53 A New Arrival (1/2)
”I'm sorry,” Elru's voice rang amidst the spinning sphere of Arcane-Wind that carried the group.
Rainer shook his head.
”It isn't your fault at all. Don't worry.”
Elru referred to Maya who she had placed a Runic seal on. Until a day passed and the seal naturally started fading, forcibly removing it could cause significant damage. Interrogation would serve no purpose if she wasn't even able to speak anymore.
While one strong enough could easily overpower the seal, and come out unharmed, level 20 tier 1 Maya could not overcome dual efforts of Elru and Furtak in the slightest.
Rainer suddenly thought of the palace that had been sealed. He imagined the World Tree wouldn't leave any Fae to their deaths within. And too had the Fairy Ring, that was an actual ring, gone inert. The item would teleport one directly into the Palace.
”Elru, what happens to anyone inside when the Palace is sealed?”
”I was not around when last a Ruler of Fae fell, but I've read a journal entry of one of the palace servants. He had been dusting a shelf when suddenly he felt a strange and massive power come over him. And before he knew it, he stood outside of the palace quite a distance away. If Quera was inside, then she would have been expelled.”
”What do you think the courts will do with those expelled?”
”Question them…but it would take a long time. They are slow in such matters, and it is difficult to say for certain whether one was just a servant of the World Tree or there to serve Yulia.”
”While we head there how about explaining anything offensive to Fae I shouldn't do?”
They continued speaking as the rest of the party listened. Luna sat as a silver bird on Rainer's shoulder, though she would have to return to his coat once they were there.
Towards the end, Rainer asked his own questions. Similar to Wolfkin, references to other creatures resembling them were considered to be at the top of the list of offensive remarks. Things like flies or bugs, or even butterflies contained within them the greatest of insults.
”What about using [Appraisal] or taking them out of their Glamour?”
”It is customary to lower one's guard to [Appraisal] in a negotiation, as children were taught to constantly use [Appraisal]. It is almost second nature to use it, and it would not be an insult at all.”
”Thank you. It couldn't have been easy,” Rainer said. He gained a new appreciation for Elru for not appraising Luna.
”It was not,” Elru responded.
”It is impolite in the first place to use Glamour for anything but fun or benign purpose in the presence of another Fae.”
”Fun?” Rainer asked.
Elru shimmered to reveal her original form before her hair started taking on a variety of colors. Something akin to eyeshadow appeared beneath her eyes matching her hair color. Her original blue eyes too changed as well.
Rainer then wondered what kind of trust issues could be developed in the Fae dating scene before realizing that even with his improved Charisma, Fae seemed to still outpace him in appearance.
”Hey, Elru…are there ugly Fae?” Rainer asked. Life was relative and what may still be beautiful by human standards may not be for others.
”No?” Elru responded confused.
”Children use it to play games of hiding as well.” She then said continuing the conversation.
”So, I should be fine shoving any Fae around me out of their Glamours.”
”If you wish for an advantage in negotiations, I would even suggest it,” Elru responded.
They continued their flight until they reached the Fairy Ring.
Wearing a dark enchanted leather armor, a brown-haired Fae stood in front of a group of seated Fae, and one in particular. Elder Taramath. His blue hair which has lost its shine did not detract too much from his Fae beauty.
His brows furrowed as the Court Assassin in front of him conveyed his discoveries. At a great distance, he followed the [Archon] out of the Fae Ring and witnessed the end of the battle the [Archon] had been embroiled in.
Many one-time use Body enchantments were consumed in the failed attempt to keep up with the [Archon].
He entered the scene just in time to see the [Devil King] and the [Archon]'s actions against him. At the mention of the [Devil King] whispers erupted between the court members.
They couldn't fathom what relation Yulia had to the appearance of [Devil]s. But they now believed they had a greater understanding as to how Yulia managed to attract the attention of an [Archon].
Seeing their looks as if they solved something, Laneth struggled to keep his laughter to himself.
Sitting at a circular table that grew from the wooden ground beneath it were other high-ranking members of the four Fae Courts.
”Was the Wolven Demon a familiar of the [Archon]?” Taramath asked.
”I did not sense a connection between them, but I cannot be sure.”
”Yes…there are other means of connection to a familiar…you may go,” Taramath waved him off.
”It seems you made the correct decision, son,” A similarly golden haired Fae spoke to Laneth seated beside him. At this mention, many gave pointed looks at the duo but said nothing else. They held quite a bit of jealousy toward the Prince who gained such a relationship with the [Archon]. But with Laneth's disinterest in politics, they weren't too worried about it.
Taramath, who had been one of those to try and block the [Archon]s path, knew now how close he might have come to death. As a group, they, of course, had confidence in dealing with a single level 19 2nd Tier individual. While he knew, he likely would have died on his own.
