Through the second courtyard, there seemed to be a higher number of lions. Raikou entered what seemed to be the great hall of the castle.
A lion, even bigger than Shcar, was seated upon a huge throne. His majestic appearance was betrayed by the sorrowful expression in his eyes. Many lions were walking around and talking in hushed voices to each other.
"Did you hear? The king's illegitimate child has disappeared. He has searched for days and sent out people to investigate, to no avail." Raikou overheard some people talking.
It was clear to him that the person in question being discussed, was Shimba. The situation was somewhat complicated, as he could see the joy in everyone's faces from the news. Only the king himself seemed to be sad, and even the woman stood next to him, who was probably the queen, was also attempting to hide a joyful expression from her husband.
Name: Mufasha
Species: Sublimis Leo
Cultivation: Rank 6 9th Level
Name: Sharabi
Species: Ornate Leonis
Cultivation: Rank 6 7th Level
Sharabi, the queen, must've been one of the people involved in disposing of Shimba. Mufasha was giving off an energy slightly stronger than Maria. He wasn't an ordinary peak saint, which made Raikou think about who would conspire against him. Only someone of similar power would be audacious enough to do such a thing.
Raikou leapt into Mufasha's lap and waited.
Hours passed by before the lions decided to disperse. Raikou was amazed by how long these people could gossip for. It was a wonder how they stayed at the peak of the kingdom.
Mufasha was the only one left in the great hall and was welling in his own sorrow. Raikou made sure that they were alone before he slowly returned to his original form.
"Who...?" Mufasha leapt up and shouted before Raikou clasped his hand over his mouth to silence him.
"Wait! Don't fight back." Raikou whispered. "I have news about a little liger cub."
Upon hearing these words, Mufasha's body stiffened. He cancelled his attack and slumped back into his throne.
"Continue." Raikou could hear the desperation in his voice that he tried to conceal.
"I was travelling to the Ferus continent with my companions when we saw a small beast being dropped out of the sky." Raikou explained. "My friend flew over to catch the beast, but was unable to get a glimpse of the other party involved. The liger cub was on his last breath when I healed him."
Mufasha let out a sigh of relief. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" He still remained vigilant, although he was hoping for Raikou's words to be true.
"He conversed with my elf friend. His name is Shimba, is it not? I snuck into this castle looking for his parents, when I saw your expression, I knew you're proban."
Mufasha trusted Raikou more once he heard this. As a leader of a great kingdom, he was able to tell when someone was sincere, or atleast he believed as such.
"I want to see him. Make sure he is not seen, as I don't know who is conspiring against me." He had enough sense to not declare his son's return immediately.
"On my way into the castle, there was someone I saw that gave me a bad feeling." Raikou said. "A lion bigger than everyone here, but you."
"You mean Shcar." Mufasha's face darkened. "He's my younger brother. A lion filled with jealousy, due to not being the one to inherit the throne."
Raikou could sense the tension the two brothers had between them.
"I have a feeling I know who is behind this, but it is only speculation at this time." Raikou was reluctant to say, as Mufasha may not believe him, which would make Shimba's return more difficult.
"I know which two people you have in mind, but there is nothing I can do against them. Shcar is only slightly weaker than me and my wife has the protection of her father." Mufasha explained. "Even amongst saints, there are two stronger than me. My uncle and my father in law. My uncle is in seclusion, attempting to break through to transcendence, so my father in law is the strongest of those active."
Raikou was confused. "Don't you have transcendents protecting your kingdom?"
"They will never interfere in the matters of the kingdom, unless it was in grave danger." He sighed.
Hearing those words made Raikou grin. If the transcendents wouldn't interfere, this wouldn't be difficult whatsoever.
"Listen to me. I will be bringing Shimba straight into this castle. There's no need for the cloak and dagger routine." Mufasha was about to speak, but Raikou interrupted. "Just trust me. I have my means to solve this." He winked at the lion king (A/N: Come on, I had to.) and transformed back into the miniscule parasite.
Mufasha didn't know why, but the boy instilled hope into him. He decided to trust him and see what happens.
(A/N: I need you all to do something for me. Play the 'Circle of life' while reading the next chapter, which I will post tomorrow.)