For the July 2021 contest of childrensfiction, New Skills. Featuring two characters of an story idea, and will act as an epilogue to the story. 

"Papa, can you please tell me a bedtime story?" Jilla asked her dad innocently as he moved around the room, slightly pacing in order to get things set up before his daughter fell asleep. 

Lalie Watson, nicknamed Lie, immediately answered, "Of course, Lala."

Once he was sure everything was in place, he strode over to her bed and sat down on the chair near her bedside table while saying, "Which story do you want to hear?"

"I wanna hear the story of the Wise King!" she answered.

"Alright," he settled himself down. "I'm honestly surprised you're asking for it. Especially since it's been a long day, what with the Everlasting Tree fiasco."

"I..." she hesitated, but she soon picked herself up and said, "It's been ages since you told me a story, Papa. I want to spend more time with you...."

His eyes softened hearing that.

Time couldn't come back, yes, but there was always a chance for you to make up for it. He hadn't known that before, having tied himself to work after his wife's death, until Jilla was possessed by Discaro, but now he did, and he was ready to make up for it.

"Okay then," he closed his eyes slightly, preparing himself mentally before he began his tale. The tale of a brave hero who didn't win with brawns, but with brains...

The Tale of the Wise King

Once upon a time, in a land far away with 3 kingdoms that were at war with each other, there lived a young boy on a farm with his parents. He was their only son, and his parents constantly worried about the world he lived in, fearing his death should he be forced to fight for the kingdom.

They thought and thought and thought, wondering just how they would keep their son safe.

Then, one day, it hit them. If their son was proven "useful", then he wouldn't be forced to fight. Not physically, but with knowledge and wisdom.

And so their son was taught everything the two knew, and more by going around the town to learn more from every single person. Every day, the curious child learnt more about the world beyond the kingdom, and he was taken on walks to observe and learn. Those were blissful times.

However, tragedy struck. Upon reaching his 14th birthday, his parents were killed during a three-way battle, and the troop leader sent him a letter declaring that he too was to fight for the kingdom.

The son, who had never lifted a sword before, wrote back, saying that he would like to be an advisor instead of a soldier, detailing how much he knew but remaining humble.

When the king heard of this, he was immediately intrigued, and sent an invite to the young man, offering him a place in his court.

The young man agreed, and so he packed up and prepared to leave his hometown, with only the map he had sketched out in his head for years as an aid.

Arriving at the palace, the troop leader was immediately enamoured by his display of wisdom and knowledge, and decided to make him his advisor. The young man quickly grew popular among the members for giving solutions to problems they had, and there was not a person there who didn't like him.

However, once again, tragedy struck. The troop leader was fell during a battle against the two kingdoms, leaving no one to take up the pedestal.

The troops were in despair for days, worried, scared for the future of their kingdom. "Who would fight with us, guide us, and lead us?" they would say.

The young man saw all of this, and knew that the troop leader had trusted in him. He couldn't let his sacrifice go in vain. And so he decided that moment that he was going to take up the pedestal and fight to stop this pointless war.

For the first time since he was born, he took up a sword and began training himself in combat. He wanted to avoid bloodbaths. He despised them, but knowing how to defend oneself was always helpful. He wasn't about to be a burden to the kingdom.

The training was helped by his fellow soldiers, and in a few weeks' time, he was fluent in the art of battling. Just in time too, as the other two kingdoms were about to attack.

Everyone was worried. They were terrified and they thought fighting them off was their only option.

But a day before the fated battle, the young man visited the grave of his parents, and met an official who had known them, surprised that their son was now a general for the kingdom. She explained that they had always wished for their son to stay away from the battlefield, worrying for their safety.

Hearing this, the young man felt guilty, and then it hit him; there WAS another way to win the battle.

A plan forming in his mind, he returned to the castle and rallied his fellow soldiers up to tell them his strategy.

At first, they refused. It was a crazy plan, and there was too little time. Even then, there was no way the kings would agree to it.

But his determination spurred something deep within them. Sometime during this meaningless fight, they had lost the dream they once had when joining the army; to see a peaceful kingdom. He managed to spur the soldiers into working together with him to unite the kingdoms once more.

First, at dawn, all three kings were sent letters to come to the borders of the three kingdoms for greetings before the final battle alone to avoid early bloodshed. As they were announced by squires, no one noticed anything amiss. It was all according to plan.The next stage of the plan was actually based on a story the young man had heard from the books. A long time ago, the three kingdoms used to be at peace, until the death of a noble set them against each other. No one had known what had caused it, but he knew it had to be someone in the palace at the time.

Thus, the young man did a lot of investigating despite the time crunch he was on and determined that the one behind the murder was the current advisor, aged as he was, to his kingdom's ruler. The advisor was greedy, you see, and wanted it all to himself. And so he benefited from the war by giving "advice" to the three rulers. Of course, none of them knew this since they didn't talk to each other, only fought and fought without a care for the world. Once it was announced that they were on their way, he had the letter sent to the advisor, telling him that he knew the truth of the war's origin, and so if he wanted it to be kept quiet, he would have to meet up with him.

The old advisor was angry. All his hard work was about to be unraveled by a kid who didn't know anything about the real world. Without being rational, he rushed out to catch up with the young man, and caught sight of a man with the approximately same build and clothes as the one he was hunting down. He gave chase, but the person disappeared. After a few minutes of searching, the same person showed up.

The advisor was led to the borders, where, to his shock, the young man was already there. He had been explaining everything to them, and he showed up just in time for the reveal of the mastermind. The three rulers were so surprised, but at the same time, it all made sense, why peace never came to the kingdoms afterward.

How did he pull this off, though? He had been there explaining, and yet there was clearly someone leading the advisor on. There was no magic behind it; his friends in the army who were of a similar build had pretended to be him, using his clothes to lure him on.

The soldiers who had worked with the young advisor immediately seized him and walked away with him, kicking and screaming, and the three rulers finally reconciled. The young man was given the recognition he deserved, even though he had refused it at first, and after some discussion, they crowned him king over the united kingdom. And so he ruled wisely over the years, and the kingdoms stayed united for a very long time.

Thus, the story serves as a reminder that wisdom is priceless; something that is meant to wield not for personal gain, but for the sake of others.

The End....

Lalie then looked down to see his daughter already asleep, her soft breathing echoing throughout the room.

He smiled softly before he kissed her forehead and closed the door gently, ending their long day together.