Chapter 18: Kingdoms Fight

King Leo was in shock. Days had gone by since the first demon attack and yet not a single demon could get through the magic shield that appeared around the city. He had no idea that the mages guild had so much power. He underestimated them. Because of the magical protection, Leo's warriors had nothing to do, except the archers.

This ment Leo wasn't getting involved with the combat. Instead, he had to calm everyone in the city down. The Lord's and Ladies were extremely annoying. Leo really wanted to bash in some skulls.  He decided to take a walk in the gardens instead.

Meanwhile, Queen Jessica watched her husband with amusement in her eye's. She hadn't told him that the mages had worked years to set up a permanent enchantment against all types of demons. The expenditure was well worth it, not that she really had to pay too much. Mages loved a challenge just as much as the warriors did. The differences between the two were their own interests. She couldn't think of a single mage who would not love the opportunity to create new magic or expand and improve old magic. She just used their interest against them.

Unfortunately, they only had enough material to protect one city. She was having them gather and make more for the other cities even with the demon attacks going on. While Jessica was thinking, one of the mages came to speak with her.

" Master, I have finally managed to locate Prince Jacob." 

" Really?" Jessica was not sure how she felt at that moment. She was scared, excited, worried, and many other complex emotions. She really did not want to know if he was dead and yet she needed to know.

" Yes, I can show you where he is upon my mirror."

" Let me go get my husband and we will watch together."

Jessica moved towards Leo and wrapped her arm around his. " Amy says that she located Jacob's whereabouts. Let's go see what she found together."

Leo nodded and started walking towards the mage. Amy smiled and gave a respectful bow. King Leo gestured to have her lead the way while barring a grim face. He had low hopes of finding Jacob alive. Whomever attacked them that night wanted all of them to die. The only reason Jacob had been taken instead of being killed outright, is because their assassination plot did not go the way they planned. At least this was Leo's thoughts on the matter. His son would be lucky if he was still breathing.

The trio moved to the mage quarter of the town. There were three towers along the walls of the city in this quarter alone. Leo never really cared about how the mages used the towers here as long as they did not harm people. The rest of the area was full of shops and homes. There were a few gardens as well. They walked to the middle tower.

The smell of herbs hit Leo's nose as they entered and he sneezed. A mirror was placed to the left of the door. There was a simple desk beside the mirror with verses powders. Amy did a quick gesture with her hands and the mirror lit up. An image of their son appeared. He was sowing pieces of leather together with a large bird behind him. 

Both parents exclaimed in relief. " He is alive!"

" Yes, this is in Wild Woods."

Jessica gasps, " Are you mad?! Even scrying magic is not allowed there."

" Relax, I got permission first. As long as I am only looking for our young lord, everything is fine. Just do not ask me to show you more than him."

" Is that beast behind him a threat?" Leo questioned with a gruff voice full of emotion.

Amy shook her head, " No. It appears as if the creature is teaching Jacob how to work leather. I plan on continuing my vigil on the boy though. If I feel he is in any danger, I will pull him back home as quickly as possible." 

She points at the powders, " I have prepared everything before calling you."

" Good job Amy." Leo replied while holding back tears. 

" Indeed. I will make sure to reimburse those ingredients when we have the time." Jessica cryingly said.

" I look forward to it. Besides, it's not like I have anything to do at the moment."

" Are you not on rotation to hold the shield up?" Leo exclaimed.

Amy looked at him in complete confusion.

" There is no need for any mages to hold the shield. It is a permanent enchantment. As for the rotation for attacking the demons, I do not have to report for that any time soon. Of course this means that during that time I will be unable to watch the prince."

" Wait! How is the shield permanent and why wasn't I informed?"

Jessica was still crying happy tears when she heard her husband's shout. 

" I will explain the shield to you later. Can we just be happy that our child is alive before dealing with other matters?"

" Of course I am extremely glad that Jacob is alive and well. I have just suffered yet another shock from the mages guild. How can I possibly not show it?"

Jessica cuddled into Leos chest while still crying. 

" We still need to tell our sons about their brother."

Leo sighed. Clearly his wife could not multitask right now. 

" I think we should wait until after the demon attacks"

Jessica frowned when she heard that. 

" We will discuss this later. There is no reason to make Amy uncomfortable." Leo started leading Jessica away.

" Let us know if anything happens to Jacob. We will speak to you later."

Jessica stayed quiet until they were alone. She didn't even get a chance to ask her questions before Leo answered them.

" We have no idea who is targeting our family. Therefore it would be better to not only leave Jacob where he is, but also pretend we are still looking for him. The only question I have is will Amy keep silent on this matter."

" Amy will only speak with us. She is Jacob's honorary Aunt and cares for him as if he were her own child. This is why she sought permission to look within the boundaries of the forest for him." 

" Good, the twins will have to stay in the dark though. They love to talk to everyone and haven't mastered self control yet."

Jessica pursed her lips in displeasure, however she didn't argue. Her boy's really lacked situational awareness and therefore could not be told of this at the moment.