Chapter 15 - You may Call Me Zen Sensen, My Lady

The coachman was puzzled and shrugged his shoulders. He continued following the bumpy path. Zenia took refuge to a nearby tree and observed her surroundings.

From her spot, she saw a shadow jumped on the carriage's roof and quickly thrust his sword on the side of the coach for several times – it was an assassin. The coachman remained oblivious of the incident.

There was fury in Zenia's eyes. Someone in the camp betrayed them. The man on the carriage could be that person. Zenia decided that she must eliminate the traitor before he could report everything to his superior. She was certain that his superior was someone from Tissuria.

Judging from the looks of it, he was about to go to Tissuria himself to report everything. It was impossible for him to send a message without being detected. Zenia was grateful that he did not think to go directly to Tissuria where he could ambush her freely. He had decided to deal with her while they were still in Ishelon. Zenia sneered at the intelligence of the assassin. She wouldn't give him the pleasure of having regrets.

Zenia jumped from tree to tree in a graceful and inconspicuous manner. The assassin was taken by surprise when Zenia suddenly dropped from above. He did not know that Zenia had such skill. To avoid alerting the coachman, she dragged the assassin off the carriage.

The coachman suddenly turned his head around when he heard something. He scratched his head when he found nothing. There were no traces that a fight had happened. The coachman drove the carriage away while whistling a happy tune.

Zenia drew her small sword and fought with the assassin. She could feel her adrenaline pumping. It had been years since she last took part in a close fight. Not in Ishelon or Tissuria, but another kingdom. She went there together with her father, and war suddenly broke out. Zander did not accompany them at the time, and it was the first time that her big brother did not go with them.

Ovid almost lost his life while protecting his daughter. Zenia did not take her training seriously because all they had in Ishelon were petty quarrels. Ever since that event happened, she vowed that she would always train her body and keep it in top condition. She studied the different fighting techniques of the different kingdoms and developed something unique.

The assassin thought Zenia was nothing but a weak woman. Yet this weak woman's every thrust carried a strong gust of wind along with it. The assassin lost his footing and fell as he got intimidated with Zenia's attacks. Zenia did not hesitate to deliver the fatal blow.

It was the first time that Zenia used her secret technique on someone. She was amazed at how powerful the technique was. She had decided never to use it again unless it was necessary. No one else should know about it. When sparring with the others in the camp, she only used a bit of her wind power to defeat her sparring partner. However, it was not enough to defeat Zander.

Her big brother was so powerful that other kingdoms tried to rope him in. They even sent their most beautiful, noble ladies to be his wives or concubines. Zander rejected all of them. He declared, with a straight face, that none of the ladies were as lovely as his sister. The people from other kingdoms thought that Zander may be powerful, but there should be something wrong with his head. They all knew that Zenia Anisen was a hideous lady.

Zenia recognized the assassin. It was one of Zander's trusted aide. He could be on his way to Tissuria to report to his master when he spotted and recognized Zenia in the carriage. It was a good thing that she did not neglect her training. As a result, she became swifter than before. Zenia was certain that he was the one who ambushed the carriage that the coachman mentioned earlier.

Zenia was weaker than most men in the military, but she was fast. She trained hard to increase her speed and used the gust of wind to her advantage. Her attacks were weak, but the wind that came along with each attack was strong enough to take down an opponent. Who would suspect that she was able to take advantage of the wind?

'Now what should I do with this body?'

She couldn't simply abandon it somewhere because one of his comrades may recognize him and alert his master. Burying it would take time. She was in a dilemma. She suddenly thought of disfiguring the assassin's face and throwing him off the cliff.

She was about to proceed with her plan when she heard the clacking of horse hooves and the sound of squeaking wheels from a distance. She knew that a carriage was approaching. She also heard some giggling inside the carriage. As she tried to listen more, it seemed like there were more than two carriages.

She smiled. 'It looks like my ride is here.' Now, all that she needed to do was create an opportunity to hitch a ride.

Zenia looked at the dead body of the assassin that was still in her hand. She smiled deviously as she threw the cadaver on the roof of one of the carriages, and also jumped afterward. She staged a fight all on her own, and she heard the incessant screaming of the ladies.

There were four carriages all in all. The carriages stopped as they tried to watch the fierce fighting in the dark. The sound of the clashing swords reverberated in the air. None of them knew exactly what was going on.

Zenia did her best to disfigure the face of the assassin. She planned to just throw the body off the cliff under the impression that the assassin lost his footing and fell.

After some time, a loud scream broke the silence of darkness. The assassin fell from the cliff. Of course, it was Zenia who screamed to create a perfect ending for her play. She grinned. No one would ever recognize the assassin anymore. It would take days before someone would find the body. But, it was quite impossible for it to be discovered.

"Ladies, you all must have been scared by that. He tried to rob me, and I lost my horse in the process." Zenia tried to look pitiful and helpless.

