Avanss was gleaming with excitement at the prospect of getting Sylvester to meet the King of Elves. "King Rathagun will be visiting Deca Imperia today to meet with the members of the Council. He'll be passing right above us with an entourage of his Royal Knights. I have prepared a spare armor for you to wear, allowing you to blend in with the rest of the men and enter the city."
Sylvester didn't share the same excitement, however. He was solely focused on completing his work and returning to Sol. After all, how could he be excited to meet his supposed father, whom he knew nothing about? He wasn't some neglected child looking for a family.
"Furthermore, he will also help you gain entry to the Blue Leaves building. He will lure away all the Council members to lunch, which would mean many of the strongest guards would leave to protect their assigned council members." Avanss added.
"Thank you, Avanss. Where's the armor I need to wear? And how will the Royal Knights react when they find a new member appearing out of nowhere?" He asked further.
"Don't worry. The Royal Knights have been informed that this is a secret special operation. So they should be expecting strange activities and ignore them." Avanss revealed and led Sylvester to a small chest that contained the armor.
The tunnel they were inside was a meter wide and tall enough for them to stand and stretch their arms. As Avanss had mentioned, he had just dug it from the Old City. So Sylvester wondered if he could also use it as an escape route for later, as Sir Dolorem and Dagorith were supposed to wait for him in the Old City. However, it was going to take them more time to get there.
Sylvester quickly donned the elven royal knight armor. It was made of precious metal, painted light green, with golden shoulder plates and a similarly golden cape as the highlight. The helmet covered almost his entire face, leaving only his eyes visible.
"How do I look?"
"Like family," Avanss muttered. "You will fit right in. Even your aura matches ours, so the other Royal Knights won't be bothered by you."
Thud!
Thud!
Just then, they felt the ground tremble at common intervals. Some dust fell from the ceiling of the tunnel.
"It must be them," Avanss exclaimed. "The gate of Alfia is very close to here, so the Royal Knights didn't take the horses. Only the King and Queen, along with his advisors, will be going in carriages. You'll get out the moment the last of their line passes through and join the empty spot in their march."
"Queen?" Sylvester's focus shifted to a different aspect, however. "What's her power? What's her name? I need to know everything."
Avanss found no hate, only worry on Sylvester's face. "She's the daughter of the head of the second strongest faction in Alfia. Her name is Delimira Xeek Eldaron, and her abilities are nothing too great—just a simple mastery in Earth Magic, and there are rumors she can communicate with plants. No proof has been found. Her greatest strength is perhaps in her beauty… she's quite famous for it."
"She can talk with plants, and you're telling me now?" Sylvester was annoyed because he found a significant variable that could derail his plan. "Even if there's no proof, always consider a rumor to be true unless proven false. Now we need to think about how her ability works since plants aren't sentient. How does the transfer of information happen, and how much of it can happen? Is she able to spy using plants?"
Sylvester had every right to be concerned since he had found a way to use plants to snoop around too. Sadly, he hadn't seen what special plant allowed him to do that, as his and Felix's duel had destroyed it.
Avanss frowned and tried to think. "Wait a second, now that you mention it, I think she can use the plants to spy and gather information. On many occasions in the past, she had appeared with the knowledge she had no right to hold. Sylvester, about the elven assassins attacking you before—I believe Queen Delimira sent them. She likely learned about you when my brother attempted to send individual spies to Sol to find you. You're the King's firstborn son—she must have felt threatened."
"You're the Crown Prince?!" Felix exclaimed at that part. "Good god—talk about a pain in the back."
Sylvester sighed and rubbed his face before placing the helmet on again. "Why don't the King and Queen have children yet?"
"They don't sleep together," Avanss replied awkwardly. "I was locked in Masan when it happened, but from what I've heard, it was a political marriage that my brother was against. But to keep the elves strong and united, he agreed to do it. However, he's never shared a bed with the Queen."
"A man who can't let go of his past is headed for failure," Sylvester muttered to himself, remembering his old brooding self, living every moment in the memory of Diana. But, as life went on, especially in the new world, he had long grown to accept the past as the past. Of course, he still cherished Diana's memories, but they no longer defined him.
Thud!
Thud!
The sound of marching footsteps grew intense as they passed just over them. It was Sylvester's cue to head out. "Felix, go to the Old City and find Sir Dolorem and Dagorith there."
Felix clearly couldn't go with Sylvester since he'd be instantly found out. "Be safe and notify me if something happens."
Sylvester nodded and prepared to leave. "You won't be coming, Avanss?"
"No, I'll meet you near the Blue Leaves building. You'll still need the layout of the building since it's too big to explore senselessly. I have someone prepared to hand it over inside," Avanss assured Sylvester, trying to be as helpful as possible. "I just hope you'll tell me what you find there."
'In the end, he's also an explorer.' Sylvester understood that.
