“I refuse! I will never take over your throne, father. I could care less about the kingdom.” A vehement echo vibrated King Charles’s throne room, one that garishly shook the ornate vases of gold.
         King Charles sighed in slight disappointment. “What an impudent boy you are. Have you forgotten how your mother and I have given you all you ever wanted? Do you not appreciate anything? Do you have any dignity? You are already nineteen, young sir. All we ask of you is to take my place, and rule the city as a king with the best intentions for his people. What could be wrong with that?”
         An unmitigated Prince Keith acted out of sheer annoyance. “Father. You have got to be kidding me. With your notoriety in Charleston, no one cares about what you have to say, or what you do. Ever since you screwed up five years ago, you have lost all of the respect from those who once looked up to you. The amount of credibility you have at the moment is unbelievably low… I doubt any townsfolk trust you. Keep this in mind, father. Who would want to take over a kingdom with a bad reputation?” With this, the adamant prince slammed the throne doors shut. He would not listen anymore.
         At first, the ruler of Charleston stolidly sighed. His straight face did not move for a minute or two. But King Charles suddenly yelled out of a newly discovered anger. Prince Keith had violated Rule 980 of the Charleston Handbook, one regarding the impertinence of others towards the king. Prince Keith acted out of temerity, without considering the consequences. Worries began to fill the old man’s head. With his health slowly deteriorating, and age increasing, he felt apprehensive about what would happen to his crown after his days ended. Would Charleston live on without rulers? Would it crash and burn if Prince Keith did not take over? What would happen?
         Something seemed plainly off in the morning. Perhaps Prince Keith realized how disrespectful his actions were previously, because he poked at his breakfast in an abnormal silence. The bovine delicacies from the best cattle had no appeal to the prince today. Upon “finishing” his meal, he made a furtive attempt to slip out of the banquet room while everyone was bustling and hustling about. Screaming at and looking down on the king was certainly sordid; it could not be ignored. Prince Keith had unreasonably persecuted his father with unrighteous insults- without thinking twice. The prince knew his father had already regained the trust of Charleston just recently through a new law. He was also aware of the strong integrity the king upheld: King Charles never lied. However, taking over King Charles’s rule was something he found painstaking and utterly boring. Ruling a kingdom was nowhere to be seen on his future plans.
         Successfully escaping the crowded meal hall, the prince silently made his way to his father’s bedroom. He wanted to apologize for his behavior that resulted from his irascible personality. His anger management was poor, and he tended to get annoyed quite irrationally. 
“Please stop there, your royal highness. The king is in a period of heart pains, and is having trouble breathing. He desperately needs rest.” The timid voice of a maid halted Prince Keith’s thoughts.
         The prince questioned her. “You do know that I am his son, am I correct?”
         “Yes, your highness. But the king-“
         “Melanie. Do you expect the king’s son to not be concerned of his own father?” Prince Keith wryly spoke, as if challenging the young maid to tell him otherwise.
         Melanie shook her head respectfully and allowed the prince to make his way to King Charles. As Prince Keith opened the large doors leading to the king’s bedroom, his unconscious father lay peacefully on the bed.  Beside him was a note. “My dear son…”
         Thirty years passed since King Charles’s death. A sudden heart attack, caused by excessive stress, took his life. Charleston was still prospering and growing under the rule of the new king. The whole kingdom was in a hurry to start the commemoration of the former ruler. Voices filled the grand palace.
          “King Keith, son of King Charles, are you ready to begin?”