XIII

Grissham gave the best horse, the animal looked dashing. That privilege was probably also part of their pay, that's why Aron wasn't happy to accept it.

Zero touched the brown horse, as a new stallion they had to establish a relationship for both to trust each other. The horse whinnied as Zero gently stroked its hair. After a while, Zero ventured to ride the horse, and the horse didn't rebel at all.

While Aron had no time to be kind to the animal, the black horse whinnied as Aron was about to mount. "Relax, I don't have time to persuade you." Aron looked at him annoyed, 

"We have to go."

"Sir, that's not how you treat an animal," said a soldier who brought the horse to the front of the palace.

Aron snorted in annoyance, he really didn't like dealing with people's feelings, that's right, it wasn't human. 

Zero finally dismounted and tackled the horse that seemed unwilling to stay still, stomping its feet occasionally, similar to an angry child. He stroked the horse gently, trying not to startle it. The animal knew who had a true heart, treating animals like friends not errand boys.

"You're just like his mother, he obeys as soon as you touch him," Aron said in a mocking tone, but Zero didn't care.

King Edwin arrived with his guards. Zero approached while Aron stayed silent, lazy for the goodbye session. Aron was trying to make the horse trust him, it felt like Aron's degree went down just because Zero was good at handling animals.

"We will depart, Your Majesty." Zero bowed slightly.

King Edwin wore black clothes with blue stripes on his wrists, shoulders, neck, waist and other places. His belt was made of metal, in the center of which was a tiger emblem.

After King Edwin nodded, Zero immediately got on and spurred his horse, Aron followed without a word. King Edwin looked at the man sharply.

The black horse was still unfriendly, stopping every five to seven steps. The gate had been opened wide. They came out, but the horse dropped Aron instead. 

A satisfied smile appeared on Zero's face. "Sorry, my son is just not good enough."

Aron stood up and started petting the horse. "Don't be afraid, you're a good boy, don't act stupid like your mother." He turned his head, Zero just looked at him with one eyebrow raised.

Aron got back on the horse, he stomped the rope and passed Zero. They left Grissham which was surrounded by snowy mountains, in front of them was the ocean where the wind was quite strong. Grissham's ships were perched on the shore.

Their journey was longer than before. Grissham was at the end of the Divided Land, as was Arckeley. It would take them at least a week to get there, if there were no obstacles like Butoijo. 

They passed through the grassland. A fresh breeze blew through Aron's long hair, his expression changed drastically. As their horses trotted side by side, Zero was surprised to see Aron. It was like the eruption of the past was starting to spout anger.

A few minutes later, they started to slow down, Aron carefully guided his black horse through the shallow river filled with rocks.

"Let's rest for a while," Zero said after reaching the other side of the river. He stopped his horse.

"There's no time to rest."

"Aron, that horse you're riding can't talk. So, it won't ask you to stop." Zero's words made Aron stare at his black horse.

"Alright." Aron got off his horse, "You take care of him for me."

Aron walked into the forest. While Zero brought the black horse near his horse, so Zero could keep an eye on the two. They drank, so did Zero, who didn't want to miss the opportunity to quench his thirst. Not forgetting to wash his face to stay awake, then he splashed water on the two horses. 

The sun was getting high. Zero pulled the two horses, struggling somewhat. If Zero and Aron felt that this trip was not important, they would probably stop here and go their separate ways as if they never knew each other.

Zero sighed looking at Aron who was sitting against a tree with his legs bent. His gaze was directed at the circle he had made with wood. He continued to make a circle in the same place. But when Zero called out to him, Aron turned his head in another direction.

The river carried a memory for humans, as water was the beginning of life. He remembered a woman plunging into the water while being chased by several wolves. Aron was there, standing on the other side releasing a few arrows to drive the wolves away. Then he jumped into the river, the current was not so strong. He was about to pull her hand away, but a bluish light appeared and interfered with his vision. 

Then, Aron's mind went back to the previous years. When he first ran away from the palace and stayed to stare at the water like he was doing now. Little Aron cried in the darkness of the forest. 

Zero just watched him, reluctantly to ask, or rather didn't know what to ask. Aron's black eyes showed annoyance as well as sadness. A flare of excitement just appeared after the memory of Rose and Sercan popped into his head.

"You're ready." Aron pulled the horse's rope from Zero's hand and mounted it. "We should leave soon, I'm sick of being in the forest."

Zero remembered that Aron had been living in the forest, so what did he mean by that? He just shook his head and followed the man.

Zero felt that Aron was quite skillful for someone who just learned how to control a horse. Looking at Aron's quite handsome looks, Zero felt that the man was more suitable to be a noble family than living alone in the forest like a fool.