[The smallest of chuckles comes out, the bitterness is imagined, the cynicism is not.]
Ah, if only I could.
[The over-dramatic sigh that accompanies that statement is just as overblown and feigned as one might expect from the chancellor. The sentiment behind it is perhaps a touch more sincere than Noctis might realize. Of course, the boy knows by now that Ardyn is immortal and cannot die. He just doesn't realize that there is a part of his rival that would like to do just that already.
Ardyn shakes his head making light of what is actually a serious conversation, followed by an unreadable smile. It fades into a far more serious expression as he leans in and queries of Noctis in a lowered voice:]
Tell me, Noct, how often does a man truly get what he deserves?
[A warning. And a plea. If it sounds sinister, it's meant to. They've neither of them been dealt a fair hand in life. Ardyn would contend that he did not deserve his past, and the prince doesn't quite deserve his future either. But one does as one must.]
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Ah, if only I could.
[The over-dramatic sigh that accompanies that statement is just as overblown and feigned as one might expect from the chancellor. The sentiment behind it is perhaps a touch more sincere than Noctis might realize. Of course, the boy knows by now that Ardyn is immortal and cannot die. He just doesn't realize that there is a part of his rival that would like to do just that already.
Ardyn shakes his head making light of what is actually a serious conversation, followed by an unreadable smile. It fades into a far more serious expression as he leans in and queries of Noctis in a lowered voice:]
Tell me, Noct, how often does a man truly get what he deserves?
[A warning. And a plea. If it sounds sinister, it's meant to. They've neither of them been dealt a fair hand in life. Ardyn would contend that he did not deserve his past, and the prince doesn't quite deserve his future either. But one does as one must.]