Chapter 217 - The In-Laws are Coming! (Part3)

Zander did not know how long and how far he ran, but he was able to reach the Royale Palace Inn. His heart was beating fast, but he was not tired at all. Not far from where he was standing, he heard a neighing horse. He turned and looked at the horse. He had forgotten all about his horse and went running.

The horse walked leisurely toward him. In Zander's eyes, the horse seemed like mocking him. Zander laughed so hard upon realizing his blunder. 

He patted the head of the horse and said, "You beast! You let me ran that far when you were also there."

He pulled the reign of the horse and led it to the stable. He touched his lips and smiled. He had never dreamt that such a wonderful moment could happen to him.

"Ugh! Big Brother, could you please not smile like that. It gives me the creeps."

The familiar voice startled Zander and snapped him out of his reverie. He followed the source of the voice and expected to see Zekiah with a smug expression. 

He was completely surprised when he saw Zekiah together with a couple, "Mother, Father…you're here!"

He hugged Ovid and Renaria tightly. Renaria tapped his back a couple of times.

"Son, you're choking me," Renaria protested.

He let go of the couple and apologized, "Mother, I'm so sorry."

He was flashing a wide grin, and Renaria knew that something good must've happened.

Ovid remained indifferent. He remembered how he acted back then when he and his wife shared their first kiss. He was no different from how his son was behaving at that moment. He was secretly elated that his son would be bringing home a wife anytime soon. But, he had no plan to let Renaria know how he knew. That secret of his – he would definitely take to his grave.

Renaria looked at Ovid and was somewhat irritated at his behavior. His son was feeling good about something, and he, as a father, was not even interested to know what happened. 

'I guess that's the difference between a mother and a father.'

"So tell me, why do you look so happy? Did things go well with Odessa? You visited her, right?"

Zander hugged his mother once more while laughing. Renaria could not understand her son's behavior, but she was happy for him. She had a hunch that her son would no longer need their help in pursuing his wife. She couldn't wait to meet her daughter-in-law.

"Mother, let us prepare now and head there immediately. I'm sure that Baroness Munchefort will be delighted to see you."

Zander was about to leave to freshen up when Renaria stopped him.

"Don't you think it's already late to pay them a visit? Besides, your father and I just arrived. I am already exhausted." Renaria tried to sound convincing when she said that she was very tired already.

Zander looked at his mother and felt embarrassed for being an inconsiderate son. He was just excited that they had arrived earlier than expected.

"Forgive me, Mother. I am just very happy that you're here. I want Baroness Munchefort and Odessa to meet you at once."

Renaria sighed and comforted her son, "I know you're just happy, but you should learn to control your emotions. Being overly anxious is not good, you know. You might drive her away."

Zander did not utter another word and remained quiet for a while. Renaria knew that her son was trying to weigh things up.

"You're right, Mother. She told me that she will free her schedule for the meeting, but I have yet to tell her the date. I might only put her in an awkward situation if I just suddenly bring the both of you there without prior notice."

"Son, you must be tired too. Go get some rest, and you'll be totally refreshed by tomorrow. I also need to sort out the things that we brought along with us."

"Did you get a room, Mother?"

"Don't worry about it. Zekiah already took care of that for us."

Ovid did not say a single word because he knew that he might only say something unnecessary. He knew that Renaria was good at handling things, and her decisions had always been good.

Zekiah just looked on as if watching a good show. He shook his head and was amused by his Big Brother for being muddleheaded.   

"Well then, good night." Zander slightly bowed his head to his mother and father.

The rest of the Anisens who were staying at the Royale Palace Inn looked at Zander's departing back. They could still feel the glee that Zander's body had been emitting ever since he arrived.

"Is Ruvin staying here too or he returned to the Palace of the Crown Prince?"

"He might return very late. He usually stays with his Big Brother to help him with the paperwork. He said it was boring to stay there."

"Let us know when he comes no matter how late."

Renaria and Ovid went inside the inn together leaving the confused Zekiah alone. In the end, Zekiah just shrugged his shoulders and went to the stable.

