Alex took the first opportunity he could and escaped to his bedroom without anyone noticing he left. As soon as he entered his room, he made a slight smile at the little girl form of Shinatobe that was seated on the edge of his bed. He approached her and sat at her side:
“So, here you are. I didn’t hear you behind my ear for quite some time, where were you?”
“I left when you were talking with that Rabbit-kind because of the ships. I went to tell Olive that everything was set, and to make sure Okami and Suijin finished their part. You saw them in the middle of that mess downstairs, right?”
Alex scratched his head while narrowing his eyes:
“I think I recall Okami kissing me. Or it was Anika? Everything is blurry, I guess I drank a little too much. The room is spinning, or it’s me?”
“They made a provisory harbour on that beach, and I waited for the Orcs to enter the ships. I returned and tried to tell you that everything was done, but you told me to shut up because you were singing. Okami and Suijin came after me to the Guild and joined the party those crazy Adventurers made for you. You don’t recall any of this, it seems.”
Alex thought for a while and he then spoke:
“I think I remember that. Talking about remembering…”
Alex went to his vest that he put on the floor as soon as he entered the room, and took from one interior pocket a small purse. He sat on the bed again and took out the bullets the Dark Mage shot at him:
“Do you know what this is?”
“Small beads made of metal?”
“This, my little Spirit of the Wind, are bullets that Dark Mage Leader shot at me, using a gun from Earth. I think the Dark Void he used to escape took him to Earth. I know someone that can try to check if the gun that was used to shoot these was used by a criminal somewhere and if there is a record of it. Who knows, maybe I can find out the whereabouts of that Dark Mage or one of his associates. It will be difficult, but maybe I get lucky.”
Shinatobe stared at the bullets and said:
“The implications… If he went to Earth, how many people there know about Azurath? How many Dark Mages are there?”
Alex put the bullets inside the purse again and rubbed his eyes with his knuckles:
“Beats me. Maybe he was the only one and those Mages with him were from Azurath, or they were all from Earth and there is a big group of them. Probably because of the Magical Orbs?”
Shinatobe slowly nodded:
“Yes, your father once told me that a Magical Orb could retain its Magic on Earth as if it was a… What was the word he used… Oh, battery, that’s it!”
“That’s dangerous! Magical Orbs on Earth could be used for all sort of things! Considering what the Dark Mages were doing around here, I bet they used the Orbs to do something criminal! I heard that Dark Mage Leader talking with the group that attacked us, and I also took a good look at his movements and body language. No matter what disguise he uses, if I hear his voice or if I see him moving, I will recognize him for sure.”
Alex yawned and stretched his arms. Shinatobe tilted her head when she saw him fighting to keep his eyelids open:
“Talking about criminal, I was thinking about doing something really criminous to you, but you don’t seem up for it.”
“Yeah, sorry. I feel my head heavy, and the room is spinning again. I think I am hearing things as well because I hear girls giggling and some moans.”
Shinatobe spoke as she gently pushed Alex and fixed the pillow for him:
“It’s Okami, Wenammy, Pearl and Anika in the next room. They are having a blast in there, it seems. They escaped that party sooner than you, and they were not in such a bad shape like you are, they looked just a little loose.”
Alex mumbled as he was slowly falling asleep with Shinatobe caressing his forehead:
“That’s nice… good for them…”
Shinatobe grunted:
“Stupid, instead of taking care of me, you drank too much. Maybe I will join them, and let you here all alone!”
“Yeah… have fun…”
Shinatobe bit her lower lip with her face all red in anger. When she heard Alex letting out a low snore, she made a slight smile:
“Stupid Alex, if you weren’t so cute, I would punch you right now.”
…
Morning came, and after a quick breakfast, James Macdonald was on his saddle ahead of the Party, signalling the others to follow him through the gates.
As soon as they were at a good distance from the City, James Macdonald pointed to the intersection ahead where a sign showed that they were at mere hours from the ‘City of Breiodalr’ through a road that went to the right along a vast prairie, and spoke to Alex that was next to him:
“I was informed yesterday that the King and his son are at their summer Palace in the ‘City of Breiodalr’. I sent a messenger there, telling the King that we wanted to see him. Even if his messenger didn’t arrive before we left Keldunes, at least he was warned.”
Alex wrinkled his nose with worry:
“Do you think that was wise? The messenger could be intercepted and there could be another group waiting for us.”
“Even if he was, the message only said that a Party of Adventurers wanted to see the King, without anything more. I am sure the Guild sent him our names when we applied for the Quest, so he knows what we will be delivering. Nevertheless, we must stay alert, maybe not only the King knows.”
