Chapter Text
Enon had lived for many years, so many that it was rumored he'd been around even before the Great Sarain Forest had taken root.
At least, these were the stories people loved to share among themselves in cluttered taverns. After all, even the diaries of great-great-grandparents of elves, creatures known for having an extremely long life span, talked about a strange, perpetually angry apothecary.
He never shared his secrets, but many had tried to pry them out of him. The only thing they got for their trouble, was a firm boot to the backside and a lifetime ban from his shop
Yes, Enon had lived through centuries. However, that didn’t mean he was immune to surprise, and the sight before him now was more than enough to crack the hardened shell of habit.
Kishiar la Orr was sitting at the center of their humble living room, tapping his long fingers on the wooden table - which was way too small for him - while enjoying some of the tea Lusan had previously prepared. The little one was so worried, saying that it wouldn’t be good enough for a Royal, but Enon was able to calm him down, stating that if the prince wanted something refined then he shouldn't have come unannounced.
Standing behind him was a man with peculiar reptile-like eyes. Enon hadn’t seen much of his kind during his life, but it was still enough to let him recognize his mystical aura and features.
‘Why is this dragon here?’ He couldn’t help but wonder. They were supreme, narcissistic creatures who lived alone in remote and hidden parts of the realm, so it was more than strange to see one of them serving someone that they’d normally consider a ‘lowly being’.
He shifted his eyes back to the prince. It wasn’t the time to wonder about the dragon now.
“Why is His Highness here to confer with me?” Sitting in front of the Prince, Yuder spoke first. Even if it was the first time he’d ever talked to a Royal, he looked composed, his dark eyes firmly set on him. Enon couldn’t help the faint smirk tugging at his lips as he watched Yuder hold his ground. At least the boy wasn’t planning to roll over just because someone wore a crown.
“Why, you ask?” The prince crossed his legs. “Our previous conversation was interrupted, so I would like to start from where we left.” A smile bloomed on his face.
Enon let out a groan, not bothering to conceal it. He always used to talk about the King in a good way, but the same couldn’t be said about his brother, known to secretly sneak around and being a flirty troublemaker. He smelled something fishy, hidden in that peaceful expression.
He picked another lemon from his own horn, biting it while assessing the situation. He saw Yuder try to recall the prince’s previous question, closing his eyes and taking some time before answering.
“My Grandpa was a monster hunter, that’s why I know how to deal with those creatures.”
Enon could see something shifting into the elf's eyes at Yuder’s answer.
“You’re grandpa seems to know a great deal about monsters, he must have been a great hunter.” The tone had been light, but the dryad could see a flash of something else in the prince's eyes. “Such a hunter would have been known if he lived around here.”
The prince drummed his fingers lightly against the table, his gaze fixed on Yuder. When the fairy offered no reply, he spoke again, his voice calm but edged with expectation.
“I hope you forgive the town people for sharing your information so freely. A month, they said?” He smiled faintly, leaning back against his chair. “And before that?”
Enon frowned. He’d just said how convenient it would’ve been if Yuder could obtain the attention of the Royal Family, and now for some kind of magical coincidence the Prince was suddenly interested in him? He seemed to have done a background check too. Something in his guts was telling him that the situation was shady.
Before Yuder could answer the prince, he decided to intervene.
“Excuse me, can we know the true purpose of your visit to this humble apothecary, before answering all these questions?”
Lusan looked like he might faint from sheer embarrassment, shifting nervously at Enon’s side for his boldness. The dryad ignored his desperate gaze, staring right into Kishiar's surprised eyes. He had never been one to stand still and play the respectful old sage, not even in front of royal blood.
A sudden laugh filled the space, the prince’s smile shining even more.
Enon was disgusted by the view, but caught Yuder stare mesmerized at the prince. That displeased him even more.
Before speaking again, Kishiar exchanged a glance with the man behind his shoulder, handing him the same wooden cup where he’d been drinking.
“Why don’t you try this, my dear adjutant? It’s not exactly the Queen’s tea, but it’s truly delicious. We have some capable apothecaries in front of us.”
