Northern was overwhelmed by embarrassment.
In that moment, he wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole.
People glanced their way, but ultimately, they were consumed by their own business.
With so much happening in this land, it would be concerning if some group had ample time to focus on others’ affairs – not that such people didn’t exist.
“Please get up,” Northern requested firmly and sighed.
If he didn’t respond, Ellis would likely remain in that awkward position.
The poor guy glanced at Northern’s face before straightening his back.
For a couple of seconds, they stared at each other.
Then Northern spoke first, “If it’s okay with you, can we have this conversation somewhere else? I’m not very comfortable here.” He looked around and returned his eyes to Ellis.
“Right, of course.”
Ellis quickly and roughly packed his things aside and stood upright before Northern, brimming with excitement.
‘I’m not comfortable with his enthusiasm… What the hell?’ Northern thought, worried.
But he discarded those thoughts and asked, “Do you know a place where we can talk?”
“Of course, please follow me…” Ellis said and immediately set into motion.
Northern followed but spared a quick, worried glance at the haphazard state of Ellis’s things.
“Aren’t you worried about your merchandise? Won’t they get stolen?”
Ellis responded sharply as he led the way, “These things are useless. Even if they do, it wouldn’t matter.” A broad smile adorned his face. “With your help, I’ll finally be free from those bastards!”
His excitement brimmed once again as he clenched his fist.
They walked into another hall, opposite the one that had led Northern to the meeting hall.
This one was filled with more people, all of them in ragged clothing and makeshift armors like the ones Ellis had been selling.
A pungent, displeasing odor filled the air, causing Northern to wrinkle his nose the moment he entered.
Plus, the hall was quite narrow and dark, making it a terrible place to breathe, let alone live.
There were doors to the left and right, which Northern suspected were rooms.
They immediately triggered his memory of when he had woken up, and he remembered how the hall there had been.
‘But that was in far better condition than this place. It was as if no one lived there… while this place…’
Northern could note some things that set this place apart.
It was quite evident in how people dressed here. There was no one in brilliant-looking armor. Different people, children even, were roaming to and fro in the hallway.
Some were seated on the ground with sorrow etched across their features—they made walking through the hall quite difficult.
Eventually, Ellis opened a door and entered a room.
The room was dark until Ellis walked towards a spot instinctively, and a dim light appeared a few seconds later, casting a warm, slight glow throughout the interior.
Ellis’s humble abode humbled Northern. All he had was a bed and a table.
Even Northern’s living condition before becoming ‘War General Northern’ was way better.
“You can sit down,” Ellis said, pointing Northern to his mattress.
If it could be called a mattress.
Northern gulped and looked at the blackened bed with a horrifying expression.
‘He had probably slept on it with an extremely dirty body. Do they even bathe in this place…?’
It wasn’t to despise them; in fact, he understood best since he had been in a worse situation.
But he couldn’t bring himself to sit on the bed, knowing this guy may not have bathed in six months.
He gulped and looked at Ellis, a frown dawning on his face.
“Until I know what it is you want, I don’t think there’s any reason for me to be friendly with you.”
It was a front, but it was also true and Northern’s best excuse for not having to ‘sit down.’
Besides, he was very serious about what he had said.
Ellis stared blankly for a second, then nodded with a sad smile. “I understand…”
“First of all,” Northern started immediately, “what is this thing about the Luinngard Empire you keep talking about?”
‘I remember now, there was a guy pestering me when we were about to enter the academy. He mentioned something like Luinngard Empire then, too.’
Northern’s face creased with a more acute, inquisitive frown.
“I understand, I understand that you are very suspicious of me,” Ellis said. “Not everyone is aware of the Luinngard royal family’s distinctive features.”
Northern scrunched up his eyes and raised his head a bit. “You’re still not making any sense to me. What features?”
Ellis’s facial expression contorted into a tiny frown as he stared keenly at Northern.
“What, you don’t know? The white hair, exactly like yours… although yours seems to have lost its pristine whiteness, but I’m sure with thorough washing, it would be as white as snow.”
Northern arched a brow. “What about my white hair?”
Ellis’s expression fully contorted into a suspicious and dark frown. “What? Are you not a prince of Luinngard?”
Northern shook his head vehemently. “No, I’m no prince.”
“What?! Why didn’t you say so earlier?!”
“When did I ever admit to being one? You made all those assumptions on your own!”
Ellis was frowning and panting heavily, while Northern frowned but maintained a calm, composed posture.
A few beats later, Ellis’s expression crumpled as his brows drifted upward and lines formed across his forehead.
He began pacing around with both arms on his head.
“Damn it, damn it, damn it! I’m so dead. I’m finished!!”
Northern watched him for a few seconds, then asked, “What exactly is wrong?”
He wasn’t concerned, in fact, he didn’t want to know… Whatever Ellis needed help with sounded like trouble.
And trouble was the one thing Northern wasn’t ready to get into.
However, he still needed to hear more about the Luinngard Empire from this young man.
That Northern denied being a prince didn’t mean he forgot that he was once one.
The night of his birth was still fresh in his mind like yesterday.
The broken expression on the white-haired lady’s face, those three sisters – anytime he thought about it, his heart felt heavy.
And so, unraveling the mystery behind his birth had been one silent goal he looked forward to.
If this guy suspected him to be a prince at a glance because of his white hair, then there was something about this Luinngard Empire.
Northern needed to know everything.