Zekiah rode a horse and surveyed the surroundings for almost two hours. He wanted to make sure that the Ninth Prince wouldn't take advantage of the situation and do something bad to his mother. He knew that his father could protect his mother very well, but he couldn't feel at ease unless he checked everything. He only returned to the inn when he did not find anything odd.

He tried to keep his eyes open as he waited for Ruvin's return. It was already the middle of the night when Ruvin finally showed up. Zekiah did not want to bother Ruvin, but he knew his mother very well.

"Hey, Mother and Father are in the room at the end of this hallway. Mother is waiting for your return. Don't delay, you know how she is." 

Zekiah went to his room and locked it at once. Ruvin could hear the creaking of the bed when Zekiah lied down. After a while, Ruvin heard a faint sound of snoring. He shook his head and trod the path leading to the room of the Anisen couple.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Madam, it's me, Ruvin," he said in a low, soft voice that was almost a whisper.

He heard someone unlocking the door, and it slowly opened.

"Come in, Ruvin. I have been waiting for you," Renaria greeted him with a warm smile.

Ruvin walked in and saw Ovid sitting on a chair, "Good evening, Master."

"Hmm," Ovid nodded.

Renaria took out a box and handed it to Ruvin, "These are your favorite pastries. I made a lot of extras so you can enjoy it for a bit more."

Ruvin felt warm when he took the box. Madam Anisen even bothered to bake him his favorite pastry. He had never thought that someone would do that for him.

Renaria and Ovid looked at each other. Renaria felt a bit guilty when she saw the delight in Ruvin's eyes upon receiving the box of pastries. She really baked the pastries as a gift for him, but it turned into a sort of a bribe when Ovid told her something before they left Ishelon.

"I think that Vaughn and Zenzen will meet some trouble soon. I need to know whether Redivo has received any news about them. We can ask Zander and his men to…"

"No, we can't do that to our son. We must not trouble him while he is still pursuing his wife-to-be. Let him enjoy this time of his life without worrying about Zenzen."

"We can let Zekiah…"

"That's a no-no! Zeze will surely ask his Big Brother."

"Hmm… What about Ruvin?"

"I am giving him a box of pastries as a gift. Asking him these things might give him a wrong impression."

"He's my disciple now. He would understand. If you are uncomfortable doing this, I will not get you involved."

Ruvin noticed Renaria's uneasiness and Ovid's calmness. He knew right away that something was off. He believed that Madam Anisen's intention in giving him the box of pastries was pure. However, his Master was a bit suspicious. 

Ruvin sighed, "Master, Madam, I am glad that you thought of me when you made these pastries. Now…what do you want to know?"

Ovid was surprised that Ruvin was such a fellow.

'So direct…'

Renaria heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that there was no resentment in Ruvin's eyes, and there was no disdain in the tone of his voice.

"I am guessing that you can't ask Commander Zander because he is currently pursuing his bride, and Zeze will only tell the Commander."

"Ha-ha-ha! My disciple is truly amazing," Ovid uttered in a loud voice and turned to Renaria, "See? He did not even think something bad about you."

Renaria glared at her husband, who fell silent at once. Ruvin chuckled lightly. Renaria took the box from Ruvin and held one of his hands. She gently patted it as if comforting her own child. Ruvin felt Renaria's sincerity.

"Child, we fear that Vaughn and Zenia might be having some difficulties in Prazia. We just want to know the truth… Has Redivo received any message from them?"

Ruvin wanted to conceal the truth, but he also knew that letting them know the situation would be better than keeping them in the dark.

"We sent some secret guards for their safety, but none of them had sent any message. My elder brother has a hunch that all messages are being blocked by Prazia even though they are encrypted. But, we also believe that they are safe. My brother has already drafted precautionary measures in case of an emergency."

Renaria and Ovid looked at each other. They were more convinced that a war might break out soon. They had witnessed a similar situation in another kingdom before. They stood there as if they were speaking but without moving their mouths.

Ruvin was observing them and could not tell what was on their minds.