Hidden Kingdom

⊱Chapter 24 🗡Decoding the Past⊰

YAY!!!!!!!!! Part 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope you enjoy it.

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On my shoulder was a dragon marking. The dragon was black with a silver sword on its side. As if the sword was a part of its scales just a different color other than the smoky black.

Leafing through the newly discovered part of the book I come upon the exact same symbol. It happened to be the mark of the Dragon King's Blade. Apparently being a Blade is inherited by birthright, the King couldn't appoint just anyone to be his Blade.

So if what my mother's letter said was true then I needed to hurry and find my dragon. The pain I have been feeling for the past few months have been an indication of my coming death.

It mostly makes sense now. I didn't dream last night because what little link we share is starting to shatter and break apart after the pain had broken through a new shattering level.

I need to connect with my dragon immediately. This would be a lot easier with the help of my father. Knowing his mood he wouldn't be too forthcoming with information regarding my late mother. He acts like she never even existed. Throwing tantrums when Olivianna or I even mentioned her.

But since I didn't have my father accessible, I have the next best thing. His study.

Closing my book after fixing my shirt and stalking out of the room towards my father's study. Flinging the closed door aside to order to strut in unhindered. My father's study room lay untouched as a light coating of dust embraced the contents of the room.

If the information that leads to the whereabouts of my dragon are indeed within my father's personal possessions, he would not have left it out for just anyone to see. He would have it hidden in plain sight.

Opening the drawers of his desk I pull out the contents of each drawer. Knocking on the wood that lay in the bottom of the drawers, searching for a resounding hollow noise to echo. With no such luck I throw the papers back into the drawers haphazardly, mixing them as I did so.

Rubbing my temples while I take a seat on my father's desk, I let my eyes shift over the contents of the room. Taking stock of probably hiding places my father could have used for secret information. Until my eyes slid over a painting that consisted of my family before my mother died.

Straightening up to get off the desk and take the painting off the wall, I turn the portrait over. Sliding my hand over the back. Feeling an inconsistency within the texture a smug smile pulls to my lips. Picking up one of the knives from my father's desk I insert the tip into the back of the portrait, making a shallow cut until it reached a couple inches long.

Pulling out whatever my father had hidden inside. Out came a folded parchment no bigger than the size of my hand. On one of the corners the words, Only a true Blade can find the way, showed in the light. Of the room.

Unfolding the parchment showed a map of the Kingdom of Fallforth. Why would he have hidden a map of the Kingdom? Perusing the map I came upon a hole within the map. The rip wasn't from use, no it appeared as though someone had intentionally stabbed it in that exact spot.

Father would never mark his maps in any sort of way. Always keeping them pristine.

Unless he was trying to lead me to the location discreetly.

Leaning over the map as it lay flat over the desk's surface I search through my memories for any familiar land mark depicted on the map. There! Touching the location the family cabin would be, measuring the distance from the cabins location to the rip in the map.