Magic, Love, Family Pt. 04

Author's Note: It is a fictional tale. All characters engaging in sexual activities are over the age of 18 years.

This is the fourth part in the series. I would advise first time readers to read the previous parts before reading this one. Do refer to the glossary and maps, in chapter zero, they will make things clearer.

In this chapter, we follow Raymond as he leaves Ryhor and travels to Ostorth. As with the previous part, it's a bit light on the sexual content.

Please take a look at the maps in the glossary or from my profile page.

Enjoy

(Un-Edited)

***

Scene 1

A wooden carriage was travelling on an empty road under the thin forest canopy. The light drifting through was refracted by the misty haze as it illumined the path. It was enough at the moment that no lamps were required, but the light was receding, ever so inevitably. The coachman expertly held the reins of the two horses, his face stern. The distant noises of beasts didn't faze him one bit, and his eyes remained vigilant for any sudden trouble. Four guards on the sides of the carriage rode close to it, maintaining a constant speed.

The carriage could by no means be called huge; however, it appeared large enough for a speedy and comfortable journey if there was only a couple of people inside. Nonetheless, it shouldn't be a concern because the narrow road on which it had been travelling was well maintained, though it didn't look as special as the one in the big cities of the south and the west. Only a few pebbles to its edges were visible and that took a much closer inspection than was necessary. It was a given in this case, as the road was the only one between the two cities of Ryhor and Purvoth.

"Halt!" A stern voice echoed.

The coachman pulled on the reins and the carriage slowed to a stop on the guard captain's command. Apart from the coachman, the three guards, along with the guard captain, dismounted their horses. The guard captain swiftly covered the few meters of distance between his position and the carriage and then briskly knocked on its door.

*Knock*Knock*

"Sir Raymond!"

A minute or so later, when a strikingly handsome young man alighted from the carriage, the guard captain greeted him in a polite tone. The dark haired man, covered in a full-body-armor, nodded as he observed the surroundings.

"Captain Fjord!"

"Reporting! We are a kilometer away from the Purvoth base."

"Hmmm..."

Raymond deeply inhaled the misty air. He had been inside the carriage for quite a while and took time to stretch himself. Bending down, he stroked the slightly damp earth and hummed contentedly as he felt the richness of the soil. Since the day he had awakened to the earth attribute, he had felt a renewed appreciation and connection to the earth and his surroundings. He couldn't explain the feeling itself, but he knew that it felt strangely comforting whenever he made contact with the surface. It was as if he had met someone whom he had missed for a long time.

Raymond straightened his back slowly, his gaze fixed on the patch of earth. The neighing of the nearby horses broke his stupor. He took a cursory glance towards the setting sun before he turned to his left and commented, "we shall stay in the base. If we go inside the city, then we might be late tomorrow."

"Yes, Sir Raymond!"

"We can't be more delayed than this..." Raymond added as he turned towards the carriage.

Captain Fjord acknowledged the command and waited for Raymond to board the carriage before he took his place at the head of the party and signaled to follow along behind him.

...

"Hah! The time passed by so quickly!"

Raymond slumped onto the cushions. His shoulders felt stiff from the long journey. It had been a couple of days since he left Ryhor. The journey to Ostorth proved tedious for him, sitting in that small space and spending last night in the wild. One had to pass through Purvoth if they wanted to travel from Ryhor to Ostorth, and it took two whole days if they rushed their travel. It was on Raymond's command that they had slowed down on the way.

"Fucking infuriating! I couldn't even celebrate my awakening properly..."

Raymond was not at all glad that he had to leave Ryhor to meet his mother. He had delayed it for as long as he could, and his only solace was the fact that he would be getting something out of it. Something incredible, much in the likes of the absurdly big magic stone given to him by his gorgeous cousin.

"Miranda! So awesome..."

He let out a sigh and glanced at the nearly depleted magic stone. Throughout the journey, he had been absorbing the concentrated magic power contained in it to increase his own mana. The effect was far better than he had imagined. He had already become a full-fledged 2-star level awakened warrior, one who was near to evolving his mana pool for the third time.

"Using money to gain power is awesome!"

