Chapter 277 - Banishment and Special Favor

"NO! King, please have mercy on us. Please have mercy," the convicted families shouted at once.

The Left Minister looked up the sky and remained quiet. He already knew the outcome and had no more strength to protest. The others were taken back to the dungeon while the Left Minister chose to stay and wait for the appointed time.

The banished members of the clan were taken to different ports. There were sh.i.p.s that would transport them to their chosen kingdom. They would be on their own once they reached their destination. They were provided with some money, food, and clothing to get them settled.

When the appointed time arrived, the Left Minister was led to a place where a guillotine was waiting for him. The masked executioner placed his head in a round wooden frame known as a lunette. He closed his eyes and the masked executioner let go of the blade.

Bam!

The women screamed when they saw the head of the Left Minister rolled into the basket.

Everyone dispersed after that. King Tarendino, Queen Mina, and the rest of the Royal Family went to the Main Hall where Damien was waiting. Zander and Zekiah as well as Jorick, Duke Gordon, and the others did not insist to join them. It was a family affair after all.

Zander cornered Jorick and Duke Gordon and asked them to help him teleport to Ishelon as soon as possible. He wanted to see his wife badly.

"I promise to give you anything you want as long as I can afford it. You are giving me a huge favor if you can grant my request. My wife will need to give birth anytime soon."

Jorick and Duke Gordon looked at each other with a confused look.

"Commander, I don't understand. You just got married recently, and I don't think that your wife is already pregnant and about to give birth." Duke Gordon tried to maintain his rationality.

"That's why I need to be there right away. How can she give birth if I'm not there?"

Jorick and Duke Gordon looked at each other once more and shook their heads. Whatever Zander meant, they felt like he should be there.

"Commander Zander, it's not that we don't want to grant your request, but I need to rest for a while to recover my magic. I just learned how to control it, and I'm still trying to adjust. Please give me a day's worth of rest, and I will send you to Ishelon. But, I can only send you."

Zekiah looked at his Big Brother and could not believe that he would not be able to join him.

"Since I still can't calculate the exact distance of ishelon from here, we can only teleport using the same route that we followed earlier. That means Jorick and I should join you all the way to Ishelon, but we will go back to Tissuria right away."

"When do we need to depart?"

"The day after tomorrow."

"That's fine with me. Thank you, gentlemen. If you'll excuse me, there's something I still need to discuss with my men."

Zekiah joined Zander, and they went on their way. Duke Gordon and Rodham had decided to return first to the Old Duke's Manor. Jorick and the rest, minus Wolstan, had decided to return to the Palace of the Crown Prince.

The Soldiers of Tissuria did not find Odette and had a hunch that she was already in Prazia. King Tarendino already knew that Odette was not his biological daughter even before he was controlled by the Left Minister. It was also one of the reasons that the Left Minister used hypnotic powder on him.

"Damien Pernell, Ninth Prince of Tissuria, you are found guilty of conniving with the enemy. Given the fact that you are the biological son of the King of Tissuria, you will be exiled to the Kingdom of Khedazia and live there as an ordinary citizen. You no longer hold the title of Ninth Prince of Tissuria and will no longer be recognized as a member of the Royal Family of Tissuria."

"NO!! Father, have mercy on me. I have no one else, but you. Please!"

King Tarendino closed his eyes and gave his order, "Bring him to the port. The ship to Khedazia is waiting for him there. Make sure that he boards it."

The guards gagged Damien's mouth and dragged him away from the Main Hall. King Tarendino did not utter a word and stayed quiet for a while. No one in the Main Hall spoke a word. 

After some time, King Tarendino held Queen Mina's hand and stood up. He helped Queen Mina to stand, and they both walked out of the Main Hall. Neither of them said something. They just walked to the direction of the garden.

"The King and Queen will take a rest. You may all go now," the Head Steward informed them.