Alex nodded and turned his horse around, and went to the carriage. Bethany Mathews asked while staring at his back leaving:
“He doesn’t look very happy, James. Maybe you weren’t careful enough with the messenger, considering what we faced so far.”
“Perhaps, but I warned the messenger to deliver the message to the King only, and you know very well how messengers do their work. He won’t tell anyone, and if he is intercepted, he will rather kill himself than let a criminal extract any information from him.”
Bethany Mathews had a gloomy look on her, and she silently hoped that James Macdonald was right because it would be stupid that near the end of their dangerous Quest, everything would fall apart.
As for Alex, he stopped his horse near the carriage and spoke while the Princess was wondering why they were stopped:
“Kagu, you need to be alert. We are going for the King’s summer Palace, and I am not sure what to expect.”
A tiny ball of light came from the Princess’s tiara, and the young blonde boy form of Kagu-tsuchi sat at the Princess’s left side, looking at Alex with a frown:
“That goes without saying. Even if I don’t like my new job, I won’t fail. I never did, for all these millennia. Princess, if by any chance something dangerous happens, I will tell you to put your palm facing forward, pretending to be using Magic, and I will take care of the shots.”
Princess Ebell pointed her open palm to the carriage wall in front of her and asked:
“Like this? I can’t use Magic, you know? No one will believe that I am able to… Oh, I see! It will be a surprise to any attacker! That’s a good idea.”
Kagu-tsuchi nodded before turning into a tiny ball of light again:
“Yes, even if everyone knows that you can’t use Magic, you could use the Magic in a Magical Orb. With me, you don’t need an Orb.”
As the tiny light went to the Princess’s tiara again, Alex made a slight smile:
“He may be stubborn and too proud for his own taste, but that was a good idea. Sit tight Miss Ebell, we won’t take long to arrive at the Palace if we make the horses ran.”
Alex looked at the back of the carriage and got a wave from a smiling Pearl Pearson that was next to Sarutahiko Okami. Anika was on the driver’s seat, and as she flicked the reins of the horses to make them walk, Alex went to his place in front of the carriage, next to Suijin that was riding his enormous bear. Suijin made a slight smile and said:
“We are almost at the end of our voyage, Alex. What do you intend to do after we finally deliver the Princess?”
“Travel to Earth again and stay there for a few days. I need a holiday from all this stress, and even with my work and studies there, life is way more peaceful and less dangerous than here. I want to follow a lead concerning those Dark Mages and the Consortium on Earth, but I will return and as usual, not a second would have gone since I left. I have to take care of the moving of Miss Aya Martin and the sweet Maryam, and after finding a caravan that is going to travel to Beliersia, I will probably hire Mister James and the others to escort them while I stay behind to look for leads about the Consortium. I will trust you and Okami to protect everyone, and I will be with Shinatobe.”
Suijin asked with a worried expression:
“Would that be wise? Only you and Shinatobe?”
“Well, I can now access your attribute without you near me, right? Unless Shinatobe lied to me about the Magical Attributes. Besides, I travelled a lot with only Shinatobe because Okami annoyed me so much that I didn’t want her near me very often.”
Suijin made a slight smile:
“Yes, but it seems she found her place in your heart. It took a while! I guess you are more or less right, but I don’t like to leave you behind. I will have to trust in your judgement, but promise me you will be careful, okay?”
“That, I can’t promise. I will need to make a big fuss or advertise where I am and to where I am going, to see if those Dark Mages come after me.”
Suijin went silent for a few seconds, and he then said:
“We sent your message to every Spirit in the World about the Dark Mages. They are all patrolling, searching for Magical Voids, and making sure they are natural instead of summoned by those Mages. Any Mage in the vicinities of a Magical Void will be captured and interrogated. If he is dressed with a dark Mage’s robe and resists arrest, he will be killed on the spot. Several Mage Summoners won’t be happy by seeing their Spirits leaving their side for a while, but our words are absolute for Spirits, and it even surpasses a contract. If a Mage Summoner orders his Spirit to stay with him, he may be facing a very angry Spirit. Or one of us.”
“I didn’t know you could do that. I thought a contract was a very powerful Magical bond between a Spirit and a Mage Summoner.”
Suijin shrugged:
“It is, but we are not the Great Four for nothing. We have a very serious duty in this World, and if Magical Voids are created by Mages instead of randomly appearing like we thought, for sure it falls under our jurisdiction, and we must take care of it.”
Alex went silent, thinking on Suijin’s words. He was aware of the duty his four Spirits had, but he didn’t know they could even overrule a contract, and that would be handy on dealing with stubborn Mage Summoners or Spirits, making a huge advantage against the Consortium. With every Spirit in Azurath aware of the return of the Dark Mages, it wouldn’t take long for some Dark Mages to be captured, relieving Alex’s worries.