The curfew imposed on the princes finally came to an end. One month passed like a foam of the wave. The princes could freely go on with their activities.
Mo was summoned to the palace. He took his escort guards with him while he rode on his beautiful white steed. Hilbwet was sent on a mission hence Lores rode upfront with him.
The ride to Ripplesky palace was a quiet one until Lores finished his train of thoughts after contemplating for an untold amount of time.
"Your highness, if it's not too much to ask, can you tell me about House Of Berath?"
"House Of Berath is a private institution owned by the king. They take personal orders from the king. They work separately from the military force." Mo easily answered without a hint of suspicion. With this information, Lores confirmed the verisimilitude of what Joanne told him.
"If that's the case, those arrested by the king will be held in House Of Berath."
"Mmm." Lores swallowed before asking his next question.
"So...where is this House Of Berath?" Mo quizzically tilted his head, eyelids fluttering twice as if a spell has been lifted from him.
"Seven, are you investigating the royal court?" Lores widened his eyes in alarm, making a frightful face.
"I don't dare."
When they arrived in the palace, Mo was taken by an attendant to the western zone where he saw his father sitting on a small stool, fishing on a pond. His eunuch holding a horsetail whisk was by his side.
When Mo arrived, a maid brought a stool with which he sat close to his father after paying respects.
"Father seems to be in a good mood today." Mo said with a smile.
"Haha. Sometimes, it is necessary to take a break from state affairs. Archery is not only my avocation. Back then, your grandfather used to fish on this pond. He taught me how to fish."
"It seems you lived a serene life before the rebellion of Gusloe." Mo masked his sadness with a smile.
"If your father was so good to you, why haven't you shown such warmth to me."
King Elead chuckled. "You can say that."
Mo gazed at the pond. It was as clear as crystal. Flame angelfishes could be seen swimming leisurely. Suddenly, he stared at the pool in pure confusion. After an unclear amount of time. King Elead's voice woke him from his state of ponder.
"Son, you must be wondering why nothing was attached to the point. It does seem like I'm building a castle in the air, right? Hahaha! After all, what's the essence of using a fishhook if not for catching the unlucky fish?"
"Don't you think a shredded lettuce or something should be attached to the point? If you continue like this, you're going to stay here till the day ends." Mo explained meaningfully. King Elead lingered for a certain period of time. He began to explain carefully.
"Attaching a shredded lettuce to the hook like you said would surely help in winning the attention of the fish. But what happens after that? The fish becomes vulnerable to the fisher. The substance of attention becomes a bait. I don't need to tell you how it all ends."
Mo's expression turned deeply thoughtful. It wasn't his father's style to sit with an empty hook and spill empty words. In reality, King Elead was subtly relaying a crucial message. Mo was smart enough to read the profound meaning of his father's words.
Mo was the fish, the shredded lettuce was exclusive tavern while the fisher was the king. The capability to move the shredded lettuce at will symbolizes the monopoly of the king. If Mo keeps holding on to the lettuce which is the central of attraction of both the fish and the fisher, he ends up becoming vulnerable.
Mo apprehended that his father wanted him to hand over his ownership of the tavern. His face darkened.
"So he's finally opened up."
"Father, how long have you been hankering for the tavern?" Exclusive tavern was what Mo established during the few years he explored the world. Losing it like that was too huge a news for him to take in. It came sooner than expected.
Mo was gradually becoming powerful. So for the fear of him growing too ambitious, the king had to resort to that measure.
"What makes you think you can question me? As the king I can have whatever I want, right?"
Mo lips slightly curled up. "Of course. The whole kingdom is yours. Exclusive tavern have thrived in recent years. It's something you can't let out of your grasp. Give me some time to have it done as you wish." King Elead gesture his agreement by raising a hand.
