Hokas Mandlouf was one of the few living people left who had witnessed how Hesbig IV defeated a tiger with his own hands when he was no more than a prince, and although it was true that this made him famous throughout the kingdom, the truth was slightly different from the one that was told. To begin with, the protagonist of that epic story did not even face the animal, but merely gave it the coup de grace when his men had already caught him, but details such as those were of little relevance. After all Hesbig IV had not been a bad king, but not a good one either.

Many years had passed since Hokas arrived at the royal palace full of hope to improve the kingdom. He was the second son of a small family of southern landowners who had been allowed to accompany the crown prince during his studies, and after living with the future Hesbig IV for so long the young Hokas was convinced that together, the prince and he, they would change the destiny of the country. He had to spend enough time from the coronation of his friend so that the disappointment could to the enthusiasm, and even so that faithful minister always waited for that the change in his king was given that his town so much needed. Something that unfortunately never happened.

—I thought the council would stop this madness —Confessed the mother of the current king as they dismissed the royal carriage from the battlements.

That woman had changed significantly in recent days, almost as if she were someone else. It can, and in fact Hokas hoped that it was, that this change was due to the new monarch, who, unlike his predecessors, seemed willing to leave his mark on the world.

—Everything is about to change, ma'am —At least he wished that—. We must leave the king free to bring those changes.

Nothing I had done would make sense if things did not change.

—I do not doubt that he brings them, if he lives far enough. I remind you, Hokas, that the one who has just left for war is a fourteen-year-old boy —She said before leaving.

That woman had a lot of character, too much for the old man's taste, and there were times when she talked as if she knew more than was convenient ... But it could not be; he had made sure to cut off all the loose ends, and even if she suspected him ... The queen mother could be a powerful political ally for the new king, for now she was necessary.

—Is it okay if I continue with my usual tasks, Mr. Minister? —Asked Prince Bemlos, who would replace his majesty if something happened to him.

—Of course. I will take care of looking for you when your presence and action are necessary —How tired he was to repeat that phrase.

Ever since Prince Alanzor had ascended to the throne, he had not had to utter those words that he had said so many times to Hesbig IV. It was surprising how a few days had sufficed for him to lose the habit of acting as a messenger of the crown, for although the young monarch was still unaware of the scope of his duties, at least he was interested in them and personally performed them. Yes, it had been a right decision to clear the way for the boy.

Like so many others, at first Hokas paid no attention to the king's youngest son. He knew that he had inherited the golden eyes of the Hasbim, but he had three other older half-brothers who had also inherited them, so the boy did not stand out among his many relatives. But one day, the young man would have eight or ten years, the minister realized that the boy was synchronized with one of his brothers to prevent the queen from meeting the king's favourite concubine. Those two women hated each other, and therefore it would have been normal for their respective children to do so, but somehow they had managed to overcome that social tendency.

At that time, the youngsters looked like two future promises for politics and international relations, although the surprise did not end there.

—Prince —He had paid so little attention in those days that he had not even bothered to memorize the boy's name—, how did you know your mother would be here today?

That he knew where his mother was and what she was doing at every moment was not especially remarkable. Maybe something worrisome and a little unfortunate having better things to do, but nothing more. Of course, that day everything was chaotic in the palace because the plaster had fallen off the roof of one of the main corridors, and everyone was using alternative routes.

—I only saw her coming —The young man replied without understanding.

There was a reason why the princes who inherited the golden eyes of the Hasbim had preference over those who did not inherit them. It was not a simple tradition, but rather a much more pagan and fantasy one, because there was an old legend that spoke of magical powers linked to the golden eyes of the royal family. Specifically, it was believed that those with those eyes were able to see the future. Of course it was a legend whose credibility Hokas himself rejected, but perhaps it was because of his advanced age that when the minister began to observe the young prince he also began to believe that there was some truth behind that story.

Believing that what his senses told him was nothing more than senile illusions of a tired mind, the old minister looked for evidence that this legend about the magic eyes could be true. And at the end he found an old parchment where Hesbig I himself had written some of his visions. But were those stories true or a deception created by the emperor himself to keep his enemies at bay?

Hokas looked for the prince's wet nurse, her caregiver and her teachers. Just to ask them if the young man had said or done something strange; if he had nightmares or if he talked about strange dreams… and the prince's old nurse gave him the answer he was looking for.

—When he was little he talked about strange dreams where golden eyes surrounded him. A childhood fear I told him it was —The woman laughed—. Oh! He once said that he had dreamed where the button that his mother had lost was, but that he was not going to look for it because a servant would find it within two days when he was chasing a mouse. Can you imagine it, sir? A mouse in the palace!

He had to make more inquiries, and although the old man never knew if the button appeared the way the prince had described it, some of the visions of it were fulfilled. It was a difficult task to discover it, because as he grew up the young man stopped revealing that gift to those around him.

—Prince Alanzor, if you could be king, what is the first thing you would do? —He asked once, in a sneaky attempt to learn more about the boy's personality.

—It is my brother Hesbig who will be king.

To say otherwise would have meant betraying his father, who at that time was king, so if answer was calculated and accurate, which denoted a minimum of intelligence and modesty.

—Of course, I speak in a hypothetical case.

The boy looked at him then with his golden eyes without showing any emotion, which showed how much control he had over himself.

—I have never been taught to govern. I guess before deciding what to do I should know what I can do.

He was a child, but a child raised in a family that stabbed itself in the back in order to gain something more power. So that answer did not surprise the minister.

—The king can do everything —Hokas insisted once more.

—If he could really do everything, what would the others do? —The prince smiled before giving the conversation by finished and go to play.

The boy managed to escape his question three times, and that his teachers did not hesitate to call him stupid. No, definitely the boy was not stupid, in fact the minister began to believe that this quiet and elusive young man would be much better king than Prince Hesbig.

At first Hokas rejected that thought because it was a betrayal of his king and friend, but when the disease placed young Alanzor just behind the useless of his half-brother Hesbig… That was when the minister knew he had to act.

—I would like to know what killed my brother, if you know already —Asked the child king when everything was done.

The quick answer to that question was that he died drowned by a pillow. The answer that no one would ever hear was that the minister planned a way to use the weakness of Hesbig IV's firstborn, the women, to take him out of Alanzor's way while everyone was awaiting the king's burial, and then his killer was silenced with a deadly cocktail. But like so many other things that had happened over time that Hokas had served the kingdom, that would never be known.

—According to the royal doctor, Prince Hesbig's heart failed due to overexertion during his activities…

How could a womanizer like Hesbig compare to a boy who, despite his age, left for war to end an internal conflict in the country? How could a slacker like Hesbig be ahead of a boy who, without having been crowned, had already begun to study the operation of the government on his own? How else had anyone noticed that the rough diamond remained unpolished in the palace?

Hokas had betrayed his old friend by killing his son; he had gone against his king's wishes for his heir… But he had not done so for personal interests, but for the good of his country. Everything was for the glory of Sults.