Journey of the Dragon

Chapter thirthy five : Heading to the Royal Palace

 Dragon, who had willing his weapons being confiscated by Gard and Riple for security reasons, now must ask for help from his friends (Gill, Glauss, and Tatsui) to make sure that he can obtain his weapons later. Before the day of departure for the Nexus Palace, Dragon went somewhere. While accompanied by Gard and Riple (Leader and deputy leader of the Nexus fort guard), Dragon went to visit Gill and gave Tatsui a prize of 500 gold pieces so she could repair her village, then Dragon gave a signal to ask for help to his friends. Dragon told them that at this time all his weapons were in the headquarters of the fort guard troops, and the task Dragon gave to his friends was, they had to get Dragon's weapons and then deliver it in the afternoon at the Togu City market, after which they will meet again at Tatsui Village later. That's the plan.

 Without thinking, Dragon's friends undertake the task, and they will do their best to be able to steal and hand the weapons back to Dragon no matter what, without asking much. Because Dragon was not the type to ask for help unless he really needed it, another reason was because Dragon had promised that he would explain everything in Tatsui village later.

 Even though they have all known each other for only a few days, but their friendship has been growing so great, because they’re respect each other, and treat each other nicely regardless of background or appearance. And now they must trust each other and help a friend in need. That is what called true friendship.

 Long story short, On the night before the moment of departure for the Palace, Dragon was awake all night with a feeling of nervousness and anxiety that filled his mind, but time was running out and the day he had to start carrying out his mission was tomorrow, so he couldn't help but prepare for all the possibilities, so he immediately reaffirmed his resolve, then tried to sleep again.

The next day, in the morning, Dragon was awake, he was seen standing dressed in his inn room, now it is time for Dragon to go to the Nexus Royal Capital (the place where the Royal Palace is located).

 Gard knocked on Dragon's room door, then after he was invited in, Gard immediately asked. "Are you ready Sir?"

 "Yes, let's go." Dragon replied to Gard.

 A few moments later, Dragon came out from the inn building while accompanied by Gard and Riple, when Dragon stepped outside, he was a little surprised when he found a luxurious horse carriage in front of his eyes. Then Gard invited Dragon to get into the horse carriage, which would lead the three of them to the Nexus Royal Palace.

 So they began their journey, with a horse-drawn carriage that would take them to their destination comfortably and safely. Because the distance from Togu City to the Capital of the Nexus Kingdom is quite far, the places they will pass along the way are river areas and large plantation areas, if they are riding a horse-drawn carriage, the travel time they have to take is approximately two hours, but if walking, it could take even longer.

 Dragon seemed to really enjoy the scenery along his journey, while thinking about Melinda in his mind ("If only I could bring Melinda into the Palace with me, then surely she would be very happy when she saw this whole scene.") Dragon said in his mind.

 In addition, Gard also invited Dragon to chat lightly throughout the trip, while Riple only acted to record everything Gard said, then Dragon made it a joke, so the atmosphere inside the horse carriage became lively instantly. Therefore, the travel time they have to travel is not felt long.

 After going through quite a long journey since their departure from Togu City, now they will soon enter the area of the Nexus Royal Capital which is famous for being very large and vast area. Not long after, finally they all had almost arrived at the fortress gate of the Capital Nexus Kingdom, which had once been a silent witness to the great battle between the Nexus Kingdom troops against the Darkros troops.

 The gate of the Nexus Kingdom's fortress, is always open every day from morning to night, anyone can pass and enter the Nexus Kingdom Capital, to trade, travel, visit family, relatives, or to do other business. Everyone who comes there can only be admitted after going through many strict checks at the gate.

 A few moments later, the horse carriage that was carrying Dragon with Gard and Riple had arrived at the gate, which was so tall that Dragon had to tilt his head to see it’s peak, he saw how strong the towering fortress surrounded and protected the entire capital area. When they arrived at the gate, several Nexus soldiers immediately intercepted and then checked their horse-drawn carriage, to anticipate any dangerous goods carried by the vehicle.

 Then Gard immediately took his head out of the window, to show his face to the Soldiers, while saying, "Yo."

 How shocked the soldiers when they saw that it turned out that it was their superior, the leader of the fort guard (Gard). So immediately the vehicle carrying Dragon with Gard and Riple was immediately welcomed and allowed to enter the gate, by the fort guard soldiers. Without having to go through such a tight security check there, it made Dragon feel a little relieved.