And given the description of the magic used on the [Devil King] the confidence in dealing with him even as a group lessened significantly. Yet his known action in teleporting directly to the Fae Realm left them without any options in trying to prevent him from coming here.
”What are we to say to the populace?”
While hated amongst the Fae courts for their deaths she caused, the majority of Fae, in fact, liked her. The Queen or King of Fae had several powers to influence the Fae realm one of which included the manipulation of world energy density.
An ability that was kept secret.
In the capital city, closest to the Palace, the density had been higher than anywhere else. This improved the general quality of life of Fae living there. Many animals and plants raised by the Fae in order to harvest their Mana for consumption had their quality, and taste of their Mana improved.
But with Yulia, such a situation changed. She spread the world energy equally across the Fae settlements and revealed to the populace their leader always had such an ability. She then threatened the court she would remove it entirely if her agents were stopped from leaving.
Were Yulia stopped from leaving, they would simply kill her rather than just stop her. So, she did not even bother with such a condition.
They had been hesitant before to stop any who served the World Tree by working at the palace, and this had cemented that hesitation.
”I see no reason to claim she was killed in the Palace. It is best we say we do not know and that she had left. I imagine you've all already spoken with those present at the scene to keep quiet in any case?” A white-haired Fae answered.
”What about shifting the blame to the [Archon]?” One asked.
”Blaming the [Archon] as an evil Queenslayer will only make us look incompetent. And if he returns who volunteers to detain him for his crimes?”
Following a few private conversations, no one said any word of dissent.
”If or when he returns, then, how are we to treat him?”
”We'll reward him in private as we try to understand the organization behind him. My own searches in the archives proved fruitless…”
They were several grumbles in agreement.
”Then we can-”
”The [Archon] has arrived!”
A voice suddenly yelled into the meeting room.
”This should be entertaining,” Laneth whispered to his father.
His father only gave him an annoyed glance. While his son's actions proved to give their own court the greatest relationship with the [Archon] as well as a possible aid for the soon coming trial, he knew a large part of his motivation wasn't for such a purpose.
Inviting outsiders was usually not an option, nor was there even a point. In single combat, the Fae thought their enchanted warriors and powerful mages as unmatched. But given the possible rewards and status that may be bestowed upon their Queenslayer, even if publicly for a different reason, he would no longer be an outsider.
And his strength in killing Yulia shown above their belief in their own strength.
Whether it was his fallen brother or to anger the Fae elders, Prince Yaf couldn't be sure of his son's motivations.
Rainer's group entered through the Fairy Ring and appeared to the shock of several guards at it.
He stood there waiting but kept [Arcane Awakening] at low power in case of combat. The rest of his party entered. And the guards [Appraisal] forced a variety of expressions across their faces as they took in the whole group.
”Tell my father, Lord Winmere of the Winter Court, I have returned,” Elru spoke.
As quite well known amongst the Fae, Elru shocked the guard quite a bit. To see her traveling with the [Archon] brought about a large confusion.
”Right away Maiden Elru,” He ran off while the others went to warn the courts. Lord Winmere was not one to often participate in politics and wasn't at the meeting currently going on.
Using [Arcane sight] from the start, Rainer was aware why they had seemingly left him alone. A strong Fae in Glamour stood off to the side.
[Fairy, Male, Runic Fae Assassin(2nd) lvl 7, Runic Knight lvl 14]
Rainer focused an [Arcane Presence] to expel the Fae from the Glamour while he pretended to not care about him anymore. In truth, everyone stood on guard.
He knew sooner or later he'd have to reveal whatever Fae they sent to watch him while he was here; he'd rather get that out of the way now. And more importantly, show his earlier acts of forcing them out of their Glamour as intentional.
Being caught the Fae just continued standing there in the same manner. Trained since a young age, his experiences covered what to do on the rare chances of their Glamour being broken.
But none of the practice scenarios included an opponent who broke your Glamour and then just ignored you. Even the well-trained Fae could only awkwardly stand there not understanding what he should do or even say.
Rainer continued his waiting. According to Elru, it was best to wait for a Fae to come to escort them.
To both his surprise and relief it was Prince Laneth who arrived first.
”Earlier than expected,” He spoke before his eye were drawn toward Elru. He couldn't help but smile seeing how much more entertaining the situation had just become.
”Thanks for coming to get me, but we are in a bit of a rush,” Rainer quickly turned serious.
Laneth only nodded before waving Rainer to follow him.
”I'm looking for a Fae. Her name is Quera and she served in the Palace. I have no idea where she is though or if she's even alive. But I need to find her. The matter is important.”
”Let us go to the Watcher first. Then I can take you where we are keeping those expelled from the Palace,” Laneth responded.
He was supposed to guide the [Archon] to meet with the courts, but he knew trying to force him wasn't an ideal thing. But, he still said his concerns.
