Shamiran and Aika had teleported Ryuu along with Lu Shun and his family to the hotel, where they had booked another family room for them.
Ryuu: "Well then Lu Shun I bid you goodbye as I believe it would do you good if you rest after that ordeal."
Lu Wu: "May I refer you as big brother Ryuu?"
Ryuu just shrugged his shoulders as he replied, "You may refer to me however you wish to."
Lu Wu asked her voice full of curiosity, "Big brother how did you spray the purple mist from your mouth and can you teach me how to do it", her young mind filled with images of defeating her enemies in battle with a simple breath.
Ryuu: "Well that is a technique I used it is good for spreading medicine or poison to multiple people at once as for teaching you have to learn to cultivate first, even then the skill is classified as 'Forbidden' because a slight mistake will cause it backfire spectacularly."
After a few minutes of talk he left the family by themselves, as he made his way to where his sisters were.
Antariskh smiled as she spoke to Ryuu, "I hope you have settled all you business with this city Ryuu we will be leaving tomorrow."
Ryuu nodded as he spoke, "I have big sister we can leave tomorrow."
Antariskh then extended a pouch towards him as she spoke, "This pouch has your earnings after the 'Golden Phoenix Pavilion' took their cut."
Ryuu just took the spirit stones he had earned as Antariskh continued speaking, "The Stone of unknown origin is actuall a container which has the essence of powerful dragon sealed inside it, unfortunately the stone is damaged as such we will be taking it back to Ayindril and we have to carefully salvage its contents."
Ryuu was wide eyed at the revelation as he asked, "Is that the reason I reacted to it so badly."
Antariskh, "Yes Ryuu, but due to the container being badly damaged we have to be careful while opening it, even then who knows in what condition the contents will be, essence tend to be highly volatile if kept unsealed and under less than ideal conditions for a long time."
Ryuu looked downtrodden at that but perked up immediately, "But sister I reacted to it so violently so there is a chance that it might have survived."
Antariskh, "There is something that I also agree is true, but we do not know how much degradation it went through and whose essence it is except it is some form of draconian being, as such we will investigate it thoroughly only when we are sure it will benefit you great will we give it to you brother, after all my little brother deserves the best there is.", she finished while ruffling Ryuu's hair gently.
Ryuu smiled at that he really was grateful to them, he was no one to them and the only relationship they shared is that he is their parents student nothing more nothing less yet they care for him so greatly he really is blessed.
Next day the Ryuu and his companions left the hotel before the separated into two groups, "Aika please escort them and make sure to come back quickly.", was the only thing said by Sylvana before Lu Shun and his family were teleported by Aika.
Meanwhile inside the governor's palace various things lay broken as tables and chairs were flipped and a couple of broken body lay on their blood, "Useless the lot of them are useless, if they had fought and given their lives it would have been much better but to be defeated because of laxatives, ugh I want to go wring their necks, first Yang Chao And Dugu Chen then Kong Uwa and Lu Sak and almost all their people why do I have to have so much moronic people and from where did those devils pop up from, aghhhhhhhhhhh", he screamed in anger as the shameful defeat of Lu clan and the finest of Kong Clan spread throughout the city, and him being their leader under whom those clan sought refuge had also tarnished his honor when his subordinates suffered such shameful defeat normally he would have gone after the person have their head on a pike but unfortunately for him he was too strong for them and the best he could do is throw tantrums inside his own house.
Few days passed since the visit to such a big city as Hayakawa and now a couple of days left before the returned back to Ayindril and Ryuu was giddy not because he would return back to Ayindril but because they would be passing by Tardide again he would meet his friends he was so happy then he blushed as he thought about Narcisa kissing him, it had given him some rather embarrassing dreams about her as such he came to conclusion 'puberty sucks', the thought of holding her hands made him to steam literally from his ears, he had discreetly gotten one of the maids to buy a hair pin for Narcisa without letting his elder sisters know, he does not need their teasing anymore than necessary.
