"My mother possessed a divine blessing…?"
Athos was baffled when he learned of his mother's identity, he only knew that his mother was of noble blood as his mentors nor his parents never fully disclosed her origins as well as the full nature of the blessing she bestowed onto him.
"I never thought… mother would be an Ult…" Athos felt a little lightheaded, the information that Sagitta had given to him was shocking. He never thought that he would have the blood of the Ult run through him.
Sagitta's eyes reflected sorrow. "Before I got separated from their Majesties during the siege, your mother informed me about it."
"Then Sagitta, you mentioned something about a price… for the blessing?" Athos looked at Sagitta with a worried expression. "Did my mother say anything about it as well?"
"I'm afraid she did not elaborate about the compensation part, little prince. She just mentioned that if death comes unexpectedly, the blessing will protect you and a price must be paid by recollecting." Sagitta groaned.
"Even now, I still can't figure out why her majesty would mention something about a price and remembering." Sagitta scratched her head in frustration.
"Oh, by the way, little prince, your mother... entrusted me with something...." Sagitta then opened her spatial inventory, pulling out a small, silver pendant."She wanted you to have this." She then extended her hand out to Athos.
"This… is!" Athos's emerald eyes glinted.
Sagitta then placed the pendant on Athos' hand. "Your mother mentioned that should you visit her homeland… you will need this for safe passage."
It was a small pendant, it almost looked like a choker due to its length. The chain showed signs of wear but remained in good condition. Its links were intricately crafted from Mythril and a rose-cut, blue amber was attached to the bail.
Tears started to flow uncontrollably from Athos's eyes once more. He recognized the pendant that Sagitta had given to him, it was his mother's favorite pendant. The sight of it reminded him of fond memories with her. Athos gripped the pendant and held it on his chest and his soft whimpers resonated in the room.
Sagitta comforted the little prince as she gently stroked his back.
***
A platoon of heavily armed, dark-cloaked infantrymen were assembled at the northern outskirts of Parte. The 70 able-bodied men and women were preparing to march toward the hills at a slow but steady pace. At the front of the formation, a man riding on a black stallion while donning a green Seditio cloak helmed the troops. It was Irae Praeter and his lips were curved up forming a sinister grin.
"Brothers and Sisters!" Irae drew out his blackened rapier and garnered the attention of his men. "Today, we will hunt the fugitive Moirais that escaped The Great Judgement! We will be heading towards the old estate of the ruined Fidelis family! Leave no mercy to anyone who opposes our Brotherhood!"
Irae raised his weapon, pointing upwards to the sky. "March onwards brethren! Glory to the Seditio!"
"Glory to the Seditio!"
"Retribution for our brothers and sisters!"
"Death to the Moirais!"
The fervent cries echoed through the formation. And the officers were riled up, slowly their pace had quickened.
"If we take this route, how long will it take for us to arrive?" Irae spoke with one of his aides by his side.
"Big brother, it will take us about 45 minutes. Our scouts had been sent in advance to disable the Wards. it seems that someone had placed several of them in the outskirts of the old estate."
"Good, inform them to be careful, we are dealing with Moirais after all."
"Understood, Big Brother." The aid then went back into the formation and rallied the troops to match onwards.
'Omri Fidelis… Sagitta Cura and Prince Athos… I shall have your heads served on a silver platter tonight.' Irae cackled as he galloped uphill.
***
Omri, Athos, and Sagitta had just finished eating dinner. Due to time constraints, they only ate a simple pottage that was made out of smoked meat, roughly chopped potatoes, and fresh wild herbs that were foraged by Sagitta that morning. At first, Athos was apprehensive to eat a serving since it looked unappetizing, However, when he tasted a spoonful of it, he was surprised at how tasty it was. It never occurred to him that a simple peasant dish would taste as good as the cooking in the Palace.
"I'm happy that it suits your tastes, my prince." A radiant smile beamed from Omri's face. He felt proud of his cooking as he saw Athos finish two servings of pottage earlier.
"It reminds me of the soup that the palace cook would serve on cold days, it was really tasty." Athos held a feeble smile. His eyes were still swollen from crying earlier, and the soup Omri served helped him calm down.
"Well, your pottage is delicious as always Omri." Sagitta tidied up the used bowls and utensils and set it on a desk. She then cast a cleaning spell on the items and then handed it over to Omri who stowed them into a rucksack.
"By the way, little prince, do change into these clothes." Sagitta then took out a white long-sleeved shirt, a pair of black trousers, and leather boots from her inventory.
"Please change into those as we'll be departing for Sequi in fifteen minutes." Sagitta then checked the time on her pocket watch. It was now 7:45 PM. "We must leave as soon as possible, otherwise-"
Sagitta paused for a moment and gazed at the horizon outside the window. Her jade irises dilated and slowly turned golden.
"Mother, is something wrong?" Omri then tapped Sagitta's shoulder.
"...My Wards had been dispelled." She clicked her tongue and immediately picked up the bags that Omri had packed.
"Both of you, we need to leave now! There are a lot of people coming this way in thirty- no, it will take twenty minutes for them to reach this place." Sagitta then activated a haste enchantment on the three of them.
"Omri, I'll take some of the bags, you too, little prince, place them in your spatial inventory." Sagitta grabbed several of Omri's rucksacks and tossed them hastily inside her inventory. Athos followed suit and took the remaining items of baggage.
"We can't risk you straining yourself as well, little prince." Sagitta then turned her attention to Omri.
"Omri, please carry Athos for the meantime, we need to escape to the forest as soon as possible." Sagitta then activated a stealth barrier around them and activated an Illusion Ward around the manor.
"My prince, please bear with this again." Omri's face looked apologetic as he grabbed onto Athos' back and knees and lifted him up in his arms.
Athos felt a heavy tension in the air. Seeing Omri and Sagitta, suddenly rushing to leave made Athos feel anxious. It was like someone was chasing after them and both were caught off guard.
"The Illusion Ward should probably hold them for 5-10 minutes " Sagitta then gestured to Omri to follow her.
"Both of you, follow me."
~~~~~
To be Continued.
~~~~~