August passed by the numerous maids clearing away the debris left by his one-week birthday celebration. August would typically enjoy these gatherings. After all, he was the reason for the celebration, but this year he counted down the days until the week was over. Even though August was a prince in title, he didn't feel like one. Lavish parties and piles of gold could only take you so far in life. What really mattered was having upstanding character and being a hero. Real princes, were brave, selfless, went on daring adventures, and did many great deeds. Going on daring adventures was not an option for August, he had never even stepped foot outside the castle. And helping the maids clean up after his birthday celebrations was the closest thing he had ever come to great deeds.

 He wouldn't be able to help the maids clean up this year though. After years of training, August was ready to embark on a quest that would change the trajectory of his life. August felt a bit of guilt as he trod on the debris and maids in the hall. He received a number of good mornings, and as he disregarded them his guilt increased. He couldn't spare time to talk to them. After arriving at his destination, August paused to take a breath and fortify his thoughts, He raised his fist and knocked on the door.

 "Come in," a muffled voice said.

 August entered his father's study but didn't go too far from the door. His father's study wasn't very big, but there was a huge chasm between them. King Harry didn't look up at August as he continued to scribble on a document. His father's desk had stacks of paperwork on it, but it was far from unorganized. Nothing was out of place.

 August shuffled his feet on the floor quietly. The only other sounds in the room were his father's scratching of his quill and the crackling fireplace. It was a bit unorthodox for August to speak before his father, but the silence was making his skin itch.

 "Good morning, Father."

 "What do you have to say, Augustus?" His father sighed.

 August rocked on his feet and took a deep breath.

 "Father, now that I'm eighteen, I think it's time I save Evelyn."

 The scratching stopped for a brief moment before starting again.

 "What makes you think you're up for that?" He said without looking up.

 "I've been training with the sword for six years. I can hold my own easily."

 "I have trained for over thirty years and I wouldn't step into the dark dimension."

 August furrowed his brows and took a step closer to his father's desk.

 "I'm not a kid anymore. You can't keep coddling me."

 "I'm not coddling you. I'm being honest. Your skills are embarrassingly average and I have no doubt you wouldn't last long on your own. We've been over this before. You're not ready."

 August's heart was full of needles. His father couldn't even bother to look up at him even once.

 "Father, are we supposed to leave Evelyn to rot?" He tried again.

 "One day someone will come along and save her." His father said indifferently.

 August gritted his teeth. Did Evelyn mean nothing to him? August practically grew up with her. How could he be so passive about this? August knew his father wouldn't sit idly by whenever there was trouble so why now of all times was he sitting back?

 "Someone? She can't be saved by just anyone. If they could, then wouldn't she have been saved a long time ago? Father the prophecy-"

 August bit his tongue silently scolding himself for thoughtlessly speaking. For the first time, his father looked at him with a deadly glare.

 "Prophecy? Are you meddling with magic?"

 August threw all caution to the wind. "Father you've kept this prophecy away from me all my life. I had to hear about it from someone else!"

 "So you've been talking to that witch!" His father slammed his quill onto his desk. "Magic is strictly forbidden and that includes prophecies!"

 "Father! Prophecies are not dangerous. And this one was told before you banned magic!"

 "That doesn't change the fact that it's magic. You know how evil magic is. What would your mother think about this if she was here?"

 August huffed at his father's unfair words. "Monica said that mother was supportive of the prophecy."

 "You'd trust that witch before you trusted my own words?"

 "At least Monica told me about the prophecy. It's about me! You didn't think it was important to tell me?"

 "No. Any words from that fairy are disregarded in my eyes. I won't send you off on some adventure just because she said you would."

 "I don't even know who she is!"

 "And we're going to keep it that way!"

 "It doesn't matter who said it, " August said. If he wanted to go on his quest, he'd have to try a different angle. "A prophecy means that it will happen no matter what. Instead of arguing, we should accept that this is going to happen."

 "You forget your place, Augustus," His father growled. "You should know nothing of this prophecy in the first place. This discussion ends here. You will not be going anywhere at all."

