Control yourself.

You are his pillar.

Teach him.

He is yet to be capable of shouldering all his responsibilities.

Protect him.

You are his sword and shield.

My son, I am counting on you.

A Tale from Thelua

[29] square one

Natsu found himself retracing all that was happening hours ago as he eyed the piece of paper rested in between his thumb and index finger, his other hand was suspended in the air with a pen in its grip. Despite how it all happened like a flurry of wind, the document he currently worked on – waiting for his approval regarding the plan on increasing the tax on market goods, which he would decline for some obvious reasons – reminded him of the fight he had with his brother. While the document itself did not have anything directly related to their quarrel, it reminded him of the nobles that were present in the throne room, as the content of the said document was, apparently, what the nobles had been discussed with his father and Makarov. Or trying to. And failing.

And such a thought led him to the fresh memory of their swords exchange; a fine display of skill if it were done on different time and place, but a poor attempt of communication and the epitome of lack of cooperation between siblings it truly was. His Majesty had been merciful, for he did not pass any punishment for both princes, but his words pierced deeper than any sword did.

His hand automatically placed the paper on his left side where a stack of papers of rejected proposals was piling, while his other hand, pen still sandwiched between his fingers, pulled another paper from another stack across him. A small sigh rolled out of his lips as onyx eyes scanned what written there. Another rejected proposal: those nobles must have had been out of their mind to plan on lowering the wage of the laborers. What, Natsu thought disgruntledly, were they trying to make people raise their hands against them or something?

Foolish, he mused. Greedy bastard.

Normally, if it were just any other day, Natsu would just go through these stupid proposals without batting an eye, without resentfully cursing over their obvious greed, their insatiable craving of wealth and title. That was why more nobles were trying to get into Zeref's good side, trying to raise the power on the first prince's side while working hard to find the fault in Natsu's work.

If he went by that chain of logic, the accusation he made was not completely baseless. Indeed, it was said rather brashly; no proofs or witnesses, but, still, it was a possibility. And given how Zeref reacted to it, Natsu thought the possibility was solidifying. However, unfortunately, His Majesty and Makarov were not on the same page as he was.

Another sigh, louder this time, rolled out of his lips. Today was not that any other day. His mood had plummeted down from his wife's assassination attempt and it even went further down by now – the scene of him going against Zeref was vivid in his head. Carelessly, Natsu pushed the paper to his left side once again and placed the pen in its holder. The sun would set soon, judging by the slowly decreasing intensity of the natural lights outside his window, but there was barely news from anyone. His knight, his sister, his wife's ladies-in-waiting; none.

Helpless might be the best word to describe the state of his mind right now. It was ironic – he who held the power over this kingdom second to the king himself was left without being able to do much. If patience was a virtue, then virtue seemed had left him long ago, for he had been feeling impatient this whole time. Waiting, after all, was not his strongest suit, especially if it was accompanied by uncertainty.

It was weird – how he could be this restless and anxious over something that should have been a common occurrence for those who took seats within the royal family. The foreign and unpleasant feeling was spreading, and he had to admit that he had failed to control it, hence, the accusation of his brother.

There was a rap on the door, but it was not Gray who entered the room. The last person Natsu thought would show up in his room turned out to be the first one who came to him. Behind him, the door closed quietly, and he made his way to the empty sofa. Wordlessly, Natsu watched him as he sat, his fingers interlaced on the desk, eyes noticing the slight shift of emotion in his dark eyes.

"To what do I owe this unexpected visit, elder brother," asked Natsu, breaking the cold silence with a quiet, unamused tone.

"Some clues regarding the princess's assassination attempt," Zeref replied promptly, ignoring the underlying anger in his little brother's tone, "I have done my own investigation and thought you might want to hear it."

A pair of onyx eyes narrowed. He never asked him to do the investigation. But it should be better than nothing. "Tell me."

"The poison was applied specifically on the princess' teacup and spoon," Zeref started. "The culprit should be among the servants who prepared it, but I found no proof nor evidence related to this case in the places where they rest or work. However, I heard they received some help from a certain family. Several maids of theirs were sent to help the palace's maids."

"Which family?"

"Beumann."

The sound of his chair scraping against the floor rang loudly as Natsu stood abruptly. There was a look of bewilderment flashing through his face before it turned into a pure irritation. His legs brought him closer to the door, only to be stopped by Zeref's voice.

"Where are you going, Natsu," asked him, and as if knowing the answer already, he continued, "Makarov knows nothing of this. He had cut his ties with the Beumann a long time ago."

"Laxus–"

"Natsu," Zeref's voice was thick with impatience, "sit," he ordered.

The crown prince clicked his tongue frustratedly but complied. He sat across his brother on the sofa, crossed his legs, and watched as the older man sighed. "A while ago you were so adamant about accusing me and my men," Zeref stated bluntly. "Now that I have laid out some clues, you act impulsively, like a fool you are. What do you think you can achieve by barging into the duke's place?"

