Chapter 4: Returning to the Imperial Capital

After an hour. Outside the Blue Tiger Mercenary Headquarters.

"Oye! Look at the sky!" A random person exclaimed.

"Where?" A passerby stopped in his tracks and questioned.

In the sky, a big silhouette could be seen above the clouds.

"It... it's a Dragon!!" Another person exclaimed.

"The Dragon's going to destroy the town, everyone run!" That person who exclaimed first fled in fear upon seeing such a silhouette.

"Idiot, that's a Wyvern!" Another knowledgeable person commented after seeing the silhouette come down from above the clouds.

The Wyvern's wingspan stretched twelve meters long. It looked long-faced with a set of razor-sharp teeth in its mouth. Its tail thrashed around, creating gusts of wind that threw the people who were near off their footing.

On its back was a middle-aged man dressed in shiny red armor. His face was valiant with vigor, and he exuded an aura that was capable of suppressing almost all of the people below him. 

Hence, none dared to shout at him.

He scanned the area and spotted the Blue Tiger Mercenary sign on a building. He promptly headed towards that building. The Wyvern then complied and landed in front of the Blue Tiger Mercenary Headquarters.

"Captain of the Imperial Guards, Renard Nolan, orders the Captain of the Blue Tiger Mercenaries to come out!" That man then shouted out loud, which shocked many people because of the fact that the man on the Wyvern belonged to the Imperial Guards.

"What is the Captain of the Imperial Guard doing out here?" Many people started whispering to others.

It wasn't just a random Imperial Guard but the Captain! If someone said there wasn't anything going on, then they wouldn't believe it even if they were tortured!

The members of the Blue Tiger Mercenaries didn't dare to lash back at him. They could only wait in silence as they waited for their Captain to show up.

To their luck, the Captain hurriedly came out of the building and swiftly bowed to the Captain of the Imperial Guard, Renard Nolan.

"Noel of the Blue Tiger Mercenaries, at your service!" Noel inwardly sweated. 

Such a powerful person had come directly to their mercenary group!

He thought to himself, 'Woah, our Empire sure is establishing their authority all over the land!'

They didn't even bother to give him any face.

'Actually, why would they?' Noel mocked himself.

"Mhm, is Grey-" Before Renard Nolan can finish his sentence, he saw a male figure exit the building with a child on his back.

Renard Nolan glanced at Noel and uttered with a satisfied glint in his eyes, "Good, you will surely be rewarded with plentiful riches!"

"It's been a long time, Ray!" He smiled.

Hearing the familiar and comforting voice, a smile crept upon Ray Nolan's face as well.

"Yes, brother!"

Then the both of them bear-hugged casually and laughed heavily in an uproarious tone.

"Is the Imperial Prince fine?" 

Renard Nolan's expression slightly turned anxious.

"...Yes, as you can see." Ray Nolan glanced at his back as he said. He then pursed his lips and inwardly cried as he thought back to the past two years, 'How am I supposed to say that the Imperial Prince was in a coma from the moment he was entrusted to me?'

Renard Nolan heaved a heavy sigh and nodded his head, "Alright, let's leave this place then."

"Please do, I'm sick of this lifestyle." Ray Nolan laughed loudly, not displaying his worry.

He then turned his head back and saw those misfits he had been together in these two years.

"If you encounter any trouble, head to the Nolan family and mention my name, Ray Nolan." Ray Nolan smiled as he bid farewell, "See you later, Noel." 

Noel just stood there dumbfounded by this revelation. He thought to himself, 'All of them are big guys, and these two are from the Nolan Noble Family... I've struck it rich!'

When both of the brothers got on the Wyvern, Noel shouted, "Don't forget your words Grey, no, Ray!"

"I won't..." Ray Nolan smirked.

He had an amicable relationship with Noel other than the fact that he was rather protective of his nephew Mel, but that was to be expected. He was still willing to treat him with respect.

The Wyvern then flew to the skies heading towards the Imperial Capital.

======

Six hours later.

A huge wall could be seen in the distance. The walls were over sixty meters tall.

"Finally, we reached the Imperial Capital with the help of this speedy Wyvern!" Ray Nolan spoke joyfully. The two had a lot to talk about, so they chatted the whole way, disregarding Tian Long.

Meanwhile, Tian Long couldn't understand what they were saying, so he just gave up and enjoyed his first flight on the Wyvern. It was so fast, and the wind that slightly brushed past his face rather gave him a sense of exhilaration he hadn't experienced in a long while.

Perhaps, he even felt that the life-threatening spatial travel couldn't compare!

The air resistance he experienced would have rather thrown him off the Wyvern, but the two who were in front of him casually disregarded the air resistance and passively helped him defend it from erecting a barrier.

'Ahh, the air is so fresh in this world. The sceneries are so beautiful. Am I on vacation already?'

Tian Long felt that his choice to come to this world was the best one he had ever made. Luckily, his fate, which was usually terrible, didn't let him down this time, or that was at least how he felt.

He didn't know where he was headed to, nor did he know if he would be safe in the future, but since they treated him with care, he thought he would be safe with the two of them.

