Chapter 1052: The Third Prince"s Whereabouts
“What secret code did Brother Miasnikov leave behind?” Akinfeev got excited.
“Eh, I thought that he died in the incident at the Royal Palace. After all, the Royal Palace was turned into a flatland, and countless people died. There were many corpses, and I couldn"t even find Jolie"s body. However, on the night of the third day, when I went to the collapsed Royal Palace to remember the fallen ones, I coincidentally discovered the secret code that Miasnikov left behind so that I could reach him… I didn"t alert anyone at that time, and I followed the secret code myself. I was overjoyed when I discovered that Miasnikov saved the Third Prince on that day and escaped from the Royal Palace. I guessed that the situation must be tragic, and the strength of the enemies was too powerful. Miasnikov couldn"t fight back and could only escape while being chased. He didn"t have time to notify anyone else and could only leave secret codes for me…”
While thinking back to that day, Emperor Ya.s.sin no longer looked like a majestic ruler of the land as he expressed his love toward his wife who pa.s.sed away, his son who was almost killed, and his brothers who had fallen.
After a pause, Emperor Ya.s.sin continued, “Miasnikov was the strongest among the eight of you, and he was the most careful. Although he couldn"t defeat those enemies who were after him, he hid along the way and wasn"t captured. He was worried that the enemies still had traps set up in St. Petersburg as well as on the path that I would take to come back. Therefore, he couldn"t leave my child at St. Petersburg or try to find me. He could only travel north and continued to escape from the enemies. He escaped for more than 20 days and was in critical danger several times, and he was also critically injured. In the end, he got to Chambord City and settled down the Third Prince before pa.s.sing away. Of course, this is the information that I got after I followed the secret codes and clues.”
“Brother Miasnikov was indeed the most powerful and most reliable out of all of us.”
Akinfeev was already crying at this moment. He should be the one who was in charge of everything and taking care of everyone. However, he wasn"t able to perform and let the tragedy happen. Although the enemies were way too strong for Zenit, Akinfeev still couldn"t forgive himself. Now hearing Miasnikov"s heroic and tragic story, he got even sadder and felt like he let down his brothers.
“Alright, Igor, you don"t need to blame yourself.”
Emperor Ya.s.sin knew this brother of his very well. Akinfeev was the youngest out of Emperor Ya.s.sin"s eight study buddies, and they all treated him like a little brother. During the incident that happened about 20 years ago, Akinfeev battled to the end and almost died. He was unconscious when he was found. It wasn"t like he didn"t try his best; he didn"t need to shoulder all the pressure and guilt.
Akinfeev nodded and suddenly realized something in the next second. He asked in surprise, “Brother Miasnikov ended up in Chambord City? So, the Third Prince is in Chambord City?”
“That is right. I followed the secret codes that Miasnikov left behind and ended up finding his corpse and the child that Jolie and I made.” Emperor Ya.s.sin nodded.
When he thought back to when he finally met his son, a warm smile appeared on his face. At this moment, he was no longer the dominating and cruel emperor; he was only a father who loved his child.
“Then, why didn"t Your Majesty bring the Third Prince back to St. Petersburg? If you taught him yourself, he might not be inferior compared to the King of Chambord. He would be a young and talented prince for sure. After all, when the Third Prince was born, phenomenon…” Akinfeev was curious as to why the Third Prince never appeared in St. Petersburg.
Clearly, Emperor Ya.s.sin didn"t bring back the Third Prince.
“You still remember the phenomenon that appeared when my third son was born? Images of G.o.ds appeared, and G.o.dly battle songs resonated in the sky…”
The smile on Emperor Ya.s.sin"s face was still gentle, and he said heroically with conviction, “Although I didn"t make it back in time to see it, all the citizens in St. Petersburg saw it; it must be true. Hehe, the child that Jolie and I made must be unique and influential!”
“That is right. When the Third Prince was being born, holy battle songs suddenly resonated in the sky, and red clouds enveloped the area. Many G.o.dly shadows flashed by, and everyone said that the Third Prince must be the reincarnation of a prestigious G.o.dly king, and he will inherit Your Majesty"s will and ambition and might even unite the Azeroth Continent!”
Although it had been about 20 years, Akinfeev still looked shocked when he thought back to what happened on that day.
“Yeah, the reincarnation of a G.o.dly king… This must be the reason that triggered the whole incident. How can those people let the reincarnation of a G.o.dly king appear in this world? That is why they chased after an infant who was only three days old while scheming against me,” Emperor Ya.s.sin sighed and said, “That is why I didn"t bring my child back to St. Petersburg. In fact, I didn"t even dare to go and formally accept that child as my third son. Once those people know that my child isn"t dead, they will come back. Even I can"t protect him.”
“Oh? That is the reason? So, Your Majesty, you haven"t told the Third Prince his real ident.i.ty yet?” Akinfeev suddenly understood the situation, and he realized what Emperor Ya.s.sin was trying to do. He didn"t know the phenomenon that occurred when the Third Prince was born became the nail in the coffin. Queen Jolie died because of it, and the Third Prince was almost killed as well.
The enemies were too powerful, and even Emperor Ya.s.sin didn"t dare to go and let the Third Prince know what was going on.
“Yeah, even though I would sometimes go and look at him from afar, I never told him anything.” Emperor Ya.s.sin nodded and said, “In the beginning, I felt like this was a blessing in disguise for this child. At least he didn"t have to be involved in the grudges and complex connections of his father, especially involving that terrifying organization. Unfortunately, I finally discovered the problem when the child was about five years old. Perhaps due to the injuries that he suffered when he was on the run with Miasnikov, his brain was damaged, and he became dull and dumb. He was inferior to an ordinary person, and he lost all potential talent in cultivation. I tried many methods in secret and wanted to heal him, but they were all useless. Ah! I hated myself and the enemies when that happened.”
“How is this possible? The Third Prince… he…” Akinfeev was shocked. “How could such a thing happen?”
Regardless if it were toward Emperor Ya.s.sin, the Queen of Radiance who pa.s.sed away, or the Third Prince who was in danger as soon as he was born, this ending was too cruel. A person who should be one of the most talented figures in the world became an idiot after that tragedy. This child"s fate was too cruel.
“This discovery made me give up my plan of nurturing him in secret. Although I still love this child and can die for him, I can"t let my personal feelings take over me, and I can"t make him the ruler of Zenit. I"m a father, but I"m also an emperor. I need to be responsible toward the officials who are loyal to me and the citizens who love me. After I found out about that, I thought being an ordinary person and living a comfortable and peaceful life might be the best ending for this child who experienced so many trials and tribulations.”