Chapter 75 - Dead Men Can’t Talk

Vaughn saw Redivo waiting for him outside the dining area and knew that he must have an urgent matter to report. He led Zenia out of the dining area and told her that she was free to roam around, but she should wear her face veil. Vaughn was still conducting a loyalty check of everyone in his palace. She should not reveal her face to anyone outside the main residence until they finished their investigation. They already apprehended three people. One of them was responsible for cleaning the stables.

Zenia nodded and headed to the direction of the library, which was adjacent to Vaughn's study room. It was a good thing that she always had her face veil with her. Vaughn and Redivo headed to the garden to talk.

"We found Old Moreb's body next to the two men of unknown origin. They were all murdered. Their throats were slashed cleanly by a sharp dagger."

"The two men could be the ones that Zenia mentioned before. She said that one of the men has an accent similar to the people of Ishelon."

"From the way that the throats were cut, we suspect that only one man did it. We also found horse hoof prints on the ground. It looked like they were trying to subdue a horse, but it got away. The killer decided to kill everyone involved to keep the secret from leaking."

Vaughn's heart began to beat faster than normal. He suddenly felt fearful. That horse…

He looked at Redivo, "Look for Mathilda and go check the horse that the Anisens brought with them."

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Vaughn looked at the direction of the balcony in their bedchamber. How would he tell Zenia about the missing horse? He feared that it could be Thunderbolt.

Redivo personally supervised the task and led his men to Royale Palace Inn to look for Mathilda. When they got there, Mathilda informed him that the Anisens already left. She told him that they decided to travel back to Ishelon after having a meal. The Young Master Zekiah did not see them off and went exploring after Zenia left them earlier.

"Where is the horse that the Crown Princess left in your care?"

Mathilda gave him a confused look, "Old Moreb is taking…"

"Old Moreb is dead! We found him just now."

They quickly checked the stable where Thunderbolt was being kept. The horse was no longer there, and there was no sign that someone broke in.

Redivo punched the wall in frustration. How could he tell the Crown Prince that they had lost the Crown Princess' precious horse? He heard that the Crown Princess cared for that horse so much.

"Spread and search for horses with chestnut color and bring them all to the stable of the Royale Palace Inn," Redivo commanded and the guards dispersed quickly.

Redivo did not know anything about Thunderbolt, except his current chestnut color. He knew that the original color of Zenia's horse was midnight black. It was a good thing that a chestnut-colored horse was rare in Tissuria. Otherwise, it would be difficult to gather them all.

* * * * *

Zander's men began their mission to infiltrate the enemy's camp. Since they were all wearing the same masks, they decided to have a secret signal that would tell them apart from the rest. The two surviving assassins led them to Luna Inn's innermost part. Even the masked man's men were not allowed to access it.

Before they went there, they made the two assassins swallow a pill. Zander's man, named Valgha, told the assassins that they just swallowed a slow-acting poison. He would give them the antidote after a day. If they decided to betray him, they could bid the world goodbye.

Sure enough, what the two assassins told them were true. They were all wearing the same clothes and masks. None of them spoke with each other. Valgha thought that it was a totally ridiculous way of forming a team. He was quite surprised at their ability to carry out a mission without talking, unless…

Valgha observed the movements and hand gestures of everyone in that camp. They were using sign language! But, that ability was limited only to the people of Ishelon. They were using the same hand signals or sign language that the Ishelon people were using. Valgha was convinced that there was a group in Ishelon that betrayed them and even shared their secret language.

Valgha looked at the two assassins. He smirked. The two did not tell them that they were using hand signals to communicate. The two assassins obviously did not know that the hand signals they were using actually came from Ishelon. He should come up with a secret signal that only he and his team could recognize. He decided to observe the surviving assassins closely and see if they would send a sort of distress signal to their comrades.

On their first day, they did not get a chance to meet the Ninth Prince. It was already late in the afternoon when the leader of the group informed them that their boss would come in three or five days. The leader did not state the reason and they were dismissed just like that. Some of the men went somewhere, while the others stayed in the camp.

Valgha went to the training ground and was disappointed at the equipment, weapons, training course, and other things that the Ninth Prince's men were using to enhance their abilities. In Valgha's opinion, the band of assassins would not be able to be on par with the military men of Ishelon. He had a hunch that the defense department of Tissuria could be using the same things.

* * * * *

Redivo went back to the Palace of the Crown Prince after two hours. He went to Vaughn's study room and found the Crown Prince sitting idly. Vaughn decided not to bother Zenia who was still exploring the entire estate of the Crown Prince. He already reminded her to wear her face veil.

"My Prince, the Crown Princess' horse escaped, but we already gathered some chestnut-colored horses and detained them in the stables of Royale Palace Inn."

"Do you remember the black horse that was stolen from our stable before?"

Redivo was confused but still nodded his head. "What about it?"

"Zenia said that the stolen black horse has strong similarities with her horse Thunderbolt. If you see a chestnut-colored horse with the same aura, that's Thunderbolt."

"I understand."

Redivo was about to leave when they heard a commotion and somebody shouted.

"Mad horse on the loose!!"

The guards at the palace gates tried to close it before the horse could pass through. But, it was so fast that it left a strong gust of wind in its wake.

The horse neighed and seemed to be looking for someone. It stopped when it saw a familiar figure and began galloping to that figure's direction. Everyone who saw it rushed quickly to the same direction in an attempt to stop the horse.

Zenia was about to go to the other side of the main residence when a galloping horse suddenly came rushing to her. Zenia's eyes widened.

"Thunderbolt!"

The horse stopped and neighed in front of her. The veil that was covering Zenia's face was accidentally removed, exposing her face in front of everyone.