Chapter 103 - Departure

Vaughn, Zenia, Zekiah, and Redivo had been busy organizing the things that must be brought to the trip as well as securing the things in the Palace of the Crown Prince while the masters were away. Vaughn felt uneasy leaving his palace, but he should follow the Royal Decree. He knew that the Left Minister was scheming something, but couldn't put his finger on it.

"Do you know what to do?" Vaughn was discussing emergency measures with Redivo.

They strengthen the defenses of the palace and did not allow any servants inside the main residence anymore. Vaughn, Zenia, Zekiah, and grandpa took their meals together in the pavilion near the man-made lake.

"You don't need to worry about anything with me here around, great-grandson. I will make sure that your palace is still intact when you come back."

Vaughn's hand trembled a bit when he heard what the old man had said. It was enough that his great-grandfather would not do anything at all. He feared that he wouldn't be able to see his palace again when his great-grandfather had decided to help out.

"Grandpa, please don't bother and just concentrate on training my men." Vaughn had been practicing the new way of addressing his great-grandfather for a few days now.

The old man was taken by surprise when his great-grandson addressed him in such a manner. He did not say anything but deep down inside, he liked it very much.

"So, my honorary great-grandson is coming too." The old man turned his attention to Zekiah.

"Yes, grandpa. I have a very important role to perform."

"You naughty boy, I bet you will look lovely."

They did not say anything to the old man and yet he was able to guess accurately. Although they were in the confines of the Palace of the Crown Prince, they were still cautious when having a conversation.

"What about you my great-granddaughter-in-law, do you have places that you want to visit?"

Zenia swallowed her food before answering. "I'd like to take a look at the different shops and the usual merchandise that can be found in them. I might try putting up a different shop that people will surely visit often."

"Oh, I'd like to see that. What kind of shop will it be? I'm so excited already."

The remaining spy that the Ninth Prince planted in the Crown Prince's palace observed the group from a distance. There was nothing wrong with eating together with some guests. The Royal Family members were allowed to do that. But if they were on their own, they were expected to follow the rule of eating alone. They had been told that it was for their own protection. No one dared question it, and everyone got used to the rule already.

The spy did not think that the Crown Prince's men had already discovered her. The only reason she was kept alive was to make sure that she would report something to Damien. All the while, Damien thought that he already outsmarted Vaughn.

After the spy left the scene, the shadow guard gave a signal to Vaughn that it was safe. They could discuss important matters.

"Grandpa, I will trouble you not to do anything during my absence. Just train my men like you used to. Damien planted a lot of spies in my palace, but we managed to weed them out. I spared one of them so she could report to Damien the things that we allowed Damien to know."

The old man was not in favor of the arrangement but there was nothing he could do. It was no longer his palace and no longer the master of the place. He should just do as what he was told. He was too old to plot something anyway.

"Zeze, did you buy all the things that I told you?" Zenia's eyes sparkled when she asked her younger brother.

"I already packed them, and you don't need to check it. I'm sure you will like them."

"I also packed some of the dresses that fit your preference. Don't forget to always wear a face veil."

Zekiah nodded and everyone ate with gusto. Vaughn thought that eating in the pavilion with the people close to him was nice. He should do it more often in the future.

"Great-grandson come with me for a minute." The old man walked to the direction of the man-made lake.

Zenia and Zekiah looked at each other and decided to return to the main residence.

"We will head to the main residence now, Your Highness. Grandpa must have something important to say to you." Zenia took Zekiah's arm and led him to the main residence.

Vaughn followed his great-grandfather to the man-made lake.

"Did you already tell that lass everything?" The old man sounded serious.

"Not yet."

"When do you plan to do it?"

"Soon."

"How soon?"

Vaughn looked at his great-grandfather who did not turn around to face him.

"I am looking for the right time to say it."

"The right time is now. I am telling you this because I know that you don't know how to handle a woman. When worse comes to worst, you need to kneel and beg for forgiveness. They have this custom in Ishelon that a husband should beg his wife to forgive him and to kneel outside her maternal home for days until she forgives him."