"I–"

"You have already ordered Fullbuster to do the work. Think, Natsu. Not only will you waste power and time by going there yourself, but you will also let your emotion get the best of you once you meet the duchess. Have you lost the ability to think and make a decision properly now?"

"Why do you care," uttered Natsu vehemently. "I never asked for your help!"

"Thelua has no need of an immature king, Natsu."

The silence was the only reply Natsu could muster in response to Zeref's brusque remark. Those words punched him right in the gut, and, he admitted bitterly, they were all true. He had acted out of raw emotion; common sense and rational mind were thrown out of his frame, long forgotten.

He was like a child, an immature brat who threw tantrum over an unfulfilled wish.

Now he knew why the king had yet to let him take part in the military and international affairs.

Despite all that, strangely, Natsu found himself laughing inwardly. It had been a long time since he got reprimanded by anyone, given his position and all, and it just had to be him.

Zeref, of all people.

"Why did you help me then?" Came Natsu's question after the brief pause, delivered in a quiet mumble, sounded almost meek.

"One; to erase your suspicion on me," was Zeref's immediate reply, his arms crossed over his chest. "No man in his sane mind would dare to harm the person he loves. I thought you were aware of that."

Natsu nodded slowly. The idea had just sunk in his head. "I do…" whispered him, wondering how such an obvious thing could be missed.

Foolish…

"Two," Zeref resumed, "my loyalty lies in you before the king. I am only fulfilling my duty as your subject; that is to assist you."

"Assist me?"

The blank stare Natsu received somewhat made him think if he just asked an absurd question. Nonetheless, Zeref answered it. "You may have just realized it – that I have been handling both military and international relations affairs in your stead, even during my absence in the palace. In short, I am to assist you until the king sees you fit to handle them yourself."

"Isn't that the same?" Natsu argued. "You still work under his command."

"Under the king's request."

Natsu flashed a bewildered look, mildly irritated as he failed to understand what was going on. "I don't think I follow you," he said.

"Of course," Zeref sighed, closing his eyes, "because no one ever explains things to you."

"You never tell me anything."

"I will, eventually, when I see you fit," the older man said. "Now is not the time for that discussion. The Beumann family, Natsu, you should focus on that."

Not now, Natsu thought. Not now – right now, he had a more pressing matter to think about. He could not afford being kept in the dark for a longer time, but for now, he should recompose himself. Cool temper and a level head were what he needed to be the most right now.

Natsu took a deep breath and pushed away any unrelated thoughts. For now, he needed to wait for Gray's report, because if what Zeref said were true, then this could lead to something bigger and more complicated than a simple act of treason.

Laxus Arsene Beumann. Among the things he had accomplished, if Natsu had to draw the red line between the duke and Lucy, the closest thing he could connect them with was the Guilford Bridge. It was a road connecting Thelua and Feliose used by the merchants, built by the time the treaty between the two kingdoms was signed two years ago. In other words, it served as a staple foundation of cooperation between the two kingdoms and indirectly controlled the market goods' price and stock.

Laxus was the one who proposed the idea and even the fund needed for its establishment was fully covered by him, so it was only natural for him to be the one who managed it. So, now, to think that Laxus would do anything as far as threatening Feliose, in which he needed their cooperation to keep the road open, would be…

"Impossible," Natsu said aloud.

As though Zeref could read his train of thoughts, he nodded. "The duke would never act so brashly."

"He has no reason to do that either," he added. "If it was indeed done by one of the maids, then Gray might have a good chance to get some evidence."

The sound of a knocking on the door followed by the familiar voice made Natsu sighed. The knight with black hair appeared from behind the door and Natsu could only comment, "About time, Gray."

The knight bowed quickly while silently swallowing the surprise of seeing Zeref there. The said man, however, caught the minuscule of it and stood. "I will step out now that your knight has returned," he said.

"You said that you will assist me, elder brother," stated Natsu, stopping him in his track to the door and earned himself a curious glance from Gray. "You have to take responsibility for what you said earlier."

Zeref let out a small laugh and he returned to his seat. The knight watched their exchange in confusion but decided that he would understand sooner or later. "Your report, Gray?" Natsu asked.

"The ladies have no clue and no evidence or anything suspicious related to the case is found in their residences," he said. "However, Duchess Beumann informed me that one of her maids that were sent to help the palace maids for the preparation of the tea party has yet to return since yesterday."

Natsu turned to Zeref who nodded. "This fits with your clue," Natsu said.

"But she went missing," Zeref murmured. "Coincidence?"

"Doubt it. She could be told to hide somewhere," suspected Natsu.

"Worst case is that she's already dead to erase the evidence."

"Unfortunately, that seems to be the case, my lord."

Both Natsu and Zeref turned to the knight. "Explain," they demanded.

"I had my suspicion on the missing maid and had my men scour the alleyway," Gray explained. "We found a girl that matched the description given by the head maid there, but she is already dead by the time we found her."

"Shit," Natsu cursed, his fist punched the armrest of the sofa. Across him, Zeref did not bother to conceal his sigh.

"Back to square one."