Chapter 290

Vorbuk's whole body flinched when he heard the princess mention Grand Duke Heket being possibly involved in her palace being burned down. Why would he do something like this?

No, Duke Heket was from Drethia Kingdom. It was very likely that he was toying with Vorbuk and the others by wanting to work with them. In fact he had never trusted him from the start. That man was like a snake in the grass. He could not trust anything that came from him.

Within a matter of seconds he found a safe location to emerge from the shadows with the princess. The cool air hitting their faces as they emerged from the shadows of a nearby palace wall. Servants were startled by the sight of their king stepping forth from the shadows with Princess Isis in his arms. Both of them were covered in soot and filth from head to toe.

"His Majesty has escaped the fire with the princess! Someone summon the healers immediately!" A servant shouted loudly for the others to get help after seeing the state they both were in.

Vorbuk did not waste any time with the servant and quickly asked, "Has any of the others managed to make it over yet?"

"No, your majesty." The servant replied with a worried look in his eyes; as if his life depended on the response he'd given his king.

Vorbuk was about to reply when another voice suddenly called out to him from the side, it was Aoki coming to him, "Your Majesty!"

It felt strange to Vorbuk that the first one to show up to help was Aoki. The last one he expected to see show up to help would have been him. Though he was one of his slaves, Vorbuk did not force him to do things against his will. The only thing he forced Aoki to do was refrain from losing control of his blood lust.

Aoki usually took advantage of his loose leash on work duties to be as lazy about working for Vorbuk as possible. Except for working within the prison where he could be himself torturing criminals. Aoki did not necessarily act the type to show up and help unless there was a reason for him to get involved. If anything he was more of a gossip who liked to lurk in the background to listen to others talk when he was not blood crazed. The thing was...

Why was he the first one to show up to help? Vorbuk almost felt a bit suspicious at the sight of Aoki being the first one to show up at the princess's palace. Aoki was not even one of the main people he'd expected to see before the others. The servants surely would have ran for Leo, Ashley, or Daryl long before they'd search out Aoki. Perhaps he was lurking nearby?

"Are you alright, princess?" Aoki asked Princess Isis who was standing close by Vorbuk from behind. The filth on her and the fact that she felt weak still caused her to cling to him instinctively.

"Yes," Princess Isis replied to him without letting go of her grip on Vorbuk's clothes from behind, her hands still shaking from the fear of almost burning alive in her own palace, "I will be just fine."

Vorbuk could feel her fear from her shaky grasp on him, "Have you heard anything from the others?"

Aoki paused as he noticed the way that Vorbuk interjected his conversation with the princess, "No. I did not see any of them on my way here. I was with the young prince, Chase, when I noticed the flames and came this way."

"Where is he-?" Vorbuk was about to ask where Prince Chase was and if he was safe.

"I left him at the main palace when I came. He should be with Ashley right now. I assume that is why I do not see him here now?" Aoki was able to see the questions written all over Vorbuk's face.

The servant he would have preferred to see would have been Ashley. However the fact that Ashley was not present at the moment was obviously due to the fact he was commanded to remain with someone else. It did not take much for Aoki to know it would have been Chase since Vorbuk was with the princess himself.

Vorbuk was not only worried about Aoki being the first one to show up. That was not the first thing on his mind. The thing that bothered him most was the quest.

I was suppose to rescue the princess... but why is the quest still active? Vorbuk felt like something was not right the more he thought about it. Having already saved her from the fire the quest should have been completed.

What am I missing? Vorbuk pondered deeply to himself.

"We need to find out who did this. I will not let them slide on attempting to harm the princess." Vorbuk growled deeply from his throat. Hating the idea of what could have happened to her in the fire. It made his blood boil.

"Do you have any clues on who was involved?" Aoki asked curiously.

Vorbuk hesitated as he thought about telling Aoki that Grand Duke Heket might have been involved. There was no evidence to this thought. The only one who had told himself anything was the princess so far and he had yet to talk to her more about it. His response came out in the end as, "No. There are none so far."

"Is that so?" Aoki muttered under his breath as if he knew that Vorbuk was holding something back from him.

Vorbuk did not notice his reaction while adding on, "Make sure you have them check everything carefully. I want to know exactly what happened here. I want to know everyone involved."

"You want me to oversee this situation?" Aoki jolted slightly at hearing himself receiving a sudden task to take care of the princess's palace. They were still putting out the flames. By the time it was done burning he was certain there would be little left to the princess's palace. Finding clues would not be an easy task to take care of. It would be a task that required a lot of time and work effort. This was a task that made him already feel exhausted just thinking about it.

Vorbuk did not care about the panic in Aoki's facial expressions over the task, "Is that a problem? I will have someone help you."

"Who?" Aoki asked him in almost a pleading tone.

Vorbuk's response came slow as he thought carefully about it, "Guild Master Seon should be able to find out who was involved behind this."

"You're contacting the guild?" Aoki flinched at the sound of working with that demi rabbit.

Vorbuk went silent before responding, "He is one of the best at finding information. That is what guild masters are best at taking charge of. You also have a connection with Drethia and Grand Duke Heket. If you help him I am certain I will be able to find out if they were involved."

Aoki seemed to consider something before remaining silent. It was clear that he wanted to ask about his suspicions towards the Grand Duke of Drethia Kingdom. However Aoki remained silent. He did not ask what was on his mind. It was impossible to tell what exactly he was thinking.