A cart was waiting outside of the castle for the Duke and the duchess. They sat inside the cart, decorated with different adornments, and started moving towards the coast.
"His thinking method is still far different from us, Julius. I am quite worried." Sylvia said.
"Isn't it good? Unlike most people, he has an open-minded, unique view of the world." Julius said.
"Still, there's a limit to that too. It might also be because he supported the devil in that circumstance."
"Your thinking is excessive. It was a simple question that can come to anyone's mind. There's no need to worry about it."
Suddenly, Julius drew close to Sylvie. He whispered, "And we removed his horns too," in her ears.
"Yeah, I remember."
-FLASHBACK:-
"One more thing to do, ma!" Sylvie said as she looked at Shun.
"What is it, my lady?"
"What are we to do about the symbol on his shoulder and the horn on his head? Keeping it secret for much longer will be impossible and will become a problem if someone figures it out." Sylvie said.
"Yes, I am also confused. Do you have any idea, ma?" Julius asked.
I have a way, but I don't know if you will allow it since it's somewhat hazardous. The doctor said.
"Someone finding him with this horn would be much more dangerous. Tell me, ma." Julius asked.
"Remove the horn from his head. Since I can't conceal it with magic, I can't think of anything else." The doctor said.
"What are you talking about? It was only moments ago he was born, and now you think he is ready to endure all the pain." Sylvie asked.
"We are fortunate that he is still too young. There won't be any problems removing it from his body since the bones are still sensitive. And I will heal it at the same time so he doesn't feel any pain simultaneously." The doctor said.
"Hmm, I am still worried." Sylvie said.
"If he doesn't feel pain, then maybe we can try it since what ma said makes sense." Julius said.
"It's okay. Just make sure it's safe. He shouldn't feel any pain, understand?" Sylvie said.
"I already told you he is my child, too. He will not be exposed to danger." Julius said and directed the doctor to prepare the equipment.
The doctor took out a plier from the suitcase and coated it with some of her healing power.
"With this, even if there's any pain, it will heal before he even feels it. Let's start, my Lord." The doctor said.
"Y-Yes, ma." As Julius gripped onto the newborn's left shoulder, tightly but carefully, he said, "I am sorry" to Shun.
While Sylvie assisted Shun in relaxing, she placed his head on her hands and ran her hands across the top of his head.
The doctor touched around the small horn and pasted some healing herbs there.
"This is a healing herb named Thea. I will make sure that he doesn't feel any pain. We are starting, my Lord, be careful." The doctor said as she grabbed the little bulging-out horn with the help of a plier.
"Uwaaaaaaaaaahh... uuuwwwuwuu… aaaaannn… Uwaaaaaaahhh." While all herbs were in effect and the plier they had coated with a healing spell, the child continued to scream.
"What is going on, ma? Why is Shun screaming out like this?" Sylvie shouted.
"I don't know, my lady. My efforts are all I can muster, and we cannot back out now because I detached the horn in part." The doctor said.
"Ma!" Julius said as he looked at Shun.
As soon as possible, pull out the horn since I don't want him screaming like this. It is heavy for my heart. Remember to heal as you remove it."
"Okay, I understand." The doctor said and gripped the horn with the plier. With all her strength, she pulled the horn from his forehead.
"Uwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaa… AAAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH… DON'T YOU DARE!!" Suddenly the loudly screaming Shun's voice became more heavy and ominous. His body emitted a bright blast of violet light that covered the entire room.
"What is going on?" Julius said.
"Dear, my child! Something's happening to him. Do something." Sylvie shouted while crying.
After a while, the light faded, and everything became calm. Unconsciously, Shun was lying on Sylvie's lap.
"He is just asleep, thank god." Sylvie said, checking his breathing.
"(*sigh) We did it, I guess." Julius said.
"But what did that voice and this light mean? It was really terrorizing, to be honest." Julius asked.
"I don't care about all that. He is fine, and that's the best-case scenario. Even his forehead is completely healed with no sign of the horn." Sylvia said.
"Yeah, it's good but mysterious." Julius said as he looked at the shoulder of Shun.
"The symbol has disappeared? How did that happen?" Sylvie asked, surprised.
"Maybe this horn is the reason, but it may not be." Julius said as he showed the little, yet ominous, horn to Sylvia. As they discussed different aspects of it, the horn suddenly started releasing steam.
"What is happening to this thing?" Sylvie said.
As the amount of steam releasing increased, it surrounded the area around the horn, and by the time the smoke cleared; the horn had withered away.
"Maybe, we will be able to live a proper life after all." Julius said.
"Likewise, I wish for it as well." Sylvia said.
-FLASHBACK END-
"You are right. I am the one overthinking here." Sylvia said.
"Yeah, it's alright. It's always better to be cautious." Julius said.
After a few minutes, the cart stopped, and the driver opened the gate to inform the couple.
"We are here, my Lord." He said.
After Julius, Sylvie climbed down from the cart.
In their path to meet that individual, they encountered something more spectacular as they approached the drinking bar.
Since Efferva lied between two cliffs, there were only two ways to enter the little kingdom. The first thing is to be brave enough to scale the cliff and arrive there safely, followed by sailing through the ocean and reaching the destination.
A large part of Efferva's business was through the seas. So they always had ships docked in their ports. Out of all the ships, the one that caught their eye was something surpassing magnificent.
What lied before them was a giant ship, with a gleam as bright as the sun itself. Her prow was gilded and shaped like the head of a dragon with its mouth wide-open in a snarl. She had only two masts and one large square sail which was a pristine white. The sides of the ship or what you could see of them had cream-colored bones forming the shape of dragon's wings curving around the ship like a pair of callous hands, where the bones did not cover the ship's glorious gold body shone through.
Those specifications made the ship look magnificent, but what made her even more impressive was the flag that flew above her. In the center of the flag was a deep red circle with two bones engulfed in a flame-like fashion set behind it. It looked more like an eyeball, with two rings in it separating the hue between the two variants.
Their astonishment was heightened by its powerful presence as if a dragon were there itself.