Chapter 314 - I Am Here to Take You Home (Part 2)

Captain Dumont looked at Jorick and saw that he really meant it. He sighed.

"Young Pr…man, at the level of magic that you have, you will eventually learn time manipulation on your own. It is better that way than me teaching you. Your method may even be more effective than what I'm using."

"Is that so? Then, we will take our leave now. I just came here because I sensed something bad."

"Take your leave?" 

Captain Dumont did not understand what Jorick meant by what he said.

"Ah… I can teleport and since I'm already here, I might as well take these two home with me."

Home…

Captain Dumont flashed a faint smile.

'It looks like the Young Prince has already found a place that he can call home. Does this mean that Prazia will forever be buried in darkness?'

Captain Dumont shook his head and heaved a deep sigh. He wanted to tell Vaughn and Zenia about the true identity of Jorick and, perhaps, they could persuade the Young Prince to return to Prazia and claim his rightful place.

Vaughn, Zenia, and Jorick began to walk away from Captain Dumont, who was still in deep thought. The trio had decided that it was best not to disturb him. 

"But, Young…" 

When Captain Dumont went back to his senses, the trio had made their way to where the carriage was located. He ran after them and held Jorick's arm.

"Young man, will you come to visit me again? I never leave this ship."

"I will do that, Uncle Byron. But, I cannot promise to visit you soon. There are things that we need to take care of first."

Captian Dumont nodded his head, bid them goodbye, and left. He instructed the crew on his way back. They must fix everything quickly to lessen the worries of passengers.

"Is it okay for us to leave like this? What if another storm comes? Will these people be safe?"

"I can assure you that no harm will befall these people once you leave this ship," Jorick tried to explain in a way that Zenia would no longer pester him with so many questions.

Within the short period that he had known Zenia, he already grasped her character. She could be annoying sometimes due to her persistence. He could not forget what happened to them in Prazia. It was also one of the reasons why he did not want to return to Prazia – he would always remember that terrifying moment in his life.

Zenia no longer asked, and Vaughn helped her to board the carriage. Jorick looked at them with disbelief. He heard in the Palace of the Crown Prince that Vaughn had always shown no mercy to his enemies. He would eliminate them without batting an eyelid. But, the one he was looking at right at that minute seemed to be a different person.

He had known how Vaughn doted on Zenia so much, but he thought that it was just all an act when he heard how ruthless he was. He did not know what to believe anymore. On the other hand, Zenia had always been... Zenia. 

In Ishelon, he heard stories of her mischief and misadventures ever since she was young. Jorick believed that she became a great tactician because of her experience. She should always come up with a new tactic to escape from her mother.

He looked at Zenia, who was sitting across him.

He sighed, 'She did not change at all.'

"Are you all ready?"

Everyone, including the coachman, answered in unison, "Yes!"

Jorick thought of what he did before he teleports himself to Zenia's location. He thought of the training ground and applied the lessons that he learned from Duke Gordon.

Bzzzt!

Captain Dumont ran to where the trio went when he saw a blinding light coming from their direction. When he got there, the carriage and the trio were no longer in sight.

"Good luck, Young Prince. Stay safe."

* * * * *

Back in the Palace of the Crown Prince, Wolstan and Roy were having an argument.

"I'm telling you that we need to fetch that Duke right now. Why did Jorick suddenly disappear? Where is he? For all we know, he could be in danger. We might lose him if we dawdle here longer."

Wolstan had always treated Jorck like a real grandson since they had been together in Luna Inn. He had a feeling that someone brainwashed Jorick and made him believe that Damien was a good guy. He already confirmed Jorick's real identity even if no one told him about it. Somehow, he had always known but kept denying it. Call it an old man's intuition.

"Calm down, Wolstan. He could be trying teleporting on his own."

"What if the Dark Magic Lord got him?"

"The Dark Magic Lord won't be able to locate his whereabouts while he's in Tissuria."

"What if Jorick tried to teleport outside of Tissuria?"

"The only place that I can think of is Ishelon. He's still safe as long as he stays anywhere on this island shared by Tissuria and Ishelon. Somehow, the island is not affected by dark magic. It seems like it has a natural defense mechanism against dark magic. In fact, my magic does not work as efficiently as in other kingdoms."

"If the island is truly not affected, how come Jorick and the Duke can teleport?"

"Is it because they are using magic and science together? I'm not sure either, but I will try to find out. It looks like I'm going to stay here for a long time. Well, at least until the rightful ruler of Prazia finally returns."

