"Enchantment?" Long whispered with his hands on his chin. Vaguely he felt that this person, this stalker was familiar to him. 'Who might that be?' he thought.
"Oh, and that person was also wearing a ring like this," Haily brought out a crumbled piece of paper from her sleeve and handed it to Long. An exquisitely designed ring was drawn on it.
Long gasped softly. 'This ring..... looks like our ancestral ring. Wait....is this stalker perhaps... No, no it's not possible. My brother hates woman. This might be a fraud duplication of that ring,' He thought.
After finding out all the information they can from Haily, both Xia and Long sat in the magistrate's waiting room and discussed the next step.
As per the information, Yukiya was spotted in Juikal just around twenty days before. Even if they make haste, they might not get any kind of clues as to where she was presently staying.
"I think mother is heading home," Xia whispered as he pranced around the small room.
Long sat on a chair and watched him. His eyes did not leave him, not even for a second. "Yes, I think we should start our journey to Nevada," he whispered with a thoughtful look.
Since both of them came to an agreement, they both set out to leave but suddenly another Yamen runner stopped them and invited them over to the office.
Glancing at each other, Xia and Long followed after him.
"We might have more news about your friend. I just got a report from one of the villages near Nevada that they have spotted her a day before. She was with a man. Oh and the informant told us to give you this," the magistrate said and handed out a small parchment paper.
Xia carefully held the small browning paper. it was nearly folded near the corner but written in charcoal. "I never knew you guys have message passing services," he whispered in awe.
The magistrate shook his head, no. "We don't, this is a peculiar case where the informant actually paid us to pass on his message,"
Stunned, Xia slowly opened the paper. Only a few sentences were written there. "Red ball, the Koi is here. Come soon and end your search,"
Right after reading it, Xia knew who the sender was. He gripped the paper and whispered, "Uncle Mumu,"
Long noticed his exited look and called him. "Who sent it?"
"It was uncle Mumu, no, Mu Feng. I knew it! My mother was with him. I thought she left alone for an important business, but now I see that she left to meet Uncle Mumu!" Xia exclaimed as he pranced around the room in joy. Two good news in a day. It was the most lucky day of his life. "Long, we need to start right now,"
With an indulging look, the golden dragon nodded. If they start their journey now, they might be able to reach Nevada in about four days.
So they both left and informed Raijin and Felia of the good news. They cheered for them too.
"Ummmm Xia... I..I want to apologize for giving misleading information," Felia said with a frown. Her burning eyes soon started tearing up. If not for her, Xia and Long might have stayed in Juikal and met this person way before. Just because of her selfish need to get close to Xia, she had destroyed their fated meeting.
Xia gave her a wide smirk. "It doesn't matter. Felia, I am happy that I get to find my mother now. It was never your fault really," he assured with sincerity.
Only after than did the little young woman stop her sorrowful tears. Wiping away her drying tears, Felia hugged Xia suddenly. "You are the best friend anyone could wish for. I hope you find your mother safe and sound,"
Xia hugged her back, with the watchful eyes of the dragon behind him, he kept their hug brief. "She is with my uncle Mu Feng, so there is nothing to worry about. She is safe and sound," Xia assured her whilst patting her shoulders.
Since they were in a hurry, Xia and Long left just seconds after. Whilst Felia and Raijin stood outside the magistrate's office.
"Mu Feng? Isn't he the richest merchant of the ten kingdoms?" she gasped. She glanced at the human shaped puppy and whispered, "Raijin, I think I made friends with very rich people,"
Feng family was the richest merchant family in ten kingdoms. They have said to have business even in the remote corner, making profit. They have businesses, even in her home kingdom of Hales. 'I hope we could meet him. My brother might have many new business prospects for him,' Biting her lips, Felia contemplated.
Next to her, Raijin glanced at her thoughtful look. 'She still doesn't know that she was in the midst of a Heavenly Royal. How would she react if she knew? I'm pretty sure she would swoon,' he thought to himself with a chuckle.
"Let's go," he gently held her hands and led them to their Inn. The recently suck Felia was not able to walk anymore. Her legs turned to jelly as the collapsed under her.
The thoughtful Wolf lifted her in a princess carry.
Every single person on that bustling street saw a beautiful sight of a handsome man carrying an equally stunning beauty in his arms.
Nearby Xia and Long who were shopping for their necessities for their travel also saw this. Xia tucked at Long's sleeves and whispered, "Ah, a match made in heaven,"
Long gripped his hands. "Match made in heaven indeed," he whispered next to his ear.
After loading Xia's ring with all their necessities, both strode out of town to a remote place. As they were walking suddenly, Xia gripped his hands and stopped him.
"Long.... let's fly," he whispered with a bashful expression. His almond eyes shone as he glanced up at his lover. But his pale pink cheeks stood out more under the afternoon sunlight.
Long was stunned. He held his hands and glanced down at him doubtfully. "Aren't you scared of flying?"
"We need to reach Neveda as soon as possible. As for flying, I can overcome that fear," he whispered, puffing out his shoulders wide.
Long Aotian chuckled out loud. "Your wish is my command, my love," he whispered. His entire body started to grow in an abnormal phase. his nose elongated into a snot. His spine turned into a swaying tail behind him. Soon he fully transformed into a golden dragon.
Under sunlight, his scales shone and shimmered. At first sight they seemed fully golden but if you look closer there small patches of black scales scattered on his belly and tail. Even so, more, he looked stunning.
Xia strode up to him and softly caressed his snout. "Stunning," he whispered from his heart.
The golden dragon brought its tail around and wrapped it around his lover. His tail fin softly caressed his chin. 'No, you are stunning,' he thought.
He held his lover and made him sit on his slippery scale on his head. Since there was nothing else to hold on to, he directed him to hold his horns. They were relatively small compared to his elder brother, but Aotian also had a pair of black horns on his head. Usually they were discretely hidden by his scales so no one knew.
'Hold tight,' he thought as he started to soar. The wind was quite harsh so he created a barrier around them, letting only a faintest of breeze inside.
Xia closed his eyes firmly and held on. His hands turned pale from his grip, but he never loosened up. He always felt that there was something unnatural about flying. Maybe it was latent fear, or maybe it was just an abnormal reaction, but he had always hated flying. Even as a young crayfish, he did not particularly enjoy the act.
But now... on his lover's back, it did not feel as daunting as he had initiated thought. He felt the soft breeze caressing his face and the fresh scent of clouds lingering near his nose.
Slowly he opened his eyes. The sight in front of him took his breath away. Till his eyes could reach there were fluffy clouds floating around.
"Wow," Xia exclaimed in awe, for he had never seen a sight so breathtaking as this.
Listening to his mumble, Long slowly touched him with his tail.
"Stop that, it tickles," Xia giggled as he held the soft tail in his arms. The end fin of Long, looked pretty similar to a Koi's, soft, pliable and beautiful. "You are pretty similar to a fish,"
"Long, look, look, that cloud looks just like you," Xia excitedly pointed to a nearby cloud. It was shaped like a long bodied fish flicking its tail.
The dragon snorted. 'No, I am a mighty dragon. Not a fish,' he thought. He had been mistaken for a snake, now compared to a fish. 'Xia really does have wild imagination,' he thought as he passed through the clouds.
Night soon approached, and the sun went down.. Glancing at the setting sun, Long wished, wished that this serene moment with his beloved would last forever, this lifetime and the next.