Vaughn eyes' widened when he heard what his great-grandfather had said.

"What an absurd custom, I'm the Crown Prince of Tissuria! I can tell her I'm sorry, but I will never kneel and beg for forgiveness even if it's Zenia Anisen. I may accommodate her whims and requests and provide her with everything, but I will never beg and kneel before her. The most I can do is to give her and her family a form of compensation."

The old man shook his head and wanted to hit his great-grandson for being arrogant. But, he couldn't blame him. The Royal Family members were brought up that way. He already did his best, and his great-grandson should do the rest.

The old man walked away from Vaughn without turning back.

* * * * *

The party that would join the newlyweds on their trip slept early. They had to depart at the break of dawn. Their first stop was Solaria. The Principality of Ismund and Lunaria were not included in the itinerary that the King gave them. But, it was just perfect. Zenia wanted to visit Lunaria right away. It was fortunate that Solaria was near Lunaria. It would be easy to sneak out.

But before that, they must stay in one of the villas of the Royal Family en route to Solaria. It was the King's gift to the newlyweds. Vaughn did not mention it to Zenia. They must stay in the villa for a few days before they could proceed to Solaria.

Thunderbolt was used as one of the carriage horses. At first, he seemed to protest and did not allow anyone to touch him. Zenia whispered something in his ear, and he calmed down. The horse caretaker was finally able to put a horse-trapper to cover him. Somehow, the Royal Decree made it easier to hide Thunderbolt. That way, no one would notice that one of the horses of the carriage had been changed. Zenia had decided to ride Thunderbolt to Lunaria.

It was natural for members of the Royal Family to cover their horse in horse-trapper whenever they go somewhere on official business. The one with Royal Decree was considered official business. Vaughn decided to use a bigger carriage that would be pulled by four horses. He told Redivo to make Quicksilver one of the carriage horses. He got the idea from Zenia.

Zekiah and Ruvin joined the group of guards and were assigned to guard the carriage of the Crown Prince and Princess. Damien and his team found nothing suspicious in the Crown Prince and Princess' entourage. Damien personally visited the route that they would take and saw their departure. He smirked and couldn't wait for the day of their return.

Inside the carriage, Zenia's head would sway from side to side. She was still too sleepy but could not complain. Vaughn put her head on his shoulder to prevent it from swaying. He sighed. He could not tell her about the things that might happen while they were away. The King's trust in the Left Minister was unbreakable. Although Queen Mina and Redivo were there, he was still worried.

"Your Highness, we are almost there."

"Hmm."

He gently tapped Zenia's cheek, but she wouldn't budge.

"Mother, just a few more minutes." She wrapped her arms around Vaughn's waist and continued to sleep.

Vaughn shook his head and just let her be. They traveled for a few more minutes before they reached their destination. It was a fairly large villa that the Royal Family used to frequent. No one ever visited it when the little princes and princesses grew up. The King knew that Vaughn liked going there very much and decided to give it to him.

Vaughn carried Zenia all the way to their bedroom. Everything was freshly cleaned. The King notified the servants beforehand that the Crown Prince and Princess would stay there for a few days.

He gently put Zenia on the bed and tucked her in. He removed her face veil to make it more comfortable for her. He gazed at her luscious lips as if he was contemplating something. He then lifted his mask and planted a soft kiss on her lips. He looked at his sleeping wife for a long time before he left the room. He locked the door before he went out.

Zenia opened her eyes and touched her moist lips. She looked around the room and had a hunch that they should be staying in an inn, perhaps to take a rest. The room was more spacious than usual. In fact, it was only slightly smaller than their bedchamber in the Palace of the Crown Prince. She knew that it would take a few more days to reach Solaria. She stood up and walked to the window. She looked out and realized that they were staying in a villa. Was it the Royal Family villa?

She looked up the sky, 'Should I continue waiting?'

She shook her head. She never thought that it would come so soon. She thought that she could still hold on, but she overestimated herself. Everything was already in place. The perfect time to end the waiting game had finally come. She could not wait anymore. Soon, everything might come to an abrupt end.