Bzzzt!

Wolstan and Roy instinctively covered their eyes when a blinding light suddenly flashed. It was the same light that they saw when Jorick had disappeared. When they thought that it was safe to take a look, they slowly opened their eyes and saw a huge carriage.

"Whew! That was fast. Can you teleport anywhere you please now?" Zenia asked Jorick excitedly.

Vaughn suddenly got nervous when he heard Zenia's question. Jorick could feel that Vaughn stopped breathing for a while. He thought things through very quickly. He knew that Vaughn did not want his wife to have any ideas about using teleportation to transfer from one place to the other.

"I just started to teleport on my own only now. I am still learning some more so I can perfect this ability already. I'm afraid that I still can't do it as I please."

"Oh, I thought I can use your ability to deliver the goods."

'Goods?'

Jorick had a feeling that Zenia had some business deals with the place they've been to. Vaughn knew that Zenia could be so shameless sometimes, but did not expect that she wanted to take advantage of Jorick's ability…that early.

Zenia kept convincing Jorick that he should try teleporting to Shadora with the goods. He wanted to enhance his ability, and it was a perfect opportunity for him to do so.

"It is still too early for me to teleport that far. What if something happens to your goods?"

"You already teleported to the ship where we were earlier, you can surely do the same again."

Vaughn butted in, "I've been thinking how you did it? I understand that Duke Gordon needs to make an accurate calculation of the distance between the origin and the destination to do that. How did you calculate the distance between where you were in Tissuria and the ship?"

Jorick began to feel nervous. He could feel the somewhat menacing look in Vaughn's eyes. One wrong choice of words may send him to the netherworld. He suddenly remembered how merciless Vaughn could get. He shouldn't say that he detected Zenia's presence and traced it.

"It was pure luck. I was trying something when I sensed a dark aura and suddenly followed it. I never thought that you two were in that ship."

Jorick felt the sweat trickling down his back. He just hoped that Vaughn would let him off and let it slide.

"Okay, it makes sense," Vaughn accepted it, but he still glared at Jorick.

"Aw, is there no way to convince you to try it just once?"

Wolstan and Roy continued to walk slowly. 

"Is that my Zenzen's voice?"

Wolstan's eyes shone brightly when he heard a familiar sweet-sounding voice.

"I thought you're worrying about Jorick and your great-grandson so much?"

"Those two men can take care of themselves pretty well. My Zenzen is a delicate girl that must be protected at all times."

Wolstan ran to where Zenia was and did not even look at his friend again. 

'Delicate girl? Didn't he see how she saved her husband in Prazia?'

Roy sometimes wondered how he had become friends with Wolstan. Even in their younger years, Wolstan had always been fickle. He kept guessing what his friend would do next. However, it was different when his wife was involved. 

Roy closed his eyes when he thought about the only woman who made his heart fluttered. If she had shown even the slightest interest in him, he would forget the friendship that he had with Wolstan. He would not hesitate to take her away at that instant. But in the end, she chose her beloved Wolstan over her life.

"Is that Zenzen?"

Wolstan blurted out when he arrived.

"Grandpa!"

Zenia ran to Wolstan and gave him a hug, "I missed you! Have you been doing well?"

Jorick and Vaughn couldn't believe that the Zenia Anisen who was still arguing and bargaining earlier suddenly changed when she saw Wolstan.

"My good Zenzen, I've been doing well. Tell me where you went this time."

Wolstan took Zenia away and led her to the Main Residence. Vaughn and Jorick simply looked at their departing backs and scratched their heads. Vaughn had decided not to let Zenia near his great-grandfather again. He was influencing her behavior negatively.

* * * * *

The Dark Magic Lord continued to cough out blood. He still tried to locate Zenia's presence once more, but he could not detect it anywhere near the last area that he found her. He was in that state when Prince Roland came to visit.

"You, why are you like that?"

*Cough, cough*

The Dark Magic Lord stood up and went to the bathroom to clean himself first. Roland waited patiently for his return. He wouldn't come if he did not encounter a problem in his practice.

"What brings you here?"

"I just want to consult something. Are you sick?"

The Dark Magic Lord was somewhat elated for his grandson's seemingly act of concern. But, he was also aware that it was nothing more than a question due to curiosity.

"I've detected Zenia Anisen's presence in a ship earlier and tried to deal with her…"

"What did you say? Who was it that you want to deal with?"

The Dark Magic Lord felt the surrounding air beginning to suffocate him.