Mehli threw his sword away. "Fist to fist!" he screamed. His stupid courage gravelled me. Vukasin hissed like he was showing off his fangs. He got rid of the sword too. Mehli approached the fences and got a scarf from a young ambassador to wrap his bare fingers. As he turned to Vukasin again, he found him running toward him. That's when I approached Lady Tomris. "My king, my lord, my lady," I saluted in order. I got behind Lady Tomris and leaned slightly forward. "My lady, it is urgently required for you to tell him to stop." I pleased. She looked back at me, surprised. "Ser Jaromir, I do not believe Prince Mehli will listen to me." So I bent to her ear. "I didn't mean Prince Mehli." She was shocked, and suddenly, her face changed into ice cold. It was clear that I offended her. I reverenced and walked back.

Meanwhile, Vukasin was beating the hell out of him. Mehli couldn't even take a chance to hit. Bayezid had already covered his face with his hands. Mehli fell onto the ground. Vukasin looked towards us, towards Lady Tomris. It was pure gloom on his face. Immediately, Mehli straightened up and hit his face on the side.

Vukasin immediately lost his balance. I couldn't believe such a fist could be that forceful. Mehli took this chance of confusion to hit another.

Consequently, Vukasin collapsed onto his knees. Lady Tomris stood up and had a silent cry. I held her shoulder and made her sit before anyone realized how concerned she was. Vukasin heard her scream. There was a glimpse of relief in his bloody mouth. He already realized that there was a hard ore inside the scarf that Mehli wore, and so did I. However, he didn't say a thing; he didn't even resist or escape but let Mehli hit him numerous times. I ran towards the sides of the arena. When his back embraced the sand, I was there to support him. I took him to the nursery while Mehli was having his victory whistles. Even though Vukasin could hardly open his eyes, he was silently laughing. I grabbed his hand. "We need to talk about this at some point." He patted my hand. "This is the most beautiful victory that I had so far," he whispered, then lost consciousness. 

The celebrations were over. Prince Mehli and Princess Tomris were officially married. I packed a small Tigrisian army of two hundred men and prepared to return. Bayezid was still in the trials of convincing me to stay for another while. It was time to hit the road. Bayezid took me to the high balcony. "This is the last time I am greeting Prince Jaromir." he sighed. I laughed at his dramatic voice. "We will certainly meet again; I had pledged allegiance to you. Remember?" He looked at me sincerely. "The next time we see each other, you will be King Jaromir." King Jaromir, I repeated after him. That was the first time I recognized myself as a ruler. 

It was all settled. I searched for Vukasin. He found me. "Dear Brother..." He started before I opened my mouth. "because of my timid condition, I may not withstand such a long and strict journey. I have wounds to be healed and broken bones to be knitted. It is seriously recommended that I rest in Edre in the surveillance of the most skilled healers of King Bayezid's castle. There, the case demands you to save our beloved lands by yourself and feel my company in your heart." I looked at him with a grain of salt. I placed my hand on his shoulder.

"I will tell this to you once and only. Do not show any practice or attempt that might question your position. This is not a game that you play with girls from nowhere. If you result in such a betrayal, you will drag a war which I will not let you fight alone. This will be the war of two kingdoms and the death of thousands." He hid his eyes and then answered. "I, too, will never let you fight alone. I will be there the moment I sense that you are challenged." I embraced him. I thought that Vukasin would never do anything to harm our people. Once again, he and I were split apart. I had already sent my mother a raven to tell her I was coming.

We were all saddled. A young knight with crimson long hair approached next to me with his grey spotted nag. "We are not properly acquainted, my prince. I am Castaver Wurdlich. Second son of Lord Wurdlich, the saviour of the lands of the south. He was in the court of King Dragar Dragarevic. I have been the co-commander of the Great Tigrisian Army with Prince Vukasin. Now, if you wish me to be by your side, I would gladly serve you till the last drop of blood is spilt out of my veins." I am grateful for his strong tone of voice. "I appreciate your serving the army and would like it to continue under my lead. As you may understand, I had been fighting bonded to the Danishmenthan army. The Tigrisian force I led was two thousand men, and they were quite separated from the Great Army as they had never fought in the name of our land. Therefore, I expect you, commander, to help me synchronize these men to the traditional Tigrisian art of war." He nodded seriously. 

The city of Edre already seemed to be a small grey spot beneath the hills. The sun started to go down, and the clouds played their pinkish games as if they were farewell to the prince in between and welcoming the king, who meant to let the sun never go down again.