Chapter 299 - Observing and Analyzing

Vaughn ordered the food and instructed the waiter to bring the cold dessert in the middle of their meal. He noticed that Zenia was sweating, but he did not want to give her something cold when he knew that she could be starving already.

"Do you suspect that the people of King Odhran or the Dark Magic Lord are still here?"

"It is possible. That's why we need to be more vigilant from now on. We don't know what they are planning, but Richaem once told Jorick that the Dark Magic Lord wants to open the sealed path or portal that leads to other continents. He told his brother that Maecaea seems to be a sealed continent."

"Don't you find it absurd? I mean, our ancestors have lived and died in Maecaea, and no one ever mentioned about the whole continent being sealed."

"Hmm, it's also the first time I heard of it. Although, an elder in one of the kingdoms that I visited with my father and Big Brother told me that Maecaea holds a lot of mysteries that need to be unraveled. I did not think much about it, and I even thought that the old man was crazy. Even the big brother who joined me at the time thought so too."

"Do you still think that the old man is crazy?"

"Judging from the things that are happening right now, I wish I can see that old man again. But, he could be dead by now."

"Where did you meet that old man?"

Vaughn wanted to know the identity of the big brother that Zenia mentioned in her story. Why was she with him?

Zenia thought for a while and tried to recall which kingdom it was.

"In Venetia."

The food that Vaughn had ordered finally arrived. The waiter served the dishes one by one while making a brief introduction to each dish.

Vaughn looked at Zenia, who already scooped a large spoonful of the soup that the waiter put in front of her. He dropped the idea of asking the identity of that big brother. He must be someone who just stood there with her at the time.

They ate their food, and Vaughn would often catch Zenia looking around. She was trying to see if she could catch someone acting differently from the rest of the people there. She found no one.

Zenia stopped eating when she saw a group of men looking suspicious just arrived at the restaurant. There were ten men and each of them was wearing a black coat and pants, a white shirt with a fluffy tie, and red boots. 

They stopped and raised their right arm and simultaneously uttered, "Haloo, people of Shadora."

The manager approached them and greeted, "Commander Berkfrost, welcome to our restaurant. His Majesty already informed us that you and your men will drop by for lunch. Please, follow me to your private room."

The manager together with newly arrived guests went to a private room. The men were boisterous when they expressed their satisfaction with the room that was given to them. 

"Did you see someone suspicious?"

"No. They must be from one of the kingdoms in the North. I only saw some of them from afar when there was a convention where my father got invited. They look weird, but they are friendly."

"Why do you think they are here?"

"It looks like they only come to visit and explore. Prazia will gain nothing and only lose a lot when they form an alliance with them. It is extremely cold in the North and there are only a few varieties of vegetables that can thrive there. They will surely demand more food and other essentials from the kingdom that's brave enough to form an alliance with them."

"What about minerals and precious stones? Don't they have those things?"

"I am sure that they have those, but excavating through the Northern Ice will be suicide. The ice of the kingdoms in the North is extremely hard and cold. You will freeze to death before you can hit something valuable."

"It's that bad?"

"Uhuh."

Vaughn looked at the room once more and became even more suspicious. At any rate, they could not afford to be complacent. He had decided to send a group to the Northern Kingdoms to spy and make sure that nothing is amiss.

Zenia did not see anything suspicious, and they left after finishing their meal. It was only two o'clock, but Zenia and Vaughn had decided to return to their temporary home. They still need to return to the clinic for the contract in the following morning.

They rent a carriage and ordered the coachman to bring them back to the temple. The Captain of the guards was surprised to see their early return. He had decided not to inform the Chief Elder anymore. He had nothing important to say to the couple anyway.

Zenia stopped walking when they reached the downward path leading to their temporary home. She suddenly felt tired.

"Hubby, carry me," she immediately extended her arms and tried to look pitiful.

Vaughn sighed and took her in his arms. Carrying his wife was not something tiring. They haven't reached the front door yet when he heard Zenia's faint, gentle snore.

He was about to open the door when he noticed that it was slightly ajar. He remembered locking it before they went out. He did not wake Zenia up and just gently pushed open the door. No one was there, but Vaughn noticed that the enormous jar near the door of their bedroom was slightly off. It was as if someone looked for something in there and failed to put back the big jar to its original place.

He pushed the bedroom door open, and he gently put Zenia on the bed. He reached out to Zenia's side where she used to keep her dagger and took the weapon. It was too far for him to get his sword. He left his sword when they went out, and he did not have a small dagger or short sword that he could keep in his coat.

He couldn't and shouldn't keep his guard down. Nothing else was moved. Whoever went inside their temporary home earlier must be looking for a particular item owned by the temple. He went out and dragged the huge jar inside their room.

Vaughn looked inside the jar and saw that there were lots of things being kept there. He poured the content of the jar on the floor and began inspecting the items. He noticed what looked like half of a sphere. He picked it up, and it was emitting a faint glow that was starting to get brighter and brighter.

Vaughn put the half-sphere inside their luggage to stop it from glowing. Zenia began to stir, and he went to her side quickly and hugged her. She fell asleep once more.

He had no idea whatever that thing was, but he was certain that it was kept there. The big jar had been sealed, but someone removed that seal and started searching for something.

'What were they looking for?'

In Vaughn's estimate, the invaders were two people. He found nothing suspicious in the big jar except the half-sphere. They must've felt that someone was coming and left immediately. 

Vaughn went to the desk and started scribbling the things that happened to them that day, including the things he learned from the manager of the weapons store. They had been in Shadora for a few days and now they begin to encounter unusual things. He had decided to return immediately to Tissuria after Zenia had delivered the contract to Doctor Lizbeth. He would also check whether the manager of the weapons store had able to gather some information for him.

The sun had just set when Zenia woke up. She saw Vaughn writing something. There were lots of papers beginning to pile up on the table. She got up and walked to where Vaughn was.

"What are you writing?"

"I'm making notes of the things that happened earlier till now."

Zenia picked one of the papers and started reading. Her eyes widened when she read about the huge jar.

"Where is that item now?"

"I kept it in our luggage. Don't look at it for now. It might start to glow again and alert the intruders to come back."

"How did you know that those men were looking for that half-sphere?"

"I don't really know, but the most intriguing item inside the huge jar was that half-sphere."

"Let's go ask Chief Elder. Maybe they were the ones who kept the item there."

"Hmm, let us have our meal first. The Lead Maid gave some ingredients earlier while you were sleeping. She told me that Chief Elder did not ask for his portion this time around."

Zenia smiled and said, "I will make sure to make something for him so we can bring it to him tomorrow. There are a lot of things that I want to ask him. But, we need to go to Doctor Lizbeth first. Chief Elder does not wake up early anyway. We should be back by the time he wakes up."

"Let's do that then. You just need to prepare something light and simple for dinner. Don't go back to sleep on a full stomach. You might have nightmares later."

"Hmm, I will go prepare our dinner now."

"Do you want me to help you?"

"No, you still need to finish that. I will call you when it's ready."

Zenia went out of the room and into the kitchen. Vaughn looked at her departing back and really wished they could spend their days peacefully.