Raymond had completed the second evolution of his magic pool last night after they had halted for the night at a predetermined place. The five people with him were a little shocked when he had started to laugh maniacally in the middle of the night.

"Hmm... but they didn't look as surprised by it as I would have thought..."

Captain Fjord, in particular, had seemed like he was used to such scenes, and that didn't sit well with Raymond.

"He shouldn't have the money for it. The same goes for the other captains in the base, then why..."

Raymond had been in a terrific mood because of his rapid progression. He had always felt weak and out of place in his family of super powerful women. It wasn't because he was the only male, which was quite strange in itself; he had become used to that reality a long time ago. The thing that always haunted him though, was that he was the only one who hadn't awakened and thus was the weakest among them. He couldn't help but feel ashamed, embarrassed, or even unworthy whenever he stopped to compare himself with his sister and cousins.

"Hmmm... maybe Rose and Lily too used magic stones to raise their levels?"

That was a sobering thought. Raymond clenched the dimly shining magic in his fist. He wanted to become strong and do it right then; he couldn't afford to wait any longer. For far too long, he had been the black sheep, and the thought that it would forever remain the same made him a bit despair. He felt like punching a hole in the wall as he thought about the wide gap between his current self and Miranda, his ultimate goal.

"Fuck! I have to become strong at any cost!"

Raymond had a determined look on his face as he gritted his teeth.

"No matter what! I will become the strongest and..."

***

Scene 2

Ostorth: the capital of Gelodesh.

Raymond peeked out from the little window on the side after he pulled aside the curtains. The city was much the same as he remembered it. He hadn't been back in the capital since he left for Ryhor all those years ago. As the carriage passed by a few familiar places, he reminisced, with a smile on his face, about the days of his childhood spent in the city.

"Ryhor is far better..." he muttered longingly.

Obviously, as a city itself, Ostorth was far superior in comparison to Ryhor. The size, the population, the riches, everything was a notch above here in Ostorth. The houses and streets seemed much cleaner, devoid of snow. There weren't as many people wearing armor and wielding weapons. The guards inside seemed a little less vigilant, so did the people in whole, owing to the fact that the distance with the Northern Forest made it highly unlikely for a prime beast to wander inside.

Raymond, though, felt much more comfortable and loved in the smaller of the two places. It was as if he had arrived in an alien place. Although life in Ryhor was extremely tough and, not just for the general public, it was fulfilling. He had some problems, but they had nothing to do with Ryhor. He loved that place, the place where he grew up, found love... the place where he awakened.

"Sigh..."

His heart felt melancholic, and he laughed at that.

"I have only just left there. It hasn't been even a week..." Raymond muttered to himself and tried to cheer himself up by thinking about his recent success in training his magic.

Gradually, though, as the carriage passed through the wide streets and towards the sparsely populated but heavily guarded area, his mood worsened. The palace became visible, and Raymond snorted in derision of its showiness.

"What a bunch of..."

The kingdom of Gelodesh wasn't a wealthy kingdom. The royalty, the nobles and the people accepted that fact because of the harsh geographical conditions and the threat from the Northern Forest. And apart from the few tribes, the residents of the kingdom looked favorably upon their rulers. The rulers along with the noble class also made sure and never tried to exploit the poor people. They did everything to make the life of the people that much easier. The only exception was the large and grand palace, which looked extremely out of place in comparison to the rest of the capital.

"I will never understand what they were thinking when they built it... then again the style of architecture is also very different and glitzy... it doesn't make sense at all!"

The carriage came to a stop just outside the large entrance. The little commotion caused by the greeting party as they gathered near it, was the signal for Raymond to alight from his carriage.

"Yo!" A heavy yet melodic voice resounded which turned everybody silent.

Raymond followed the voice instinctively, and what greeted him was the sight of an incredibly eye-catching woman. She had a mocking smile on her beautiful oval face as she gazed straight at him. Her fiery red hair was tied in a long ponytail and there was a sword fastened to her hips. The brown, leather jacket, draped over her white shirt, fluttered in the gentle wind. Much like her hair, her figure was fiery, big breasts, thin waist, and long legs to die for.

