Duo

"WHAT?!"

A roughed voice of a man in his sixties resounded in the room.

"L-lord Clepher found dead at one of the taverns on Kunid Kingdoms, Your Grace..."

"Haaa... What madness is this? Where's the report come from?!" The man slumped on his chair after he heard it.

"A-at the capital..."

"Prepare my carriage! I will go personally to the capital and confirm it!"

***

It's been 11 weeks since the report about the death of Clepher Raspe finally reached the capital of the Zagon Empire and the Duchy of Raspe.

And now, a grand carriage towed by four brown horses entered the proximity of Maxim. The coat of arms, a shield, could be seen fluttering through the winds showing its greatness. Accompanying the carriage were a group of soldiers clad in full body armor, ready to strike and act if they saw an attempt towards the person riding in the carriage.

When the guards on the walls saw the coming carriage and the coat of arms, they immediately acted and relayed a report to the palace regarding the upcoming carriage. The guards on the ground didn't waste any time and quickly waived all the persons that lined up at the entrance wishing to enter. Then they opened the metal gate so that the group could easily enter without delay.

When the group finally reached the entrance of Maxim, all the guards stopped and saluted the carriage. This coat of arms was from the Duchy of Raspe. Meaning to say, whoever is inside the carriage is part of the Raspe Family. It didn't take long before they reached the castle.

Nepotia, the Imperial Adviser, was waiting outside the castle to welcome their guest.

"It's my pleasure to meet you again, Duke Cleph... How many years since then?"

"Tch! Cut the chase, Nepotia! Lead me where Venantius is!" The man in regal attire said after he came out of the carriage.

Nepotia didn't pay attention to the rude response of the Duke but instead led the way to the throne hall.

"Certainly... Please follow me, Your Grace..."

***

"Is what the report said true?!" The voice of Duke Cleph resounded on the throne hall.

'I knew this would happen, but I didn't expect it now.' Venantius thought before replying.

"Sighed... Yes, what was written on the report was right. 11 weeks ago, the dead body of your son, Clepher Raspe, along with his guards and slaves found in the tavern in the vassal Kingdom of the Empire, Kunid Kingdom.

Furthermore, King Umanata said in the report that he didn't know that your son was in his territory. And according to the investigation they made, your son intentionally didn't notify the Umanata Royal Family of his presence in their Kingdom."

"Did the criminal caught?" Duke said while restraining himself not to lash out at the angrier.

"No... The criminal who killed your son was still at large..."

Venantius couldn't finish when Duke Cleph turned his back and walked to exit the hall, but he stopped when he heard Venantius speak in a serious tone.

"Don't do anything reckless. We are about to strike the Demons, and I won't delay nor halt the Alliance Confederation Army because of you, Duke Cleph... And wait for my orders and goes back to your territory... This is an order...

I will order some of my trusted men to investigate the murder case of your son...

Lastly, my family and your family had a long history with each other, and I know what you feel at this moment because I also lost my father. So I won't punish you because of your rude and insolent attitude, Duke Cleph...

This will be the first and the last that you act like that towards me, the Emperor of Zagon Empire, your Emperor. The moment you acted like that again, I wouldn't think twice and ordered to behead you.

Nepotia, please lead Duke Cleph to where the butler of his son is located... First and foremost, the butler was the first to arrive and relay the information regarding the death of your son..."

Nepotia bows his head and leads the Duke towards the cell where the butler is located. And Venantius was left alone in the throne hall.

"Who the hell wanted to disrupt my plans? My worst nightmare? Hah! I will surely capture who the fuck are you and beheaded you myself for attempting to disrupt my plans..." Venantius said while clenching his two fists.

***

Guraaaaaa...

The last yelp of an Intermediate Rank, Black Bear, when Reh ended its life.

"This will be tenth..." Reh said before he jumped away towards the dead body of Black Bear, and after a few seconds, the body vanished, and a white crystal dropped.

Before he picked up the white crystal, he looked behind him... To Zelarya, to be precise...

It's been 11 weeks--2 months since Reh killed Clepher Raspe. And after he did that, he immediately retreated to his room, woke Zelarya up, and left the Kunid Kingdom before the Kingdom lockdown itself in the search for the culprit. They were now on their way to the Mar Kingdom, North of Kunid Kingdom.

As Reh murdered the heir of the Duchy of Raspe, his plans to gather and collect information regarding the movements and what happened in the Empire and the Heroes in the past three years till now but it prevailed currently on halted until they reached the capital of Mar Kingdom, Daw.

And on their entire journey, Zelarya didn't even utter a single word since she pleads to Reh to help her on her revenge on her Aunt.

Reh would have thought Zelarya was mute if he hadn't heard her sweet and gentle voice before. Reh doesn't have a problem with her attitude as long as she answers his questions. But it is in the form of nodding and shaking her head.

'Sighed... Somewhat, I feel like we're couples, and I made a mistake. Now she uses a silent treatment to show she's mad at me... Sighed...' Reh thought internally.

Reh picked up the crystal and walked towards Zelarya.

"I think we should rest here and eat our fill. We cleared all the monsters in this area, so I think it is safe to set up our camp here."