Chapter 311

A few days later, early morning,

Zoe shouted in surprise at the news that she had just received, "Daryl was hurt?!"

The news that she had just overheard Prince Chase receiving from a messenger had startled her stiff. She could not move an inch from where she stood. A tight feeling in her chest felt as if it was suffocating her. The question she wanted to ask came out nearly as a shout, "Is Daryl okay?!"

Prince Chase, Princess Isis, and Priestess Mai were all gathered around as well. The priestess had been taking a walk with her until they bumped into Prince Chase and Princess Isis receiving news on the battle against Brolan Kingdom. When she overheard word that Daryl had been wounded it became impossible for her to hold back.

Zoe's sudden outburst was unexpected for everyone. They had never seen the demi cat girl so talkative. She often kept to herself and remained quiet. It was the first time anyone had seen her raise her own voice over something. Clearly the thought of Daryl being wounded in battle had upset her.

"He is recovering," Prince Chase was the one quickest to recover from the sudden surprise, answering Zoe as he waved the messenger away and read the letter sent by Daryl himself, "It seems that Bredret has caught one of their captains. A Captain Cory from the Dwarven Riders."

"I do not care about that! I want to know how Daryl-!" Zoe was upset and had to be pulled aside by Priestess Mai herself.

Priestess Mai glanced over at the confused Prince Chase before saying to Zoe, "We will excuse ourselves."

"Mai?" Zoe called out for the priestess to explain why they had to leave.

The priestess gently pulled Zoe along with her in order to leave before she interrupted them further. She wanted to help her calm down. Pulling her along the two of them left the palace and walked outside. Some fresh air would probably help Zoe calm down. That was the thought that the priestess had considered while bringing her outside.

Turning to look at Zoe she asked carefully, "Have you calmed down any?"

"I should have gone with them." Zoe thought out loud.

"To the battlefield? Do you really think he would have wanted to take you to such a place?" Priestess Mai asked her honestly.

Zoe thought about it. No, Daryl would have never wanted to take her to battle. Even if her ability was useful for defense. He is not the sort to use people for his own benefit. Especially those he cares about. She new that about him very well.

Zoe sighed and shook her head, "I just wish things would get a bit better for everyone."

"I know. I wish for the same thing." Priestess Mai smiled kindly and hugged Zoe tight.

Over the time they had spent together the two of them had become close. The priestess had come to consider Zoe like a sister to her. She wanted the demi cat girl to be happy. It was also easy for her to tell how the girl really viewed Daryl.

"Should we resume practicing with your mana?" Priestess Mai offered to teach Zoe more about controlling her mana. It had surprised her how quickly Zoe could learn from her. She seemed to have a lot of talent in her light mana. Growing up the only thing Zoe had lacked was a teacher who could help her grow further.

Zoe considered learning to use her mana as a valuable way to spend her time, especially while Daryl was away at war with Brolan. It helped her mind remain more clear and calm. She could not refuse the offer from the priestess, "I could use the distraction right now."

Meanwhile at the eastern border of Theapan Kingdom,

Vorbuk and his group had traveled slowly for the past few days. Ever since that first stop they made for Sebastian's health to rest things had kept occurring to slow them down. Random beasts would attack them, Sebastian's health would strangely act up, and a few times the merchant carts would even detour and get turned around. It felt like something was acting against them in order to slow down their journey.

After making it to the border of Theapan Kingdom in the eastern region they made camp. Going any further they would need to be extra cautious. Settling down deep in the forest it would be difficult for others to find them. They kept fires and anything that made noise or light to a minimum. It would be trouble if they attracted the attention of a predator.

Clop! Clop! Clop!

The sound of horses approaching could be heard.

It was deep in the forest where average people did not wander. The sun was still high in the sky as the day was still early as well. Who would be so far out from any of the kingdoms nearby? Most commonly bandits, smugglers, or pirates. Each lived by their own code and each one was equally dangerous. They did not prepare for who they would really run into so far in between Drethia and Theapan.

One of the pirates under Captain Cory came rushing over to report to his captain, "Sir, knights have been spotted heading our way! What should we do now?"

"Did you see a sigil? Which kingdom do they come from?" Captain Cory demanded more details on who was coming their way.

Ashley sniffed the air and could tell from the scent of the approaching mortals that they were in fact, "Humans..."

That must mean they are from... Ashley thought to himself.

The pirate responded to his captain, "They are knights from Cadirade Kingdom!"

"They must be returning from Drethia Kingdom. If they made it there and back it means two things." Captain Cory sighed as he thought about it.

"What are the two things your talking about?" Prince Leo asked while the wolf listened from his side as well. Sebastian was relaxing inside the merchant cart alone while they were all walking around the camp.

"One, they are traveling home after dealing with someone inside of Drethia. Most likely it was something Curtis had ordered them to take care of." Captain Cory looked at the prince and answered, "Second, they would be traveling with someone of decent level to be able to go inside Drethia and come back out alive."

Prince Leo thought about it and wondered who Curtis would have sent to Drethia. There were not many people of high level loyal to Curtis enough to send on such missions. Drethia was not a kingdom that anyone from Cadirade would easily go to unless they were truly loyal to the person they were serving. That was because few were capable of returning from Drethia with their lives intact.

That was when he realized it. The one most suited for Curtis to wander the border between Theapan and Drethia. It would not matter if Curtis had that man's loyalty because he was protecting someone else. He would be easily able to move as he pleased.

"Was there an elf among them?" Prince Leo asked.

The pirate hesitated before responding, Prince Leo was not his captain, his response only came after glancing at Captain Cory to know if he should respond at all, "It was too difficult to notice a single elf among the humans there."

Was I suppose to look for pointy ears? Those are Cadirade knights! The pirate felt frustrated by the question.