Time frame: war time
Little did they know that King Valdemar of the Kingdom of Gamaaloth had flown straight from the far north to Clearport on his scalding male dragon, Rersiat, Eater Of Sheep, thinking that the Crown Prince, Ragnar Clementine, had died from the poison of the Trurian Kingdom.
At that time, they were only told that Ragnar and Uzana were the adopted children of King Valdemar. They were the children of the King's best friend.
The truth is... Valdemar, desperate to see his biological son for the last time, mounted his trusted dragon, and flew towards the land of Clearport, where he believed his son's body would rest.
He had also brought his finest woven cloth adorned with Barsphirine stones - sacred stones with a serene sparkling luster that could only be found in the Metaena mountains where Gamaaloth lived.
But when he landed on the edge of the cliff where Cescil was camped with a loud thud and a violent shaking of the ground, he was greeted by Ragnar himself.
Valdemar jumped down from Rersiat - the largest dragon in the world. He was the husband of Ymat - the dragon Ragnar was currently riding.
As Valdemar approached Ragnar, he was overwhelmed with emotion. Believing that he was seeing the ghost of his son, he hugged Ragnar tightly and cried on the spot.
Ragnar, who was expecting to pay his respects to his father, was stunned by the sudden outpouring of emotion. He watched as his father clung to him, his body shaking with sobs.
Amidst the reunion, Ragnar's eyes fell upon the pile of woven cloth with beautiful Barsphirine sprinkles. The cloth glistened in the sunlight, casting a soft and serene glow on the scene.
All Gamaaloth knew that the cloth was of great importance.
Everyone in Clearport was stunned to see that there was still a dragon bigger than Ymat, King Valdemar's dragon who had come to the battlefield himself. But it was not just the dragon themselves that caught their attention.
On Rersiat's saddle lay a stunning piece of cloth, adorned with shimmering Barsphirine stones. The sight of it left the people of Clearport breathless, as they had never seen anything quite like it.
When he saw the sacred woven cloth, Ragnar realized that his father thought he was dead. He had flown himself from the Metaena Mountains in the far North just to pick up his body in Clearport.
"I promise... to burn Trurian and Ostrill to the ground. I promise in the name of our Ancestors, I will make sure all that is left of them is ashes and regret." He muttered in a voice trembling with rage. Tears fell on Ragnar's shoulders.
"Father, I...," Ragnar stammered.
Valdemar's hand squeezed the back of Ragnar's neck tightly and he was still crying - even though all this time Valdemar had communicated to Ragnar only through punishments and beatings.
"Now you rest in peace, my son. I will avenge you, Ragnar! I will show them the wrath of a father who has lost his son!"
"... still... alive."
Valdemar's sobbing stopped instantly. There was silence for a while. Valdemar's eyes looked around. People had gathered on the cliff and were saluting him. But all of them were staring at them with gawking expressions.
"Father, I'm not dead. I'm still alive." Ragnar repeated.
"No one has ever survived the Trurian poison, Ragnar." Half-heartedly, Valdemar wished that Ragnar had actually died out of unbearable shame.
Ragnar fell silent. They were still in an embracing position. Valdemar still wished he was hugging his son spirit.
A group of beautiful girls with smooth skin and shining eyes came up to him and saluted gracefully.
Valdemar released his embrace and his attention was drawn to the girls. "Cescil let women into battle?!"
General Pindale saluted and introduced himself before explaining. "King Valdemar, they are mystical healer clan girls."
"Weren't they all killed by humans? They were considered witches and punished with such a cruel death as a public spectacle. They were burned and mutilated alive, beheaded, their joints removed by pulling a cart...,"
Lady Sophia and all her followers listened as they shuddered in horror. Most of what King Valdemar said was true.
All the healers with high-level magical abilities were put to death - leaving only the girls with mediocre healing powers.
"Who is the leader of the army from Cescil?"
"I am, Your Majesty." General Pindale confessed.
"I mean a noble or prince of the Cescil Kingdom."
"None, Your Majesty." Lady Sophia replied. "The Princes and Nobles of Cescil do not have the military capabilities of the Gamaaloth Nation. They can't draw a sword let alone fight."