"I will, don't worry about that. I'll go now. The sound and vibrations are diminishing." Sylvester prepared and looked up at the glass-covered exit of the cave. He removed the dirt and gazed at the shining blue sky. "They've already passed… See you later."
Sylvester wasted no time and jumped out of the cave, turning his attention to the west. He noticed the marching army moving away at a fast pace. The elven Royal Knights walked side by side in four lines, keeping the carriages somewhere between them. In the last row, Sylvester spotted an empty position in the third column.
'That should be my spot.' Sylvester muttered and wasted no time in sprinting forward. He used air magic to make his steps feel lighter and soundless as he moved inhumanly fast on the grassy land. Although, he did have to hold Miraj tightly.
In the blink of an eye, he reached the marching army and imitated the movements of those around him. His elven sword remained firmly sheathed to his side, one hand resting on its hilt while the other hand swayed in unison with the others.
Sylvester could already sense the elves on his side and front flinch for a moment as they noticed his presence. But as soon as they noticed his stature, armor, and presence, they ignored him—just as they were commanded to.
"...Your Majesty! Please don't poke your head out of the carriage window!..."
'What's going on ahead?' Sylvester heard the shout from ahead, someone crying and pleading to the King. 'Is he trying to look for me?'
Sylvester tried to ignore the sounds and march as those around him did. Soon enough, they approached Deca Imperia, and the city was even more magnificent up close. It had massive gates over the river that entered the city to form Moon Lake. Beside the river, a road led to another gate. It was all heavily protected, with soldiers of varying species standing guard.
'Do they have any special checking mechanisms?' Sylvester wondered and followed the lead of the other knights. He allowed the city guards to walk around them and look at them closely, but the guards never touched them.
'I can sense the scent of fear from these city soldiers. It seems they don't want to offend the King of Alfia. Sylvester understood the benefits of coming with the King. After all, elves were considered a highly proud species, so suspecting them of bringing in anything suspicious was out of the question. And even if they did, what could they do?
Soon enough, the vast gates were opened, and the army started to march in. The streets of the city were wide due to the various sizes of the residents, so they found no problem in moving. Without stopping, they went to the north shore of the massive Moon Lake, where the building Sylvester wanted to enter stood.
'Seek the tree bluer than the sea—the crescent is the key, and find out why this world came to be like this—Who made it like this.' Sylvester remembered the exact words Shadow Knight had said and looked forward to finding the truth.
"Halt!"
At the command, the entourage came to a stop soon after. Sylvester looked around to see if they had already arrived at the destination. 'Avanss said it's surrounded by towers… Are these the ones?'
Sylvester looked at the high skyscrapers to his left. They were so high that his helmet prevented him from fully seeing their tops. He reckoned the main building must be somewhere between these towers, at a central location.
He looked for an opportunity to slip away from the knights. But there were too many eyes on them. The city guards were everywhere.
"You!" A voice suddenly resounded. "Come here and help lift the bags."
Sylvester quickly looked to his left, beyond the two other knights. It was Avanss, pointing at him while looking like a spoiled young master.
He walked out of the line and followed Avanss carefully to the King's carriage. But the King had already disembarked and went inside to meet with the council members and drag them out to lunch.
However, that meant only one person was left in the King's carriage.
'The Queen?' Sylvester realized and looked.
"Don't you be clumsy and let these boxes fall. They hold my sister-in-law's precious jewelry." Avanss ordered Sylvester sternly and placed heavy boxes in his hands.
Though Sylvester's attention was on the massive, decorated carriage with its golden frame. Its door opened without making a noise, and legs slowly emerged out of it, followed by the person. One look, and sure enough, it was the Queen.
'She's certainly pretty… But more than Mum? I don't think so.' Sylvester evaluated her immediately. The Queen had long blonde hair adorned with dark silver ornamental hairclips. Her face was fair, and her eyes shone green. She had a certain charm of maturity on her face, and it stood out a lot. As for her body, it was modestly covered with dark green robes—she was tall and well-built in all places.
"Avanss, don't annoy the royal knights—they're not our porters." The Queen spoke softly, but her voice held a firmness of authority and confidence. "You should carry it instead."
"..."
"Oh, Delimira, I'm not a kid anymore. I won't blindly follow your orders like before just because you're pretty," Avanss proudly and smugly talked back. "You're gonna have to set me up with your sister first."
"Father has found a match for her already." Queen Delimira replied.
Avanss chuckled and extended his arm to the Queen, which she took gracefully, before walking with him into the building. "Another reason for me to dislike your father. But alas, a man can dream."
She chuckled and took a teasing tone. "Of course, dreams don't cost gold, after all."
"..."
Sylvester followed the two into the building, his mind a little amazed at Avanss' wits. 'This boy was born to be a spy… With a little training and his natural way with words—he'd be unstoppable.'
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[A/N: See Queen Delimira here]
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