managed to say.

“Many thanks,” Azureth said. He clicked his tongue against the top of his mouth. Zura jerked her head up and followed him down the road.

The houses in this place were made of wood and almost antiques compared to the city he lived in. It was clear that this place was poor. How they survived his father’s taxes, Azureth did not know. Perhaps that meant something illicit was going on behind the scenes, or they just amped up prices on travellers that came through. Well soon enough, Azureth would find out.

He paused in front of the shop that would let him send his package. It was certainly old looking. The steps leaned to one side and the porch outside of the door to the shop leaned to the other side. Azureth was fairly certain that he would fall right through the floor. Only one way to find out. He turned on his heels towards the sacks on Zura’s back. He untied the pack that harboured Nero’s severed head. As he adjusted the bag on his shoulder, he could feel the head roll around. The thought of just putting Nero’s head on a pike outside of this town flashed through Azureth’s head. It would send a message, but hardly anyone comes here that it would not get sent to his father. The temptation quelled.

“Wait here,” he commanded Zura. She pawed at the ground with her front hoof. In theory, it would have been better to leave her outside of town, where she could at least graze, but Azureth needed her by his side. A quick getaway from whatever may come is important.

The steps creaked as he ascended up them, moreso, he was grateful that they didn’t break beneath his weight. Each wood board on the deck shifted as he applied his weight, and again he had to be grateful that he wasn’t through the deck. As he opened the door, the sound of a small bell played for a few moments, before fading into the background noise. Rows and rows of books filled the shop. This is the shop the woman said it was, but it felt more like a place to buy books, not send mail.

Azureth walked in further, running his fingers along the spines of the books. Each of their titles were unrecognisable to him. They weren’t books about princely duties, that was for sure. Some of them were old and held together by many threads and copious amounts of glue. The more he wandered the more he wondered if anyone was even in the shop. Surely they would have heard him by now as each step he took was announced by the creaking of the floorboards. Between the weight of his armour and the mass amount of books, it was no wonder that this shop was falling apart.

“Hello?” Azureth called out.

Not a response came, but the clatter of books did. Azureth weaved through the maze of books and found a woman on the ground with books around her.

“Apologies. I didn’t hear the bell,” she said as she stood up. She straightened out her dress and her glasses. “What can I do for you?”

Azureth thought it was peculiar that she didn’t tremble in fear at the sight of him. “I’d like to send this bag to the king.”

“Do you really think the king would want a bag? He has all the money in the world.” She cocked her head to the side.

“It’s what’s inside the bag that matters,” Azureth responded dryly.

“Ah!” She nodded. “Well, we can do that here.” She gestured at him to follow her. They wound through the building and stacks of books. Finally, they landed upon a wood desk that had everything Azureth needed to send his package.

“What’s your name?”

“Azureth, Prince Azureth,” he said.

“Oh! Oh my! I’m so sorry I didn’t recognise you sooner,” she immediately went into a strange bow and curtsy combination.

“No worries. I don’t think the king sees me as a prince anymore. Do make sure he gets this package in a timely manner. It’s very important.” Azureth smiled, though she couldn’t see it through his helmet.

“Very well, your majesty.” She took the pack from Azureth’s hands. “Oh, that’s kind of heavy. If you don’t mind me asking, what’s in this bag?”

He turned his gaze up to the ceiling and licked his lips. “It’s a severed head that my father is waiting on.”

“Oh…” She bit her lip. “Well. I’ll send it right now. It’ll be twelve silver.”

He pulled at one of the coin pouches on his hip. “Take it all, and don’t tell anyone what I sent through you.”

“Yes, your majesty.” She bowed and went into the back room behind the desk.

Azureth set the coin pouch on the desk before heading back the way the two of them came. A smile crossed his lips again. Now he had time to prepare. He left the shop and greeted his black mare. He ran his fingers through her forelock.

“I hope you’re ready for this, Zura. War is coming and this time we don’t have any backup, just each other,” Azureth said softly. Zura served him well through the times in battle they entered together. Azureth was certain that there were some battles that would have cost him his life if it weren’t for her. She was smarter than some of his comrades, and best of all, had an understanding of battle. She was born and bred for it.

She stomped her hoof on the ground. “Very well. Let’s find some place to camp out for the night. No point in staying in this town much longer.” Azureth looked back at the town. It was almost a pity that this place won’t be standing here in a couple weeks. He was certain it was nice in the summertime, but summer was going to be one of ruin for them. He mounted Zura and urged her to walk forward out of the town.