Brooding Mother Hen (IV)

"Zero, where is your girlfriend? I often see you with her." Bishop Sanya asked out of the blue. This caught Zero completely off guard. He stumbled and had to catch himself before completely falling flat on his face.

"He has a girlfriend?" Bishop Etran asked, surprised.

"Didn't you see the lovely elf always by his side?"

"Really? For someone so young, I'm quite surprised that you like older females. But, to be honest, who wouldn't fall in love with such a beautiful lady."

"Though the handsome young elf I saw with you is also quite an eye candy."

"Are you sure the two elves are not the ones that are going out?"

"No. From the looks of it, I don't see such interaction. On the contrary, they seem to be on a mutual level."

"Then why do you think she's going out with him?"

"Women's intuition."

"Not that again." Bishop Etran rolled his eyes.

"Excuse me," Zero tried to interject into their conversation.

"What you don't think I can't tell?"

"It's a lie."

"Say that again." Bishop Sanya glared evilly at Bishop Etran. "Come on."

"Excuse me!" Zero exclaimed. Both Bishop Sanya and Bishop Etran turned towards Zero. "She's not my girlfriend, and both Zeraph and Agnis are my friends. Nothing going on between them either. So please, let's forget this topic existed."

"That's too bad. I was sure that you had some interest in her." Bishop Sanya folded her hands into her sleeves.

"See. What did I tell you." Bishop Etran gave his statement agitating Bishop Sanya all over again.

Bishop Sanya ignored him and asked, "Don't you like her?"

"Well, as a friend, yes."

"Is she really just a friend?"

Zero did not want to answer any further. What was their relationship even like anyways? He had to think for a moment. Throughout the time that he had spent time with her, she was annoying and aggravating at first. But, time passed, and he finally started enjoying her presence. Anything else he didn't think much of. He could still remember when she unexpectedly got too close to him face-to-face when she saw the shift in his golden eyes.

Her warm body and her beautiful eyes radiated power and life. Only in that split moment did he truly see her for who she was. A young lady had the courage of a lion, a fighter, and a friend. Someone he did not put his trust in or spend time with. A friend that he rarely had many of, especially since he moved to another state.

"Yes."

Bishop Sanya was disappointed in Zero's answer. What else could Zero say, except any more than that? But, of course, he was not expecting any more than just that. Crossing the boundary anytime soon could lead to more headaches, but that did not stop him from thinking about what it would be like to have a girlfriend. Either way, Zero quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind. He had things to do, and getting a girlfriend right now was not his priority.

"Sir!" A Lunar Rabbit called out to Zero. He flagged them down to come towards him. They walked over. "We have your rooms ready. If you don't mind following me to your rooms."

"Lovely. I was getting tired." Bishop Sanya replied chirpily.

"I have other things I have to do. I'll see you around in the morning," said Zero.

"That would be great. My mind does feel a bit muddy, and the food is making me a bit drowsy. Well then. Goodnight."

"Good night."

Zero waved them all goodnight. He had a couple of things that he had to do before he turned himself in for bed as well. First, he went to look for a couple of books that he was interested in looking into.

#####

The tower bell rang noisily in the night as it signaled the guards to action. Their voices rang out in a hurry. "Find the killer! Search every house!" They burst into each house, causing chaos and confusion.

"Find him. Don't let him escape the city!"

Citizens were pulled out of their homes and out onto the streets. It was a frenzied search for the killer.

Zero wondered what the noise was all about; he felt an ominous air hanging over the city. He didn't know what it was but knew trouble was coming. The evening lights in the city multiplied as torches lit up by the hundreds. They moved in unison and spread outwards towards the city walls. He quickly shifted into his Origin form, waiting patiently.

At the edge of the Village, Zero saw streams of light marching toward the floating Village.

An unusual sound of metal flying past him hooked itself onto the side wall. Zero noticed hooks embedded into the ground, and royal soldiers climbed up towards him. Then, swarms of Royal soldiers pulled themselves up onto land and brandished their swords. At that moment, at the peak of the Draconis Library, a magical orb glowed with goldish power.

Every one of the royal soldier's swords turned hot, making them all drop their weapons. Even bows and arrows were snapped apart like twigs. Magic that was even chanted did not work in the Draconis Village. The Royal soldiers were stunned at what was happening before them. Even if they swung their fist at the villagers, their attacks were blocked by a magical barrier.

Zero couldn't help but stifle his laugh seeing the royal soldiers in confusion. If he didn't know about the special features of the Draconis Library, he would have been in the same shoe as the soldiers.

A young soldier different from the rest stood up from the group. Zero noticed that he was wearing black raven armor with sunglasses. He wondered why of all times, the young soldier was wearing sunglasses in the middle of the night. Looking closely, the young soldier was not part of the Royal soldier but was an Adventurer instead.

The Adventurer cleared his throat and pulled out a rolled-up paper. "From his order of the crown prince, now king, we are ordered to search your resident to find the culprit who killed the king."

"The king is dead?" Zero did not expect the king to pass away so quickly. "And you are?"

"I am the Advisor of the new King Richard III. Russ." Russ arrogantly replied. "Everyone begins searching for the murder!" Russ shouted towards the royal guards and directed them to head into everyone's house.

At that moment, a message appeared before Zero.

As the guardian of the Draconis Library, you have the power to call out 'Halt' and follow after 'Banish' all enemies that threaten the Village. To release the bondage, call out 'Release.' This skill is only available till the next two months when the Protection is over.

Zero quickly understood what the message stated, and he yelled loudly, "Halt!" The Royal soldiers and Russ was immobilized in seconds. Also, Zero's intimidation skills were added with a bonus when he yelled toward the crowd. They couldn't move, and fear filled their soul.

"Wh-h-at are you doing!" Russ stammered. He was frozen, "Are you going against the king!?" Russ shouted with anger. He tried to wiggle out but failed.

"No. I am the guardian of this land. Instead of rushing into someone's house uninvited, I think it would be better if we don't use the same tactics as you do with your city citizens, or I could banish you from this land. Think about it. You want the killer; I want a peaceful resolution that doesn't burn or damage the villagers." For a large dragon that was now as big as a bus towered over Russ. He stared down upon Russ, not wavering from his challenge. Zero had the power to get rid of the enemies in seconds, but he did not want to bring trouble to the Village he was protecting. They were not strong enough to defend against the wrath of a Kingdom.

"Everyone stand down," Russ said with displeasure in his voice. "Fine. We will uphold what you have asked."

Zero nodded, but he did not believe a single word from Russ. In actuality, he did not like Russ a single bit. "Release."

The Royal soldiers were released in a matter of moments. They all nodded in understanding and went through each building, looking for their culprit. They knocked on doors, searched through each home, and even searched through Draconis Library. Even though the soldiers searched through everything in the Draconis Library, Zero knew they had not looked through even two-thirds of the Library without specific access.

A royal guard shouted. "Sir, we have the killer here!" Their voice rang with excitement at the capture of the assassin. The assassin was dragged out and brought before Russ, battered and beaten.

"So you were saying?" Russ deviously grinned. "You are under arrest. Guards! Seize him!"

The guards surrounded him. Two messages flashed before him.

The first baby Drezo Regalia will be born in fifteen minutes.

Meet me three days later at sunset at our secret spot at the entwined tree.

One

Zero stared at the message before him. How? How did Kyle get his name in the game? Wasn't he supposed to find him in the game? Confused and excited at the same time. His mind was in whirls, trying to figure out why the setting had changed. He had two days till he met his brother. Something important must have come up for Kyle to contact him directly without going out to chase him down.

To be continued...