The Idle System (A LitRPG series Book 7): Family by Pegaz (good books to read for young adults txt) 📗

the same description of him. To be thorough, I went to the person in charge of knight personnel and asked about the man.

“He could describe Oxide Stint with great detail despite the amount of time that has passed, however…”

The son paused and squinted his left eye, deep in thought.

“Out with it!” the king demanded.

“Yes, well, the knight in question registered with two other knights back then. When I asked the personnel about the other two, he couldn’t recall anything.

“With the knowledge that immortals exist, I think that the immortal has bribed, threatened, or manipulated the man somehow to change the records. After all, even you—who have everything anybody would ever want—want to trade with the immortal. Who knows what he could offer to someone who has far less?

“When I dug even deeper, I found out the name in the registry, Oxide Stint, is actually an anagram for ‘I don’t exist.’

“My conclusion is that the immortal didn’t think we knew about immortals and what they might be capable of, so he got careless in covering his tracks. That, or he just didn’t care if we found out.”

A smug grin spread across the prince’s face as he gave a little chuckle, clearly proud of his findings, though it was quickly slapped away by the sound of the old king laughing. “Did I say something funny?”

“No, no,” the king replied. “It’s just that I’ve finally got a speculation that has a high chance of being right as to why we are being attacked every couple of years.”

“What?” the son replied in disbelief.

“I originally thought that the attacker was trying to show his strength, to prove he could kill us at any time no matter how many knights we stationed inside the castle.

“But after hearing your report, the missing part of the puzzle has been revealed! As crazy as it sounds, I think he didn’t want the original knight from that unnamed town to return, so he kept attacking the castle which caused that knight and many others to stay in the capital.”

“So he had no intention of killing anyone during all of those attacks and the sole purpose was to cause a distraction?” The son was curious about such a tactic, but he didn’t hesitate to question his father more. “How are you going to initiate a trade with him? You can’t travel with the book as it could get damaged due to its fragility, and you can’t send a message to the man to set up a meet—”

“That’s exactly what I’m going to do. That immortal comes here every couple of years and I doubt he’s the type who would spend half a year travelling here and back each time, so he’s definitely got some form of transport that’s faster than our fastest steeds.”

The old king sat down at his desk and moistened his quill with ink before setting its tip on the parchment in front of him.

I am aware that you are as my ancestor once was. I have information from my immortal ancestor that could benefit you and I’m willing to trade.

—The King of Bahan

The message was informal, but it didn’t bother him one bit. To ensure the man wouldn’t think it was a fake, the king put it in an envelope and sealed it with hot wax stamped with his kingdom’s royal crest.

He eyed the seal and was dissatisfied with its security. Without a second thought, the old man covered the entire envelope with hot wax. Not a single corner was left unprotected and the edges were pressed tight enough to keep out even the smallest ant.

“Send a rider to that unnamed town. Tell him that he’s to personally hand this letter to the knight living there. This should show how sincere I am, hopefully.” The old man handed the letter to his son.

“It’ll take a few months for a rider to get to that unnamed town, can you wait that long?”

“I have no choice,” the old man replied. “I would rather wait a few months than disrespect an immortal.”

The son bowed his head a little before departing.

* * *

The rider the prince picked had the best speed on a long run, which meant that the rider slept less. He had one of the best horses and he knew the quickest way to reach any town within the kingdom. It was clear this man was a hard worker by the amount of time and attention to detail he put into preparing the necessities and taking care of his horse.

“Hand this letter only to the knight instructor of the unnamed town on the map you’ve been given. I’ve written what the instructor looks like and his name on the back of the map. If anyone claims to be said person, you’ll easily know.” The prince handed off the letter to the chosen rider.

“This is the most important mission you will ever have and failure to finish it will mean treason against the kingdom. We suspect it will take you no less than three months to arrive at the town so prepare now and leave no later than noon tomorrow.”

“I am always prepared to serve the kingdom, Your Highness.”

The rider bowed before placing the oddly sealed message inside his leather armour. He grabbed a few bags full of food for both him and his horse before galloping out of the castle gates.

Chapter 19: The Prince’s Ploy

Carola was giving orders to her knights as they prepared to leave. She had yet to receive a reply from her father, and her husband-to-be seemed to be close to finding out too much about the history behind the golden eagle badge. She told him bits and pieces to try to convince him to move on while still managing to keep most of it a secret.

To distract the prince from the matter, she suggested that they continue their tour.

To her surprise, the prince had no objections or qualms about carrying on with the tour, and within an hour, the royal