King

CHAPTER XII

I’ve been bothered by the dream I once had a week ago. I never told anyone about it. I thought that maybe it was just a weird dream but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it’s something important.

“Are you going with Annaliza again?” Al asked while looking at me.

During our stay here we never made much progress. Every night we try to go to the cave but there would always be a hindrance. If the guards aren’t around the village chief would be staying up late with us. Sometimes he would even guard the house so we couldn’t leave.

“I want to go with you,” Zynrick said making me look at him.

“Why?” I asked while looking at him with a confused expression.

“Ever since we arrived I’ve been stuck with Al and we’ve been doing the same thing.” He answered making me look at Al.

“All you ever did was whine,” Al said while glaring at Zynrick. “We came here for research. Not to have fun.” He added.

“I don’t know if I can bring you with me though,” I said while looking at Zynrick. I saw the disappointment in his face with my answer.

As much as I want to bring them with me I can’t invite them. “I’ll ask Annaliza first,” I said and Zynrick’s face lit up.

I looked at Al and waited if he had any protests but he was just quiet. We continued to have our breakfast and when Annaliza came by I asked her if I can bring the guys with me.

“It’s fine. You can bring them with us. I’m sure the others would be delighted.” She said and Zynrick’s face lit up.

“Thank you,” He said and Annaliza just smiled.

We arrived in the forest and the others were truly delighted. They welcomed the boys and asked them to join them in their activities.

“You don’t have many visitors, do you?” I asked Annaliza as we watch them from afar.

“Yeah,” She answered in a sad tone. “So, when you arrived we were happy.”

I didn’t say anything after that. We continued to watch them have fun. At first, I was enjoying watching them play with the water nymphs but as time went by I was reminded by the dream I had.

I was busy thinking about the woman I saw in my dreams when I felt a wind pass by me. I thought it was a wind maiden but it wasn’t. I looked around and thought that maybe I was just overthinking things but when a gentle breeze passed by again I heard a voice.

“Did you hear that?” I asked Annaliza and she turned her head to look at me.

“Hear what?” She asked and looked at me with a confused expression.

“I heard a voice calling me,” I answered while looking around. She didn’t answer but when I looked at her she was scanning the place as well.

“I didn’t hear anything.” She said and looked at me.

“I must be out of my mind,” I whispered but she heard it.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” She started but trailed off.

“If you have a question just ask me,” I said. She took a deep breath and continued, “What brought you here? I appreciate the fact that we have visitors now but I just want to know. I don’t want to sound rude or anything.”

“It’s fine. We’re here to look for my familiars.” I said and her eyes went wide.

“You have familiars?” She asked and I could hear the excitement in her voice.

“Yeah, I do,” I said.

“I wish I had one too.” She said in a sad tone before adding, “What do they look like?”

“I don’t know but Al said that we might find a clue here,” I answered and she nodded.

“I want to help,” She said so I took it as a chance to ask her about the fox woman.

“The chief said that a fox woman is existing in the cave at the end of the village.” I started and I could see how uncomfortable she felt. But I needed the information so I decided to continue. “Can you help me go there?”

I could see by the way her facial expression change that she was contemplating. “Please, I desperately need to know,” I said hoping that she would budge but she remained quiet.

“What would you do if you arrive there?” She asked.

I was caught off guard by her question. I realized that I didn’t know what I would do if I arrived there. If my familiar is there I don’t know how to act.

“I don’t know,” I honestly said. She looked at me in the eyes for a moment before she released a heavy sigh.

“I’ll accompany you but we have to wait until its noon. That’s when the guards leave and to have a meal with the chief.” She said. I took a deep breath and thanked her.

While waiting for noontime to arrive we played with the others. It was fun seeing Al and Zynrick loosen up once in a while.

“They seem close,” I heard Annaliza comment while looking at Al and Zyn wrestling while the fauns cheered round them.

“They do but I don’t think they are,” I said but while looking at them I understand why she thought they were close. Sometimes, I wonder about their relationship with each other. Because to be honest, I don’t think they hate each other.

