Chapter 118 - Training the Son-In-Law

The Ninth Prince took Jorick out of Luna Inn, and he pulled some strings so he can transfer Jorick to Solaria Inn. He was there to keep an eye on the movement of the Crown Prince. Jorick took mental note of the ones that came with the Crown Prince and Princess. He knew that there were other guards who came along with them.

In Zekiah's estimate, the problem between Zenia and the Crown Prince may take a while to be fixed. They could be on their way to the next destination before they could be together again. He told Ruvin to instruct the guards to remain vigilant. The Ninth Prince may have planted a spy in the inn.

Jorick got out of the inn and went to a tree near the stable. He gave a signal and a shadow guard dropped in. Jorick did not see anything suspicious. Zekiah and the rest of the people in the group were safe for now. 

"Tell the Ninth Prince that they are here and everything looks normal. The Crown Prince and Princess seem distant and not speaking with each other at all. It is easy to carry out his plans."

The shadow guard nodded his head and disappeared in a blink of an eye. The guards of the Crown Prince did not see the meeting between Jorick and the shadow guard. Earlier, they received a report that the Ninth Prince had no spy in the inn. But, they knew that Damien would do everything in his power to plant his spy in Solaria Inn. They were still unaware that the spy that they planned to intercept was already doing his job.

* * * * *

Renaria helped Zenia in taking care of Vaughn. To be precise, it was Renaria who did most of the work. She was afraid that Zenia may not be able to control her strength and could make the situation worse. It was enough for Vaughn that Zenia was always there with him and cared for him. Zenia kept saying that she was only following her mother, but Vaughn knew that it was not entirely true. 

They could not risk sending Vaughn to the hospital because someone might recognize him. Although Zander had strengthened the defenses of Ishelon and no spies or secret guards were able to infiltrate them again, Renaria insisted that it was safer for Vaughn to recuperate within the manor.

On the third day of medication, Renaria left Vaughn under Zenia's care. She also thought that it was a perfect time for them to nurture their relationship. 

"When he wakes up, make sure to feed him first before you give the bone rejuvenating elixir. Don't shove the food into his mouth when you feed him. Don't hurry up. Let him chew and swallow before you give him another spoonful and do it gently."

"But, he can move on his own already. I've seen him eating by himself. Why do I need to feed him?"

Renaria glared at her daughter. "Don't you feel guilty at all? It was because of you that your husband ended up in that state! Zenia Anisen, when did I teach you to be unscrupulous? He is your husband, and you already had a duel. Everything should be alright now between the two of you."

"It was his fault…" Zenia mumbled in a soft voice.

"Just do it. I will see your father first." 

Renaria walked out of the room. Zenia sighed and looked at the sleeping Vaughn. Compared to the previous days, his color had returned to normal. The bone rejuvenating elixir never failed to work.

"What did you give my mother that she's always on your side?" She shook her head and sat by the bed to wait for him to wake up.

Renaria saw Ovid in the manor's training hall. He was polishing some of the weapons and checking them for any signs of rusting or deterioration.

He sensed Renaria and quickly stopped what he was doing. "My wife, what brings you here?"

"My dear husband, I have a huge favor to ask of you." Renaria gave Ovid her most beautiful smile.

Ovid had a bad feeling about it. The last time he saw her flashed that kind of smile was ages ago, and it almost put him in trouble. She asked for a favor, and he agreed immediately without even asking what it was. However, the incident made her look at him in a different light and ended up being together with him.

He sighed. Ovid knew that he might regret it later, but he could never go against his wife. She said it was a huge favor, but they both knew that it was far from just a  favor .

"What is it? Let's hear it."

Ovid stood up and took Renaria's hand. They went to the garden and sat to talk.

"I want you to train our son-in-law for their rematch. I know he will be able to defeat your daughter." Renaria's eyes sparkled as she spoke of the huge favor that she wanted her husband to fulfill.

Ovid looked at his wife. He was already making plans for his daughter's stay in the next few weeks. He knew that his little darling daughter would defeat that Crown Prince. Zekiah was posing as Zenia and no one would know the difference. He knew that Zekiah had excellent skills in impersonating Zenia. 

"Won't we betray Zenzen if we do that? He should learn to win using his own abilities and not rely on others."

Renaria's smile faded instantly when she heard her husband's reasoning.

"I want her to go with her husband and cultivate their relationship. Being separated for a long time after they made up is not really a good idea. Even if son-in-law fetches her when he got tired of waiting for her return, they will still feel awkward. I don't like that."

"Does Zenzen know?"

"Yes!"

"It's okay with her?"

"She protested. But what can she do? I'm her mother after all. What I say is law." Renaria looked smug in Ovid's eyes, but he was partly to blame.

"When do you plan to start the training?"

"I will ask him later."

"Do you want him to have the training that Ishelon's military men went through?"

"Yes!"

"But, he's from Tissuria."

"He's still a man, isn't he? Zenia did not go through the final step of the training because she's a woman. I don't think there's an issue with our son-in-law."

Ovid looked at his wife who was looking back at him.

"Fine, you win. We will start our training the day after tomorrow. Let him rest for one day. If he disagrees, I won't train him anymore."

Renaria kissed Ovid on his lips. "Thank you."

She stood up and failed to see the mischievous smile on Ovid's lips.

* * * * *

The shadow guard that Jorick met earlier finally arrived at the Ninth Prince's palace.

"Ninth Prince, everything is normal in Solaria Inn. They just arrived. The Crown Prince and Princess do not speak with each other and seem distant. Jorick said that it would be easy to carry out your plan."

The report was music to Damien's ears. If Verone could seduce Vaughn, she would be giving birth to the next heir in the following year. He could bribe Verone to take on his side, and he would set her family free. Once he discovered where the Left Minister had hidden his private army, everything would be under his control.

He may have acquired the names and abilities of each soldier in the private army but the original location of their headquarters was changed. He already assigned one of his men to check out the location and verified that the private army was not there. 

'Grandfather, don't blame me for being ruthless. I've followed you all my life, but you still don't trust me completely. You want to rely on my sister? Go ahead and let's see who will suffer in the end.'