Next day near noon the reached near Tardide, Ryuu happily stepped out of the mansion which was morphed into the shape of a carriage only to freeze at the sight, what stood in front of him was a picture perfect example of a ghost town the houses were burned as were the crops which he loved to pass by watching them lazily sway under the cool village wind, he raced into the village as the maids tried to stop him by calling out his name as he reached the village center the big banyan tree as he reached there he fell on his knees the banyan had corpses of various people who were nailed on it with the help of arrows, Ryuu looked at those corpses with tear in his eyes he could recognize any of them Xavier, Antonio, Arpaesis, Shamsir and many he could see their smiling faces he could hear their laughter he could still feel them, he could still smell them he could not believe the people who he got closed to were gone.
"You….", a voice suddenly came to his ears Ryuu turned around to see a grotesque looking human half of his face seemed to have melted awe his entire body had various wounds littered on them which had maggots poking out off, both of his legs seemed to be oddly misshapen scaring Ryuu but upon closer inspection he recognized him as someone from town militia.
"You how dare you show your face if you hadn't interfered they would n't have to come back for revenge you killed them all." The man shouted towards Ryuu.
Ryuu was startled at that he fearfully spoke, "What are talking about you make no sense."
The man suddenly laughed loud spoke in a creepy sing song tone, "No sense no sense he says no sense, I call it nonsense, you killed us all why why did you have to play the hero, we could have paid them they would have left us untouched now because of you we are all dead it's your fault, hahahahaha", the man rambled on and on until Ryuu's sisters arrived on the scene.
They saw a near catatonic Ryuu sitting on the ground as he looked fearfully at the near crazy person as such Antariskh ordered, "Chase that dirty mongrel from my brother.", as such as the maids flared there power and stood defensively in front of Ryuu the man just laughed uproariously as he pointed his fingers towards them, one of maids spoke in a commanding tone, "Scram from here if you do not want to die."
The man laughed at the maid as he spoke, "You kill me no one can kill me I am invincible, hahahahahah", as he laughed he took a rusted sharp piece of metal slit his throat and died in front of Ryuu.
Shamiran quickly went and embraced Ryuu tightly from behind letting Ryuu rest his head on her bosom as she rested her chin on his head before speaking soothingly to Ryuu, "Baby Brother, what happened why are you looking so scared?"
Ryuu stuttered out, "Bi-Big S-si-sister th-that person he s-said the people of th-this v-vi-village all di-di-died because of me."
Biskha had been the Senior Maid for Ayindril a very long time she could happily say she was one of the most trusted maids not only that she was also seen as the Head Maid's replacement when the head maid retires. The first time she met Ryuu when he was just a 5 year old a clue less child, she was ordered by her second Holiness to take care of, since then she had seen him grow up his triumphs and failures his insecurities she knew them all after she had been taking care of him and later on his mother until her death every now and then as such she knew how much he wanted to be a hero like those fairytales his mother told him one day to be a selfless hero who protects and saves all she laughed inwardly at the naïve fantasy of child a selfless hero in their world if a hero could not save even himself how could he even protect others, but it was what made Ryuu seemed cute and adorable someone she took a liking to greatly growing as far as to see him as pseudo-sibling.
She knew from the beginning the Royal Princesses had something she saw how the let Ryuu form bond with this worthless rabbles who were just dwarf lusting after the moon when they met Ryuu, she soon the scheme and manipulations his beloved sisters did to him, the raiders why did they arrive to a remote area such as Tardide, why did they come here where people are so dirt poor that they could not fulfill their needs properly yet the raiders came having heard of rumors of riches beyond imagination raised the village to the ground because of them when they saw Ryuu's attempt at scaring them as a challenge to their so called honor and might.
To many it looked as a beautiful scene as the older sibling consoling her youngest sibling with a motherly care as they looked at the scene of Ryuu being gently embraced by Shamiran but to Biskha's eyes it seemed as if a snake had coiled around Ryuu as it poured its venom on him as she uttered the word, "The man was right Ryuu it is all your fault."
Biskha knew she has no right to think herself as Ryuu's older sister after all she could not shelter his young naïve mind anymore after all she was more loyal to his sisters than him as such her feelings for him does not matter, as such like any loyal maid would do she watched from the sidelines as Ryuu for the first time awoke from the naïve innocent dream discarded his rose tinted glasses and cast a glance at the real world.