The Crown's Obsession

Calhoun didn't fly all the way to the village, and he kept a distance while trailing Morganna's scent that heavily filled the air. Once he had spotted her, he had descended on the ground, and the wings on his back immediately disappeared as if they were never there.

This was the village of Obson, and Calhoun saw Morganna talking to a man. He couldn't help but wonder why Morganna had come here when she could send her men to do whatever the job she had in here. If he wasn't wrong, Morganna was already scheming a plan to throw him out of the castle as his presence threatened her rule over the Kingdom.

"When do you think I will be able to acquire the other pieces?" questioned Morganna to the man who wore a turban around his head.

"Word is that the jewels are going to be transported through the sea as there is a possibility of sabotage taking place in the land. The bandits in the forest have been stealing things," informed the man, bowing his head as he spoke.

Morganna had worn a black cloak that hid her face as she had pulled over the hood. She currently stood in the deserted alley along with a man who wore a cloak too. Calhoun couldn't help but wonder why Morganna wanted the jewels. It was possible that, like any other woman, the Queen fancied jewellery and wanted all of it in her possession.

"Word is that there are pirates sailing in the sea. Do you think it is wise to get them by using the boats?" demanded Morganna in a low voice, and she glared at the man as if he was an idiot. "It better reach my hands within the next few weeks unless you want your head decorating one of the walls in the dungeon."

The man gulped down and quickly nodded his head.

Calhoun stood behind one of the street vendors' barrels, holding a fruit in his hand while his eyes were set on Morganna, who continued to speak to the man.

"Are you going to buy the fruit, mister?" asked the vendor, and for a moment, Calhoun's eyes shifted to look at the person.

"I will have ten of those," said Calhoun, jerking his head towards the red looking fruits. There was a time when he couldn't buy anything for himself or his mother from the shops and had to pluck the fruits from the trees in the forest. But even that came with a price as the villagers often watched the place and made sure he wouldn't break a single fruit.

While the vendor packed the fruits, Calhoun noticed Morganna had disappeared from the alley. Paying the vendor coins, he was ready to leave when two men, whom he once knew from the village where he and his mother lived, appeared in front of him and blocked his way.

"I thought you died with your pitiful mother; what are you doing here?" asked the man.

"And what is that?" asked the second person, his eyes falling on Calhoun's hand that had the bag of fruits. "Since when did you start earning money and buying things from the shops? Don't you know it isn't for people like you?" demanded the man who was taller than the first person and meaner to look at.

Calhoun's expression didn't change, and he politely said, "Why don't we all mind our own business and continue with our lives?"

Two more people came from behind, clicking their tongues, and it created a small circle around Calhoun. Other people in the street had stepped back, not knowing what was going on.

"What a brave man you have turned out to be, Calhoun. You even learned to speak back to us; it seems like you have forgotten what happened in the past," said the man behind him.

"Javier," Calhoun identified the man who just spoke with his name.

"It looks like he stole the money from someone. After all, who would pay money to a whore's son? I cannot believe he has the audacity even to step in here," said the person who stood at the front.

Calhoun didn't have the time to deal with these imbecile fools as he wanted to follow Morganna and see how he could throw her off the throne. He said, "The last I knew, you people don't live here. That only means everyone is allowed in here, and I can do what I want."

"That is what you think, but you know it's not true. If the colour is grey, it is grey in every other part of the land," chuckled Javier.

"I have somewhere to be, and I have no time," Calhoun stepped forward, but the men in front of him did the same, getting closer to him.

"You are foolish to think that you will be let off that easily. Get him!" Javier ordered the other three men.

Soon a fight broke out, and the men tried to attack Calhoun, but he dodged most of it. It wasn't the first time he was in a fight like this. He remembered when he was a little boy of seven and was being beaten by other children older to him.

'How dare you think you can freely walk in here!?' asked another boy who was a few years older than Calhoun. Calhoun was on the ground, his face covered in blood.

'I didn't do anything-' PUNCH! Blood dripped down from Calhoun's face in the rainy afternoon. The youngest boy on the ground tried to move his hand, but one of the boys stamped his fingers, making him flinch in pain.

'A whore's son should not exist. You are not worth living but are better to rot in Hell! Both you and your mother! Beat him up so that he knows where he belongs!' ordered the older boy, and the boys dragged Calhoun to the alley to beat him up for some more time until someone caught sight of what was happening.

'What do you think you are doing?' demanded the man, shooing the bullies away. The man had blonde hair, and his eyes were blue. 'Are you alright? Can you stand up?' questioned the man.