Kael's room was simple but comfortable. Books were stacked in corners, folded maps rested on the desk, and an ajar cupboard showed armor reinforced with elven runes and cloth. The sll of freshly brewed tea mingled with that of old wood and soft incense burning discreetly in an earthenware bowl.
Alia was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, holding the cup in both hands, the steam rising gently into her still slightly tired eyes. Irelia was reclining in a nearby armchair, eyeing the contents of her cup with typical suspicion - tea had never exactly been her type of drink.
Sylphie was lying on her side on one of the cushions on the floor, resting her head on one hand, her eyes following Kael as he carefully folded a change of clothes.
"So that's it?" Alia broke the silence. "You're leaving. To the middle of a war between elves..."
Kael kept packing his backpack, but his voice ca out calm:
"Soone has to be there. The Queen is about to be overthrown, and the only thing that can stabilize that court is soone who brings... sothing new. And apparently, that soone is ."
Irelia snorted. "You and your prophetic ways. I still think they should let us go with you."
Kael raised his eyes and stared at Irelia for a mont.
"You three almost died. You're still recovering. And if everything goes wrong there, at least a part of is safe here. We talked about that."
"I hate it when you talk like you're going to your death," Sylphie muttered, finally standing up. "You saved us in Azalith. We felt it, even if we don't rember how."
Alia nodded. "All I rember is a strange sensation... a light... and then darkness. When I woke up, you were there."
Kael closed his backpack and sat on the edge of the bed. His face hardened, as if he was struggling to maintain his composure.
"You don't have to rember. Nor should you. It was... ugly. But what matters is that you're back."
"And you've changed," comnted Irelia, raising an eyebrow. "Not just physically. You talk like you're... older. On the inside."
Kael smiled slightly bitterly. "Because I am. I've always been like that, it's just my appearance that didn't match."
Sylphie ca over and sat down next to him. "You don't have to carry this alone. Not now. Not ever."
He looked at her, and sothing in her eyes - perhaps the mark Yggdrasil had left - silenced him for a mont.
"You don't have to worry," said Kael. "I'm just going to pay that place a little visit. I have to finish off the rebel group that attacked you. It's simple."
A dense silence fell over the room, broken only by the clink of teacups being placed on the table.
Then Alia spoke:
"Are you coming back?"
Kael smiled, this ti with more warmth.
"Of course I will. And when I do, I hope you're all strong enough to fight together. Because it won't end in the Elf Kingdom. That... is just the beginning."
Irelia stood up, walked over to him and punched him lightly on the shoulder.
"Then you'd better not die, you idiot."
Sylphie reached out, entwining her fingers in Kael's.
"Co back to us. Whoever you're becoming... stay our Kael."
He nodded, feeling more than he could say.
And as the morning sun stread into the room, Kael stood up, picked up his backpack and headed for the door.
He stopped before leaving, looked at the three of them - different, reborn, marked - and said firmly:
"For you, I would face any war."
And then he left.
Leaving behind the room, the tea, and three hearts that beat together waiting for his return...
Kael walked down the stairs in silence, his firm footsteps echoing off the old wood of the mansion. The faint morning light filtered through the tall windows, casting golden patterns on the floor, as if the day itself was preparing for the journey ahead.
In the foyer, Exelia was waiting for him. She was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, a light backpack slung over one shoulder, the other hand holding a half-eaten apple. Her gaze t his imdiately - steady, direct, as always.
Kael stopped in front of her and asked, with a calm that tried to hide the burden of departure:
"Are you going with ?"
Exelia arched an eyebrow, dropped the rest of the apple into a small garbage can and pushed herself off the wall with her foot.
"I thought that was obvious. Or did you think you were going to march straight into the eye of an elven uprising all by yourself?" She gave a sharp half-smile. "I've already survived three spiritual revolutions, two demon hunts and a lineage betrayal. I wouldn't let you go now without ."
Kael couldn't help but smile slightly. That's what Exelia was - a constant in the chaos, an iron pillar between the cracks of the world.
"I didn't think I was going to convince you to stay."
"You didn't even try." She spun on her heels and started walking towards the door. "And even if he had tried, he would have failed miserably."
