The Evil Emperor's Fragile Heart

The group spent the night at an inconspicuous inn with a small restaurant. It wasn't luxurious by any standards, but it was clean and well-maintained, and the food, although simple, was fresh and delicious.

And the couple who owned the inn were thrilled to host their king and his family. Among the citizens, King Jaren was very well-loved. After the debacle at the gates of the imperial palace, it was quite gratifying to see how much the ordinary citizens adored their king – their respect and affection was sincere, because under King Jaren's rule, the Emerald Kingdom had prospered much more than before.

It was a pity that he had left the imperial palace in Queen Sora's hands and it had become a cesspool of filth and conspiracies.

Word of Crown Prince Jules's first public appearance in the capital city at a small inn soon spread, and by the time they finished dinner, the street outside was jam-packed with people wanting to catch a glimpse. The innkeepers were very apologetic about the disturbance, but King Jaren and Jules didn't really mind.

Jules had a natural charisma that attracted ordinary people and inspired loyalty, just like his father. He stepped out of the inn and greeted the citizens who had rushed over just to see him, and spent nearly an hour mixing in with them. The crowd absolutely loved him.

The more Mana looked at Jules, the more she was reminded of her own CEO Big Brother back on earth. They had different names and appearances, but their innate personality was very similar. Jules had the same charm, the same power, the same magnetism that drew people to him which Mana's late CEO Big Brother had – and even though he'd been a CEO and not a movie star, his fan following had been no less than the topmost actor of their country. Of course, he had been a very handsome young man.

Jules was very handsome, too, although there was still a hint of childishness in his features – after all, he wasn't even sixteen yet. Despite his youth, though, he was a magnificent sample of an ideal crown prince – well-spoken, elegant, able to engage with the crowd and someone who was not only smart and efficient, but also genuinely cared about his people. Mana suspected that Jules would surpass even King Jaren in the future.

King Jaren watched his son, pride writ large on every inch of his face. After a while, he turned to Mana and Raven. "Do you guys wish to engage with the citizens, too?" he asked.

Both Mana and Raven shook their heads.

"It is Big Brother's time to shine right now – after all, this is his first introduction to the citizens of the capital city," Mana said. "He's really cool, isn't he?"

Raven nodded. "Big Brother is amazing!" he said, his eyes shining with admiration.

Sometimes Mana felt that Raven was the true little sibling of Jules instead of her – but then, she thought to herself, it was not unexpected. Not only had Jules saved Raven when he was in a dire situation, he had even taken the little boy under his wing and became friends with him. Just like King Jaren, Jules was open and generous with his affection, and he truly thought of Raven as his own little brother. Raven, who had been starved for affection throughout his short life, couldn't help but adore this Big Brother that openly cared for him.

And thus, the proud family watched over the new Crown Prince shining brightly like a star amidst the citizens in a little lane in the capital city.

Mana eyed King Jaren warily, a sudden thought striking her. "Papa," she whispered, so that only Raven and King Jaren could hear her. "What happened at the imperial palace earlier…could it be that you deliberately only notified Queen Sora and not the others in the imperial palace? Did you want something like that to happen so you could use this chance to show Big Brother to the public?"

King Jaren smiled slightly. "Not entirely," he confessed. "I did want to bring Jules out to the public and I did expect that something may happen at the imperial palace when we entered…but what actually happened was far worse than what I had anticipated. If I'd known Sora would go to such great lengths to cause trouble…I'd have at least made a stopover at a restaurant like Physician Kale wanted." He sighed heavily. "I really am very sorry, my dear children. You have suffered due to my conduct."

Mana shook her head. "I think it's a good thing that Big Brother gets to meet the people like this first – once he has the support of the general public, it becomes much easier to wrap up things within the imperial palace," she said.

King Jaren chuckled and tapped her forehead. "How is it that this little head of yours can understand such convoluted things?" he wondered out loud.

Mana thought of her perfect LSAT score back on earth and shrugged nonchalantly. "Logical reasoning and critical thinking," she said lightly. "I have a natural aptitude for these things."

Both King Jaren and Raven gave her a strange look.

Finally, King Jaren murmured, "We should get some rest now…there will be a lot of drama tomorrow." He stepped out into the crowd and put an arm around Jules's shoulders.

"How do you like my son and heir?" he asked the gathered throng. "Isn't he a brilliant Crown Prince?"

Jules flushed slightly and the crowd cheered. There was even applause and whistles, and loud, repeated chants of "Crown Prince Jules!" broke out, followed by individual shouts and slogans.

"Crown Prince Jules is so handsome!"

"Crown Prince Jules is so elegant!"

"Crown Prince Jules is so kind!"

"Crown Prince Jules speaks so well!"

"Crown Prince Jules is like the perfect blend of King Jaren and late Queen Dora!"

"Crown Prince Jules is awesome!"

The barrage of admiring compliments flew at Jules from all sides for quite some time until King Jaren held up his hand for silence and the crowd quieted down gradually.

"I'm very proud of my son and his talents, and we will have the official ceremony for his recognition as the Crown Prince soon," King Jaren announced. "I hope you will support my son when it is his turn to govern this country just as you have supported me all these years!"

Loud cheers and applause broke through the crowd.

"Also, I have absolutely no qualms in admitting that Jules is much more talented than I am, and he will be a magnificent king in the future – much better than myself!" He continued. "And while I am regretful that I missed the first fifteen years of my son's life, I am very grateful for my late Queen Dora's intuition and foresight that led her to hide him away with his grandparents, allowing him to grow up safely." His jovial face turned solemn. "From now on, however, I will protect both Jules and Mana properly and make sure that any further attempts to murder them are nipped in the bud!"

The crowd fell silent for a moment and then roared in anger!

"Someone tried to kill Crown Prince Jules and Queen Dora had to hide him away?!"

"Someone tried to kill Princess Mana, too?!"

"How despicable!"

"Please punish the criminals, Your Majesty!"

"Who was it? Who dared harm our Crown Prince Jules and our little Princess Mana?!"

"I want to personally kill such traitors!"

"Could it be that late Queen Dora was actually murdered?!"

"Death to the criminals!"

"Protect our Crown Prince Jules! Protect little Princess Mana!"

King Jaren held up a hand again and the crowd piped down.

"We are still investigating," he said. "But as soon as we have adequate evidence, justice will be served and the criminals will be punished – no matter who they are!"

The crowd roared again.

"I have one more announcement before we disperse," King Jaren said. "Most of you already know that Mana has been sickly since she was born. However, a few months ago, we found out that she wasn't sickly; she had been poisoned before birth, and it was a deadly poison which would have killed her by the end of this year. Fortunately, Jules's friend, Prince Raven of the Obsidian Kingdom, came to Mana's rescue and saved her. Mana is fully healthy now."

The crowd cheered.

"I heard Princess Mana and Prince Raven were betrothed?" someone called from the crowd.

"That is correct," Jules said. "Papa and I both feel that Mana and Raven are very well-matched. Raven is a wonderful person and we all like him very much. He also helped us save countless lives in Verdant Hills recently."

"Raven is not only smart and talented, he also cherishes my little Mana," King Jaren said. "We are very grateful to King Corvus of the Obsidian Kingdom for letting us have his precious grandson!"

The crowd cheered again as Jules and King Jaren pulled Mana and Raven out. The two children waved at the crowd shyly while the tall figures of King Jaren and Jules flanked them protectively.

The public was very satisfied with Raven as well and gave hearty blessings to the young couple!