The Prince of Demons

Orga

I was initially immensely excited when I heard the Imperial Family of Speranza wanted to rush my interview forward; that was quickly crushed when I saw Nez. Of all the people, he had to be there. Somehow with that terrible personality he managed to marry into the Imperial Family, that insufferable narcissist. Empress Mother was acting like I had a legitimate chance of getting the teaching position, but knowing Nez, he would definitely try and crush that. After sitting in the receiving room fuming, Prince Nox appeared with his nephew and in tow. Little Crown Prince Nil had his father’s dragon like horns and bone colored skin, and his mother’s amber eyes and black hair. He was just staring at me with a curious expression as his grandmother introduced me to him.

“It’s a fox person.” Crown Prince Nil said with a tone of wonder. He has probably never seen a Beastkin to be fair.

“Yes, I am a fox Beastkin.” I replied, squatting down to look at him more eye to eye.

Now that I was looking better, there was something off about his eyes other than the fact they were slightly bloodshot. They were an incredibly bright amber like Empress Senna’s from what I could tell. There was this peculiar glow to them, like they had a light source all of their own. He tilted his head towards Lux, and the two of them looked at each other for a few seconds, moving their heads ever so slightly. That explains Lux’s ability to talk so coherently; she regularly talks with Crown Prince Nil. Just being in the same room as the Crown Prince, there was something unsettling about him, the way he looked at you. There was this uneasiness in the air, this oddly chilling sensation. I looked at his uncles and grandmother, seeing they were looking between them trying to figure out something before looking at the Crown Prince.

Is your nephew normally this, unsettling? I asked Nez mentally.

No. This is new, even for him. Nez replied nonchalantly, looking at his nephew. Why was he not phased by this at all?

“Nil sweetie, what are you currently doing?” Empress Mother Poam probed.

“Not sure. My eyes feel kind of funny.” Nil replied. The three of them looked between each other and shrugged.

“So Nil, do you have any questions for Orga here?” Prince Nox inquired.

“What leads you to believe you are the most qualified candidate for this position? What is the subject matter of your dissertation? What leads you to believe that your certifications are sufficient for being a teacher of Lux in regards to ?” Nil asked immediately. Everyone just stood and stared at him. Hold the forl up. What did this five-year-old just ask me?

“Excuse me?” I checked, trying to process the question.

“That’s what daddy liked to ask his advisor candidates!” Nil replied excitedly. Nez and Prince Nox started to chuckle.

“That was a surprise Nil.” Empress Mother Poam said while patting his head which made him smile more. What is a kid going to ask me? What is my favorite color?

“What type of can you do?” Crown Prince Nil asked, looking at me intensely.

“My is . My is . I focus mainly on .” I answered. Nil's gaze was unsettling.

“Cool! You or Uncle Nez, who is better at ?” Crown Prince Nil probed. Oh, this little brat.

“I am what is known as an Nil. She is only a . Ranking wise, I am better at .” Nez explained to his nephew.

“The next examination is in a few weeks, and I will be taking it. I believe I will be passing this time.” I said through gritted teeth.

“Why would I be taught by an and Lux only get a ?” Nil inquired.

That question stung. Oh that hit a nerve. Nez looked at his nephew wide eyed, along with his Uncle Nox; they both had shocked expressions. His grandmother made an oh my face. It was difficult to refute. He might be a kid but he is asking questions that are surprisingly relevant.

“As I stated, I will be taking the examination in a few weeks and will soon be one.” I informed Nil.

“What if you fail? Why should Lux have a teacher of a lower rank than mine?” Nil pressed. Can you chill? These questions sting.

“Rank is not everything. Lux is a , and Beastkin possess a similar as them. Beastkin affiliated with the Institution of Mages are incredibly hard to come by, and I do not believe any of them teach .” I explained to him.

“You are the only Beastkin that meets the requirements listed, that is correct.” Empress Mother Poam informed Crown Prince Nil.

“I fail to see how her being a Beastkin makes her a better teacher.” Nil retorted. What was this?

“Did you have any other questions for me?” I asked, trying to remain calm.

