Beyond the Boundaries

Fai entered the room with confident steps, a condescending smile on his face as he looked at the place as if he had just taken it over. He sat comfortably in front of Ryan, leaning back in the chair as if the room was his own, as if Ryan was just an obstacle that didn't interest him. While Ryan was standing in front of him, he was supposed to be showing respect towards the king, but Fai was messing everything up.

'Fai, what are you trying to do in front of the king?' Riz shouted in a sharp tone, her eyes blazing with sparks. Her anger was palpable, as if she wanted to rectify the situation immediately. But this wasn't the first time she had stood up to this corrupt man, who cared about nothing but his own interests.

'Shut up, you fucking maid. Don't say anything.' Fai said in a low, but threatening voice. He slowly turned around, keeping his gaze on Ryan, which was full of sarcasm and disdain. It was like someone looking at a wounded animal, studying its weakness and waiting for the right moment to attack.

Fai laughed inwardly, his mind going in only one direction. 'After this foolish boy dies, I will sit on the throne. This little king won't be able to do anything.' He thought to himself as his smile widened. 'This young man won't even be a king! He will be the worst king in the history of the kingdom.' Fai continued to think, his eyes glowing harshly. 'He inherited the title after his father's death, and then went into a deep depression, losing the last member of his family. That's where the catastrophe began. He handed everything over to the corrupt prime minister, who looted the treasury, weakened the army, and spilled the kingdom's secrets to the kingdom of Itharia, which invaded us with war.'

What Fai didn't know was that Ryan hadn't fully grasped the enormity of what he had lost in those difficult days. The memory of his father's death was still pressing on his heart, as if time had stood still. The King was just a young boy when he lost his father in a mysterious accident. Ryan's father was the one who laid the foundation of the kingdom and was loved by all, his death was a great shock to the nation.

On the night his father died, Ryan was hiding in his royal suite, hearing the sound of guards running, and tense whispers between officials. When they came in to tell him, it was too late. 'You are now King of Astraea,' one of them said, but Ryan hadn't realised it yet. He was still a child in his own eyes, not realising the magnitude of the responsibility that had been thrust upon him.

He still remembers his mother's last words before she too mysteriously disappeared weeks after his father's death. She would tell him: 'Remember, you are not alone. You must endure, you must be strong.' But how could he endure when he felt abandoned by everyone around him? He felt like the whole world was against him.

As Ryan struggled to overcome the grief and loss of his family, the kingdom was crumbling around him. Fai, who wanted to take over, coldly betrayed him. Finding himself unable to act in the absence of his father's wise counsel, he handed over the reins to the Prime Minister, who took advantage of his weakness and left the kingdom reeling under the weight of corruption.

Fai was fully aware that Ryan, despite being the king, was just a shadow of his former self, weak and unable to make his own decisions. To him, Ryan was just a lost boy in a world ruled by the powers behind the throne. He believed that his father's death had created an opportunity for him to rule the kingdom in a hidden way, and that he could now destroy everything for his own benefit.

While Fai was enjoying this situation, Ryan was suffering. He still remembers the moments his mother spent taking care of him after his father's death, how she tried to keep him away from politics, always pushing him to follow his heart. But after her sudden disappearance, he had no one to rely on. He thought he was in a war against time, trying to save what was left of the kingdom he didn't know how to run.

Fai watched Ryan with a look of contempt, imagining how he would eventually take the throne. 'That foolish boy won't live long. I will soon be king of Astrea.' His thoughts centred on asserting his authority over everyone, including Ryan, who seemed so weak in his eyes.