The Guardians' Throne - The First Magic Swordsman

With their skills, Zaos and Aleni managed to jump over the walls and reach the streets of the capital without alerting any soldier. While many of them were stationed in the walls, their guards weren't high since they didn't hear any alert of Zaos or anyone else approaching. Despite that, Zaos could feel that all the residences near the walls were filled with people… It seemed that the ordinary citizens evacuated and gave their places for the army to use for the time being.

"I almost feel sorry for those who try to go against us… while they aren't going to lose soldiers, they only waste time and energy using ordinary means to stop us," Aleni said.

Using the dark alleys and sometimes the top of the houses, Zaos and Aleni crossed the city. Still, they found a troublesome situation waiting for them in the castle… the place was surrounded by guards. It was impossible to pass by them without warning them. Jumping over by enhancing his legs was also impossible since there was no building close to the… there were actually two buildings in which they could use…

"Let's head to the West side of the central district," Zaos said.

Aleni didn't know what Zaos was thinking, but then she realized that he wanted to go to his former home. The walls of the castle and his home were like forty meters away from each other. It was impossible to even for Zaos to cross such a distance with a single jump, but they didn't have any other idea. Besides, Zaos wanted to visit his mother's grave… It has been a while since he did it.

As Zaos had expected, the number of guards in the place was really small. The residence didn't need much security when so many guards were around the castle and so close. Thanks to that, Zaos and Aleni entered the garden with ease… much to Zaos' surprise, the garden looked the same as usual… even though his father should have had some difficult ten years, things in his former home didn't change. Zaos found his mother's grave on the same spot, and then he kneeled near it and then touched it with his right hand.

"It has been a while, Mom," Zaos said.

They didn't have much time, and their presence was bound to be found since they could feel many presences inside the house. Despite that, Zaos gave his mother a fulls report of every that happened since the last time he talked with her… he wondered if she would feel proud of him after the things he had done… his accomplishments, his failures… It was hard to imagine what she would say, but at least Zaos could imagine her smiling during the whole conversation.

"Please, watch over me, Mom," Zaos said and then looked toward Aleni before opening his arms. "Come."

"Come?" Aleni frowned.

"I will carry you since you can't jump over that distance," Zaos said.

"You can't do it either, even less so while carrying me," Aleni said.

"I have an idea. Just jump into my arms," Zaos said.

Even though it was Zaos, who was asking that Aleni didn't like to be put into such a vulnerable position. Still, she followed what Zaos said and then jumped into his arms to be carried like a princess. Once she was firmly in his arms, Zaos began to run toward the wall of his former home. They then jumped after enhancing his legs to their utmost limits when he was five meters away from the wall. 

Zaos saw himself in the air in the next moment, almost flying twenty meters away from the ground. Zaos looked down and noticed that the guards still were oblivious of them. Still, Zaos was losing altitude, and the castle walls were on the same height as him and twenty meters away… Zaos used a blast of wind close to his back to propel him forward, and that worked just as he had planned. It wasn't much of a flight, and it was quite painful, but they flew over the wall without alerting the guards. Just before landing, Zaos used another gust of wind against his feet to decrease his falling speed. In the end, they landed without making any noise.

Aleni wanted to ask what Zaos had done, but she could feel the presence of the guards behind the wall, they were too close, so there was no time to stop and talk. Besides, Aleni could sense some guards inside the walls as well. While she didn't know where the royal library was, Aleni still knew most parts of the castle, including the best routes, so she guided Zaos while he was healing his back.

Aleni guided Zaos through the garden of the castle without alerting any of the guards. She always wondered why they never got rid of it since enemies could easily mix in the garden… still, she was thankful for the king's imprudence.

Zaos and Aleni entered the castle in the blink of an eye through one of the many windows of the first floor. They found the place pretty well-lit, considering that it was already late. It seemed that the king still was awake, but only a few servants were. Considering that the king was awake, the royal guards still were with him as well. Zaos Sharpened his senses and then confirmed that two powerful presences were in the throne room… he recognized the presences of his father and Drian.

"Let's go to the throne room," Zaos said.

"What happened to the plan of finding the royal library?" Aleni asked.

"We can always ask the king directly instead of wasting time searching for it blindly," Zaos said. "Besides, talking with the king is the most important thing we can do right now."

Those three were getting old, but their presences were as powerful as always. Since Zaos didn't bring his weapons and armor, things might get troublesome if they attack him… stopping them and trying to convince them at the same time will be a pain in the ass, so Zaos wondered if starting the conversation while dropping a bombshell would help him.