1423 A Blessed Child
And just like that, the ball was rolling back in Baymard.
Not too long from now, Landon and Lucy would be on their way out of there.
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--The Capital City, Empire of Titarian, Zohl.--
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Thup!
An arrow shot through the bushes, making its mark on the head of a 5-foot horned green boar.
~Clap. Clap. Clap.
"Your highness, excellent performance!"
"Wonderful, your highness! You've grown quite a lot since last."
"Excellent!"
"Wonderful!"
~Clap. Clap. Clap.~
The thunderous claps from the spectators were loud but sincere.
This was his highness Gregory Ghoul the 3rd.
He was their future monarch, someone while they, as supporters, stood beside fervently.
At first, not many of them approved of him.
After all, growing up, his highness was too soft-natured and a pure one at that too.
When you look into his eyes, you could see the innocence of a newly born baby in them.
He was just too clean for people like themselves in these warring times.
That's why when he was younger, he adamantly refused to allow him to take over.
But Gregory's now late father had sent him to many of their camps, wanting them to give the boy a chance and train him in various aspects, be it archery, knowledge, writing, and even simple tasks like treating one's injuries.
That's right.
Growing up, Gregory didn't have the standard teacher training methods.
No teacher came to the palace to see him.
Instead, for the first time in history, the leading nobles, generals, and many others were the ones who taught him first hand.
And then, they realized that though the boy was innocent, he was very smart, like a sponge, soaking up everything they taught.
Hell!
Who would be won't such a prized student?
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Gregory never attended the knighthood academies.
Yes.
Only followed the select few who were tasked with being his teachers.
And make no mistake.
Though those who taught him were few in number, they were all at the topmost parts of the pyramid political powers In the empire.
Meaning if one of them supported him, then the entire fraction of novels under that one person would also support him.
This was his late father's long-lasting plan.
And growing up to the age of 17, it worked perfectly.
He had amassed quite a lot of supporters.
And in the process, he had also managed to curb their greed.
It was shocking to see that this young man had softened quite a few of them at heart, making them question their earlier actions.
If it were before, many of them would be the ones seeking trouble, trying to crush others and scheme even when they needn't do it.
But now, their motto was: They wouldn't look for trouble anymore. However, if trouble came their way, they would repay it triple!
All they could do was protect and defend themselves while also gathering intel about their enemies.
Only if things got too bad would they make a striking move!
It can be seen that his highest Ghoul had changed them, while they in turn also changed his highness as well.
Though the boy retained his innocence, the drive for his people, his motivation, and several other aspects had given them hope for a new era in Titarian.
Some even began seeking him as a blessed child sent from the heavens.
Most of the nobles were by his side, as well as almost all peasants too.
Never in their history had they had such a future monarch loved by all.
Of course, these were medieval times, and for everyone, what they considered a good monarch was someone with a sense of measure.
No one was perfect.
They expected every monarch to have flaws and maybe even get greedy. But there should be a limit to one's greed and level of tyranny.
Provided one didn't go too far, they would consider that person a good Monarch.
But in Gregory's case, they already considered him a Great Heavenly Monarch once his coronation took place.
That was how great his image was within the empire. And one shouldn't even talk about how his heavenly powers bestowed on him.
For sure, they expected great things from this future monarch of theirs.
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"Bravo. Bravo, your highness, you did well."
"Really?"
Gregory looked at his uncles very excitedly.
This was the famous Green horned boar!
Its outer flesh was so hard that one couldn't kill it with a few sword slashes.
No... One needs to send 20 to 30 slashes on the same spot if you want to cut through its outer skin.
However, its only weakness is the soft spot between its eyebrows.
For 2 weeks now, Gregory had been trying to take down at least one to pass a final test.
Make no mistake. These boars grew up to 10 feet tall. And when they went on a stampede rampage, they could even destroy countless thatched times and kill people in the process too.
They were dangerous and very vicious when provoked.
And as tradition, before his corrosion, he was to take down at least one of these boars by himself with no assistance from others.
The boar's skin would then be processed and used as part of his coronation attire later on.
Of course, he was not allowed to take down a boar considered to be the age of children if he wanted to pass the trial.
And as one can imagine, the task had given him hell!
He was almost run over, killed, and even stabbed by its thick horns.
But finally, all his hard work paid off.
He finally killed a stray Boar that went too far off its pack.
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The group of people who had arrived after receiving the signal from the hidden invigilators all rushed over and pridefully, seeing their student take down the boar in just 2 weeks.
"Well done, your highness Gregory. In your father's time, he used an entire month and a half out in the world before succeeding.
But you... You've done above and beyond his records!.. The late Monarch would be proud!"
Gregory's eyes turned red.
It's only been 2 months since his father passed away.
The pain was still fresh.
'Father, I will make you proud!'
