Jaejoong was sitting in front of the fire and thinking. Judging by the moon's position on the sky, it was almost midnight. Dara was already asleep on her small cavern carved on the side of the mountains. Each of them had their own small cavern that served as their bedrooms in this sanctuary. With the Sword of Truth, it was easy for Jaejoong to carve out four caverns on the sides of the two mountains.

His thoughts now dwelled on his current situation. He had no intention of living the life of a fugitive forever. And the only way he could regain his freedom was to prove to everyone that the Oracle’s predictions about him were wrong. He needed the Oracle to admit that she had simply chosen one of the possible futures she wanted and was doing everything to make that future come to pass.

He suspected that right from the start, the Oracle had planned his demise. The Oracle wanted him to defy her words so she could accuse him of being the Lord of Darkness. She wanted him to lose the respect and support of the people for the simple reason that the Oracle never wanted him to become king of Haldor. She never wanted a king who would always question her words. Or a king who would allow and support progress and had a mind of his own.

If Jaejoong hadn't met Cloud, it's possible that he would now be dead. The Oracle would have used his seething anger and defiance to pronounce him the Lord of Darkness and had him burned at the pyre. But the Oracle, unable to see and predict Cloud's involvement in Jaejoong's fate failed to kill him.

The Oracle wanted Jaejoong dead because she had seen that he would become the catalyst for change in Haldor. Change or any form of progress wasn't part of the plan of the Oracle. Since the Oracle was the symbol of light, by default Jaejoong had become the darkness and her enemy. And as long as he lived, he would bring change to this world, a change the Oracle would never allow.

Therefore, she had chosen someone she could easily manipulate. Someone who would obey her blindly. Someone honorable and faithful.

Jaejoong glanced at Donghae. The hunter was quietly sitting under a tree and crafting arrows made from wood. Since he joined their group, he had remained aloof from them. His inability to see Cloud before showed that he still had faith in the Oracle. But since he could now see and hear Cloud, Jaejoong was a little bit assured that Donghae would never again blindly follow the Oracle's orders.

Donghae was bound to him because of their agreement and his word of honor. Donghae would serve him and maybe even fight for him because of this unbreakable promise. But Jaejoong would never directly test Donghae when it comes to going against the Oracle's words. Most people of Haldor were like Donghae. Blindly loyal to the Oracle. Jaejoong would have a hard time convincing anyone that the Oracle lied unless the Oracle herself admitted that truth before witnesses.

The Oracle could be plotting his demise right now. But she wasn't infallible. And it seemed that as long as he and Cloud were together, the Oracle couldn't control or predict his movements. That could be the way for him to defeat the Oracle and survive and live through his old age. Though he would much rather kill the Oracle if that was possible.

Jaejoong rose and walked up to Donghae. Some people would say that the hunter could become a liability if he brought him back to the City of Solaris. But, he knew he had to use the hunter to prove to the people of Haldor that not everything the Oracle said was the truth. He wanted the people to see Donghae, helping and supporting him to shake their fate in the Oracle's predictions.

"Donghae," he began. The hunter continued crafting arrows. "In five days, we will be going back to Solaris City."

Donghae looked him straight in the eye.

"You still have no army."

"I do not need a large army to defeat the Oracle. An army of four would suffice."

"Are you going to ask me to kill for you, the same way you ordered Lor to kill those knights?"

This would be a long night, Jaejoong thought.

"I never ordered Han to kill those knights. I told him not to get himself killed. And in order for him to live, he had to fight and kill."

"He could have just wounded or maimed those knights."

Jaejoong took a deep breath and sat before the hunter.

"You are from the region of Ferrest and for ordinary people, what you know of the Knights of Solaris are their strength and bravery during battle. You do not know of the creed these knights follow."

"Creed?"

"Those who become part of the Knights of Solaris never disobey the orders of their leaders. Disobedience specially during a fight or battle could not only get them killed but also their comrades. These knights are prepared to die just to fulfill the assignment or orders they were given. And Captain Jang Hyuk under the orders of the Oracle was given the assignment to kill me, right?"