Two days later, the procession came to a halt in front of the Capital's gates. A group of people were waiting there. Rain and Kain stopped the procession from going forward before going by themselves.
"Who are you and why are you blocking the gates?" Rain asked. Kai bowed his head slightly. "I'm the First prince. I was sent to greet you here and escort you to the rest house." Kai said respectfully, while discreetly analyzing the two men that didn't get off their horses.
Rain leaned forward and bowed his head. "First Prince. Pleasure to meet you. I'm the First Prince Consort of Ojun, Prince Rain. This is my younger brother and the Second Prince Consort of Ojun, Prince Kain." Kai breathed a sigh of relief.
He bet right. These two men were ruthless and lawless. Their names were often attached to every single piece of news that involved Ojun. If he didn't make it here to personally welcome these men, there was going to be trouble.
"Pleasure to meet you as well, Your Highnesses." Kai replied. Rain nodded to his brother and Rain motioned for the procession to come forward. "We have our own residence here. I'm sure some of our people have already entered and cleaned it up." Kai immediately knew what he was talking about.
He got reports of three carriages arriving a day ago and headed straight for the biggest Mansion in the Capital. They've cleaned it in just a day. "So, I heard." Kai looked behind them at the procession.
"Well then, let's go." Kai said to the two as he got onto his horse. The guards that came with him immediately entered the city and began clearing the streets.
Half an hour later, the procession stopped in front of the largest mansion in the Capital of Regila. Servants got out the carriages first and began moving everything in. Once they were done, the largest carriage stopped in front of the steps.
The children, who were in two carriages behind, got out impatiently and ran to the large carriage. "Grandmother! it's chilly so make sure you keep your hood on!" Rya shouted from below the window.
Soria stepped out first and chuckled. "You don't need to shout so loudly my child. She can hear you clearly." Soria wore a veil, so the onlookers were disappointed. Kain had gotten off his horse and took her hand, helping her down from the carriage.
Varin followed after and Rain was right there with his hand outstretched. The two brothers turned back to help their mother, but Sena and Sera pushed their hands away.
Sera stepped up and moved the curtain aside as Opal was about to. The thick white cloak hood hid Opal's figure and hair while the veil hid everything but her eyes. She was more covered than the daughters-in-law.
Sena held out her hand for her grandmother. Opal took it and stepped down from the carriage. "Let's go in." A gust of wind flew past Opal's head and the hood slipped. Sera pushed it back up before it could expose her head.
The family entered the mansion without any words to Kai, who was on his horse to the side, watching the family closely. "Your Highness." A guard called out to him. "Let's head back." The guard nodded and they rode back to the palace in silence.
"That woman in white is the one you didn't, see?" Kai asked the guard as he got off his horse. "Yes, Young Master. She's the mother of the Prince Consorts." Kai turned to him. "Both of them?" He nodded.
"Did the information from the Pendant Tower in Ojun come back?" He asked. "It should by tonight." Kai nodded. "Go and personally pick it up. I need to know everything besides what we already know about them."
"Yes, young Master."
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"That young man on the horse was the first prince?" Opal asked Rain as they sat down for lunch. "Yes." Opal picked up her chopsticks. "Then he was the one that sent people to watch us?" He nodded again.
"Him and the second prince." Opal picked up a piece of sliced pork and placed it in Varin's bowl. She picked up a chicken leg and placed it in Soria's bowl. She served herself some soup, took a sip and looked at her sons.
"The other one watching was the second prince then." Kain smiled. "You're slowly getting back your martial arts?" Opal smiled. "Martial arts don't randomly work like that. I was blind for two years and in a coma for three. My hearing and perception have gotten stronger."
Everyone went silent. It was only the adults at the table; the children were having lunch in another room. So, everyone caught onto the mood and were disheartened. "It's our fault. If we'd gotten there earlier..." Kain said sadly.
"I can't remember what happened but I'm sure of one thing." Opal's smile widened. "It wasn't your fault. Your or your brother. So stop blaming yourselves and rejoice every day that I'm still alive." The two smiled back at their mother. Soria and Varin held onto Opal's hands, leaning on her shoulder.
"I've rejoiced from the day I met you, Mother. I'm happy you're my mother-in-law." Soria said and Varin nodded, wiping the tear from her cheek. "We love you more than anything. So you have to take care of yourself even more than we do. Okay."
Opal kissed their foreheads. "Of course, my daughters." A servant stepped in and bowed, cutting through the heavy atmosphere. "Your Highnesses. Someone claiming to be the second prince is at the gate with a doctor." Rain stood up.
"We'll deal with this. You all eat." He said, pointedly looking at his mother since she hasn't been eating very well on the journey here. That's another reason they took so many breaks. Kain stood up and followed him out.
They put on their masks before they walked into the front courtyard. Lion turned to them, his eyes analyzing them up close. "Second Prince. Is there a specific reason for you interrupting our lunch?" Kain asked.
"I heard one of your people are sick, my brother wanted me to bring our royal healer here to visit." Rain took a step forward. "Healer?" He looked at the woman behind Lion. "You're from the Pendant Tower." It was a statement, not a question.
Kana nodded. "Yes." Rain took another step forward. "We don't want anything to do with the Pendant Tower." He looked at Lion. "What I'm about to say will be disrespectful so listen up." He glanced between the two, his eyes finally stopping at Lion as he leaned down.
"Pendant Tower is a lifeline for you but it's a burned bridge for me. Next time your people come around mine unprovoked, I'll kill them all. Then I'll burn down every Pendant Tower until it's nothing but history and ashes. Do you understand?" Rain's eyes were calm as he looked into Lion's.
At first, Lion's eyes were calm, and then they changed. For the first time in a long time, Lion became unsure of himself.