Vacations

Chapter 28: Vacations

"Your Majesty." He bowed and greeted to the king and the queen before taking out the coin from his pocket.

Lawrence and Aliza curiously looked at it. The king sensed the strong magical force within it, a similar force to that of the royal heirloom he had.

"Where did you find it?" Lawrence asked as he examined it in his hands.

"Someone else found it before me your majesty. That person traded it with me." Dexter replied.

Lawrence didn't expect someone would actually possess this artifact. On the other hand, Aliza panicked, thinking someone else was also trying to open the gate.

"It's the eldest prince of Vandrad. Prince Calhoun." Dexter answered the unasked question.

The king and the queen were surprised. Calhoun? He actually made it into snowblood mountains alive?

Dexter then narrated everything he saw there. "I think the prince is finally forming the connection with his beast."

Lawrence frowned. He suddenly found his beast after entering the snowblood mountains?

The king felt frustrated. This was the problem with unrecorded history. He can proudly say that he was knew history of each and every place in the realm. But that only the recorded history.

Actually Lawrence had developed another magical ability over years. The ability to see the past. He can actually check what transpired a few centuries ago. But he cannot go back more than a dozen centuries.

But these mountain peaks, and even mythiopia itself were a few millennials old. He had no way to know what beast was connected to the snowblood mountains.

"What did the prince ask for in return?" Lawrence asked. He can give him almost everything. He just hoped Calhoun would not have any silly ideas after Isabella returns just because he helped.

"Nothing actually. I promised that you would fulfill his one request, no matter what the price is in future." Dexter informed and immediately knelt down. Even though the king held him high regards, it doesn't mean he could go around talking on the king's behalf.

"Get up Dexter. I know you could judge the situation well. As long as it leads us to Isabella, I am willing to pay any price" Lawrence said with conviction. He was already very grateful for both Calhoun and Dexter.

"Lawrence. Let's see if we can open the gate now." Aliza urged. The discussion was interesting, but this can be done some other time too. Their daughter is the top priority.

Lawrence and Dexter nodded. Soon the three of them got to work. Lawrence and Dexter projected their magic into the coin, and Aliza started healing it whenever it got depleted.

It took all the three of quite some time before Lawrence and Dexter's magic didn't get attacked anymore. Aliza felt it too.

The king and Dexter could strongly feel the portal to another realm right there. But they also felt a strong, dark and malicious aura surrounding the gate.

Lawrence frowned. Did something else actually managed to sneak through the gate before them? It didn't seem like an aura from the magical realm. Who could have forcefully made there way through the gate? And why? Is it for his daughter?

Hushing the doubts aside, they tried to open the portal. It would crack every now and then but shut itself almost instantly.

They all tried their best for more than an hour before taking a break.

"A little effort from the other side, and we can pass it without any problem." Lawrence predicted.

Dexter nodded, and Aliza pursed her lips in distress. This meant her daughter will have to be in danger again for the coin to react.

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[London]

"Bro? Are you okay?" George asked Dylan. Max and Kyle too looked at Dylan. He looked like a fish thrown out of water. Sweating, panting and pale.

Dylan plopped down on the soft grass to take a breather and nodded. They just gave there final exam for the semester. But Dylan was hit by sudden chest pain during the last half an hour.

Dylan recalled having similar ache the first time he held the ring. He thought it was the ghost acting up again.

"Yeah... I am okay." Though he said that, there was still some lingering discomfort in his chest.

"Isabella said YES.." Neil came running and shouting towards them. Dylan frowned and sat straight.

"Guys... Isabella said yes to me. She said YES.. YES.. YES.." Neil jumped up and down in excitement.

The remaining four faces present there darkened hearing this. Said yes? Yes to what? Were they dating?

"I don't agree." Dylan declared. Yes. Yes he didn't agree. How can she say yes? No way. I wouldn't believe it.

"Heh? What's your problem if she says yes. Are you her father now?" Neil said defensively.

"We don't agree too." George, Max and Kyle also sang the same song. They didn't even have a chance to try yet. And this traitor already planned on hiding the cake?

"Guys. What's wrong with you all? Don't you want her to agree?" Neil asked, confused and bemused at their reactions.

"This is so unfair to Isabella" Max commented and George nodded.

"Exactly. She is a wonderful girl. She needs to see all the options she has before settling on someone." Kyle explained.

It took Neil a moment to understand what happened. Ah.. So they all thought he proposed and Isabella accepted. He smiled dreamily thinking about that dreamy day.

"You got it wrong. I invited her to join the trek with us. She said okay. Her friends would also join us." he clarified.

"Oohhhhhhh..." The boys dragged in understanding. Then it was fine.

"Okay guys. Before anyone proposes anyone, let's settle on one rule. We all are bros for life. We will not part away no matter who dates who. Okay?" Neil proposed. All of them were crushing on the same girl. So it was better to maintain a common ground.

All the boys nodded. Dylan nodded even more enthusiastically since he was 99.99% sure that Isabella would not date anyone except him.

"I am going to propose her during the trek." George planned.

"You all propose first. I will propose last." Max said slightly shy away. All his friends gave him a side eye.

What does that mean? Was he implying that Isabella was going to reject all of them and he would go last and propose her?

"What the hell guys? Are you all trying to scare her? No wonder you guys never got a girlfriend." Dylan half yelled and glared at them.

He will propose and then get into a relation with her. Simple and final.

"You are the real snake here. What if you do something and force Isabella to date you. We have to grab our chance before any of that happens" the boys all agreed on this.

Dylan grew up with her, studied with her, played with her, lives with her and practically knows everything about her. He was the silent killer in the group.

"I am a gentleman." Dylan gritted his teeth. How dare they think about him this way. He once rejected to kiss a girl because of a dare and accepted getting poured ice cold water on his head. And they still have this kind of notion about him?

"That is the problem. You are a man. A MAN. And one should never believe a MAN" Kyle emphasized as everyone packed there backs.

Vacations were officially on. And next week they all were going on a five day trekking trip. They were excited.

Dylan huffed. Fine. He would also take this chance and propose Isabella.

The past few days, he analyzed the patterns of the ghost attacking.

First time was when Isabella almost said she wanted to kiss him. Second time when she almost said she liked him.

There were many times when he flirted with her, but the ghost was all fine. It was only when Isabella wanted to confess did the ghost attack.

He concluded two things. Either the ghost has a sickening attention seeking disorder that it demanded from Isabella. Probably getting angry and jealous whenever she was with him. Or the ghost was actually obsessed with and hence attacked Isabella whenever she was about to confess.

Whatever it is. He had to make sure there is no shadow when he proposes this time.