She was sat on one of the pillars supporting the heavy iron gate and had dangled her left leg from it. While the right leg was bent at the knee and held tight to her breast, mashing them sexily. Unexpectedly she jumped down and made a beeline for Raymond. The clacking noise of her boots, matched with the tight, brown, leather pants, was the only noise in the surrounding until Raymond spoke airily.

"... Rose!"

"Yo, Ray!" Rose hugged him deeply before she playfully bopped his head. "Finally awakened huh!"

The happiness that Raymond had felt on seeing her vanished in an instant. He pushed her hands away as he glanced at the dumbstruck surrounding and chided in a serious tone, "Can't you behave modestly? We aren't in Ryhor anymore."

"Ooh! Little Ray Ray got his feelings hurt!" Rose laughed uproariously and then put her arm around and Raymond. She waved at the people, signaling them to disperse as she dragged an unwilling Raymond inside and towards the direction of the audience chamber.

"Just bear with it for the time being. I will bring you to buy a new sword afterwards." Rose whispered in his ear in a calming voice unlike her previous playful self.

***

Scene 3

Raymond stood in the center of a large hall. The hall was airy and well lit by the rays of the sun coming in from the open windows in the three directions. The place was adorned with purple colored drapes. The long carpet running the length of the hall from the entrance right up to the throne, placed on a beautiful dais, was also purple in color. The throne looked as if it was made out of gold, but Raymond knew that it wasn't the case in actuality. All in all, the court looked extremely glorious.

"What a waste of resources!" Raymond clicked his tongue.

He felt a lot of annoyed gazes directed at him. However, as he glanced around the hall and the people averted their eyes from him.

A bunch of pussies! Raymond scoffed at them. Not all of the nobles attending the court were awakened as the number of those were truly too few, although Gelodesh had a higher number of them. Raymond didn't want to mix with those nobles as he didn't seem it worthy of his time. Miranda was next in line for the throne, and he couldn't care less for it anyhow.

He gazed at the two rows of seats, lined opposite to each other and on the sides of the wide carpet, were meant for the nobles and the royal court members. Right now, there were a number of empty seats nearer to the entrance. However, the ones close to the dais were all occupied, and a man who was stood the closest to the dais met Raymond's gaze.

Ian Wilson or Old Man Wilson as Raymond liked to call him, the head of the Wilson family, looked at him with a kind smile on his face. Ian was a powerful awakened of 7-star level, and a well-respected military expert of the Gelodesh Kingdom. The Wilson family had a history of producing long lines of powerful military strategists and Ian was one of the most outstanding among them. He was a very free-spirted man but, was fiercely loyal to the Tygrines and their royal authority.

"Old Man! I see you're in high spirits as always!" He strolled to him and called out.

"Your Highness!" Ian laughed and did a small bow to Raymond. "It's a very joyous day. After such a long time I get to meet you, and you have already awakened your attribute. So of course, I'm in high spirits," he said and then laughed boomingly once more.

Raymond shook his head and acted exasperated. He liked the old man. Although he called him old man, the man didn't look a day older than forty-five-years. The awakened with each increase in their star-level would become stronger, and as a result, their bodies would too. Thus, it was quite difficult to tell their age by looking at their appearance. The higher the star-level, the more youthful and long lived one was, that was a common knowledge in the continent.

"Where is Rose? Have you seen her?" Raymond asked after they went back and forth with each other. Rose, had left him alone right at the entrance of the chamber after dragging him through the hallways. He was a little pissed at her for that. She had left saying that she would take only a minute, but he knew better to believe in her words.

"I think Lady Rose is with Her Majesty the Queen..."

"What!? When did she get there?"

Raymond was confused but he didn't have to wait long to find his answer. Rose sauntered inside the hall and winked playfully before she bumped him lightly as she stood beside him. The arrogant look on her face irked Raymond immensely at that moment.

"What the fuck! Where were you?" He hissed by her ear.

"Little Ray Ray can't handle being alone, yeah?"

"I told you not to call me that!"

"Ooh, Little Ray Ray is a big man now!"

Raymond clenched his teeth and whispered, "Do you want me to show you?"

"Hehe," Rose giggled for a moment. "Now that you've awakened I won't go easy on you..." A wicked aura enveloped her as she said those words. Raymond could only gulp in a breath seeing his cousin like that.

