Emperor Claudius made several preparations. He and his first imperial son, Prince Andrew, will embark on a journey to find the resting place of the empire's long-lost treasure! Of course, he could assign other people to locate the treasure but aside from the issue of secrecy and security, he is also itching to escape from his monotonous job in the meantime and experience a once-in-a-lifetime adventure! He did not randomly assign his sons tasks...
He let his second son rule like a monarch in their absence so his second son would feel what is it like to have that power and authority in his hands. He knows that his second son is not truly interested in the throne or its power so he is sure that he will not usurp the throne to obtain its power and authority permanently.
On the other hand, he assigned his first son to accompany him on this journey because he wants to have a bonding time with his emotionally distant firstborn. Unlike his second son, his firstborn is like an enigma! This son never talks to him casually or visits him out of the blue. He knows that his first son is a very ambitious person but he is also certain that this son is also not planning to usurp the throne.
His two imperial sons only looked very similar but their actions are usually opposite to each other! His first son is always very formal and rarely talks to him while the second son is very chummy and bubbly. Other people think that he favors his second son but that is not true! He loves them equally however, his demanding job is taking most of his time... His first son is naturally cold and distant while his second son always exerts effort and time to bridge the gap created by the nature of his imperial duties and responsibilities.
He viewed the expedition as a perfect opportunity to get closer to his first son. He was very careful with the selection of guards to accompany them in this tricky and possibly dangerous adventure. He knows it will not be easy... The great treasure has been carefully hidden by the first emperor of the Sky Empire for several millennia and no one has found it yet, which means it could be very difficult or too dangerous to find!
He provided a valid reason to the officials for their absence. He wants to keep the secret within the family and a few trusted people. When everything is finally in place, the emperor and the first prince started on a secret journey to find the lost treasure of the empire. They brought a few shadow guards to secretly guard them.
The imperial family cheerfully waved goodbye... The emperor is hopeful that they would find what they are looking for while the empress is wishing that her husband and their first son will have a happy bonding time... The two princes, on the other hand, secretly wished that this is the last time they would see each other because they carefully sent several assassins and crafted several fatal traps for each other during this expedition...
Emperor Claudius and Prince Andrew disguised as commoners and divided the tasks equally. They explored the treacherous forest following the map and all the clues it provides. They experienced several attacks or more like assassination attempts for Prince Andrew along the way... The emperor thought that someone or some group discovered the secret and planned to steal the map from them but Prince Andrew knew better. He knows that the assassins were sent by his brother to eliminate him but he does not have concrete proof to present to his father!
Aside from the assassins, all the stopovers indicated on the map are protected with mind-boggling riddles and deadly traps but through their combined effort, the emperor and his son were able to figure out the solution. They went to each location that every riddle points out. In there, they always found an artifact with weird shapes bearing strange markings. They did not know what it was exactly but they guess it could be the keys or at least, it has something to do with the cavern that holds the treasure!
After they visited the twenty important historical sites indicated on the map, solved all the twenty riddles, and successfully gathered the twenty strange artifacts from those locations, the emperor and his son discovered that the artifacts can be combined to form a perfect octagonal-shaped object! The strange markings on those artifacts when combined formed a maze inside a cavern! They immediately figured out the octagonal artifact is a guide to the correct path! This time, they were certain that their guess is not far fetch!
The next morning, they prepared early and went to the final place indicated by the map to check if their guess is correct or not... They entered a hidden cavern! If not for the big torches and the octagonal artifact that they carried, they would easily get lost or experience severe misfortune inside the cavern!
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Favored Empress Brings Chaos and Destruction (Book 2)
Historical FictionAuthor's Note: * This is an original novel. My second book. Not a translation. * Please do not reupload this story to another site. * Please do not translate this story into another language. * If you are reading this story aside from Wattpad, plea...
