Chapter 171: The Lost Prince

Chapter 171: Chapter 171: The Lost Prince

"So, what’s the reason?" Gwen asked, curious.

"Well, it’s kind of a cliché story," Jack began. "The king once traveled the world in disguise. During that time, he met a woman, spent a night with her, and then went on his way. He never knew she became pregnant afterward, so he had no idea he’d left behind a son."

Kalen listened quietly, still confused about where Jack was going with this.

"That child grew up without ever knowing who his father was. Meanwhile, the king eventually returned to the royal city and continued his life without knowing he had another child."

Jack paused.

"Then the king was badly injured in a fight. With his health deteriorating, the problem became clear. All of his legitimate children are daughters, and according to royal tradition, only a male heir can inherit the throne."

Kalen’s expression slowly began to change.

"That means the son he never knew existed is actually next in line for the throne."

Kalen stared at Jack.

"Apparently, some of the nobles figured it out before the king did. Kalen looks enough like his father that they recognized the resemblance and started digging into his background. Once they confirmed who he was, the nobles realized they had a problem. Now that the king’s condition has worsened, several powerful factions want Kalen dead before he can be officially recognized as the heir."

Jack’s expression became serious.

"One faction supports him as the rightful heir. Another wants to stay neutral. And the third refuses to let an illegitimate child take the throne. The queen is part of the faction that wants him eliminated."

Kalen’s confusion only deepened.

"Wait... why are you telling me all this?"

Lisa’s eyes suddenly widened.

"Hold on..."

She looked at Kalen.

"You’re not joking, are you?" Lisa asked, stunned. "Are you saying Kalen is that son?"

"Son? What are you talking about?" Kalen asked, completely confused.

Then he looked around.

Gwen. Lisa. Jack.

All three were staring at him.

Kalen’s eyes widened as the realization finally hit him.

"No..."

He slowly looked at Jack.

"You’re saying... my father is the king?"

Jack nodded.

"Yeah."

Kalen’s face went pale.

"WHAT?! My father is the king?!" he blurted out, pure disbelief written across his face.

"Yeah, I’m sure of it. It’s all in the spaceship’s database. And it’s not exactly a secret in the royal city either. The government is already split into three factions over your existence. One supports you as the rightful heir, another wants to remain neutral, and the third refuses to let an illegitimate child take the throne," Jack explained.

"Me? A king?" Kalen still couldn’t wrap his head around it.

"Should I start calling you Your Highness now?" Lisa teased with a grin.

"No, don’t. This is already weird enough. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do with all of this," Kalen said, clearly overwhelmed.

"Take your time. You don’t have to figure everything out tonight," Jack said. He looked toward Lisa. "Take him somewhere quiet and let him rest."

Lisa nodded and led Kalen away.

Once they were gone, Gwen turned toward Jack.

"So, what happens now?"

"That depends entirely on what Kalen decides," Jack replied.

He headed off to make a few adjustments to the spaceship. Using its systems, he moved it farther from its original location and tucked it away somewhere well hidden.

The rest of the night passed quietly.

By morning, word had already spread through the upper ranks of the government that the spaceship had disappeared. The royal city and the surrounding territories were immediately placed on high alert...

At the royal palace the following day...

The grand council chamber was already crowded. Nobles sat along the long, polished table while several others appeared on large communication screens positioned around the room, allowing officials from across the kingdom to participate remotely.

At the front of the chamber, the queen stood with several generals behind her. Her expression was cold and furious.

"How did this happen? Who’s responsible?!" she demanded, glaring across the room.

"We’re doing everything we can to identify the enemy," one general replied, trying to keep his voice steady.

"There’s no reason to panic," a younger general said confidently. "We captured that spaceship from pirates once. We can do it again."

"No. It’s not that simple," an older general interrupted, his voice tense.

The room quieted.

"The first time, we got lucky. Those pirates were already badly weakened before we engaged them."

He looked around at the other officials.

"And many of you don’t seem to realize this, but that ship’s weapons are powerful enough to level this entire city with a single strike."

Silence fell over the chamber.

"WHAT?!"

"Why weren’t we told this?!"

"Are you saying that ship could destroy the royal city?!"

The chamber erupted into chaos. Nobles shouted questions at the generals while voices came through the communication screens from officials who hadn’t been aware of the ship’s true capabilities.

The queen slammed her hand against the table.

"SILENCE!"

The room gradually fell quiet.

"I don’t care what methods you use. Find that spaceship. Now."

She turned sharply and swept out of the chamber, her attendants hurrying after her.

What none of them realized was that the entire meeting had been intercepted and was being broadcast directly to the stolen spaceship.

Lisa watched the feed with open amazement.

"Jack, I didn’t expect you to pull something like this off in a single night. And now we can actually see what’s happening inside the palace."

"Knowing what your enemy knows is just basic strategy," Jack replied casually.

