One day before the festival
The entire Elf Country was bustling with activity
Every street was filled with people preparing for the King's birthday celebration
Colorful flowers decorated the roads, banners were hung between the giant trees, and craftsmen carefully arranged decorations throughout the city
Even with the King still missing... the festival would go on
The party also lent a hand with the preparations
Although not every elf welcomed outsiders, there were still many who accepted their help with grateful smiles.
At the center of the city stood a massive statue of the Elf King
Several workers were decorating its base while Auel quietly tied flower garlands around it
He worked alone
"...Need a hand?"
A familiar voice suddenly came from behind him
Auel didn't even turn around
"No"
Sylffie peeked from behind the statue with a small smile
"...You're really going to decorate all of this by yourself?"
Auel just nodded
She stepped beside him anyway, watching him work in silence
Sylffie scratched the back of her head
"So... do you have any plans for tomorrow?"
"No"
"You answer really fast"
She let out a small sigh before smiling again
"Then... would you like to walk around the festival together?"
"No"
"...Again?"
"I don't see a reason to"
"But it'll be fun"
She pointed toward the bustling streets
"There'll be food stalls, performances, and fireworks at night"
"I guarantee you'll enjoy it"
Auel finally stopped what he was doing
He slowly looked at her
"Listen"
"I don't know who you think I am"
His voice remained calm
"But I'm not one of your old friends"
Sylffie's smile slowly faded
"I've noticed the way you've been looking at me"
"You keep trying to find someone else in my face"
She lowered her eyes
"So stop"
"I'm not him"
A moment of silence passed between them
Sylffie forced a small smile
"...I'm trying"
"I'm really trying"
"I know you're not him"
"...Then act like it"
Auel returned to decorating the statue
After standing there for another few seconds, Sylffie quietly turned around and walked away
She muttered it to herself before disappearing into the crowd
The next day... the long-awaited festival finally began
Unlike the gloomy atmosphere of the past two months, the city was overflowing with laughter
Children ran through the streets while merchants enthusiastically advertised their goods
Music echoed throughout the city
Performers entertained the crowds
The girls immediately disappeared into the sea of festival stalls
Meanwhile... Auel found himself sitting alone inside a small café near the main street
Through the window, he quietly watched the festival continue outside
A maid approached his table carrying a cup of tea
"Here's your order"
She placed it down carefully before giving him a polite bow
Unlike the elves, she had brown fur covering parts of her arms, a pair of floppy dog ears, and a fluffy tail swaying gently behind her
She was a beastkin
Auel nodded and took a sip
She hesitated for a moment before speaking again
"Um... is this your first time attending the festival?"
Auel looked up
"What do you mean?"
"The King's Birthday Festival"
She smiled warmly
"Is this your first one?"
"...Yes"
Her smile became even brighter
"Really, then I hope you enjoy it"
She glanced outside the window
"...Although..."
"It's a little lonely this year"
Auel followed her gaze
"...Because the King's missing?"
She woofed
"Usually... his Majesty would walk through the streets himself"
"He'd greet everyone"
"Not just the elves"
"He treated every race equally"
"Even people like us"
She laughed softly
"I only met him once"
Her smile became bittersweet
"So... I really hope he comes home soon"
"...He was a wonderful king"
Auel slowly lifted his cup
"...I hope so too"
The maid quickly straightened herself
"Ah, I'm sorry"
"I've been talking too much"
"I still have work to do"
She bowed once more before returning to the other customers
Auel quietly watched her leave
Then... he looked back outside
The crowds continued laughing
Children chased one another between the stalls
Musicians performed in the center of the road
Even without their king... everyone was still celebrating
Was this their way of praying for his safe return?
Or... were they simply trying to protect the tradition he had loved?
Auel couldn't tell
Then something caught his attention
There was an elf looking at him
Then the elf walked inside the caffe, it was Sylffie
"...Found you"
She walked towards him carrying the same cheerful smile as yesterday
Auel looked at her and sighed
Without asking permission, she sat across from him
"...What are you doing?"
"I was looking for you"
"… Why?"
"Nothing… because I wanted to"
Auel let out another sigh
"I already told you"
"I'm not your friend"
"I know"
She answered much more quickly this time
"Yesterday... I kept thinking about what you said"
She rested her chin on the table
"So today..."
"I'm trying to get to know about you"
"...Not the person I keep remembering"
Auel looked at her for a brief moment
Then looked away
Sylffie's smile grew just a little brighter
She raised her hand
"Miss!"
"The same drink as him, please"
The beastkin waitress smiled
"Right away"
Silence returned between them
But unlike yesterday... it wasn't uncomfortable
"So..." Sylffie spoke again "What do you think?"
"About what?"
"The festival"
Auel glanced outside
"...It's not much different from the festivals in human cities"
Sylffie laughed
"That's because you're only seeing the daytime"
"The real highlight is tonight"
"The fireworks"
"I promise they're beautiful"
"...Maybe"
"Maybe?"
"I might not stay that long"
She blinked
"Why not?"
"They're loud"
Sylffie couldn't help laughing
"...That's your reason?"
"It bothers me"
She shook her head while smiling
"You really are an unusual person"
After another short silence, she looked at him again
"...Can I ask you something?"
Auel looked at her
"You always seem..."
She searched for the right words
"...Lonely"
His hand stopped halfway to the teacup
"You always wear that expression"
"...Like you're carrying something no one else can see"
Auel quietly took another sip
"...It's none of your concern"
"...Maybe. But... I just wanted to know"
"Did something happen?"
No answer
"...You don't have to tell me"
"I was just worried"
Auel finally set the cup down
"Some things... are better left in the past"
Sylffie lowered her gaze
"...I guess you're right"
She smiled faintly
"...Looks like both of us are carrying something from the past"
Auel didn't answer
After finishing their drinks, the two stepped out of the café
The festival had become even livelier
People filled every street and laughter echoed beneath the towering trees
Without saying anything, Sylffie grabbed Auel's wrist
"Come on"
"..."
