'Something's wrong, I can't use my magic,' after processing the situation for a split second, Aaron turned to face king Gerald who to his surprise acted normal as if nothing was happening. 'Is it not an attack from enemy forces? No, it can't be him, besides I made adequate preparations before responding to his summon. It couldn't have been the food or drinks either, I didn't eat anything.'
At this moment, they were already close to their destination and could see it from above.
"Gerald, something is wrong. We might be under attack."
The king said nothing in response, and just kept looking ahead, and the guards followed quietly behind them.
"Are you sure this is the right place? Ordinary people won't be able to get close to the River of Ends, so how could they have noticed anything."
King Gerald hadn't informed Aaron of the location, just that it was beyond the kingdom's walls.
The River of Ends is an ever flowing body of water that is rumoured to have no start and no end. No one dares to enter the large water body as once one enters, it is difficult to return to land, and so the victim is left to flow for eternity. Although this is what is known about the river, nobody has tested it and there is no proof. The legend has been passed down from the days of old up until present.
The River possesses a particular power that allows only mages or anyone with a certain level of mana to come close to it, normal people or people with a low mana pool are not even able to go deep into the forest around it. The closer you get to the river the higher your mana pool has to be, and the stronger the mana beasts in the vicinity become.
"Ahh, how do you feel Aaron? You should be unable to use your magic now. Guards return to the castle I'll be back shortly." The guards did as they were told without any hesitation.
"I knew something like this would happen eventually, but I didn't imagine it would be you."
"You have to understand, there are other reasons for this." The king had a way of speaking that made him sound more kingly.
As the conversation continued, Aaron knew he wouldn't be returning alive or dead, he'll probably be dropped in some secluded place of this forest. What he wished to know was how the king was able to bypass his defenses.
"So, how did you do it? I took good measures to make sure something like won't happen. How was it possible?" Aaron asked with a calm voice.
"You are truly impressive, even when faced with such predicament you still manage to remain calm."
"Just answer my question."
"You do know of Geld, don't you?" As soon as the king mentioned that name, Aaron realized there was nothing he could have done to stop the poison.
Geld was among the four survivors from of the incident 200years ago, and after, all he is the king of medicine.
Although Geld was known for his impossible feats in medicine, one must understand that for an antidote or cure to a sickness to be developed, there has to countless experiments. Because of this, Geld had spent more time working with poison than he did medicine.
"I have tried to put you down countless times with poison, not because I am one who prefers under handed methods, but because you are simply that strong. Even though I am a realm above you, am afraid I still won't be able to take you down in an all out battle." The king continued, showing no noticeable emotion as he spoke.
"That means the poison was a colourless and odourless gas that's strong enough to evade my spells and potion. Smart, real smart."
"You catch on fast. I shall commend you for being able to think rationally in this situation. You are not a bad man Aaron, but I had to do it for my son."
"Your, son?" Hearing this, he finally understood the king's perspective. "I see."
Shortly after, Aaron felt pressure from all sides, as though he was in a confined space that was constantly shrinking. They had entered the area surrounding the River of Ends.
The more they went in, the more he could feel his consciousness fading, and before he could speak his last words, he passed out.
A normal who has no magic would die if they got too close to the mysterious river, or went to deep into the forest around it. This wasn't because of the magical beasts, it was the overwhelming pressure and strain their body will be exposed to, and right now Aaron could be considered one since he's mana core was damaged.
On reaching a few hundred meters above the forest area close to the river, the king dropped Aaron into the forest covered in thick fog, as he himself didn't dare descend to close to this fog.
With no hesitation, the he pushed Aaron off the flying board and waited for a while as he watched the unconscious body fall into the thick fog. After standing a couple hundred feet above the fog for some minutes, the king turned around to face the direction of his kingdom.
"Alright, I should return. The guards from earlier must be taken care of, there should be no witness."
As the king spoke, the board beneath him turned to face the direction of the kingdom while slowly accelerating in that direction.
After a while, the king reached a distance where he could clearly see the outer walls of the kingdom's main city and started slowing down.
The guards that accompanied him wondered what had happened to Aaron, but they simply thought that he must have left for a mission or similar.
"It's done, for now." 'I'll have to get rid of these guards. No witnesses of should be left alive.'