Chương 62: Finding a Haven

Ezra slept and dreamt of the time he attempted to go out of the castle to see the city.

"Sire, what are you doing?" Evan calmly asked. He saw the little lord scale the wall, he casually asked. This was already the third time he tried to go out of the castle the in the past six months, he was already accustomed to it but this was the first time he had successfully gone this far. The first time Ezra did it he was stunned but he remembered that this child was not normal at all.

"Uhh I'm going out to see Bren," Ezra replied.

"Sire it is good to see your domain but Lady Blackfyre forbids you to go out"

"But I'm bored there is nothing to do here and tell the jester his jokes are lame." That day Ezra was forced to sit in front of the jester, Evan suggested it to Aerwyna because he was bored. However, what Ezra really wanted to do was conduct experiments, but he could not, the materials he needed were banned from him and he could only do a very limited amount of experimentation.

"Mother is such a killjoy you know. I can't do anything much. "

"That may be true but, Lord Ezra, but she is just looking out for you, the Lady loves you very much. Besides it is their responsibility to look after their heir. They want you to become a good Lord and the first step is protecting you, and training your character and what you value."

"What does have to do with me? I just want to do what I want and find out how the world works"

"Sire with your wit why not change how the world works? Nobles are high and mighty but I have seen the Lord and Lady work tirelessly to serve the people of their domain, they love the people and the people love them. Do you love the Lord and Lady, Lord Ezra?" Evan meant that he change society and not how nature works, he did not address what Ezra meant.

"Well, uh, I guess, I wouldn't want them to get hurt after all I know they try their best to help me. I really don't understand what love is."

"It is not meant to be understood Lord Ezra, It is meant to be felt. Love is helping another person, love is seeking to do good for another even if one is troubled by it. Love is unselfish. Love is concern."

Ezra was lost in thought. On earth he wasn't really too concerned with emotions but somehow here, he felt that it was easier to feel joy, sorrow, pain, pleasure that is why boredom took a toll on him.

"I see," Ezra paused and contemplated for a bit," have you ever been in love Evan?"

Evan started turning red.

"Well, I'll tell you. If you get down from there,"

"Okay then." Ezra hopped down and sat in front of Evan

"I do have someone I love, she was a milkmaid," Evan smiled.

"Oh?" Ezra was curious to know the details of the life of the person who guarded him. "Tell me more."

"She had flaxen hair, beautiful eyes and a warm smile, she would tell me off for the slightest things. She was kind-hearted but terrible when angered," Evan shuddered uncontrollably when he said this," but she was my world." Evan closed his eyes at the end of his statement.

"What's her name?"

"Her name was Carwen, she was my mother," Evan sighed as he looked at the distance.

"What? That's gross," Ezra thought that incest was acceptable in this world, he himself objected at such practices and thus retorted.

"Hahaha," Evan laughed. "I did say I have someone I love, not really someone I am in love with,"

"No fair! You caught me with semantics."

"Well, my mother was a commoner I truly loved her even though sometimes she gave me a hard time, but my father, well, he was probably Lady Aerwyna's uncle. He forced himself on mother. He made her life hard by forcing her to have me."

"Mother is your cousin? So you're my uncle? Wow. Shall I call you Uncle Evan?"

"Nay, Lord Ezra, I can't claim kinship with the Lady, I am a bastard after all."

"That's stupid, I think whatever happens family should still be family. You know what? Maybe I'll change how this stupid country is run someday."

"Haha, very well Lord Ezra' I look forward to seeing that day come. Every person has goals and aspirations, feelings of love pain and joy, you should seek to provide them that just like the Lord and Lady provide for you and their domain. "

. . .

The men were surrounded but Evered's quick wit made it so that he cast [Earth Wall] at the approaching shadows. This brought them time to charge forward as Rycharde charged through the door with his war hammer, hitting the knight who cast a bolder squarely in the chest.

Deimos and Phobos quickly exited the building to secure the perimeter as the bandits rushed. Their whips snapped on the heads of the on comers. Rycharde smashed the face of the caster ending his life as his head splattered.

Evan just stood guarding the still sleeping Ezra readying for any oncoming attack from either side.

Galwell and Dynham charged forward as they hacked their way through. Some village knights were responding to the commotion and sent [Stone Bullets] fly hitting some of the bandits. The rouges slightly retreated and the party pushed through the opening, dashing toward the administrative district.

There were more shadows tailing them, and Ezra was swaying to and fro on Evan's back as they ran. Deimos and Phobos covered the rear and Oswyna and Evered held their long weapons in front to guard against oncoming attacks.

Thankfully the bandits that were attacking seemed to be weak compared to knights but what they were worried about was the Shadow Walkers chasing them. With their magic slowly depleting it was going to be a hard battle if they were caught somewhere there was little lighting. They still hadn't fully recovered their mana.

Evan, on the other hand, had still quite some reserves as he had been taught how to limit mana usage and use it only on key parts. He was a quick study and he had applied what Ezra taught though in a limited capacity and it was not as efficient as he wanted.

Evan hoped to go to the administrative district and present Reitz's token so that he could get help from the baron, but he was hesitant because it might reveal his allegiance to the Duke and would put the party in even more danger.

Right now their priority was to protect their Lord Ezra and survive.

As the shadows approached, Rycharde shot [Fireballs] at them just so that they would be pushed back. When they reached the district they were slightly relieved.

But then an arrow shot toward them coming from the rooftops, hitting Galwell in the stomach as he flinched. The knights in the administrative district were fully alert now and they tried to shoot back at the sniper.

Galwell scrunched.

"Don't worry I'm okay guys"

The others surrounded him readying for the oncoming onslaught by the assailants.