The ladies saw how handsome the young master was before them. It was their first time seeing such a beautiful man. They wondered how many ladies cried because of him. He stood straight and tall. They knew at one glance that the young master was a military man. Could he be taking a break?

"Where does the young master plans to go?" One of the ladies did not hesitate to ask. It was obvious that she wanted to spend more time with Zenia.

The other ladies turned green with envy when Zenia answered with a warm smile.

"I am on my way to a small province in Tissuria when the robber jumped out from nowhere."

"I-if you don't mind my company young sir, you may join me in my carriage." The beautiful lady blushed as she uttered the words of invitation.

Zenia heard of a performing troupe of young ladies who traveled all over Maecaea to perform. They were known for their talent and beauty. The one speaking to her must have been Antoinette Lamoure, the owner and lead performer of the group.

"I will be delighted and honored, my lady." Zenia took the hand of Antoinette. She gently placed it against her lips and kissed the back of Antoinette's hand tenderly.

The young lady felt there were tiny shocks of electricity flowed within her body. It was a different kind of sensation that made her heart throbbed so hard against her rib cage.

Zenia saw subtle changes in Antoinette. She smiled and came to realize what Zander and the soldiers of Ishelon meant when they talked about how to win the heart of a maiden. Would she be the same? She shook her head and thought it was an absurd question.

"May I know the name of the kind young master."

"You may call me Zen Sensen, my lady." Zenia gave Antoinette another heartwarming smile.

Antoinette blushed so hard, and she could feel her face turned red. Thankfully, it was dark and no had seen how her face turned crimson. Some of the ladies were envious and angry. Once again, Antoinette hogged a beautiful man all to herself.

Zenia joined Antoinette in her carriage and was able to get back on track. She looked at the lady in front of her who kept avoiding her eyes. They kept silent most of the time, and Zenia pretended to doze off just to avoid the awkwardness between them. She knew that Antoinette was looking at her intently, and it was beginning to annoy her.

They would stop and rest from time to time. The route they took would lead them to the Principality of Ismund in Tissuria. It would take four days to reach it. During the breaks, all the ladies would gather around Zenia and share some stories of their travels. Zenia learned a lot.

Zenia had been to some of the places they mentioned. Ovid always took her along with him whenever he paid a visit to the other kingdoms in Maecaea. The rulers of other kingdoms would sometimes send an invitation to Ovid Anisen. King Jarod would often tell Ovid to accept the invitation to broaden his horizons.

Antoinette was very attentive to her needs. She never failed to send Zenia some food and drink. The other ladies would send her some sweets, and Zenia was totally satisfied with her travel companions, except when they kept staring at her.

They finally reached the Principality of Ismund, which was roughly three hundred miles away from the Capital of Tissuria. Zenia heard that the one governing the Principality of Ismund was the First Prince Ronand. King Tarendino did not want Ronand to gain any support from the ministers and placed him so far away from the palace.

"I thank you all ladies for your kind hearts." Zenia bid her farewell, but Antoinette stopped her.

"Wait, kind sir." She removed her bracelet and handed it to Zenia. "You may keep this with you. It can help you a lot when you find yourself in a tight spot."

Antoinette gave Zenia a meaningful smile.

"Until we meet again, my lady. I will never forget this kindness." Zenia turned around and never looked back.

"Are you sure he's the one you want?" The coachman walked to where Antoinette was and whispered in her ears.

"I am sure of it! Why did he give a false name, I wonder?"

"Maybe he was trying to escape from someone? Are you sure that's him? How come he doesn't seem to know you at all?"

"Zekiah Anisen, we will meet again. As long as you have that bracelet you will never be able to escape from me." Antoinette smirked and motioned the others to get on the carriage and roll off.

Zenia suddenly felt a chill down her spine. 'Is someone cursing me?'

* * * * *

"My Prince, a report just came in that a new face arrived at the Principality of Ismund."

"Identity?" Vaughn was writing something, and just asked questions.

"A young master who came with the performing troupe of Antoinette Lamoure."

"What's his business in Tissuria?"

"It's still unverified. He was reported to have visited a number of stables. Apparently, he is looking for a good horse."

"Hmm. Continue monitoring this young master."

On the fifth day of Zenia's departure, the shadow guard began to suspect something. There was something off with the way their Crown Princess was behaving. After watching Zenia for so many months, the shadow guard was already aware of Zenia's temperament and ways.

A realization struck him. He hurriedly went back to Tissuria to inform Prince Vaughn about his discovery. He was too complacent that he did not check carefully. It seemed that the one who returned from the cave was Zekiah Anisen.

"Reporting to His Highness, the Crown Princess made her move."

"When will she arrive here in Tissuria." Vaughn kept writing as he asked questions.

The shadow guard's sweat began to acc.u.mulate on his forehead.

"Answering Your Highness, the Crown Princess may have arrived already."

Vaughn's pen snapped in two. "What did you say?!"

The shadow guard bowed his head until it touched the ground.

"I'm sorry my lord for being inefficient. I think the Crown Princess ran away."