Magi: Hiraeth

16: Gone

Gone

The next morning, Sinbad woke up unusually early. He decided to take a leisurely walk around his palace for a change of pace.

He got out of his bead and put on his long robes, his usual clothing, before washing his face. The king then noticed a box on his bed side table. It was something he bought the day before yesterday.

"It's Yukiko's birthday today." He picked up the box containing a necklace made of silver with a green gem shaped like a teardrop as a pendant.

"I'll give this to her later." He placed the box on his pocket.

He was grinning a bit since he knows she'll surely be delighted about it.

Fixing his hair as he walks down the stairs of the Purple Leo tower, he noticed the Green Sagittarius tower where the guest quaters are and came up with an idea.

"I think I should visit Yukiko now. To see if her blight has disappeared also. I'm worried about her mental health and it might be causing her pain. I can't stand to see her like that. It's just too much." He continues descending the stairs and walked out to the subtle light of the sun which is yet to rise.

Some of his staff are already awake and was greeting him as he pass by. Finally, the Green Sagittarius tower is in sight. Before he can enter the building however, one of the eight generals, Drakon, saw him and rushed to him.

"Sinbad, there is something in the throne room that you need to see. Right now."

"Is it urgent? I need to see if Yukiko is doing okay."

"You need to see it right now!" Drakon choose to dragged him to not prolong their arguement. He can see that the other staffs are running to the throne room too, including the guards and parliament members.

Upon their arrival, Jafar was the one who first noticed them.

"Sin!" The former assassin called out. "Take a look at this!" He lead him inside the throne room which is being guarded by the staffs and military personnel. The parliament members where then ordered to leave the room since they were asked by Jafar to watch for it while they go and get Sinbad.

Sinbad was not liking the sensation in his chest. It was like something is going to be taken out. He shook his head to snap out of his thoughts and entered the throne room.

Inside, a huge pile of gold coins and other valuable treasures greeted him. It was treasures from conquered dungeons. Only that, it was something that came from Beleth's dungeon. He was sure of it because Yukiko presented it to him when she conquered the dungeon he asked her to. "What is the meaning of this?" He took a step forward and looked at the pile closer. "Is this Aoren's doing? What does he mean?"

"Sin, theres an envelope here." Jafar handed him a white envelope with a seal from Xue. It's what Aoren and Yukiko use to sign documents. "Maybe a letter is inside. It may be an explanation for all these treasures."

Sinbad wasted no time and opened it immediately. He expected a long letter but what he saw was just one simple sentence.

' Payment for being nothing but a nuisance to you for two years. '

-Yukiko Heiwa of Xue Kingdom

"What does she mean by thi--"

"Your majesty! Your majesty!" Pisti interrupted him as she and Spartos rush to him.

"What's the problem, Pisti. Spartos." Drakon asked the two who seemed quite panicked.

"Yukiko-san!" -Spartos
"Aoren-dono!" -Pisti
"The two of them are missing!"

"WHAT?!"

"We went to the Green Sagittarius Tower to visit Yukiko-san to check if she is doing well. We knocked on her door and surprisingly, it was locked. We called for her but there was no response so we decided to break the door, worried that something might've happened because supposedly at this time, she should be wide awake now." Spartos explained.

"...but there was no one there! Her room reverted back to it's original appearance. It was tidied up like no one was even there. Her clothes and other stuff were gone too. We panicked and decided to check on Aoren-dono and asked him where Yukiko-san was but his room was empty as well."

"Trouble! All the scrolls that Aoren-dono wrote are all missing in the Black Libra tower!" Yamuraiha said as she arrives.

"All the magic tools from Beleth's dungeon has gone missing in the army's storage!" Hinahoho announced as he runs with Sharkkan, Masrur following behind them.

"I can no longer smell their scent in this island. Yukiko and Aoren are gone." Masrur told them.

Sinbad couldn't believe what he was hearing. He looked at the treasures, then to his generals before finally looking at the letter. He can feel his heart skip a beat upon realizing what happened.

"Yukiko is..gone?" He looked at the note again before running to the grand balcony and performing a djiin equip. "Focalor." He then started flying to look around the sea to see if they are still within reach since he believes that they escaped by boat.

"Pisti! Summon your birds and get the generals to look for them. They might've not gotten that far!" He ordered as he flew to the open seas of Sindria. Panick was written all over his face which confuses him. Why is he feeling so alarmed knowing that Yukiko had left him?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Meanwhile...

"Welcome to Kina, Yukiko, Aoren." Takeru, the King of Kina, a country that belongs to the Seven Seas Alliance, welcomed them.

"Takeru-nii, it has been a long time."

● ○ ● ○ ● ○ ● ○ ● ○ ●