 The horse carriage that was carrying Dragon, then continued on its way again. After passing through the fortress gate of the Capital, then they have officially entered the territory of the Nexus Royal Capital. There Dragon was presented with a view of the magnificent buildings that stretched wide as far as the eye could see, from small to large ones, adorning all corners of the Capital of the most respected Kingdom in the entire land of Azhuloth.

 The horse carriage that was carrying Dragon drove on a fairly wide road, filled with people passing by, as well as many other horse-drawn carriages passing by and greetings each other. Dragon kept looking at the magnificent buildings that were on the left and right side. Then Dragon saw another sight that was no less impressive, namely the view of the Nexus Palace building from a distance, which looked very large right in the middle of the capital.

 Although the distance is still quite far, but soon, the horse-drawn carriage they are riding will arrive at the Nexus Royal Palace. The distance from the main gate of the capital to the Royal Palace, it will take approximately half an hour, Gard advised Dragon to sit relax, and not be too tense because soon they will arrive at their destination. So in the remaining time, Gard also advised Dragon to tidy up the clothes he was wearing.

 Meanwhile, in Togu City, in a dark place which is an unused warehouse. At first the atmosphere was very quiet there because there were no people at all, but suddenly several people began to enter the place, namely three people from the front door, and two people from the back door. They all came at the same time, so a total of five people had come to the place.

 Apparently these people were not strangers to us, they were Gill, Tatsui, and Glauss who had come from the front door. Meanwhile, those who came from the back door were Kalpen and Zhoei. It seems that their meeting there was arranged by Glauss, because he has a super smell so he can find the whereabout of Kalpen and Zhoei to ask for help regarding the task given by Dragon to them. And that dark place was the meeting location that Glauss had prepared for all of them to gather.

 Even though their meeting there was a bit awkward, they tried to act casual, especially Zhoei.

 "I never thought we could meet again, and why should we meet in a place like this?" Zhoei asking in a haughty tone.

 "Do not be like that." Kalpen said warning Zhoei.

 Then Tatsui started handing a bag of money to the two of them, “Here, the 50 gold pieces that were promised to you, because you guys are already willing to come here ... And I will add 50 more gold pieces if you can bring us to infiltrate the Nexus Royal Capital ... That's the deal. " Said Tatsui.

 Then Kalpen and Zhoei paused for a moment while staring at each other. “Hmm… Indeed, that's the deal that Glauss passed on to us. But actually we didn't come here for the sake of money. But we are interested in what you guys will do in the capital, are you guys going to do something bad there? You're know that we are the fugitives hunter, right? ” Kalpen said to the three of them, with feeling a little suspicious.

 Then Glauss whispered to Gill and Tatsui, " I told you, asking them for help is a bad idea." Glauss said.

 Then Gill started talking to Kalpen and Zhoei, "Uhm ... We can't tell you the real reason in detail, the money also includes the cost of keeping your mouth shut for good, anyway, all you have to do is take us in and out of there. safely ... We have to settle a business that requires the role of my weapons and the abilities of Glauss there. You know that the security in the Nexus Kingdom's fortress is very tight, and we don't have special permission to use our power within the Capital area. If we enter officially there, then I have to entrust my weapons to the guards, while Glauss will be put on a power restraint necklace, so that he can't use his strength there, and it will be very troublesome for us ... So, we really need your help to sneak us in, without being detected. And of course we also offer money for your services. " Gill said explaining to the two of them.

 "Hmm ... After the bad things that both of us did to you, why did you trust us to be asked for help?" Kalpen asked them.

 Then Tatsui answered. “Honestly, because you two are the only hope for us right now to be able to infiltrate the Nexus Capital's territory. We don't have any bad intentions towards the Nexus Kingdom, we just want to help our friends who are having a hard time there, we need to retrieve some of the items stored in the Royal Capital, that's all, please trust us ... Didn't you ever say, that as a child you and your sister used to work for a smuggler, therefore we are sure that you can take us into the Nexus Royal Capital without getting caught, so once again, I beg you to help us ..." Said Tatsui to Kalpen and Zhoei.

