Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 436: Once upon a dream (1)

A FEW MONTHS AGO

The wave was lapping peacefully. Arial is on the open ocean looking at the opening horizon from the deck of the ship.

The ship is full with people running around doing their task. The sail is following the guidance of the wind.

Sea birds are flying near the ship, the sky is in good weather and sometimes dorviin, a fin fish which is different from sharks can be seen jumping around following the large ship.

They are mostly docile and did not attack humans. Arial was fascinated with them in the beginning but after a few days, he had curb his enthusiasm.

The sun shines brightly up in the sky as white clouds is sparse giving one the clear look of the sky. A slender man can be seen standing on the back deck. 

Arial sometime saw the slender man patrolling, and sometime Arial could see the man practicing his spear technique, and Arial quickly judged the man to be an expert.

But Arial could not shake the feeling that he has seen that man before. Of course it is because the man is wearing a mask hat he could not recognize him. 

He also never hears the man spoke anything.

Usually such man of dubious behavior would not be allowed in the ship but Mikael vouch for him. Not to mention there is another masked man near Mikael cabin. 

'What more a few masked men?' Arial thought to himself. After all there are not many people in this world that could hurt him. 

He has a body that heals almost instantly, and he is confident in this world there is no one that could match his internal energy.

Poison? His dragon heart will neutralize any poison. His strength? Nobody could match him. He fears nothing under the Heavens

This confidence is born after each battle that he had won. What kind of battle that he did not survive?

It is almost ironic really. 

In the past, he was a coward. He even run from the war. 

But, since the death of his wife, he had been throwing himself toward the jaws of death but death, it seems has ignored him. 

Arial look at the slender man again. For some reason, he is inexplicably curious of the slender man, a nagging feeling on the back of his mind.

This slender man joins the expedition when Mikael recruits the sailors and personnel for Arial journey.

No one here in the ship knows that Arial is the Emperor of Eden, but most of the sailors speculated that Arial is a great noble son.

After all, even though he is the Emperor he is still young and many have not seen the face of the Emperor. 

But as young as he is, to wear such luxurious armour and with high quality weapons and many other that follow him look like his vassals and all kinds of scholars, of course the normal sailors has some to suspicion that Arial is a great noble lord son or a lord himself or maybe a high official of the Empire. 

Mikael on the other hand is sitting in his cabin with his robed friend that always wears a mask. 

Arial once asked Mikael about it but Mikael refuse to answer only telling that the man will be useful and that is the only thing Arial needs to hear.

He would not like to force Mikael. Mikael has his own adventures and surely he has his own acquaintance.

In the cabin, the robed man spoke to Mikael

'Is it alright not to tell him the full story Mikael? It will make his trial easier if you would tell him. You did go until the last temple. Even I did not go that far. You must have gleaned on some secret teachings, right?' the man asks

Mikael who is reading a book took a glance at the masked man and said.

'It is fine to let him as he is. And I did not enter until the last temple. I stopped at thirty two. Sooner or later he will understand it by himself. You said it yourself, we are just the guide. Nothing more.'

The masked man nodded.

'A lamppost. A guide. Protector' the masked man said nodding in agreement.

Then Mikael continue his reading. the masked man went outside for a while. He went outside to piss and then he returned.

He met the slender man when he was pissing outside. Knowing the true identity of the slender man Orval is certainly not comfortable.

He quickly returns to Mikael cabin. If anyone could see his face he is flushing red right now.

Orval sighed and said to Mikael

'How about the blue hair girl you me at the harbor? You should not have brought her into these. This is his trials. His test. And having a woman in a ship is bad luck!' Orval said when he once again sits down inside the cabin.

Mikael once again put down his book. And he remembers back to that moment a few weeks ago.

A few weeks ago, before they depart from the Capital, Mikael was searching for sailors and personnel, warriors, healers, charters, all that could make the journey smoother. 

The sailors need to be strong, and the appointment must be done is secret. 

Mikael met one of the captains in the harbor, and he found a captain that hail from Great Renasia, who once sailed the Weeping Sea and even frequently visit the Pirate Port in the Triangle. 

Mikael is convinced of the man abilities and hire the captain. He ordered the captain to find him a crew. 

A few days later a crew is prepared for him. 

Each of the sailors shows their abilities. 

Some knows how to read the stars, some know how to navigate the murky waters, and some knows how to respond to the beast that resides in the deep of the water. 

Each one tells Mikael of their abilities. 

Some can do menial task while some have specialized skill. But there is one man that caught Mikael attention. 

He come the earliest but he demonstrates the last.

The man is slender and thin and a fragrance aroma can be smell upon him. It was jasmine and lily, and he was very graceful in his moves and manners.

When it is the time for him to show his ability he challenges everyone to fight him with all they got. He defeated them in ten breath time. 

He was fast, powerful and domineering. Mikael could see that this man would make a wonderful addition to the crew and might even help Arial when they land.

But there is only one flaw with the man.

It was that she is a woman. She did her disguise perfectly but in front of Mikael such disguise doesn't work. 

How many times he nearly got assassinated by the Inquisition or the Shadow Brotherhood, and even one of the Elders of House of Knives has enmity with him.

Disguises? Heh, he could see even the Mask of Thousand Faces of the Shadow Brotherhood, how could he not see through a makeshift mask?

Even though she disguises her lump of breast, there are certain characteristics that Mikael picked up on.

When the roster is announced the woman is not in the list. Until the woman confront him and he is forced to accept her.