The group trekked for over three hours before they reached a hill. Vince was quite exhausted carrying Prince Aiji all the way. The prince insisted many times to walk on his own but Vince didn't put him down. Though he felt tired, the prince was injured by him so he should take responsibility. And besides, he also liked the feeling of carrying the prince on his back.
"We are here!" Beni said cheerfully. "At the top of the hill is a hut, you will be safe there. This place is hidden by the massive mountains at the north and west. To the south is my tribe and to the east is the sea, but the seashore is still far away so you don't have to worry, your hut is not visible at the shore." Beni stated.
"We are near the sea?!" The prince exclaimed.
"Yes, our tribe is situated near the sea. Tomorrow, you can watch the sea from the hilltop." Beni said to the excited prince.
"Dari, we have reached the sea!" The excited prince whispered to Vince.
"Yes, we did! Now you can watch how beautiful the sea is." Vince happily responded.
"Aren't you excited too? We've been dreaming about this for a long time!"
"Of course I am." Vince answered cheerfully. He understood Prince Aiji's excitement. The modern him even yearns to reach the sea, how much more the prince who didn't even see an image of it before.
"Hehe... Let's go up then. For sure you will like it there." Beni suggested.
"Dari put me down. It's just a short distance. I will be fine." Prince Aiji insisted. Vince finally put him down, but still held his hand on their way up. Beni led the way with a torch while the soldiers remained at the foot.
In less than half an hour, they reached the top. Vince felt the cool sea breeze. Beni lit a pile of woods, the flame slowly illuminated a hut in front of them. It was finely made and seemed to be newly built.
"Come inside." Beni politely invited as he stepped inside and lit a stone hearth filled with firewood.
Vince and Prince Aiji followed. It's quite spacious inside. They settled themselves near the fire.
"Let's have some food. I had someone prepare this earlier, but it's getting cold. We will just reheat this." Beni said as he took two roasted whole chicken, five huge roasted milkfish, and some boiled root crops.
"Thank you, Beni. You even prepared this much."
"Don't mention it." Beni told Vince.
"Tomorrow we can hunt, we will treat you to a meal." Prince Aiji said.
"No need, I will bring your food every day so you don't have to hunt. We have good fishermen and hunters so you don't have to worry about food."
"But I think that it's too much for us to take." Prince Aiji replied.
"Prince Aiji, you don't have to feel that way. Our family owed Dari's father a lot, so I hope you will accept our kindness so that we can finally feel at ease now. We've been carrying the debt for a long time. My late father was greatly devastated hearing the news of the great king's demise. He was very regretful that he had no chance to repay, so I hope you will feel at ease and take our kindness without hesitation."
"Beni, thank you so much. But I think you should free yourself from that debt now. For sure my father didn't expect anything in return while helping your father before." Vince told Beni. He didn't exactly know Dari's father, but hearing the elder's tale, he assumed that King Danli was a man of great character.
"I know, but I still want to repay now that I have a chance to, so I want you to accept my assistance without reservations." Beni answered.
Beni was sincere, so Vince accepted his offer. "Very well then, if it will put your heart at ease, we will be relying on you from now on. The truth is, we are helpless now and we need your help. We want to get off this island."
"I am very much willing to help you, but going out of the island now is not yet safe. King Anok's influence has reached beyond our island. I got information from some traders that King Anok offered a huge bounty to the tribe kings in the neighboring islands to capture you. Staying here, for now, is much safer." Beni stated, though he looked easygoing and unreliable at times, his words are quite realistic and convincing.
"Then we have to trouble you from now on. Please help us." Vince pleaded.
"Ah! Prince Dari, you don't have to plead." Beni exclaimed. "Hehe... It's my pleasure to help you."
"Just call me Dari, I'm not used to being called prince anymore."
"Ah, okay... Hehe." Beni nodded.
"Beni, can you help us? We are worried about what happened to the elder Mino. We also left our little animals with them." Prince Aiji asked.
"Don't worry Prince Aiji. When we took you both earlier we left two men to replace you, so elder Mino is surely safe now. I told my men to tell the elder that I am the one who took you. We know each other since we are both traders. Elder Mino will surely come here, but I told my men to tell the elder to wait for a few weeks when everything is calmer. We have to be cautious since our enemy is very capable."
"Thank you very much." The prince replied.
"Ah, you have been thanking me many times. In the future you don't have to thank me always, I'm doing this not only for you but for me too! I mean... I want to repay... so that I'll be completely at ease." Beni explained. When he's serious, he looks reliable, but when he's not, he looks silly.
