Eluard left the area without the guards noticing his departure. The four felt uncomfortable now that their senior brother wasn't around.
The three looked at Jinmu, asking him what they should do now.
"Let's follow senior brother Kai's orders."
The carriage's door opened again and Veron's voice resounded from inside.
"You brats, come up here."
Aurpiel remained outside and was forced to sit on a horse. Thankfully, the two mages he hired shielded him from the harsh cold weather.
Meanwhile, inside the carriage, the boys sat beside Veron while the girls sat beside Haera.
The moment they settled; the carriage started moving at a slow pace. The quiet ambiance gave them the opportunity to check out one another.
"Uncle, these people…", Haera was astonished after recognizing Lucan and Olivia due to their noble status in the Morning Star Empire and the Norva Assili respectively.
'Was Kai the one who recruited them to join the academy?', Haera wondered.
Each of these juniors was situated in different parts of Aludia. Looking for them must have been a hassle, worse, persuading them to join.
"Hello, ma'am and sir. I am Jinmu Lin.", emanating a calm and scholarly aura. He remained unfazed despite sitting beside an elf who was a grandmaster magus.
His peers, however, were unable to contain the emotions they felt.
Lucan took his turn, "I am Lucan Hermes.", smiling and forming a dimple on the cheeks of his immature and silly face. He was trying to hide the fact that he was intimidated by Veron's aura.
As a student of the Heavenly Magic Academy, Lucan pledged in his heart that he will not cower under anyone unless it was the academy master himself. Given this situation, his oath was now being put to test.
The little girl followed after Lucan, "Hello, ma'am and sir. I am Emi Moon, nice to meet you.", bowing to them to hide the nervousness plastered on her face.
As the last person to speak up, Olivia was taken aback before introducing herself.
"I-I am Olivia Winterice, hello…"
Haera and Veron felt the awkwardness behind Olivia's introduction. She knew how her people treated the elves and other demi-humans, and also mocked those who were practicing the art of magical cultivation.
As a result, speaking with them close up made Olivia feel uneasy in both her heart and thoughts.
'Wi-will they scold me or something?', she hoped not.
Veron suppressed the laughter swelling inside him. These young people were trying their best to hide the fact that they came from the Heavenly Magic Academy.
'Did Mr. Kai forget to tell them that me and Haera already know about it?'
Lucan and Olivia already interacted with him but were playing ignorant so as to not gather suspicion from their two other classmates.
Veron couldn't blame them either. The Heavenly Magic Academy might have a rule that forbids anyone from carelessly speaking their true identity.
"Don't act so reserved in front of us two. We already know that you four come from the Heavenly Magic Academy.", Haera spoke the truth, "I am Haera Zumfiel from the Zumfiel Noble Household. It's finally nice to meet Kai's juniors."
"Eh…", the four were rendered speechless.
Their efforts of putting up a fa?ade were all for nothing.
Lucan was the first to come to his senses and asked, stutteringly, "Then you and senior brother Kai…", pointing his right index finger at both Haera and Veron.
Haera chuckled as she made a fist with her left hand and held it in front of her mouth.
"We met each other some time before. Mr. Kai said that he does miss his juniors now and then, I wonder how much of that is true?"
They couldn't come up with an answer. How could their senior brother miss them when the two parties just recently met with one another?
Was senior brother Kai a type of person who easily experiences homesickness?
"That… we don't know because we just have a few interactions with our senior brother…", Lucan replied.
"Ah, I see. Oh, sorry for you asking you that. It's my curiosity picking itself up.", Haera sighed.
The students were more curious about their relationship now. It was unanimously agreed that no outsider should ever know that the Heavenly Magic Academy has returned for the time being.
If their senior brother made such an exception, he must have his own reasons for doing so. Or maybe it was part of the academy master's plan.
It was undeniably known that the Zumfiels were a powerhouse of wizards whose lineage of archmages spanned several generations. Communicating with them to establish a relationship with the Alderian Terrestrial Sanctuary was a worthwhile step
"Your senior brother told me that you want to get inside the encampment, right?", Veron asked.
"Yes…", Jinmu answered, "But why is that little girl sitting on your lap?"