 August stared at the ground as his father went back to scribbling on his documents. His father would always disregard him. Maybe he didn't know enough about the world, but did it make sense for him to just sit around and do nothing? Why wasn't he given the opportunity to prove himself?

 "So I'm just supposed to stay in the castle forever?" He asked bitterly.

 "If you really want to go on a quest we'll go hunting sometime."

 "I don't wan-"

 The doors of his father's study slammed open. A man dressed lavishly strode in exuding the utmost arrogance. He wore so much jewelry August had to cover his eyes. He wore rings made of the most priceless gems on each of his fingers. He donned the best silk clothing lined with the highest quality fur. August didn't understand why he tried so hard to show off when his attitude alone already gave him away as royalty. At this point, he was just enraging people.

 "Uncle," The man said. "I'm going out today. I'll need some money, guards, and the best carriage we have."

 "Fine."

 August's eye twitched. Why was he even here? Walter could leave the castle without permission and take all the money he wanted. Even if Walter spent all the money in the world at bars, his father would still let him live his life as he pleased. He stormed out of his father;s study, and his cousin followed shortly after.

 "Going out in the kingdom is a lot of fun. You ought to give it a try sometime," Walter said.

 August wanted to wipe that goofy smirk off of his face.

 "It must be hard to be such a sheltered prince. I can't imagine being stuck in the castle every day. Would you like me to tell you what it's like outside?"

 "Yes!" he said sarcastically. "Please enlighten me! What do you do with the money from the kingdom? Do you use it to help the poor? Or do you perhaps donate to an orphanage?"

 Walter snorted. "Why would I do that if I could use it to help myself? My dear cousin, you are missing out. A game of Idle Dragons can give your life purpose. A sip of beer from the red Lily can solve all your problems."

 August scoffed. Where was his shame? If only he were born a duke instead of a crown prince. Then he could've done some good in the world, unlike this sorry excuse for a royal.

 August couldn't afford to waste any more time talking to Walter. He could already feel his head throbbing. He had more pressing concerns.

 Today he would end his eighteen-year streak of being an obedient son. He foolishly believed his father would support his passion and that was his first mistake. August would apologize later. He'd be without a lot of resources, but the best heroes made do with what they had.

 Unlike his father's insinuation, August had not been talking to Monicas at all. She had told August about the prophecy before she was thrown into prison for witchcraft. He had never even stepped foot near the dungeon, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

 He hurried down the stairs that led to the dungeon and approached two guards sitting at a table near the dungeon doors. One guard with a stocky build cackled as he slapped a card on the table. The second guard, who was much thinner than the first guard, spewed out a line of curses. 

 "Hell! How do you have a dragon already?"

 "It takes a lot of skill to be as good as me." the other guard laughed.

 "Skill? You just got lucky."

 August cleared his throat, and the two guards looked in his direction. Their eyes widened as they saw him staring back at them.

 "Do you need anything, your highness?" One of the guards coughed.

 "I need to go inside." He said awkwardly.

 The guards looked at each other reluctantly. "We're not supposed to let you in here."

 "Why not?" August asked feeling a bit irritated.

 "Your father doesn't want you in there."

 "Ah… but it wouldn't be too hard to overlook it right? In exchange, I'll overlook you guys playing cards while on duty."

 The stocky guard coughed loudly again as he stood up to open the door.

 "Wow, Your Highness. I didn't think you had it in you to threaten anyone."

 "Please don't think too much of it," August replied remorsefully.

 He was using his royal authority for once, but it wasn't exactly honorable. How could Walter treat people so awfully?

 He stepped inside the dank dungeon, sending chills down his spine. The sounds of prisoners muttering to themselves left August feeling unsettled. The torches hanging on the walls were the only source of light. Once the door shut, August knew it would be impossible for him to find his way through.

 "Your Highness, do you know where you're going?" The guard behind him asked.

 "Could you take me to Monica's cell?"

 The guard frowned. "The witch?"

 "Yes."

 "Your Highness I don't think your father-"

 "I wouldn't be here if I was worried about my father."

