When he arrived at the Hogan estate, Vicente paused momentarily, remembering his mother and that woman's beautiful smile.
He didn't want to remember her the way she had died. As much as that incident motivated him to become stronger, he wanted to remember Kate as she was before their last trip.
'The time has come.' He thought as he took a step forward and opened his eyes, ready to fulfill his mission of informing this family.
He honestly didn't expect, let alone want, anything in return from House Hogan. That was just a gesture of respect for his mother and the family she came from.
Vicente wasn't nervous, so when he stopped in front of the property, he went straight to calling one of the guards there.
"Good morning. I'd like to see the patriarch. My name is Vicente Fuller. I have a family matter to discuss with him."
The guard who had caught Vicente looked at him and wondered if he should send the young man away.
Guards often had to act this way to avoid unnecessary encounters for their leaders, in this way helping their bosses not waste time on nonsense.
So when strangers sought out such encounters, the guards had to decide whether or not it was worth notifying their leaders.
'He's well dressed and doesn't look common.' The guard analyzed Vicente's figure. 'If it's a family matter, maybe it's in the patriarch's interest...'
"What exactly do you want? The patriarch is a busy man, and he won't talk to a stranger who just says that." The guard said, trying to confirm that Vicente's interest was justified.
Vicente added. "I'm here to talk about the death of a member of the Hogan family."
The guard was convinced and said. "Wait a minute."
Two important members of the family had died months ago, and there were still no conclusions as to how they died or who was behind their deaths. A series of problems in the province had hindered the army's investigation, leaving the family in the dark until now.
If Vicente were there to talk about Christopher and Arthur, the patriarch would want to talk to him about his two sons!
In less than five minutes, Vicente saw the guard return with a middle-aged man in military attire.
"Vicente Fuller, are you here to talk about my children?" Said the patriarch of this family, Kate's uncle, as he looked at Vicente with doubt.
Vicente saw the doorway open for him and walked over to the patriarch.
"Patriarch, I'm here to talk about someone else in your family. Have you heard of Kate Hogan?" Vicente asked as he stopped in the middle of the lawn in front of the mansion.
"Kate?" The old man found it strange that Vicente mentioned that name instead of his sons' names. But he answered anyway. "I haven't heard from her for a while. You wouldn't be here to talk about her, would you?"
"Indeed. I'm sorry if the patriarch thought I was talking about your sons. Kate happened to be my mother."
The old man looked at Vicente more closely when he heard that, immediately imagining that this young man was there to ask for something.
But he let Vicente continue. "Anyway, a few years ago, when my family was traveling here, we came across a battle of Sovereigns. Unfortunately, the battle caused irreparable damage to my family, including the death of my mother."
Patriarch Hogan's mouth dropped open at the news of what had happened to Kate.
Sovereign battles were rare, but they happened here and there. Scott Province was not far from the Seidel Kingdom's border with the Chutha Dynasty, a state with several Sovereigns in its ranks. Thus, fights related to that dynasty often spilled over into this kingdom.
Victims like the Fuller family could be found all over the continent because experts paid little attention to how their powers might affect their surroundings.
The patriarch sighed. "I see. SoKate has passed away. I did not expect to hear this today, young man. I had no contact with her, so there was no way I could have known anything before you came here.
I'm sorry for your loss. How are you doing? Is your family okay after what happened?"
Vicente was only there to report his mother's death and to find out where his grandparents were. So he didn't go into details. "We've had some problems, but my sister and I are fine for now. Thank you for your words.
But besides being here to inform the Hogan family, I'd like to know where I can find my maternal grandmother. I want to tell her what happened."
"Hana?" The man thought of his sister. "Your grandmother is currently living with your grandfather in Dryhaven. They had another child after Kate. You can find her in that city."
"Dryhaven?" That was a slightly different piece of information than Vicente had had before. "Is that their last location?"
Patriarch Hogan nodded affirmatively. "They've moved several times in the last 20 years. So it's possible you heard different information. But I spoke to Hana three months ago, and she didn't seem to be considering moving. You'll find her there if you look for her within the next year."
"Then thank you for the information." Vicente made a respectful gesture as the old man looked at him, seeing that this young man wasn't asking for anything or any help.
'This young man is well-behaved. He must be less than 20 years old, considering when Kate left her parents to get married.' The old soldier's eyes narrowed. 'I can't sense his magic level, which means he's either as strong as me or stronger.'
Magical beings with certain proximity in mana density could hide their magical fluctuations from other similar or weaker individuals.
Vicente certainly had powers, as he had a Magic Gem on his forehead. So, the conclusion that this young man was hiding was obvious.
"Son, where are you going now? What do you and your sister do for a living?" He asked, thinking it might be interesting to talk to this boy.
"I'm a merchant, just like my father," Vicente replied sincerely. "I recently moved to this city, so I intend to do business here until I get my sister into a good Royal Academy."
"Why don't you come back here with your sister and get to know the family a little better?" The old patriarch suggested.
Vicente didn't immediately refuse. "That is possible. I have to travel for the next few days, but I'll find a date and send someone to let you know. Anyway, thank you for the information. And I'm sorry that you thought I was here because of your children. I didn't know about them..."
"Don't worry." The old man smiled at Vicente before watching the young man leave.