“It’s already noon,” I heard Annaliza say beside me so I turned my attention towards her.

“Are you sure we won’t be found out?” I asked as we walk through the forest.

“I’m sure. They don’t know this path towards the cave.” She said as I follow behind.

“Why do you know this path?” I asked because it seemed suspicious.

“I’ve met with the fox before,” She answered and my eyes grew wide.

“How?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“I was new here. The first time I arrived I was a hard-headed child. When the chief told me about the cave I sneaked around and looked for a path to the cave.” She answered. I was quietly following as she told me her story.

“At first she threatened me. Of course, I didn’t get scared. I have my pride as a witch. Because I was confident that I can beat her I challenged her to a duel. At first, she didn’t attack me. She just dodged and told me to leave but when I was able to cut her she started to fight back. I was surprised when she was able to beat me with just one attack.” She explained.

“I retreated after losing to her. But I continuously went back to fight her. The times I’ve gone there I learned that she wouldn’t attack unless provoked. There was one time when I saw the chief in front of the cave. They were talking. I listened to their conversation and I found out that she was waiting for someone and that she needed to be alone. She was also protecting something inside the cave.” She said and stopped so I told her to go on.

“She asked the village chief to scare the villagers so she can be at peace. That’s probably why the chief is lying about the fox demon being aggressive.” She added.

“We’re here,” She said and I saw the cave. I could sense a strong barrier when we approached it.

“Where is she?” I asked while looking around. I was hoping to see her but it seems like no one’s here beside us.

“I don’t know. She usually appears when someone comes here,” She said and looked around as well.

“Have you ever gone inside?” I asked and pointed at the cave.

She shook her head as an answer, “She wouldn’t let anyone enter the cave probably because she’s protecting something inside.”

“I want to go in,” I said and took a step towards the cave but she stopped me by grabbing my arm.

“Don’t,” She said with a frightened expression.

“Why?” I asked and she gulped.

“Weren’t you listening to my story? She can knock you out with just one strike. What if she gets mad once you enter the cave? She might kill you.” She said and I shook her arms off of me.

“You said that she wouldn’t attack unless provoked. I just won’t do anything to provoke her. I just want to talk to her.” I answered and went inside.

At first, I thought the barrier would stop me but I was able to enter freely. Once I was inside I looked around and all I could see was the darkness. I looked behind me hoping to see Annaliza but she wasn’t there.

“I guess she didn’t want to follow me,” I said and shrugged.

As I was walking deeper inside I could feel the air getting colder. I hugged my body as I was walking. I didn’t reach far when I felt the same gentle breeze I felt earlier. Along with the breeze, I heard, “You’re going the right way,”

I felt relieved when I heard it again but it was a reassurance that I wasn’t hallucinating or overthinking anything. The voice was faint like the first time it reached my ears. I don’t know why I was following it but it had a familiar feeling to it.

I saw a gleaming light at the end of the cave and as I was approaching it I heard my phone ring. I stopped for a while and groaned when I saw that it was Al calling. I answered the phone and said, “What?” I let him hear the irritation in my voice but the annoyance went away with what I heard.

“Where are you? We need to go home. The chateau was robbed.” He said in a panicked tone.

“What could they possibly steal in the chateau?” I asked.

“There are valuable documents hidden in the chateau and that includes Zynrick’s and yours so we need to go home. We need to check what they stole.” He said so I ran back to where I came from. Though I wanted to teleport I can’t just leave Annaliza.

When I was finally out of the cave I was knocked down to the ground by Annaliza. “What are you doing?” I asked as we stand up and dust our clothes.

“I wanted to get in and go after you but when I was about to enter I was repelled. I think there was a barrier set up.” She explained so I looked at her with furrowed eyebrows.

“What do you mean?” I asked. I knew that there was a barrier but why can’t she enter.

“It seems like the barrier chooses who can enter,” She said. I wanted to ask her more but Al was waiting.

