Kapitel 32: A Cursed Village

A faint light streamed at the turning of the tunnel.

Nesrin smiled, a sense of relief washed over her as she almost ran towards the light. Something felt odd, but she was too tired to think about that.

As soon as she reached the corner, her feet froze.

In front of her, a vast deep blue sky stretched over the horizon. The fresh morning wind gushed past her.

"This...this is not where we are supposed to be...."

Nesrin whispered and looked back at Izekiel with a confused look. He was as lost as her and couldn't understand where things went wrong.

There was an enormous ocean that lay in front of them, its waves raged and recoiled with intensity.

"Esmeria...doesn't have an ocean anywhere near, right?" Nesrin's eyes turned.

"The closest ocean is fifty miles away from the capital," Izekiel stepped down upon the debris of rocks and towards the small land.

"How is that even possible?" Nesrin followed him outside.

After walking a little on the land, opposite the ocean, they noticed a distant shadow of some town or village.

"The tunnel of your bedchamber had not been used or maintained in centuries. Magical mechanics requires proper maintenance or it works wayward,"

"At least there is a town, we can just ask for some help,"

Izekiel glanced at, a small mischievous glint clear in his eyes. Nesrin subconsciously stepped away from him. His fingers started to unbutton his coat.

"We will not ask for help, but use this chance wisely...." his hands unbuckled his golden belt.

Nesrin's face switched between white and red.

"Your majesty, what are you doing?!"

Izekiel placed a finger on her lips and gestured towards some fishermen in the distance.

"They must not hear you say this-"

"But how can you-" Nesrin took in a deep shaky breath to calm her racing heart, "-this is not the time for that. It's not good for an emperor to disappear...they all must be worried..."

Izekiel's eyes changed, he blinked once before his lips pulled into a playful smirk.

He leaned slightly closer and asked,

"Is her highness suggesting we do that after going back to the palace?"

Nesrin forced her face to not turn red anymore but failed. How can she not be so flustered when he was so close?

Izekiel tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear, his touch was tender as it traced down to her lips and as he made her heart waver, his eyes didn't leave hers.

The teasing light within them made Nesrin flustered and annoyed both.

A few minutes ago, he was emitting a cold aura that could freeze anyone and all of sudden he turned into a mischievous devil.

Nesrin wondered which one was his real self.

Izekiel let out a soft chuckle and pulled back, he had dumped his coat and all the accessories in a corner.

All that remained was his white loose shirt and black pants.

"We shall become covert, hide our identities and learn more about what's happening in this part of the empire,"

"...oh,"

Nesrin was dumbfounded.

She cleared her throat and nodded,

"His majesty's idea is indeed impressive,"

This way, they can better understand the unrest of the empire. It would also save them from any potential assassins.

Nesrin had no doubt that at this point, Izekiel's enemies would have spread even among the commoners.

She had trust in his powers, she knew that he could easily kill any rival but the more he used his powers, the more his demon would grow bigger.

"It's easier to trust someone who stands on a similar social status as you," Izekiel said, "This will help in easily getting information,"

"Mn,"

"How am I looking?"

Despite being in plain clothes, Izekiel didn't completely look like anything less than a royal.

"Let me just..." Nesrin raised on her toes and ruffled his hair roughly, "better,"

Izekiel watched her with astonished eyes, he almost looked offended when Nesrin caught him off guard.

"Don't you ever do that again..." he warned with a low, deep voice.

The warmth in his eyes flickered with something cold.

Nesrin's face showed him a flutter of fear, after a long time.

Izekiel smiled a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes before asking her to change as well and turning away.

Nesrin slowly looked at her hand.

Something didn't feel right.

But she couldn't understand it, more like, she didn't want to understand the reason.

Nesrin discarded her gown as well, for it would definitely gain attention. Inside, she was wearing a chemise.

It was, in a way, an undergarment but it covered her completely and if Nesrin was back in her old world she could have even worn this as a nice dress.

They walked towards the group of fishermen.

There was a small commotion, a few grown-ups surrounded a small boy as they laughed at him for some reason.

"What will you do, you say? This place is ours! You can not fish here!"

"You are not going away by stealing what belongs to us!"

"Scram!"

"What's happening?" Izekiel interrupted the villagers, the natural authority in his voice silenced everyone at once.

The villagers exchanged glances before one of them stepped out.

"You are not from here, who are you?"

"...a travelling magus," Izekiel glanced at the small boy and motioned him to come forward.

The other three men realized that they were clearly looking like offenders. None of them could use magic and so they knew it wouldn't be good to be on the bad side of a magus.

"There is a shortage in the village, we can not have someone like that-"

A loud rumble from the ocean made them pause and quickly turn around. Izekiel folded his hands, as a violet glow swirled over the water and the waves washed hundreds of fishes and sea animals on the shore.

"Your m-"

"Don't call me that here," Izekiel said in a low voice,

"what about laying low?" she whispered to him.

Izekiel said nothing.

The fishermen forgot about all their issues and gaily hurried towards the shore.

"Go," Nesrin smiled and gestured at the boy.

He hesitated for a bit before rushing away.

"I must express gratitude to you now, sir!" a villager smiled and approached Izekiel.

The boy ran past the man and nudged at Nesrin's skirt.

"Let's hurry! I will show you around the village!"

"Hey, brat!" the villager shouted.

But Izekiel and Nesrin had decided to follow the boy instead.

"I am Jakes!" he said, and enthusiastically began to chat about some random topics.

"Don't follow him, my lord!" a voice shouted, "You will be cursed as well!"

Nesrin glanced back.

The villagers gathered together as they whispered something among themselves.

"They are liars..." Jakes murmured, grabbing the fish basket close to him, "All of them are liars..."

They soon reached the village, but it was different from what they had expected. It was humble, a lot of people looked malnourished and unhealthy.

An eerie gloomy aura had settled in the air.

Izekiel's eyes turned deep and dark as he took in the view around him.

"Take me to the village head," he said.

Jakes looked brightly back at him, he had an innocent heart that became sad too easily, and too easily it became happy.

"My mother is the village head!" he exclaimed with pride in his eyes.

Nesrin frowned.

Why would the son of the village head be treated so badly?

Perhaps he was illegitimate or shunned by his own family. There was no other way some adult men would bully a kid who seemed to be no older than ten.

Jakes took them to a humble house, which was probably one of the best in the village. It was beautiful, but the neglect was clear.

The boy climbed up the stairs and knocked on the door with quick urgent knocks.

When the doors opened, Nesrin froze.

AUTORENGEDANKEN
Alancaster

Hello!

I hope everyone is doing great.

My finals are nearing and so I must focus upon them now. The updates will be inconsistent for a few days but once I have created a proper writing and studying schedule, I will post proper regular updates.

Thanks for all your support!