It's not like he could change his future right now, or do anything of significance in this wilderness below him, so he just went with the flow and didn't care to ponder a lot.

The Wyvern swiftly passed above the walls without any obstructions and headed to the Imperial Castle. It then landed below the main entrance of the Imperial Castle.

Numerous guards held their spears and grasped it tightly as they would always. They didn't even blink when the Wyvern landed in front of them, but they more or less displayed awe and respect within their eyes.

At the same time, they were confused as to who that emaciated, poor child was...

The trio then entered the Imperial Castle without any impediments, as if they were the masters of this Imperial Castle.

Tian Long could see the grandness of this place, and even without someone making him understand, he felt that he had arrived in some kind of royalty's residence. He also realized that he slightly had his mouth agape and closed it.

Feeling rather embarrassed, he thought, 'Is the child's young body influencing my emotions to a degree?'

In this short time of experiencing and witnessing many things after coming to his world, he felt that rather have a hard time controlling his emotions and the upheavals he felt wasn't anything small.

This made his suspect that the child's developing body might be influencing his already established calm emotions. 

However, this was a new world, and it could also be possible that the inhibitions he had on his mind in the modern world had all disappeared.

They arrived in front of the Throne Hall in a short time. Just as they were going to request the audience of the Emperor, the door opened, and a young woman with an extraordinary bearing came out with a worried expression on her face.

Tian Long was shocked when he saw this kingdom toppling beauty with luxurious and elegant bearings.

Her 170 centimeters tall figure captivated his eyes. Her skin fair, with almond royal purple eyes like two drops of wine, illuminated her eyes. Her wavy, waist-length blonde hair made her look gorgeous like an angel. Her face displayed a warm and graceful demeanor like a caring mother.

Even then, she possessed a perfectly refined body with curves at the right places, making her look a little mature.

The young woman looked toward the child who was in the middle, clasped hands with both the brothers. Her eyes widened in shock.

Her lips slightly went agape as she slowly started running towards the child, and hurriedly hugged him with all her affection.

"You're safe. You're safe, thank goodness, I'm sorry, I'm sorry that mother wasn't able to be with you all this time!" 

The young woman started shedding tears of joy as she intensely shivered.

Tian Long became dumbfounded as he felt being hugged by this woman. Even though he couldn't understand what she was saying, he could feel the warmth from the hug, which he never got to experience in his previous life.

'Is this woman, the mother of this child?' A thought encroached his mind.

Hearing the ravings from the mother of this child, he was again invaded by complex feelings of guilt and sadness. He didn't know why, but he almost couldn't hold his tears from falling.

He bit his lips and mused, 'Is this also because of the child's developing body?'

A young man, whose expression was full of joy for a fleeting moment can be seen behind the young woman who was currently hugging Tian Long.

He appeared to be 180 centimeters tall, his skin fair with royal sapphire eyes that radiated a regal aura. His wavy, waist-length black hair was lush as ink. His chin met with a short beard, and his shoulders were broad with some muscles making him look quite manly and handsome. In short, he had a medium build, and his face looked remarkably attractive to women.

"Finally, my son has returned safely!" That young man uttered in a deep tone, displaying his grandeur. He produced a serious expression on his face, but the sapphire pupils appeared moist.

The two brothers immediately got down on their knees, "We pay our respects to the Emperor and the Empress!" 

They shouted in unison.

"Good, stand up, follow me to the Throne..." The young man nodded and chose not to interfere with the mother and son reunion. Instead, he walked towards the Throne and sat down.

All of those who were in the Throne Hall bowed as they clasped hands to show respect to the Emperor. Many of them held positions in the Imperial Court, administrating the Empire's regions.

"Lift your heads! Ray Nolan, you've done a great task of protecting my son in the time of chaos. This Emperor will bestow you with the title of Duke, a Mid-Level Earth Rank City around the inner region, and 100 Purple Coins."

"It's my honor, your Majesty!" Ray Nolan obediently replied, but the reward he received rather made him feel that all his hardships were worth it!

Especially the Mid-Level Earth Rank City!

"Renard Nolan, you did a great job of escorting them back safely!"

"It's a given, your Majesty!" Renard replied with his head still inclined below, displaying his reverence and obedience.

At this time, the Empress walked into the throne hall carrying her child on her arms.

Observing the Empress, the Emperor nodded his head and cast a glance at his grown but emaciated child. He furrowed his brows and asked, "Ray Nolan, explain the events that took place when you were protecting my son."

"Yes, your Majesty." Ray Nolan nodded and explained the events that took place during his secret mission without hiding anything.

After approximately twenty minutes of explanation...

"And that's all, your Majesty!" Ray Nolan concluded his report.

"So… you are saying that my son just woke up three days ago?" 

Hearing the question from the Emperor that was filled with suspicion and coldness, beads of sweat started to form on Ray Nolan's face as he gulped.

[

Note: 3rd July 2020

I have made an enormous mistake...

Apparently, Emperors - Imperial

Kings - Royal

I've used royal for everything in the past but it isn't accurate. It's Imperial, and I would be editing it in the future. So, if you see 'royal' in the next chapters, please understand that it is interchangeable with 'Imperial'

Royal/Imperial

]

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