While they were bickering among themselves, the few voices around them fell silent all of a sudden. The people around them had all bent their knees. Raymond hurriedly looked to his front and saw his mother about to take her place at the throne.

She looked as gorgeous and as solemn as ever. Her lustrous, long, blonde hair were fastened in a braided bun and it highlighted the regal look of hers. The royal garbs, a mix of gold and purple, didn't give much hint to her body, however, Raymond knew she had all the traits of a strong awakened. Her face looked a lot like Lily, and nothing like him.

"Your Majesty!" Raymond bent his knee to express his respects. From the corner of his eyes he noticed Rose shaking her head at him. The lamenting expression on her face irked him to no extent.

"Rise."

Raymond and the rest of the people arose and gazed forward. The Queen, Samantha, glanced at them and then gestured to take their seats. Raymond nearly had a mind to kick at Rose who was doing a very poor job of holding back her laughter. In actuality, Raymond didn't need to bow or bend his knee before the queen. As a royalty of Gelodesh Kingdom, though he didn't have a lot of perks, it was one of the few he could enjoy.

"So clumsy! Why do you insist on making a fool of yourself?!" Rose's whisper evoked some gloomy and lonely memories. He already didn't like the stuffy atmosphere in Ostorth and the weirdness of his mother, who had yet to meet his gaze or say any words to him, added to it.

She's just a lesser version of Aunt Suzy...

Raymond comforted himself with that thought. They were twins, Suzanne and Samantha, and looked quite similar to each other, unlike Rose and Miranda. However, Raymond always felt that Suzanne was the more beautiful, sexy, capable and warm of the two. Turbulent, couldn't begin to describe his relation with his mother, and he had given up on remedying it.

"Son, it's wonderful that you have awakened your attribute..."

"Thank you for the kind words, your majesty!" Raymond replied stiffly. He gazed at his mother there was slight hint of joy on her face but nothing more than that. It was a stark contrast from the reactions of the rest of his family, Rose included.

Even now, her vision seemed to be more on Rose to his side than him. It was as if she was purposefully avoiding facing him, and he couldn't understand the reason behind it. Nevertheless, it didn't bother him as much as he thought it would. Although he would've liked it very much if his mother would treat him as well as she did his twin or his cousins, he had outgrown her at this point.

"Rose, I expect you to handle that thing..." Samantha said with a smile on her face.

"Leave it to me, Aunt Sam!" Rose loudly answered as she nodded and thumped Raymond's back. It would've been far unusual or horrible if it was other than Rose who had acted disrespectfully like that, but the people in the hall were used to such scenes.

Raymond understood that it was an indirect signal for him to take his leave. He wryly smiled to himself and did a quick bow. "Your Majesty!"

Without sparing a glance to his mother, he turned around and walked out after that, and thus missed out the complicated gaze that streaked through her eyes.

...

Raymond, a little distracted, was just about to exit the palace gates when Rose rushed in front and glared at him.

With her arms on her waist, she spoke in an admonishing tone, "why can't you be a little less stiff?! You are an awakened now! Miranda spoiled you too much!"

Raymond returned her glare with a ferocious look of his own. He was beyond pissed off by her constant egotistic acts. Before he could launch into a furious rant though, Rose sighed heavily and hugged him close to her breasts.

"Forget it... I'm sorry! Let's go, we have a lot of things to do!"

***

Scene 4

"Henry Trading Association, huh?" Raymond muttered. He sighed contemplatively as he gazed at the impressive and imposing nature of the shop. Rose had brought him here and he was looking forward to what she'd had in mind.

It had been a few hours since they had been messing about and roaming around in the city. He was in a fine mood. Rose was extremely fun, and he sometimes forgot how entertaining and enjoyable it was to spend time with her.

However, he hadn't forgotten about the purpose of his visit to Ostorth. In the few hours together with Rose, he had pestered her to no end. Although she refused to reveal anything about it, by the impish look on her face, he guessed that it was definitely something special. The jealous grumbles she let out from time to time, reaffirmed his thought.

At least mother didn't skimp out on it, so there's that... Raymond had been apprehensive to see his mother. He was a little disappointed after their public meeting but wasn't all that surprised by it.