Vince smiled looking at him while Prince Aiji just stared at him curiously.
"Let's take a bite now! We have been running for a few hours. I am starving, my stomach is scratching. Hehe." Beni laughed while handing them food.
Vince and Prince Aiji accepted the food and started eating.
"Beni, what is your tribe's name?" Vince asked.
"Our tribe is called the Silang tribe." Beni cheerfully said while munching a chicken leg. Vince stared at him and thought that Beni's appetite is really good since he finished a huge chicken leg in just a few bites. But he also thought that perhaps he was starving since they were on the run for hours.
"I've never heard of Silang tribe before." Prince Aiji replied.
"It's because our tribe is just a small tribe in this remote corner of the island. It was founded over seventy years ago, so it's not famous yet." He answered while picking a huge roasted fish.
"Uh, your tribe king must be a good man." Vince asked.
"Yes, he is. He also has a good son!" He answered enthusiastically while devouring the fish.
"He surely has a good son since he is a good man. This fish is huge. Your sea is abundant." Vince praised looking at the huge milkfish that Beni was eating.
"Oh, this one. It's called bony fish. Some people in our tribe didn't like this fish because it's filled with bones, but I like the taste of it, especially its belly. Have some." Beni happily offered.
"So you call it bony fish. The name is quite reasonable." Vince smiled while picking a roasted milkfish. He took a piece in the belly and removed the bones.
"Prince Aiji, eat this. It's delicious." He said while extending his hand to feed Prince Aiji. The prince hesitated for a while but finally opened his mouth later. Beni was observing intently, he even paused his munching mouth for a while. His eyes showed some amusement and jealousy.
"How was it? Isn't it delicious? Vince curiously asked.
"It is delicious!" Prince Aiji replied. He's used to eating river fishes so he immediately tasted the difference.
"Here, have some more." Vince gladly picked another piece and removed all the bones.
"Hey, Dari! You didn't take a bite yet. How can you say it's delicious? Have you eaten this kind of fish before?" Beni intriguingly inquired.
"You told us earlier!" Vince said without looking at him.
"You just believe my words. You should taste it before giving it to Prince Aiji. What if I lied then." Beni added.
"I trust you!" Vince mindlessly answered. He is of course very familiar with this fish. One of his favorite dishes is grilled milkfish stuffed with lots of chili pepper and various spices. The modern Filipinos call it bangus. It's a popular fish in the modern-day.
Beni finally stopped asking. He distracted the affectionate couple in his front intentionally, but he failed.
"Fine!" He answered. But he can't help his gaze at this shameless couple displaying affection in front. Prince Aiji sensed him and told Vince to stop, but Vince just ignored Beni and busied himself picking bones. He then fondly fed the boneless piece to Prince Aiji.
"Fine, just go on!" Beni rolled his eyes, but Vince just gave him a jesting smile.
"But you can't do this in front of others!" Beni reminded. He resumed eating and devoured the food even faster.
"Yes, thank you for your reminder." Vince replied sincerely. He didn't bother hiding his affection. He guessed that Beni already knew everything about them, including their romantic relationship.
After half an hour, their long and intriguing meal ended. There was no food left since Beni ate everything. He was leaning on the wall, scratching his bulging belly. Vince wondered how this man maintained his thin figure with his huge appetite.
"I will leave now, take your rest. Tomorrow I will send your meal." Beni said.
"Beni, thank you for helping us!" Prince Aiji sincerely thanked him.
"You're welcome Prince Aiji." Beni finally accepted Prince Aiji's gratitude.
Vince tugged Prince Aiji inside to rest. Beni had prepared a good mat for them and two large cotton blankets.
Vince put a blanket above the mat to soften their bed. He then carried and laid Prince Aiji down. He has his burning desire to make love, but he was holding himself. The prince was still injured. All he could do was kiss and embrace his prince.
Beni was walking downhill, babbling. He was still irritated by Vince's unreserved display of affection.
"Dari, you are such a shameless man!" Beni murmured.
"Who is shameless!" A young, handsome man, around Beni's age, stood in his way.
"That Dari, he was too bold to display his love to Prince Aiji in front of me! Isn't he shameless? He is the opposite of his father! He is extremely inconsiderate! How can they do that freely, while me... and...
"Stop it!" The young man ordered.
Beni's shoulders drooped.
"Fine."
"Make sure they are safe and fine. Provide them everything they need."
"I will..."