"Of course. There's no rush. You can take your time." King Elead gave the waiting maid his fishhook and took a bowl containing tiny crustaceans from his eunuch. He took a handful of the tiny crustaceans and chucked it into the pond. The angel fishes collectively swarm insanely towards the direction like inrushing hailstones prompting the king to laugh leisurely. Mo watched him laugh without restraint. The lecture was finally over.
"You recently deployed soldiers to the eastern region, didn't you?" King Elead asked after keeping cool. Mo sucked in cold air and stared at his father in sheer amazement.
"How....did you know that?"
"There's nothing that happens in the capital that I'm not aware of." King Elead said, smiling proudly. Mo's jaw dropped as he gulped silently. He raised his head when his father spoke again.
"In truth, you shouldn't have done it secretly. The Dawcanes are trying to merge their troops with Everdusk's. It's only normal for you to take drastic action as the protector."
"I thought you would think of me as indiscreetly mobilizing the troop. I had to do it in low-key so it wouldn't cause a stir. If I have really done wrongly, I ask that you punish me." Mo lowered his head in total surrender. King Elead clicked his tongue.
"What were you given the bronze seal for? You've done no wrong, my son...for real. The Dawcanes will rebel in the future. They are just waiting for the right time to do so. We must do all it takes to sustain the Freydor dynasty. You've mentally grown in shouldering responsibilities. I'm glad about that."
-
While Mo was with his father, Lores decided to stroll around Ripplesky palace. He got to a garden and saw a huge library in front.
"I might as well check out a book on how to improve one's magic skill. Hope I don't get caught." He instinctively carried his feet towards the library, eyes swaying in circles. Owing to how nimble and stealthy he was, he successfully sneaked into the library without anyone noticing. Lores could be a slimy little eel when time calls for it. Although the library wasn't heavily guarded.
Inside the library, many tall, wide shelves housing even more books stationed in rows, prompting a perception of boundless knowledge. While skimming the books, he discovered that they were mostly about temporal records, leadership administration and political events. He dropped them back in their place and boringly sighed. Too boring!
While still tasting the boredom, his gaze collided with a particular lonely shelf at the extreme corner. He instinctively walked towards the shelf and singled out one book. He blew the book and dusted it as it was a bit dusty.
"Don't the servants here take proper care of this library?" His eyes expanded when he saw the title on the book: 'The tao of magery' His interest was piqued. He read through the first and second page. The knowledge was the one he already knew of. His interest was beginning to dwindle when he accidentally flipped open the centre of the book. He saw the heading 'The theory of the mind' and his interest was piqued again. He began to read silently to himself.
"The heart and the mind must be harmonized to grasp the true meaning of one's self. Once one's self has been properly understood, they can become one with earthly energy thus leading to professional gnosis. The rhythm of a weapon and the motion of energy nurtures the mind. It takes true discovery of one's self to reach this level. The intent of the mind determines the intrinsic nature of magic. Inner peace is ultimately required by a mage to become one with energy."
Lores' eyes blazed with eagerness.
"True meaning of one's self, intent, inner peace." He muttered thoughtfully. While he was on leave, he'd been secretly training in the woods. It was a good opportunity considering Mo was on curfew then. As usual, his progress was quite slow but he never capitulated.
He sat in lotus style and began to meditate with closed eyes. He said the words repeatedly in his head until he began to feel elevated. He felt like he was in another dimension, feeling the power of immense positivity, tranquility and essence. He spread his palms open and all of a sudden, two orbs of water began to form on each of them. He opened his eyes and grinned in overwhelming astonishment. Was he really making progress?
He was still stuck in the first stage after a long time but right now, he felt powerful, refined and sophisticated. He watched with delight as the water orbs formed on his palms. Next, he opted to use the orbs to launch an offensive. On the command of his will, the orbs split into spikes of approximately an inch. Their movements were as light as catkins as they coordinately arrayed themselves into a column of deadly tiny masses ready to impale anything they come in contact with.
Lores laughed quietly in gratification. If this is what progress looks like then he must have made it.