Supreme Magus novel Chapter 1673

"There will be no second attempt." Raaz shook his head. "They would have never dared to make a move against me if not for our prolonged absence."

"And my rocky relationship with the Crown." Lith added the part that his father had left out not to make him feel responsible. "I'm not a kid, Dad. You don't have to sugarcoat the truth for me."

"Correct." Raaz nodded. "You may not be a kid, but you'll always be my son. I know how heavy the burden you carry is despite all of your efforts to make it look as if it's nothing. You can't blame me for trying to help you however I can."

"Thanks, Dad." Lith said.

Raaz heard those precious words so rarely that they moved him, making him wish he could do more. Yet he kept walking, pretending that nothing had happened.

"Now that the sowing of my fields has started and with you being a hero again, making another move would be suicidal. Also, you have my word that if they do, I'll not stand in your way. Being good is one thing, being stupid is another."

After that, they didn't say another word until they reached Zekell's house.

They spent lunch talking with the blacksmith and telling him about all the marvels of the Desert while he brought Senton and Raaz up to speed about the most recent events.

"I'm not going to lie, Lutia's growth is good for business, but it's also a pain in the ass." Zekell said after sending out the children to play. "The newcomers blame Lith's enemies? for everything that goes wrong with their business and consider him a threat to their safety."

"This is ridiculous!" Raaz lost his composure, forcing Lith to calm him down. "Lutia has one of the lowest crime rates in the County thanks to the Queen's corps. It's only thanks to Lith that no noble dares to bully us and that none of our caravans get attacked even outside the city.

"Criminals are too afraid of retaliation from Lith or the army. On top of that, the Warp Gate in our barn allows the Kingdom to dispatch troops at a moment's notice. Our village- I mean, our city has never been safer!"

"You are right, but the other merchants see the Warp Gate as another unfair advantage. They claim that the least that Lith could do to compensate Lutia for living under the constant threat of an attack is to share the Gate with everyone so that they can make up for their losses ." Zekell said.

"What a bunch of ungrateful bastards!" Raaz snarled. "Son, I say it's time we go back to the Desert, this place is starting to sicken me. Don't forget about the promise to the children, though. Go fetch our ride, we'll wait here."

Raaz threw at Lith a meaningful glance to which he responded with a nod.

"I thought you brought the DoLorean with you." Zekell scratched his head in confusion. "Besides, Abominus and Onyx will never fit. Isn't it better to just Warp?"

"Not that kind of ride." Raaz said with a smug grin on his face. "You and your wife are invited."

The blacksmith had no idea what was happening, but after living for so long in Lutia he had stopped asking too many questions. After one surprise too many Zekell had grown numb to them.

Or so he thought until the Voidfeather Dragon landed on luminous platforms that appeared a few meters above his workshop.

His breath had the strength of a gust of wind and smelled of sulfur while his red scales glistened under the sun like giant rubies. The creature glared upon the city with his seven eyes, spreading a subtle aura of terror that made it impossible to talk.

"Get on. I don't have all day." Lith, or better, his life-like hologram said from the Dragon's back while sitting on a saddle and holding reins both made with Light Mastery.

"What a magnificent beast." Like all the old inhabitants of Lutia, Zekell was unaffected by the aura of terror.

He instinctively raised his hand to reach the creature and Lith gently lowered his snout to allow the blacksmith to caress it.

"Is it tame?" He asked.