Chapter 267 - Freedom

Hours went by.

Graven had fallen asleep under the shade of the tree while Terros did the same on the balcony.​​

It was late in the afternoon when Terros finally awakened and decided to prepare the dish for dinner.

He went inside the house and proceeds to the kitchen. There are two fish and five shrimps left, he will make a soup out of them. He will add ginger, lemongrass, and leafy vegetable taken from Veronica's garden.

One hour later.

Terros and Graven gathered around the table to eat dinner.

"Wow, your cooking skill improves a lot, Grandpa! The soup tastes delicious!" Graven gushes.

Terros grinned. "Thanks for the compliment, son! Eat a lot. There's more soup in the pot," he said.

Graven picked up the bowl and went to the pot to get more soup. He returned to the table and continue eating.

It was already 7:00 in the evening when Terros handed Graven the last dose of the herbal medicine.

Graven gulped it in one go. By now, his taste bud already got used to the bitter taste of the liquid.

The men stayed on the balcony, just relaxing and enjoying the beautiful night. They watched the star-filled sky and the full moon at its brightest tonight.

At 7:30, they retired to the house and stayed in Terros's room.

By 8:00, Graven's body is getting hotter due to a high fever. Terros kept bathing Graven's body with a water-soak towel to lessen the heat.

It was only during 1:00 in the morning when Graven's fever began to subside and finally stopped at 3:30. He falls asleep afterward.

Terros took a rest as well, putting extra bedding on the floor and lay his body down to get some sleep.

Hours went by.

Finally, the morning comes.

The men woke up late, at 10:00 in the morning.

Terros looked at his charge. "Are you okay, son? How are you feeling now?" he asked.

Graven smiled. "I'm feeling better, Grandpa!"

Terros smiled broadly. "Nice to hear that! I'm super relieved!" he said.

"It's over, right?" Graven asked.

"You mean the black liquid episode?" Terros said.

"Yeah...."

"I guess so!"

"Now I can finally focus on formulating a plan to rescue my men from the clutches of the King!" Graven said energetically. Then his high spirit sank again.

Terros noticed the sudden change in his expression. "What is it, son?"

"I can't help it but feel worried that if I won't return to the castle, the King will know that we finally found the cure to the harmful effect of the black liquid. Then he will kill the rest of my men," Graven said sadly.

Terros released a deep sigh. "Indeed, we can't claim full victory yet. As long your men are still underneath that castle, then our happiness isn't complete yet. We have to get them out of that basement once and for all!"

Graven released a deep sigh. "Yeah. On the other hand, I'm feeling glad that the black liquid is finally out of my system! One of my problems is finally solved!" Graven said happily.

"Hooray, we should be thankful for small victories now and then. But we shouldn't remove our focus on the bigger picture!" Terros said and rose to his feet. "I'm going to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast," he said and left the room.

In the kitchen.

Terros cooked a scrambled egg on the frying pan made of clay. Done cooking the egg, he boils three pieces of cocoa cubes in the earthen pot.

A few minutes later, the food is ready!

Graven and Terros ate their breakfast consisted of eggs with bread and hot cocoa.

After eating, they decided to go to the headquarter to check on the latest developments there.

They teleported back to the headquarter in the blink of an eye.

When they arrived there, the men are in good spirits while talking to each other.

Horace, Calder, and Veronica were chatting animatedly at the table.

"Good morning, my lord!" Horace and Calder greeted their master in unison.

"Good morning, my lord!" echoed the rest of the men.

"How's everyone doing?" Graven asked. He looked at the faces of his men.

"We're feeling happy, my lord! The black liquid is finally flushed out from our system!" Calder beamed.

"Yes, that's true, my lord!" the men seconded in chorus.

Graven smiled brightly. "Alright, let's celebrate today! Inform the cook to prepare delicious dishes for lunch!" he announced.

"Hooray!" the men erupted in happiness.

"Everyone, helped the cook to prepare the dishes!" Graven said.

The cook came forward and scratched his head. "My lord, pardon me. But we have run out of meat, vegetables, and herbs to be used for the dishes," he said.

Graven looked at Horace and Calder. "Is that a problem, guys!?" he asked them.

"Not a problem at all!" Horace said and looked at Calder.

Calder and Horace went to the cook's side and holds his arm. "Let's teleport you to the wet market so that you can buy all the ingredients for the dishes!" they said in unison.