He followed her, adjusting his backpack on his shoulders. Outside, two horses were already waiting for them, saddled and ready, with supplies strapped to their sides. The sky was clear, but there was an invisible tension in the air - like the silence before distant thunder.
Before mounting, Exelia looked over her shoulder.
"Do you know how to ride a horse?" She asked, almost mocking him.
Kael gave her a look of feigned offense as he swung his leg over the saddle with the lightness of soone who had ridden through deserts, forests and battlefields.
"I know enough not to fall into the first hole." He adjusted the reins and looked at her with a lopsided smile. "You should worry more about the elves we're going to et than my riding performance."
Exelia snorted a short laugh and mounted with the sa agility as soone drawing a blade. The black horse beneath her neighed, eager to get going.
"Elves don't scare . What scares is that you think you can solve everything with diplomacy and that enlightened martyr look of yours."
Kael lightly harnessed his horse, which began to trot along the stone path in front of the mansion. The gate was open, as if the world itself was waiting for them outside.
"I don't intend to solve everything with words. But if I can prevent any more deaths... I'll try."
"As long as it's not yours," murmured Exelia, pairing up with him.
They drove on for a while in silence, the city in the distance slowly waking up, the rooftops still covered in dew. A flock of birds crossed the sky like a winged prophecy.
"Did you tell them?" Exelia asked suddenly.
Kael turned his face away, but kept his eyes on the road. "What?"
"About what really happened in Azalith."
He took his ti answering, as if he needed to weigh each word.
"No. They don't need to know what they did to her. They already carry enough in their marks... I'll just keep it on the down-low for now. Besides, at least they're safe now."
Exelia nodded slowly. "You're a noble fool, Kael. But still... sotis, the truth is what keeps people from losing themselves."
"Or what destroys them," he replied. "They still have ti to find their strength. When I co back, they'll be ready. I believe that."
...
"I should have known you'd co here."
The voice sounded serene among the apple trees, as if each word carried the weight of the ages. Eleonor was quietly picking apples, her pale fingers between the twisted branches, the scent of the ripe fruit spreading through the enchanted woods. But her eyes didn't lift - she already knew who was approaching.
"It's good to know that my mother still rembers she has a daughter."
Elion's voice cut through the air like a thin blade, laden with irony and ancient sorrow.
She erged from between the trees, her red hair framing a face that resembled both that of the woman in front of her and the child who had been abandoned. Their eyes were burning like embers about to reignite an ancient fire.
When Eleonor finally looked at her daughter, Elion was blunt:
"What happened to Kael?"
Her energy grew even before she answered, and her hair began to float around her face, crackling with ancient flas.
Eleonor remained serene, an apple in her hands.
"I forced his body into ti."
She shrugged, like soone admitting to so kind of magic trick. "Now he has the body of an adult. A necessary adjustnt... given the circumstances."
"Why?" Elion's voice ca out lower, but more dangerous. Muffled thunder rumbled through the clouds that were beginning to form.
Eleonor finally dropped the apple into the basket and faced her daughter squarely.
"Would you rather he died, Elion? Because that's what would happen. What he carries... what he is now... wouldn't survive in a child's body."
For a mont, the sky seed to hold its breath.
The two auras rose - vast, wild, ancient - and touched the firmant. The forest groaned, branches creaking as if they were shaking. Animals fled. The trees retreated. Ti itself seed to hesitate.
Then, slowly, they both drew back their power. Silence returned with a sacred weight.
Elion, still tense, narrowed her eyes.
"I'm feeling..." She stepped forward, subtly sniffing the air like a divine beast. "The sll of him. Inside you."
Eleonor blinked.
"...Well." She sniffled, looking away. "Things have happened."
An awkward silence settled in.
Elion crossed his arms, fire still glowing between his fingers.
"Mom."
"It was nothing planned! he was vulnerable, and I... was kind. For once."
"You slept with him."
"It was..." Eleonor retorted, lifting her chin. "Technically speaking, he needed to adjust his body so I-"
"So you gave him that old pussy?" Elion questioned as his aura rose again. Of pure jealousy.
"Heh? No! No! Calm down. He used the back door... that bastard didn't even fuck completely." Eleonor muttered in sha.
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