"We're already here"
"You can't spend the whole festival sitting inside a café"
Before he could protest, she pulled him into the crowd
One stall after another
She introduced him to traditional Elven sweets
Dragged him to watch performers dancing with spirit magic
Stopped at handmade accessory shops
Compared to yesterday, he no longer rejected everything immediately
Sylffie noticed it
She smiled to herself
Maybe... he wasn't as difficult as he pretended to be
The afternoon slowly passed
The streets became even more crowded as people gathered near the city square
Children ran around chasing one another while musicians played cheerful melodies
Then... a shadow swept across the city
The laughter stopped
One by one, people looked toward the sky but the sunlight obscured it, so it wasn't visible
Something enormous blocked the sunlight
It hovered high above the capital
"What is that?"
Everyone was wondering what was that thing
But no one could make out what it was
Only after their eyes adjusted... did they finally see it
A silhouette slowly looked more visible
Massive wings
A long tail
Curved horns
"...A dragon..."
Someone whispered
The words spread through the crowd like wildfire
"A dragon!"
"P-Please tell me I'm seeing things!"
"Why is there a dragon here?!"
Panic erupted throughout the square
Guards immediately rushed into position
"Protect the civilians!"
Sylffie stepped in front of Auel almost instinctively
Her hand reached for the bow on her back
She slowly drew the bowstring
"Power shot"
Her arrow flight in an insane speed right at the dragon
Clang!
The arrow suddenly bounced away
"…What?"
Sylffie's eyes widened
Auel narrowed his eyes
Something...
No
Someone
Behind the dragon's neck
A long spear reflected the sunlight for only a brief moment
Someone was riding it
Neither the rider nor the dragon moved
They simply remained there, watching
Silently overlooking the city below
Then, with a single flap of its enormous wings
The dragon turned around
And disappeared beyond the endless forest
"...It left?"
"...That's it?"
The crowd looked at each other in confusion
"What was it doing?"
"Why didn't it attack?"
"No one knows..."
The panic slowly turned into uneasy whispers
The guards continued calming everyone down
"Please remain calm!"
"Everything is under control!"
Even so... No one truly believed those words
Then while figuring what that thing really was, Auel froze
A strange feeling ran down his spine
Someone was watching him
He slowly scanned the people surrounding the square
Thousands of faces
Yet, he couldn't tell where the feeling came from
"Auel?"
Sylffie tilted her head
"What's wrong?"
He didn't answer
Instead, his eyes slowly stopped on a familiar group walking through the crowd
The four Cardinals
Surrounded by palace guards
The strange feeling immediately disappeared
The Cardinals stepped onto a small platform near the center of the square
One of them cover his mouth with his hand
"Everyone"
His calm voice spread surprisingly far
There was a magic circle on his palm
The crowd gradually became quiet
"We understand your fears"
"We know many of you are anxious after what happened today"
His eyes swept across the people
"And we know..."
"...that His Majesty is still missing"
The atmosphere instantly became heavy
"But until the day our king returns..."
"We shall protect this country"
"No matter the cost"
"Even if we must offer our own lives"
Silence
Then cheers slowly rose from every corner of the square
The uneasy atmosphere gradually settled
The festival resumed
But not as lively as before
Everyone still glanced toward the empty sky from time to time
"Auel"
Gramm and Gill finally found them among the crowd
"Hey you saw that dragon too, right?" Gill asked
Auel nodded
"...That's not what concerns me"
Gramm crossed his arms
"What do you mean?"
"There was someone riding it"
Gill blinked
"...Seriously?"
"Yes, although I couldn't see it clearly but there was a person up there"
Silence fell between them
Sylffie folded her arms
"I've lived here my whole life"
"I've never seen a dragon anywhere near this forest"
Gill scratched his head
"Are you sure? Maybe there is a dragon hiding inside the forest" Gill asked
"Are you doubting me?"
"I don't think she is wrong, there are not a single mountain around this forest"
"But how come there is a dragon came here? Dragon aren't usually getting out from their nest, right?"
Auel just shook his head and his thoughts continued racing
A dragon somehow appeared and someone was riding it
What the hell actually happened?
Are they also involved with the King case
"Hey did you feel that?"
Gramm suddenly asked in a quiet voice
Auel nodded
"For a second, there was someone staring directly at us"
Gill frowned
"Yeah, and it disappeared almost immediately"
"That's definitely came from one of them" he answered while pointing at the Cardinals
"But why did we didn't feel anything when we came to the Palace" Gill asked
"I don't know, maybe they wanted to warn us not to interrupt" Auel answered
Sylffie looked back and forth between them
"Hey, don't ignore me" Sylffie said" what happened?"
"We just felt like someone was watching us" Gramm smiled awkwardly
"Watching you?"
Sylffie's expression stiffened
"Yes, and somehow they came from the Cardinals"
"Let's meet up first and talk about this quickly" Auel said "Where are the others?"
"They still enjoying the festival" Gill answered
"Yeah, it's still the festival anyway so don't think about it seriously" Gramm continued
"Why don't we talk about it tomorrow while today we just spend our time enjoying this festival"
"He is right, don't spoil the festival with serious thought" Sylffie said
Sylffie suddenly grabbed his wrist again
"Hey"
She smiled
"You've been making that serious face ever since the dragon showed up"
"Today's a festival"
"You can think about mysteries tomorrow"
Without waiting for an answer, she pulled him toward another food stall
"Hey"
"Come on"
"At least try smiling once today"
Gramm and Gill laughed quietly as they watched Sylffie drag Auel through the festival once again.