A few minutes later, the cook, Horace, and Calder disappeared from the place.

Graven looked at Veronica. "When are you going back to the deity's place?" he asked.

"Tomorrow. Why?" Veronica said.

"Veronica, on behalf of my men, I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your big contribution in creating the herbal medicine,' Graven said in a serious tone.

Veronica smiled. "Don't mention it! I'm happy to help you guys," she said.

"Can you please extend my thanks to the deity for her tremendous help in concocting the herbal medicines..." Graven said.

"Sure! Your thanks will reach her for sure! But if you're not busy, you can visit her and thank her yourself. It's better to tell her in person, she would appreciate it. And maybe... you can also seek her help regarding your men that are held hostage by the King," Veronica suggested.

The men looked at each other for a few seconds.

Graven shook his head. "Nah, I'm ashamed to ask help from Elva 'coz she already helps us a lot," he said.

"Don't be! Don't let your pride stop you from reaching out for other people's help. We both know that this deity that we are talking about here is a thousand-year-old. She got lots of power and has already gained a lot of ancient knowledge. Who knows... the problem that you are facing right now, is not a problem to her. I suggest that you will swallow your pride and try to ask her for help. Maybe she can come up with a solution. It's been known through ages that sometimes the people who are not involved in the problem itself are the ones who can provide the ultimate solution," Veronica said.

Terros nods his head. "You got a point there, Veronica!" he agreed.

Graven scratches his head. "Um...maybe...one day? If I can't find any method that would work, I will seek her help for sure," he said.

"Good. When it comes to the lives of your men, don't delay in making decisions. The earlier, the better! Because we don't know what's inside the mind of that deranged King," Veronica reminded them.

One of the men came forward and bought them a refreshing drink made from the young coconut meat.

One hour later.

Horace, Calder, and the cook finally returned.

Everyone got into a flurry of activity, helping the cook in preparing the ingredients for the dishes.

By 1:30 in the afternoon, all the dishes were cooked and arranged appetizingly at the long table.

Time to eat their impromptu feast!

Everyone gathered at the long table.

Graven addressed them. "Guys, we are very much thankful today... because we're finally free from the danger of black liquid! We will treasure this feast today and keep in our hearts the thoughts of our comrades who are still under the King's clutches. They will be reunited with us soon! Cheers!" he said and consumed the wine from the glass.

"Cheers!" the men said and gulped their wine.

"Let's eat!" Graven said.

They gathered around the table and filled their plates with food.

The men scattered around the area to find a good spot to eat their delicious meals.

Graven, Terros, Veronica, Horace, and Calder occupied the table near the entrance of the wooden house and began eating their meals with gusto.

After eating, they chatted for a while.

Two hours later.

Veronica and Terros bid goodbye to the men to return to the forest. They were accompanied by Graven, they bought along the four sacks filled with dry food ration for Grandpa including the one sack of rice.

They arrived in the fortress.

The men deposited the sacks into the kitchen area and then went to the balcony and engaged in a lively conversation.

Veronica went to work and opened the sacks. She removed the stuff and put them in the cupboard. "Nice, these foods are enough for Grandpa's one-month allowance! Graven is truly a generous guy! He and his men are worthy of my help!" she said with a smile.

Back on the balcony.

"Grandpa, I'm going back home to my wife," Graven said.

"Okay, give my regards to Laura and her family!" Terros said.

"I will, I'll go now, please...tell Veronica that I'm considering her advice in seeking the deity's help," Graven said.

"Okay, I will. Bye, son!" Terros said.

Graven disappeared from the balcony.

Veronica emerged from the door and went to Grandpa's side. "Graven went home already?" she asked the obvious.

"Yup!" Terros replied.

"Don't you have any objection about my suggestion to him?" she asked.

Terros shook his head. "Not really. As long the deity is willing to help Graven without string attached, then that would be awesome!" he said.

"Hmm, let's see about that!" Veronica said.

"When are you going to leave for Windless Mountain?" he inquired.

"Tomorrow morning," Veronica replied. "By the way, when are you going to tell Graven about his missing brother?"

"A few days from now, when he visits me here. For now, I will give him a few days to enjoy his freedom from the clutches of the black liquid," he replied.

"Okay. I'll go downstairs to check my garden at the back," Veronica said and headed to the staircase.

Terros entered the house and went to his room to have his afternoon nap.