He turned toward Kalen, who had been unusually quiet while watching the meeting.

"Kalen, have you figured out what you want to do?"

Kalen remained silent for a moment before finally looking up.

"Jack... I want to meet the king."

He swallowed.

"My dad. I want to see him first."

Jack nodded.

"No problem. He’s been bedridden ever since his injury. He’s in his chambers right now."

Getting into the royal palace proved easier than expected with Jack’s abilities and the information he’d gathered from the spaceship. With the palace’s security systems mapped out, he knew exactly which entrances and patrol routes to avoid.The palace itself was enormous, with towering stone walls surrounding elegant buildings decorated with gold, intricate carvings, and massive banners bearing the royal family’s crest. Guards stood at every entrance while nobles, servants, and officials moved through the grand halls, completely unaware that the very person they’d been searching for was walking among them.

Jack kept Kalen close as they quietly made their way toward the king’s chambers. The closer they got, the quieter Kalen became. His confidence from earlier had disappeared, replaced by a nervousness Jack hadn’t seen from him before.

Eventually, they reached a large set of doors guarded from the outside.

Jack looked at Kalen.

"You ready?"

Kalen stared at the doors for several seconds before taking a slow breath.

"Honestly? No. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to say to him."

Jack gave him a small smile.

"Then don’t worry about saying the perfect thing. Just say whatever you feel."

Kalen nodded, though he still looked uneasy. He reached for the door, hesitated for a moment, and finally pushed it open.

Inside, the king lay in a large bed near the window. His once-powerful body looked frail beneath the blankets, and his face was pale from the injury that had left him bedridden. He looked nothing like the powerful ruler Kalen had imagined all his life.

At the sound of the door opening, the king slowly opened his eyes.

His gaze fell on Kalen.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Kalen had imagined this meeting countless times while growing up. In those dreams, he’d imagined shouting at his father, demanding to know why he’d abandoned his mother and left them to struggle alone.

But standing there now, looking at the weakened man in front of him, those words didn’t come as easily.

The king was staring at him with the same disbelief Kalen had felt when he’d first learned the truth.

"You..." the king whispered, his voice weak. "You’re my son."

Kalen’s hands tightened at his sides.

"Yeah."

There was still anger inside him. He couldn’t simply forget everything his mother had gone through, or the years he’d spent wondering why his father had never come looking for them.

But it was different now.

The king hadn’t known he existed.

And after learning the truth, he’d apparently done everything he could to protect Kalen, despite the queen and several powerful nobles opposing him.

Kalen still couldn’t completely forgive him.

But for the first time, he also couldn’t bring himself to hate him the way he once had.

Jack quietly stepped outside, closing the door behind him and giving father and son the privacy they needed.

He waited in the hallway, leaning against the wall as the minutes slowly passed.

He occasionally heard muffled voices from inside, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying.

Eventually, the door opened.

Kalen stepped out, his eyes red and his expression difficult to read.

Jack immediately knew he’d been crying, but he didn’t ask what had happened. Instead, he simply waited for Kalen to speak when he was ready.

Kalen took a deep breath and looked back at the king’s chambers.

"I spent my whole life hating him," he said quietly. "I thought he knew about me and simply chose to leave my mother and me behind."

He lowered his gaze.

"But he didn’t even know I existed. When he finally found out about me, he tried to protect me. He wanted to bring me into the royal family, but the queen and the nobles wouldn’t allow it."

Kalen’s expression tightened as conflicting emotions crossed his face.

"That doesn’t erase what happened to my mother. She still had to raise me alone. She still suffered without him, and I can’t just forget that."

He paused, then slowly shook his head.

"But after meeting him... I don’t hate him the same way anymore."

Jack listened quietly.

Kalen took another breath before continuing.

"Jack... I’ve decided. I want to be king."

Jack looked at him, surprised by how certain his voice sounded.

Kalen clenched his fists.

"I don’t know anything about being a king. I’ve never lived like one. I’ve never even had enough food to know where my next meal was coming from. I grew up in the slums, watching children go hungry and people struggle just to survive."

His voice trembled slightly, but the determination in his eyes only grew stronger.

"But maybe that’s exactly why I should do it."

He looked toward the palace halls beyond them.

"I know what it’s like to be forgotten. I know what it’s like to have nothing and have nobody powerful enough to care. I don’t want other children growing up the way I did."

Kalen looked back at Jack.

"I want my people to have enough food. I want children to have the chance to learn instead of growing up worrying about their next meal. I want them to have a safe place to live... because I know what it’s like to have none of those things."

His expression hardened with determination.

"I can’t change what happened to my mother. I can’t change the years I lost with my father. But if I become king, I can make sure other families don’t have to suffer the same way."

Jack smiled.

"Good. I’ve been waiting for you to say that."

He placed a hand on Kalen’s shoulder.

"Then let’s get you your throne."

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