"And you are willing to go fight on the border while your leaders are relaxing in their grand palaces. It's unbelievable! They even allow a weak woman like you to go down in battle! By the Old God!"
Weak woman, Ragnar repeated in silence.
"Your Majesty." Cut Uzana off, rising from his kneeling posture and approaching King Valdemar.
But instead of calming down, King Valdemar became even angrier. He took out a large black whip from his hip and was ready to whip it at Uzana. "Useless child! What did you do to make your brother die?!"
"Your Majesty!" Resisting Ragnar, he used his body to block King Valdemar's lash.
Apparently Ragnar didn't really discard Uzana as his brother. He was still trying to protect Uzana who cowered in fear at the sight of the big whip.
"Uzana!!!" Adeline unconsciously shouted Uzana's name - hoping that Uzana would quickly leave King Valdemar's wrath. But Uzana, like a child afraid of his father, knelt down and covered his head with both hands.
The situation was getting out of control until Lady Sophia finally shouted in her shrill yet firm voice.
"YOUR MAJESTY KING VALDEMAR OF THE KINGDOM OF GAMAALOTH! I beg you not to beat your children!"
The three big men froze instantly. Lady Sophia's voice just now sounded soft but why did it feel like it was piercing their nerves.
Adeline and Shi held their breath for an instant. The healer girls began to cry in fear. Four people with great strength were now clashing. Who knew what would happen next.
Lady Sophia caught her breath for a moment then replaced her stern expression with an innocent smile. "Your Highness, you must be so tired and hungry. We will prepare a special tent for you to lie down in and prepare the most delicious antelope soup you have ever eaten. Please, forgive our humble welcome and many shortcomings. We the Cescil Nation owe you and your Nation a great deal." Lady Sophia bowed down and prostrated herself so deeply that her head touched the ground.
Seeing her humble herself like that, the entire Cescil army and the healer girls followed suit.
Uzana also prostrated himself with his face facing the ground. "Your Majesty, forgive me. I did not carry out my duties properly."
"You useless child!" Valdemar said while looking at Uzana.
"Your Majesty!" Ragnar also prostrated himself at Valdemar's feet. "Stop it, please, Your Majesty. The entire Trurian army in Newside has been burned to ashes. They can no longer attack. Please also undo Your Majesty's intention to invade the Trurian Kingdom and kill innocent people. After all, Your Majesty, thanks to Cescil's medical prowess, I and Qedren were saved. Please listen to me just this once."
Valdemar listened to Ragnar's words with a foggy head. He still hadn't accepted the fact that Ragnar was alive.
He was one hundred percent sure that Ragnar was dead. Trurian poison is the deadliest in the world. No one had ever survived it, not even Gamaaloth.
Trurian has long been at odds with Gamaaloth. They had big egos to prove that their technology could outperform the most powerful nation in the world, Gamaaloth.
Valdemar slowly glanced at his son who was prostrate at his feet. He seemed real and when he hugged him earlier it also felt real.
He didn't know whether to cry tears of joy or fly back to Metaena because he couldn't bear the shame.
He even brought the sacred woven cloth prepared for his own death. He had imagined that he would use the cloth to wrap his son's body and bring it home to pay his last respects.
He thought he would bury the son he loved the most, if he was honest. Ragnar always tried to fulfill his duties as best he could. Despite the responsibility and pressure, he had a gentle heart.
He always loved his dragons, and he always tried to protect his little brother, Uzana. Even though Uzana seems often get into trouble.
Last time he rode Ryzzid in a drunken state and told Ryzzid to melt the iceberg until there was almost an avalanche of glaciers.
"What's your name, woman, how dare you interrupt a man's conversation?!" Valdemar suddenly spoke up.
Ragnar and Uzana glanced at each other from where they were prostrate.
Lady Sophia raised her head slightly and answered. "My name is Sophia Mary, Your Highness, leader of the Cescil Kingdom's healer clan. We are in Clearport to defend the border and heal the wounded soldiers."
"Healer clan leader." Valdemar repeated. "Then are you also the one who healed Ragnar and Qedren?"
Sophia swallowed for a moment before answering, "Yes, Your Highness."
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