Silence filled the room. The dragon remained composed, accepting the sudden and playful request of his Master, like sharing the same cup wasn't something only lovers should do.
Enon could feel the atmosphere shifting, becoming more… relaxed? Capable apothecaries, he’d said…
‘Were they testing us?’ His gaze grew sharp.
“I would like to apologize. We asked around to some of the civilians on the scene, and I wasn't sure if the apothecaries were treating our benefactor properly, keeping him hidden.” He looked at the dryad, his crimson eyes gentler than before. “But I can sense a genuine kind of friendship.” He then looked at Enon’s hand, resting on Yuder’s shoulder.
The dryad jerked it away without a second thought, feeling somewhat embarrassed. When had he done that? Nevermind.
“Even if I would like to give an honest answer on what our intentions are, I still need to ask you some questions. Would that be okay with you?” Kishiar looked directly at the fairy in front of him.
Enon was about to say something else, but Yuder nudged him with his foot, nodding to reassure him he was fine. There was no need to be this worried. The dryad sighed.
“I grew up on a mountain near the Central Region. My Grandpa saved me from a monster attack in the nearby village and took me in. He taught me everything he could before dying.”
“...How old were you?” His tone was light, but something behind it faltered.
“I was two years old when he found me, and he died when I was thirteen.” Yuder pulled up one of his long sleeves to reveal a wooden handmade bracelet.
Enon couldn’t help but remember the first night he and Lusan had taken him in. Even while they were bathing him or treating his wounds, he’d always made sure to keep it safe near him, in his field of view. It shouldn’t take much for the prince to realize that it was a memento from Yuder’s grandpa.
“Now you look almost twenty, but we can’t be sure since so many creatures have longer lifespans. How old are you now?”
Even if it wasn’t said out loud, it was clear that the question had a second meaning: ‘Since when were you alone?’
“...I should be twenty this year.” Yuder confirmed his assumption. Kishiar’s expression remained unchanged by his answer, but the dryad could see a glint of doubt in his eyes.
He saw Yuder holding that gaze, with the same serious expression. Eighteen years had passed since his grandfather adopted him, if he tried to count the years the math was right, so why did the prince have doubts?
“And why did you come here, to the Great Sarain Forest of all places?” Before he could think further about it, the prince changed the topic. He saw Yuder’s shoulders relax a little.
“It was my Grandfather's last wish. He wanted me to… find a place where I could be accepted for who I am.”
The Prince's expression didn’t change, but something in his gaze shifted, quiet and perceptive, like he knew there was something else hidden under the surface, but wanted to hear it from Yuder himself.
Nathan stared at Yuder, a strange light in his eyes. Was it… empathy? For the topic about being accepted? From a dragon? Enon wasn’t sure.
“Mmh, but is it also your wish?” Kishiar stroked his chin. “We aren’t forced to follow someone else's wish, if it’s not what we want. And it’s been eighteen years since your Grandfather left this world." He paused again, to study Yuder’s reaction. “This makes me wonder if you hesitated just now because you didn’t have the same wish. What made you change your mind?”
Yuder clenched his fists. His antennae moving and his wings flattering couldn’t hide his surprise. Enon was shocked by the sudden revelation, thinking how dumb he’d been for not thinking about it beforehand.
Even if his actions moved him in that direction, he’d never once said he was on the same page as his Grandfather. Enon hadn’t even questioned it in the first place, but while recalling all the conversations he’d had with Yuder, he’d never said ‘My wish’. It had always been ‘His wish’ instead.
The prince was able to read this young man better than him with just a glance, while Enon and Lusan were on his side for a month. This made him feel somewhat frustrated.
Yuder bit his lips. The dryad couldn’t read everything that was passing inside his mind, but he could sense a big conflict, probably unsure on what and how much information he should share. There were more secrets and walls around this young guy than he thought, a deep sigh left his mouth.
“...If I told you it was because of a dream, would you believe me?”
Kishiar looked at his tensed up shoulder for a moment. Nathan, behind him, frowned his eyebrows a little. Both of them didn’t expect that answer, and Enon couldn't help but stretch his pointy ears too.
“A dream?”
“Yes.”
The Prince tapped his fingers on the wooden table once more.