"Oh, her.", Veron was taken aback. He almost forgot that Lila was here alongside them all the time.
Veron felt that it was kind of a strange sensation.
Haera jolted when she realized Lila's presence.
Lila winked at Haera, implying to her that the cheeky brat saw everything that happened earlier.
"Don't mind her, don't mind her.", Veron changed the topic back to what it was before Lila could say anything.
"Anyway, based on the agreement between us and your senior brother, we will be escorting the four of you inside the encampment "
"We'll also be assisting you on your mission here in this place. Don't hesitate to utilize our strength and skills to your advantage, brats."
"Oh, so what senior brother Kai said was true.", Jinmu contemplated. He thought that their senior brother's words were to comfort the dire situation they were in.
"Shh!", Veron gestured for them to remain silent. He could feel that they were near the encampment now.
Eluard warned them of the existence of the demonic creatures.
Veron already sent a signal to Aurpiel and Greywolf to not let the guards open the carriage at any cost.
A moment passed and the carriage stopped.
"Hey, who the hell are you?!", a warrior shouted from the entrance. The movement of this caravan was suspicious based on his observations.
Greywolf's horse stepped forward, "Sir, we're a traveling merchant caravan who wants to enter the encampment. We have warriors, food, water, and other things that could prove useful for your needs. All we want is to be safe and out of harm's way."
"And the carriages?", another warrior shouted.
"Oh, those are where we put our stuff, sir.", Greywolf responded.
"I'm not a fool. I'm talking about that luxurious-looking carriage at the center of your caravan.", the warrior pointed with a serious expression.
"Sir… there are mages over there and they don't want to be disturbed right now.", Greywolf pleaded.
The warrior shoved Greywolf away, "Fuck your mages, I'm going to see what secrets you are hiding inside.", proudly strutting towards the luxurious-looking carriage.
"Let them in.", a low voice called from afar. The warrior stopped on his steps and turned around, "But High King…"
"I said let them in."
He could feel a slight tone of anger behind him. The warrior could only comply and open the gates.
The merchant caravan easily passed through the gates and went deeper inside the encampment. When the seven people glanced out the window, the place was no different than outside the encampment.
Dead bodies were littered everywhere and destruction could be seen wherever their eyes lay upon.
Arguments and sobbing filled the noises of their ears. It was chaos all around after the surprise attack.
The sight disheartened the five young people while Haera and Veron remained calm. Inside their hearts, however, they were grieving for this unfortunate loss and hoped that it would not happen again.
"Big brother Jinmu, are those people… really dead?", Emi asked.
She wasn't unfamiliar with dead bodies but the feeling was different when the lives of humans and demi-humans were at risk.
"Yes, they are, Emi. And there's nothing we can do to bring them back.", Jinmu wasn't going to get used to it any time soon, "However, we must not falter and continue to protect those who are still living. Else, they'll end up just like them."
His words grabbed Emi's consciousness back to the day when she discovered the barren wasteland that was once her village.
'I must not falter and continue to protect, huh?', she was lost deep in her mind.
A gritting sound came from Olivia. She was gripping her fists tightly, guilty of the fact that she could not help those who were already dead.
She was about to drown in exasperation when a familiar voice entered her ears.
"Can the people outside that carriage go out and meet us? I can sense a powerful magical aura inside. I would like to know which grandmaster or archmage I am serving today."
Olivia's eyes were full of shock, 'This is father's voice! This is his!'
Hearing it after 3 months made her emotional. She thought that she would not see him again.
The emotions filled her up, barging out of the carriage and running to the front. She shouted brokenly.
"Father! It's me, Olivia!"
The commotion brought the attention of everyone nearby at the caravan and High King Garron's escort.
"That voice, isn't that the little princess?"
"She has returned? But why is she inside that merchant caravan just now?"
"Look! It's truly Princess Olivia!"
The crowd gasped after realizing the cause of the ruckus. Their royal princess has returned alive and well, something they didn't expect from someone who was missing for over 3 months.
"Hush, High King Garron is over there.", reprimanded one of the high-ranking warriors.
All of them immediately shut their mouths.
"Father, it's me!", Olivia shouted again.
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