“I’ll teleport us back to where Al and the others are. Hold onto my hand.” I said and she obeyed without any questions.

“Thank God you’re finally here,” Al said when he saw us.

“We need to go,” He said before he and Zyn walked up to me

“What’s happening?” Annaliza asked with a confused expression. I wanted to explain things to her but Al was in a hurry so I just smiled and said, “I’ll tell you soon but right now we need to leave.”

After saying that I immediately snapped my fingers and we were already inside the chateau.

We saw the shocked expressions of the police officers when we appeared from thin air.

“Tell me what happened,” Al commanded one of the officers. He looked dumbfounded and it seems like he hasn’t processed what was happening.

“Could you please fill us in with what happened?” I heard Zynrick ask a different officer.

“The alarm in your chateau went off. The Magic Reservation Centre reported it to us so we came as soon as we can.” He answered and Zynrick nodded.

“Did you hear that Al?” Zynrick asked and Al nodded.

“Check your rooms if you lost any valuable belongings. I’ll check mine.” He said and we nodded.

We were about to enter our rooms when we were stopped by an officer. “Where are going?” He asked while looking at us suspiciously.

“I am Alystair Flynn and I am the owner of this house. If you’ll excuse us we need to check if any of our valuable belongings are gone.” He answered and attempted to go up the stairs but the officer stopped him.

“I need verification,” He said so Al gave him his identification card and driver’s license.

“Is that enough?” He asked and the officer nodded before giving his card back.

“That’s enough to verify your identity but you still can’t go upstairs.” He said making Alystair clench his fists.

“Officer, it won’t take long. We’re just going to check. I think we have the right to do that since we are the residents of this household.” Zyn said stepping in.

“That still won’t do,” The officer said. I saw Al take a deep breath before he brought out his phone.

“Al, where are you going?” Zynrick asked while eyeing Al.

“I’m calling Ethan,” He said and proceeded to call.

After a minute he walked to us and put the phone in a loudspeaker. “Officer Clint,” I heard the man on the phone say.

I could see how the officer tensed upon hearing the man’s voice. “What is it, Sir Ethan?” He asked after gulping.

“Please let them see their rooms.” He said and the man eyed the three of us.

“But, sir,” He said but didn’t continue when the man named Ethan cut him off, “No buts officer Clint. Do as I say or you’ll lose your job.”

“Understood, sir,” He said and took a step aside.

“Thanks, Ethan,” Al said and hung up.

We went to our rooms and when I went to my room everything was a mess. I was calmly walking around because there was nothing to steal in my room. Once I was done checking my room I went to Al and I was surprised by what I saw.

I was standing outside the door when I heard him yell. He pulled a drawer and threw it to the wall. I could see how his chest heaved rose and fell quickly. The anger was evident in his face. He was so red and he looked like he was ready to commit murder.

“Al, what’s wrong?” I asked. He shifted his gaze towards me. He took a deep breath and ran his hands on his face.

“All of the documents I have of you and Al are gone.” He said and sat on his bed.

“What do we do now?” I asked because I didn’t know what else to ask him.

“I don’t know,” He whispered and stood up. He continued to look around his room. I was uncomfortable just standing there so I helped him search even though I don’t know what he’s looking for.

“What are we looking for?” I asked while looking around.

“I don’t know. Just check maybe they just threw the documents somewhere here. I’m hoping they didn’t take it.” He said. I didn’t say anything after that.

We were silently looking around his room when we heard Zyn talk, “Was something stolen from you?”

“Yeah, what about you?” Al answered without looking at Zyn.

“Our family photo’s gone,” Zyn said making Al stop.

“What?” He asked while looking at Zynrick.

“That’s all that they took,” Zynrick said and Al suddenly went inside his walk-in closet.

“f**k!” We heard him yell which was followed by a loud thud.

“What’s wrong?” I asked after we enter his closet.

He was sitting on the ground with his hands clutching his hair. “They took our family album,” Al said.