 The guard sighed and picked up a torch from the wall. "Follow me."

 As they walked through the dungeon, prisoners reached their hands outside the bars, begging for someone to listen. August couldn't help but pay attention to them. Numerous runis, elves, and even fairies came up with ingenious solutions to squeeze in the small spaces. He was able to feel their glares on his skin as he passed by and was compelled to apologize to them, but he wasn't sure why.

 "Hey!" One of the runis started banging on the bar cells. "I've paid my debt already! You can't keep me here any longer! You let me out right now!"

 "Shut up, flea scum!" The guard barked.

 August jumped at the guard's sudden aggressiveness, but he couldn't bring himself to feel too bad for the runi. After all, he was in prison for breaking the law. In Mellion, using magic was not something to be taken lightly. A knot formed in August's stomach at that thought. Would he be jailed once he got back from his quest? He shook off that thought and kept walking.

 In contrast to everyone else, Monica was seated by herself in a cell at the back of the dungeon. Even though she had been stuck in the dungeon for years, she still looked the same as the first time August had met her. Rags and chains couldn't hide her beauty. The guard moved away after August signaled for him to leave them alone.

 "Monica?" August asked softly.

 Monica didn't look very surprised to see August and just stared at him silently, waiting for him to ask his question. August fidgeted uncomfortably for a minute.

 "Monica, before you were sent... in here... You told me about a prophecy."

 "And you're eighteen now, correct?" Monica said.

 Her voice was curt and direct. She didn't seem to be affected by the many years trapped in a cell.

 "R-right," August responded, startled by her tone.

 "I'm not the best person to ask about this prophecy."

 August blinked. "But you're the one who told me about the prophecy."

 "I only know a small piece of the prophecy. The same small piece everyone else knows. At eighteen, you will save a princess from the dark dimension. I wouldn't advise you to just go into the dark dimension without any preparation."

 "I've been trained with the sword-"

 "Do you even know what the dark dimension is? Sword fighting is not going to get you through it," Monica scoffed. "Magic will."

 "Magic?" August said, stunned.

 "The dark dimension is a place ruled by magic. If you want to survive, you need magic. If you want to get in, you need magic. If you want to get out, then you need magic."

 August's head spun at this revelation. So there was no way to avoid directly using magic to save Evelyn? No wonder his father was so strongly opposed to this quest. Magic was quite unpredictable, and it caused his father many losses, including the loss of August's mother. Magic and its users didn't follow any rules. The dark dimension was probably a place of chaos and danger.

 Which was even more reason for him to save Evelyn. She didn't know any magic. It was probably a constant nightmare for her.

 "What am I supposed to do then?"

 "You need to hear the full prophecy. Your father could tell you," Monica chuckled. "But you wouldn't be here if he was willing to tell you."

 August rubbed his temples. Was nothing going to go his way?

 "Then I'm wasting my time here, aren't I?"

 "Don't be too hasty. I'm still willing to help you. After all, you are the reason I'm alive. Your next best chance would be with Lux, but she died a long time ago."

 Despite not knowing who Lux was, August felt his stomach sink. His mission was becoming more impossible the more he talked to Monica.

 "But I might be able to point you in the right direction. Even though Lux is dead, her teachings and words are still known to some. He may not be there anymore, but there is a runi named Barry in Cloudacre who may be able to help you. He was one of Lux's many students and one of the only ones who didn't flee when the Fairy War was lost."
August was electrified by a surge of energy. "Thank you! You won't regret helping me."

 Monica laughed. "This won't benefit me in any way, but I still hope you succeed. Many good things will come out of this, besides Evelyn being saved. Or at least that's what Lux told me."

 August tried to say something but failed to find the right words to say to Monica. If only she hadn't messed around with magic. Then he could do something to help her. His father's words rang in his ears as he left the dungeon. Even the thought of having to face him when he finished his quest made his heart race. He almost wanted to quit, but his destiny and Evelyn's life were on the line. August just hoped that eventually his father would understand, and he wouldn't kill him.