“Vagrant,” he said. “Not Cyrus. The prince is dead, remember?”

Thorda’s smile stretched ear to ear.

“To the dead prince,” he said. “And to his inevitable return.”

CHAPTER 6

CYRUS

At last, after fourteen long hours of bumpy carriage rides, Cyrus arrived at the countryside mansion. He stared out the window, stunned despite having been told they traveled to a wealthy estate where they could train far from the eyes of the Uplifted Church in Vallessau. The mansion was built atop a hill, two stories tall, with multiple wings spanning either side of the towering front doors. It reminded Cyrus of the summer home his parents owned, but they were King and Queen of Thanet, whereas Thorda was…

Well. He didn’t exactly know what Thorda Ahlai was, but his estimation of the older man’s wealth and influence was growing by the second.

“I have not lived here for more than a few days at a time, but my brief stays have found this to be one of the more pleasant mansions I own,” Thorda said as Cyrus took in the beautiful flower gardens that lined both sides of the gravel pathway, each swarming with butterflies. The two were alone within the carriage, with Stasia riding up front with the driver outside. Mari, the other sister he’d met briefly, remained behind in Vallessau, though Cyrus had not been given nor overheard an explanation as to why. “Even for a child of royalty, I expect you will feel pampered and welcome within. Consider it a needed reprieve from the necessary cruelty of your training you will receive outside of it.”

“You own more than one mansion?” Cyrus asked after whipping his head back around.

“I own several dozen properties all throughout the mainland of Gadir. Given the nature of our work, I wanted to ensure my abode in Vallessau was humble and easy to enter and exit without notice. Out here in the countryside there is no need to spare us any pleasantries.”

Cyrus was hardly a stranger to wealth as a prince of Thanet, but this home alone was one of the finest he had ever seen. Its size, and the acreage about it, dwarfed even the summer home his family visited in Red Glade. Already it took several minutes for their carriage to roll down the gravel path between the outer gate entrance to the mansion’s front steps. For Thorda to have the resources to build…

A chill ran through Cyrus. But of course Thorda didn’t build this mansion. Even if he had arrived with the Everlorn Empire, it had only been two years. That enormous, weathered building had existed for decades, if not centuries.

“Who did this place belong to before your arrival?” he asked softly.

The older man nodded, his faint smile showing his approval.