Crown Prince Nil looked at me, his eyes still possessing this peculiar glow; there were gears clearly turning in his head. I wish I was better with kids. Crown Prince Nil was also a difficult read, even for a kid. He is definitely an odd one. I did not imagine my employment would involve needing to convince the Crown Prince. Or did they say that to mess with me? They are not interrupting him though. Crown Prince Nil and Lux started looking at each other. Their heads bobbed back and forth, twisting side to side as they had a mental conversation. Lux curled her nose up, and then made a bit of a pouty face. Crown Prince Nil shrugged and turned towards his uncles, and the three adults made some quick glances at each other. Lux and Crown Prince Nil put on some begging faces, and the three adults sighed and nodded begrudgingly. Crown Prince Nil looked at me with a devious smile.

“Lux wants to play a game. Earlier, we were practicing running and evading. She wants us to play the game with you and my uncles and grandma agreed! The condition for your side is if I get hurt in the course of the game you heal me off the books!” Crown Prince Nil said with a tone of joy. Lux’s tails were wagging in excitement.

“Can you explain Nez?” I asked, wondering what I was in store for.

“He and Lux get a one-minute head start. You have twenty minutes to catch them. All parties are restricted to the outer grounds. Do be warned, there is a max speed while on the castle grounds. To make it fair, you are only allowed to move at half the limit. Obviously, trying to grievously injure or kill the Crown Prince will not be allowed.” Nez explained to me.

“That’s why you needed me to teach Lux! Nil got injured earlier playing this game and you wanted him ready for the celebration later!” I snapped at them.

“Perhaps, but he and Lux want to see how you measure up to me for determining whether you are a suitable teacher for Lux, and this time we have someone who can heal them, and they really want to play this game to see.” Nez stated with a bit of a sigh.

“Catching a kid and his , that’s too easy. How is that a test? They just want to play around.” I replied. This is why I dislike kids at times.

“I will give you one more piece of advice Orga, when the three of us played earlier, I lost. And I took it seriously.” Nez warned. He has to be bluffing. No way Nez lost to a kid in a game this easy.

“Let the game begin.” Empress Mother Poam declared as she made a timer appear, and it began ticking down.

This was going to be easy. Crown Prince Nil hopped onto Lux, and the two clearly planned on running off. Nez is skilled, how did he lose to a kid? I wondered to myself as Crown Prince Nil and Lux vanished into thin air. Wait. WHAT?! Not a trace. Just simply gone. The other three looked made an approving nod.

“You did not put any form of tracking on him in advance. Bold strategy, really trying to showboat.” Nez mocked. Oh no.

“What was that?!” I asked, bewildered. How did they do that?!

“I warned you, he managed to beat me with my . I was trying to help you, as the combination of Nil and Lux is going to be hard especially for someone unfamiliar with them; Nil’s talent is staggering, and Lux is a .” Nez answered with a smirk.

“I thought you were kidding! How difficult of a challenge is this?” I snapped back.

“That lack of preplacing a tracking is going to make this game really difficult for you to win. Having to find and capture those two unharmed is not going to be easy.” Nez explained. That’s why he warned me. Crap.

“Minute is up.” Empress Mother Poam announced.

This was bad. How do I find those two? Think. They seemed to vanish into thin air. Nil is a Crowthorne, the child of Azzeck and Senna. Senna was known for having , and Azzeck possessed the traditional Crowthorne . Nil possesses the title of Crown Prince, so he likely has . could move the two of them a good distance, so they would no longer be visible. Nil definitely moved them. How was there no trace? could do it. One of the most neutral , but how on Tenebrae would a five-year-old know it? I was trying to help you. Nil’s talent is staggering. Nez was trying to make this fair despite our animosity. He wants this to be a fair representation for his nephew. Why mention he is talented? He is a member of the Imperial Family, with his mother being the Life Reaper, the chances of him not having some innate talent would be slim to none. Or even considering his lineage, Nil is immensely talented.

So let’s assume the worst case, he knows , , and several type including . I needed to find someone trying to hide with . The was based on manipulating your to match the surrounding area. The flow. No matter how skilled you were, you could not hide the disrupted flow. have a distinct flow. This should work. I used a long range . It should have enveloped the majority of the grounds. I processed the information and found two disruptions hiding in a nook. Wow, even looking for them it is hard to sense them; they are doing an excellent job. I immediately tore after them. I am getting this job. If Nez lost, I should just have to win.