“I can’t say I have enough knowledge about fairies, but…” He exchanged a glance with Nathan and the adjutant gave him the documents he was about to ask for. Kishiar smiled at him, before focusing on Yuder again.
“There are some old legends about fairies. Bad ones and good ones, like for most creatures.” He opened the papers in front of him, pointing at different parts while talking. “Some stories are popular knowledge, like the one about changelings.” He paused for a second, looking at the mark on Yuder’s right hand.
“But some of them are still nothing but hypotheses. Like, for example…” The prince held his breath for a moment. “...Having visions about the future.”
“The future..?” Lusan repeated Kishiar’s words in disbelief, looking at Yuder.
Enon did the same, his golden eyes full of questions, while his mind wandered back to the old, familiar face of a certain archmage, who’d always wondered about the future, wanting to know it, change it, but never achieved such knowledge.
‘Don’t tell me he was able to know when even Luma couldn’t...!’ The dryad tried to hold back his mix of surprise and frustration.
“I’m not familiar with it either, since I’ve never spoken to another fairy before. But…” Yuder's voice sounded deeper than usual “...What you said was just a hypothesis… It’s very close to the truth.”
The fairy closed his eyes, magic flowing through him. Enon guessed he was about to show them something to prove his words, since he never felt an energy like this one before.
When Yuder opened them again, one of his pupils was shining like a star in the night sky. Some ancient, mysterious energy was moving inside it. Something Enon, in all his long years of living, had never seen before.
“...What kind of future did you see?” Nathan couldn’t help but ask, his reptilian eyes staring down at the golden light.
Yuder's voice came out like a dark, unavoidable prophecy.
“I saw the King dying, the forest collapsing, and… monsters destroying everything.” he paused for a moment, before continuing “...The destruction of the Sarain Forest Kingdom.”
Kishiar’s face hardened, his fingers intertwined, knuckles white with tension he refused to voice. Nathan's posture became stiff, gripping his hands harder behind his back.
Lusan looked like he was about to faint, while Enon’s instinct told him the fairy wasn’t lying, and that was the scariest thing.
At that moment, he connected the dots. The barrier weakening, the King's illness, and the sudden monsters’ appearances. The whole situation confirmed that Yuder was likely speaking the truth.
He looked at Kishiar. Was he aware of those same things? Given his expression, that was probably the case.
“But that wasn’t all.” Yuder quickly started to talk again. “In those ‘visions’, I also saw the Red Stone. It’s real, not just a legend, and it’s powerful enough to bring life back.”
“Are you sure about this?” Kishiar asked, feeling the weight of his words.
“Yes. The King can be saved.” his declaration echoed in the room, like a destiny that would come true.
A long silence filled the room.
With his crimson eyes fixated on him, Kishiar asked one last question: “You knew we would have come to you for help?”
Yuder’s eye turned back to normal. He remained silent for a moment.
“...Yes.” His answer was simple, but after all that he revealed, it sounded like the final confirmation the prince needed.
Enon was speechless. This guy was always so quiet that it was hard to read his mind, but he really knew all that?
“W-What…” Lusan's eyes were trembling in shock. Maybe it was too late, but Enon thought that probably the little one shouldn’t have heard more than half of the things that were shared in this room. He’d let Lusan curl up next to him again later, as always when things got bad. That usually worked. For now, he just gave him a pat on the shoulder. Lusan seemed to settle a bit, though his body stayed tense.
“Some kind of deity sent us a very interesting hero, Nathan.” Kishiar let out a chuckle, trying to release the previous tension that had built up in the room. His red eyes were still unreadable, covered behind that bright smile, but Enon was sure that he wasn’t left unscathed by all these revelations.
“I guess you can state your real intentions now, Your Highness ?” The dryad couldn’t help but repeat his previous question, with an even more bitter tone. If he had known that Yuder would have shared so much, before knowing what the other party truly wanted from him, he would have stopped the fairy.
“Well, I guess our young man here already knows, doesn't he?” He smiled, as he saw Yuder nodding.
“I will help you find the Red Stone and save the Forest Kingdom… Under one condition.”
“Oh? And what would that be?”