 "Yes please, come on ... Do you think a great Knight like myself, who has saved countless lives, would do something bad to the Nexus Kingdom?" Asked Glauss with a little arrogance.

 "Hmm ... Right.." Answer Kalpen.

 Then Glauss continued. “I'm doing this for the sake of a friend who is having a hard time. Actually he doesn't want to put other people in dangerous risk either, but he doesn't know who else to ask for help, because right now he is carrying a very heavy burden on him, besides that he also can't explain it to anyone because of some reason. reasons we don't know yet ... But right now, he really needs our help ... When I saw the look on his face, at that moment I began to realize that we are the only hope for him, so I want to be someone that he can rely on !! " Said Glauss.

 "Don't talk out loud!" Said Tatsui while elbowing Glauss in the stomach, until Glauss was in pain.

 "You are just quoting my words." Gill said to Glauss.

 Then Zhoei started talking to the three of them. "Is the person you mean was Dragon?" Zhoei asked.

 "No- no ... I didn't say that the person I meant was Dragon." Glauss said nervously.

 "Yeah, there's no point lying to you either." Gill answered hesitantly.

 Then Kalpen said. "To be honest, I envy Dragon ... Just a few days in Togu City, he has already made good friends like you guys ... While we who have lived here for years, don't even have friends at all ... And I realized, that it was all due to our haughty nature, while Dragon made friends out of his caring ... We have learned a lot from him, Therefore, we will show you that we have changed, we will help you. "

 Whereas Zhoei said, "Hmm ... I don't know and don't want to know about the business Dragon has to do inside the Nexus Royal Palace, or about the tasks he gives you, none of those things are matter to us ... But, as an act to make up for my mistake to him, then I am willing to help you guys. If it's only to escorting you in and out of the capital, it's an easy thing. " Zhoei said in a haughty tone.

 "Waah, I'm so happy ... I have been waiting for you to say those words." Kalpen said to his younger sister, followed by smiles from Gill and his friends.

 "Yeah, but don't be happy just yet. You still have to pay a fee for our services, even if it's only half the price. I think 50 gold coins is enough. " Said Zhoei.

 Then Tatsui immediately handed the money to Zhoei happily, then Kalpen spoke again to his sister with a sullen expression. "Eeeeh, why you do that? If we intend to help, we shouldn't be half-assed. We have to make up for our mistakes against them. " Said Kalpen.

 "Shut up, brother. We will use this money for business capital ... You really don't understand how to manage finances. " Zhoei said.

 "Heheh ... Yes, sorry." Kalpen replied to Zhoei.

 Finally they have agreed to help Gill and his friends infiltrate the Nexus Royal Capital without having to leave the weapons or strength they have. Because they would definitely need all the strength they had in order to seize Dragon Return's weapons, which were properly stored in the vault of the fort guard headquarters, in the territory of the Nexus Royal Capital.

 Not long after, Kalpen had prepared a floor plan or map of the Nexus Royal Capital, which he placed on top of a wooden box. While being illuminated by the light from a mini crystal ball, Kalpen tries to explain about the infiltration scheme they will carry out in the capital.

 “This red mark, is the location of the underground sewer, which drains dirty water from inside the capital to the outside of the fort. We can enter the capital's territory through there, but the water stream is so big and heavy that it can't be entered by ordinary humans, but the two of us can handle it. " Said Kalpen.

 "Wow, I never thought that you guys found out about this route. How tight is the security of a large fortress or main gate? ” Tatsui asked Kalpen.

 "From the start of guard, inspection, and detection sensors. Even the entire sky of the Nexus Royal Capital was covered by some kind of invisible magical dome. The function of the dome is as a barrier for anyone with teleportation power, so that they cannot easily enter through the barrier. So even if we have very powerful teleportation power, we still won't be able to use it to enter the capital's territory. So, our best chance is the underground sewer.” Said Zhoei.

 Then Kalpen continued to explain. "And this yellow mark, is your destination. That is the headquarters of the fort guard force ... That's where the three of you will carry out your mission, while the two of us will be waiting at the pick-up point to take you back to Togu City, through the underground sewer. " Said Kalpen.

 "Yes, very good." Gill said.

 "Somehow I got really excited!" Said Glauss with a smile.

 "Okay, let's do it." Said Gill to all of them, while inviting them to go and carry out the task given by Dragon.