“Is that all?” Zynrick asked while looking down at Al.

I was confused as to why their family photos were important when they’re acting like they hate each other.

“They took all of your document and my journal as well.” He said and stood up.

“I need to talk to the police.” He said and walked out.

We followed him and went out as well. When we were finally in the living room we saw them glaring at us.

“What’s up with the glare?” I asked and Zynrick shook.

“Was something stolen from you?” He asked while looking down at me.

“I don’t have anything important in my room so I’m fine,” I answered and he nodded.

We were quiet after I answered his question. I wanted to ask him about the photo and the album but I don’t know if it would trigger him again.

“What’s up with the photo and the album?” I asked. I couldn’t help not asking so I just went for it.

“It’s nothing important.” He answered but I knew it was a lie.

They’re hiding something. I wanted to ask more questions but Zynrick ran so I followed him with my gaze.

“What the f**k do you mean?!” I heard Al yell as he was bring restricted by Zynrick.

I quickly ran to them as well. “What’s happening, Al?” I asked while looking at him.

“That f*****g piece of s**t said that this was just an ordinary robbery!” He yelled while struggling to break free from Zynrick’s grip.

“Based on the investigation we did it’s nothing but an ordinary robbery,” Officer Clint said making Al struggle harder.

“How can you call this an ordinary robbery when documents were stolen not money?” He asked in anger but the officer Clint just closed the folder he was holding before saying.

“That’s the report we sent to the Ministry of Defense. There’s nothing more we can do about it. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’re leaving.” He said and walked out of the chateau.

I was lost for words. Something wasn’t adding up. I wanted to stop them so I took a step forward but I stopped when Zynrick spoke.

“Don’t Elle, we don’t want to make an enemy of the Ministry of Defense,” He said so I stopped.

Al seemed to calm down as well so Zyn decided to let him go.

“Those f*****g bastards,” Al whispered while glaring outside.

“Who do you think did it?” Zynrick asked.

“I’m sure it’s Tyrone,” Al answered. “We need to be more cautious from now on. It seems like the Ministry of Defense is on Tyrone’s side as well.”

We didn’t say anything after Al’s statement. “Let’s clean our rooms for now.” He said and walked to his room.

“I’ve never seen him that mad,” I commented and Zyn just looked at me.

I stared back at him as a sign that I was waiting for him to say something. “I know,” He said after a few seconds of silence.

It wasn’t the response I was expecting but I just let it slide. He went to his room as well so I went to my room after that.

I cleaned my room and when I was done I lay on my bed and thought about everything that happened. Today was a long day.

I was thinking of what I saw at the cave. I was so close but I wasn’t able to find anything out. After entering the cave I was now sure that the dream I had was something important. I have a feeling that it was my familiar calling out to me.

I decided to wake up and tell Al what happened. I know he’s stressed about everything that happened but he needed to know.

I was walking towards his room when I heard them talking to each other.

I didn’t mean to eavesdrop but I was puzzled by their conversation.

“Why is the photo album important to you, Zynrick?” I heard Al ask in a serious tone.

“It’s the only thing I have of us being a complete family. I know you said we’re not a family but I just can’t let go.” Zynrick answered.

“So, you still see me as your brother, huh?” Al asked.

“I do. I know what I did was wrong and I understand why you hate me. I don’t have the right to ask but why do you still have the family album when you said it yourself that we can’t have any family photos around the house?” Zynrick asked.

“You don’t need to know why,” Al answered.

“Okay,” Zyn answered but I could hear the frustration in his voice.

“I’m going,” He added and I heard the door creak. I immediately ran down the stairs hoping he won’t see me.

I could hear my heartbeat when I was standing at the end of the stairs. I looked behind me and saw that there was no one there. I released a sigh of relief and went to get a glass of water.

I went back to my room after drinking my glass of water. After hearing their conversation I couldn’t help but wonder about what their past is. It feels like there’s more to what Erin told me and I wanted to know more.