Yuder bit his lip once more.
“I wish you could make my Grandfather's wish-”
“No.”
“...”
After a long silence, a scream could be heard even from outside the apothecary.
“ What do you mean ‘no’ ?!” Enon’s face became impossibly red, as if he was ready to explode “You ungrateful-”
“I also have a request for you. If you can do that, only then will I make your Grandfather’s wish come true.” Kishiar ignored the screaming dryad. Lusan was desperately trying to calm him down, trying unsuccessfully to usher him into another room, before he could jump at the Prince’s throat.
Yuder looked at him lost in his thoughts, not paying attention to the two apothecaries.
“And what would it be?”
A mischievous smile appeared on the elf lips.
“I’ll keep it a secret for now, but I promise it won’t be anything too bothersome for you.”
Yuder looked at those red eyes, wondering what the strange man wanted from him, but at the same time he didn’t have any reason to decline the agreement. The priority right now was to ensure the success of the mission, he would have worried about the condition when the issue arose again, hoping it really wouldn't be that troublesome of a request.
After a long sigh, he nodded.
“Okay. I accept your offer.”
Enon was still making noises of disapproval in the background, like a kettle just shy of boiling over.
─── ⋅ ∙ ∘ ☽ ༓ ☾ ∘ ⋅ ⋅ ───
Inside the Great Holy Three, there was a room located far away from the other Royals’, one that the power of the King couldn’t reach. He hadn't been able to see or hear anything in that area since he’d first gotten sick. Here, the roots and tendrils crawled along the walls, darker and drier than anywhere else, like veins slowly losing their color. The furniture, once carved from wood that pulsed with a soft, living glow, had turned dull and heavy. That somehow reflected the true nature of the young man living there.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The only sound echoing in the bedchamber was the man’s long fingers, adorned with rings, tapping on the sofa’s armrest.
Even if he was forced down on his knees, Kiolle could feel the burning gaze of the Crown Prince in front of him.
“A strange fairy that hunts monsters. This sure is interesting.” He crossed his leg on top of the other. “Are you sure you told me everything you saw?”
Kiolle's face became red as he cleared his throat.
“Y-Yes! That’s all! Kishiar visited the King, then had lunch with his adjutant in a tavern, tried flirting with a girl working there, spied on a group of adventurers fighting among each other, and then the monster appeared! After that, he asked for information and followed the apothecary who walked away with that… strange fairy!”
The dark, red eyes glaring down at him were full of disappointment. He put the glass of wine he was drinking aside.
“As always, your information is lacking.” He pulled Kiolle's hair to lift his head and met his gaze.“I wonder why I still keep asking you to do this kind of work for me.”
‘Why do I always end up in this kind of situations?’ Kiolle thought, fisting the fabric of his pants, trying to suppress his frustration and to resist the impulse to break himself free.
Since he’d been assigned to be the Crown Prince Katchian La Orr’s personal guard, he’d asked him to follow Kishiar’s every move and report back to him. But he was a knight, not some assassin! He could never manage to get close enough to hear Kishiar’s every conversation, nor was he skilled enough to hide properly as he followed him.
“Anyway, even with your pitiful work, I'm now able to understand that he’s found a powerful ally. I want to have a talk with that fairy.” A sadistic smile spread on his lips. “We should pay him a special visit, don’t you think?”
Kiolle wasn’t smart but, as a renowned slacker, he could perfectly understand when something troublesome was coming his way.
“Your Highness, you want to sneak out of the Sacred Tree?!”
“Yes, tonight.” He let go of him, pushing him aside. “Prepare a disguise for both of us.”
Kiolle left out a pained moan, rubbing his head and trying to tidy up his now messy hair.
With a last sip of wine from his glass, Katchian stood up from the sofa, walking towards the adorned mirror. He touched his round, normal-looking ears, while murmuring some ancient words.
As soon as he’d finished chanting, his ears became pointy like every other elf’s and a strange mark, resembling a star, disappeared from his forehead.
“I want to see if I can steal his new toy this time around.”
─── ⋅ ∙ ∘ ☽ ༓ ☾ ∘ ⋅ ⋅ ───
