The busy streets of central Paradis had always been a breath of fresh air. The rush of people, the laughter, the chatter — it was everything the palace wasn’t. The palace was cold, suffocating, full of expectations and eyes watching at every turn. But here, in the heart of the city, there was anonymity, there was freedom. The kind of freedom that was far too rare, especially for the heir to the throne.

This was the sixth time sneaking out. Each time more careful than the last. A cloak, pulled low over the face, a careful step, blending with the crowd. It wasn’t difficult to slip through the palace guards when they were too focused on duty to notice the absence of the royal heir. There was comfort in the quiet anonymity of walking amongst the citizens, hearing their stories, seeing the world they lived in.

For a few precious hours, it was possible to forget the weight of a crown that loomed so large. For a few hours, the world felt alive, untethered to royal responsibility.

But the feeling didn’t last long.

Levi was always there, lurking in the background like a shadow. The streets, packed with people, never quite seemed to hide him. His figure was always sharp, precise, the cloak flowing silently behind him, moving with the same calculated steps. A silent presence.

A pair of eyes that never missed a thing.

The movement caught the eye, a flicker of motion among the throngs of people. The small stir of air, the subtle way the crowd shifted. Then, unmistakably, Levi appeared. His posture rigid, his gaze fixed.

The moment was gone.

Levi’s voice broke the quiet of the night, sharp, with the familiar weight of concern beneath it. “Sneaking out again, Your Highness?”

Without turning, the words came as a simple exhale. “I don’t need to be monitored, Levi. The city is my only chance at being a part of it all.”

Levi’s expression remained neutral, his voice even colder. “Your people need a ruler, not someone lost in the streets. It’s not just about what you want.”

A moment of silence passed. The frustration, ever-present, began to curl inside. “I’m more than my title.”

Levi’s gaze never wavered. “You can’t be more if you’re dead."

His words hung in the air, blunt as ever, filled with the weight of years of duty. Levi never relented. His concern was buried beneath layers of duty, a duty that kept him rigid in a way no one could quite understand.

The city felt farther away, its pulse growing quieter as the distance between the heir and the knight only grew.