Everyone was confused with the King's behavior, but Zenia knew that King Tarendino had a heavy heart. Damien was his biological son, but he was forced to leave his home. King Tarendino hoped that Damien would take the opportunity to change for the better and live a peaceful life.

Zenia did not look for her brothers anymore. She knew that they went somewhere. Vaughn was holding her hand when they left the Main Hall.

"I'm thinking that we can finally set the date of our trip to Shadora. Would you like to go tomorrow?" Vaughn flashed a mischievous smile.

"Tomorrow? Isn't it too sudden? I still need to send off my brothers. I have a hunch that Big Brother is already making a deal with Jorick and the Duke."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because my sister-in-law might be mad at him at this very moment," Zenia grinned.

"Why?"

"He forgot to send her a message that he arrived safely, and he was fine after fighting the enemy."

"Oh," Vaughn uttered nonchalantly and added, "I wish him good luck."

Vaughn could not imagine how the junior tigress would deal with her husband. He grinned inwardly and hoped that he could see it.

* * * * *

Vaughn and Zenia needed to attend different gatherings from the time that they left the Main Palace that day. They just arrived at their own palace when Redivo handed them an invitation from the Second Prince telling Zenia that his chef had come up with a new dish. If she would like to taste it, she could visit the restaurant right away.

Being a foodie, Zenia could not resist the temptation of sampling a new dish that she was certain to be scrumptious. She couldn't let such a chance to be wasted. Vaughn sighed and went with her.

"Hello, Second Brother," she greeted Renard with a big smile on her lips.

Renard couldn't help but smile back at her. He was thinking that it would be good if Zenia would give birth soon so he could play with his niece or nephew. He had nothing better to do anyway, and he was not keen on being a father.

"Second Brother," Vaughn slightly bowed his head.

"Crown Prince," Renard returned the greeting and bowed his head a bit lower.

Renard might be older than Vaughn, but he was not the next in line to the throne of Tissuria. He already accepted his fate and decided to pledge his loyalty to Vaughn. Among his siblings, Vaughn had the most promising background. His mother was the Queen of Tissuria, and she belonged to the most influential clan in their kingdom. Zenia made him even more formidable.

Renard joined Vaughn and Zenia to their private room in the restaurant that Renard had ordered his staff to reserve for Vaughn and Zenia. They shared delightful discussion. Renard never thought that he would be able to enjoy having a conversation with his sibling. He was glad that everything was finally over…for now.

He did not want to spoil their happy moment, but he always felt that something bad might happen soon. He kept his joyful façade as he tried to keep it lively.

Count Bernard Cordove heard about the delectable dishes that the restaurant of the Second Prince was serving and decided to take his family there for a treat. They were greeted by the manager and led them to a private room next to the one that the Royal Family was occupying.

Count Cordove turned to look at the room next to them when he heard a familiar voice. Every one of his companions already got inside the room. He excused himself and told his family to order anything and he would be back in a few minutes.

He went to see the manager and asked for some help. 

"Kind sir, can you please ask the occupant of the room next to ours if I could have an audience with the Madam?"

The manager knew Count Cordove and was thinking whether to inform his boss first or decline the request once and for all. He had seen the Count and Prince Renard talked before, and he was certain that the Count was an ally.

"Wait for a while, sir. I will ask them."

The manager left in a hurry and went to see Renard. The manager whispered in Renard's ear and told him that Count Cordove would like to speak with Zenia.

Renard already knew that Zenia and Count Cordove already met a few times. He also knew that Count Cordove had sworn his loyalty to Zenia. Not to Vaughn, but to Zenia.

"Zenzen," Renard called Zenia's pet name affectionately.

It was not the first time that he called Zenia by her pet name, and Vaughn was already used to it. In fact, he was beginning to get used to almost everyone calling his wife by her pet name and not her title.

"What is it, Second Brother?"

"Count Cordove is here now and he wants to speak with you."

Zenia looked at Vaughn as if she was asking for his permission. He nodded his head.

"I will trouble Second Brother and his people to please let Count Cordove join us."