”The Court will not take it well that you are ignoring to meet with them first,” Laneth advised.
”I agree, Rainer,” Theodore added, ”Not that you'll change your mind.” Unlike Laneth, Theodore knew the reason for him cutting down Divinity itself was the same for his goal coming here now. Luna.
And offending the Courts isn't even on the same level for Rainer as Luna. And more importantly, the one who saved and let him meet her in the first place.
”Then off to the Watcher,” Laneth said.
”Watcher?” Rainer asked.
It was Elru who spoke up, unintentionally reminding Laneth of how strange her presence her was.
”As you know, our bodies disappear on death. So many years ago, a system was put in place. At birth, we have a token that is magically tied to us. Upon death, it changes from gold to black and can be used by the family as a memory. Otherwise, we may never know when any of us are no longer here.”
They moved through the air at Laneth's direction. Seeing the magical constructs that held Rainer's enchanted overcoat together, he grew confused.
”Might I ask why you haven't repaired your coat?”
”I haven't had time to seek out a Magic Crafter,” Rainer said, ”I'd like to find one here if possible.”
Chuckling Laneth spoke again.
”why don't you just repair it with Mana?”
Rainer looked at him confused.
”It has a Self-Repair enchantment on it as well you know. All you have to do is flow a bit of Mana into it.”
”Elru, can you do it?” Rainer asked. His Mana wasn't exactly suited to be flowed into enchanted items. It was how he destroyed them instead.
Elru nodded with a slight blush on her face. Having appraised his coat quite a while ago she had forgotten about its repair function in her more explained description of it.
Dissipating her constructs, she placed a hand on his back. But nothing changed.
”It's rejecting it…” Elru said.
Rainer thought for a moment before just deciding to try it. With the smallest amount of Mana he could muster, he found the coat quickly began repairing its holes. Just a few points of Mana and the black overcoat with faint Runic lines of violet returned to its old form.
”How'd you know?” Rainer asked.
”I appraised it. I imagine traveling with Maiden Elru, you would know about it,” Laneth grinned causing Elru to look away.
Rainer only laughed before his expression turned serious.
They were not here on vacation.
The city itself was a mix of white stone and wood that seemed to be naturally grown from the ground. Appearing as if a wealthy district the houses were quite large and extravagant. Expensive looking cloths hung from the windows, and some of the white stone was instead painted in various colors.
Entering a large building at the edge of the city Prince Laneth guided the group past any guards.
”I'm afraid your friend Quera Mileah is no longer here,” The Watcher spoke. He held the rectangular token in his hand, as in truth, he could only hand it over to any of her family. He looked at the Human strangely but in the end, the older looking Fae didn't seem to pay them any mind beyond that.
”What about any family?”
”I'll find out for you, do you think-”
”Wait a moment,” Rainer interrupted as he felt his familiar bond with Luna shudder, ”I need some time to myself.”
He looked toward his group members, and no one objected. Theodore nodded before nudging his head toward the two Glamoured Fae. With his high-leveled [Soul Detection] he managed to notice them.
They started tailing the group as soon as they entered the city. Many Fae seeing the strange Human and even odder companions gawked and stared. But with Prince Laneth nearby, none in the city said anything.
With news spreading of Yulia's demise a mix of mourning and hidden celebration spread. Many did not leave their house often at such a time. The Courts could not hide the death of the Queen herself, only the means.
”There aren't any others but those two,” Rainer quietly confirmed.
Rainer quickly left the large stone building and flew straight into the sky. The blue sky which lacked any star lighting it. Its light that covered the horizon did not seem to have a source.
One of Glamoured Court Assassins took flight to follow him, but an Arcane-Infused yell sent his ears ringing and him barreling back into the ground. He just barely managed to avoid a damaging fall.
”Back off,” Rainer growled as he ascended upwards.
High enough so they could no longer be seen, Luna exited Rainer's jacket. She returned to full size before immediately hugging Rainer.
Rainer heard her sobs as he held her, not yet knowing what to say. And so, he only floated quietly.
”She died because of me, Rainer…” she mumbled into his shoulder.
As Rainer thought what to say he recalled their first meeting. Quera had helped Luna escape and bought her time, but it could a question as to whether she truly accomplished anything. Were it not for Rainer's Mana covering the two from tracking Magic, eventually Luna would just be recaptured.
Even with such low chances, she still tried to help her…
He returned her hug a bit harder. With Yulia dead he lacked any place to aim his anger at such a thing, and could only lament his inability to help Quera in time. He wondered now if she had family or anyone she cared for. For that was all he could do now.
And so, he found the words to speak to Luna.
”Luna. It was her choice to make. She had to have known how low the odds were. Not only of her own survival but of actually getting away. Of you truly escaping Yulia even if you did manage to leave the palace. And yet she still made the choice. She still chose you. Be happy of that.”