The person in question averts his gaze unto the guards by the door, faking concentration.
Unaware of the minor disagreement between us, Laris fixes his clothes, all the while eyeing the door and the guards as well. The door looked heavy and padded. Such doors were made to avoid eavesdropping. Unless we're really loud, will the Queen really hear us?
"...Do you really think the Queen will see us?"
"Yes", Laris confidently answers me. "If I wasn't sure before, I'm sure now. Because Savella said we'll meet her."
"Because she's from the Faerie-kind?" All because she can't lie?
"Yes, but rather, because she's the Fae Priestess. If someone like her can't do a the most basic divination, then the basic divination would be the hardest indecipherable magic in history."
Oh. That would make sense how Savella knew where to meet us. Raguk wouldn't have known we'd be by the door at that time. Neither would she make such a statement to steer away the guards, nor advise us what to do to see the Queen.
"Let's hurry", Laris sets off and we follow behind. There are only two guards by the entrance; probably the Queen's personal guards that follow her everywhere. Upon noticing us, the pair of guards tense and eye us attentively.
"State your agenda", they asked in a low threatening voice, going so far as glaring at Laris with slight hostility. Without a palace guard, maid or butler to guides us, our sudden appearance rather looked a bit suspicious.
"We are here to seek audience with her Majesty", Laris bowed slightly, his voice loud.
"Lower your voice", the guard frowns. "The Queen is resting in her salon."
"But I would like to meet her one last time before we take our leave. I'm afraid of being told I lack manners for simply leaving without word, and upsetting her."
"She is currently with her family and cannot be disturbed."
"I thought you said she's resting", I asked. I have a feeling that we're going to go round again like with the guards at the entrance, and quite frankly, I find it really annoying.
He squints at me and says, "Her Majesty is resting with her family."
"And who told you to tell us this? Let me guess, it's that lying guard beside Afzal, isn't it?"
"You! How dare you accuse a Faerie-kind of lying!"
"I bet they're the ones inside this room, talking with the Fae Queen. Am I wrong?"
"You—"
"Am I wrong?" I repeated, yet the guard couldn't answer.
A sharp tip points at my neck and I reflexively avoid but the other guard also silently pointed his weapon at me, leading to a few beads of blood appearing on my neck. The smell of iron in the air had my eyes dilating. Laris looked angry as he also scented blood, but Obrecht was faster than him—
—Snap!
Chunks of wood fell to the floor with no trace, save for the sound. Obrecht had, for some time, moved behind me and snapped the invisible weapons of the guards. Judging by the sound of cracking and impact with the floor, they must have been metal-tipped wooden spears.
"Call the other guards! Arrest—"
"Arrest who, exactly?"
"C-Crown Princess", the Queen's guards stuttered. "Crown Princess, you mustn't be here it's dangerous!"
Two colorful irises meet mine before she lowers her eyelids. Her eyelashes were so long that she looked as if she had her eyes closed her eyes all the time.
"My, aren't these Queen Mother's guests? And you said to arrest?"
"Y-Your H-Highness..."
"It's not exactly you who's bleeding, so tell me, who's more dangerous despite being unprovoked like this?"
"But your Highness…"
"Oh my, still not following the others of your future Queen?" She turns to her personal maid, "On my reign, remember to replace the whole set of the Queen's guards. I don't want incompetent servants deciding for me who to meet and who to not meet. Servants who can't even follow the simplest of orders are useless. Maybe on my regime, I might as well replace every male guard with female ones." She clicks her tongue.
The two guards paled, heads bowed as they retreated to stand by the side. Not just themselves, but they even managed to drag along their whole unit just because of their act. The dishonor of getting fired and unhappiness of their fellow guards must have scared them.
"I apologize for their rudeness. They've done you a great disrespect."
"No, Princess, we may partly be blamed for coming so suddenly", Laris explains.
"If you're really sincere, then won't you let us meet your Queen Mother?" I ask.
"Videre", Laris whispers in a nervous bout, anticipating the other's reaction.
The other person simply chuckles. "I suppose why not? So your name is Videre, right? Call me Losalia."
Laris, "How can we call the next Queen by her—"
"...Don't want to."
"Videre!" Laris scolds. Am I imagining it or did he just use the same scolding tone he uses on Letitia.
While I look at Laris disbelievingly, Losalia smiles at us. "Why not?"
"...We're not even close." I glance at the guard, who received Losalia's nod before reluctantly opening the salon's heavy door for us.
"—but Mother! Muzi's...", Afzal trails off in the middle of his righteous speech. "Who allowed you to enter?!"
"I did", Losalia steps inside the salon, leading us in.
"Sister!"
"Losalia."
"Queen Mother", Losalia greets back. "Afzal."
"I thought you hated social gatherings, what brings you to the salon of all places", the Queen questioned.
"I got bored so I wanted to annoy someone. And for the record, I do dislike them, just as much as I hate fake courtesy, but that does not mean I'm incapable of doing it." Losalia rolls her eyes as she takes a seat on her own even without being offered; even despite the presence of the Fae Queen.
The Queen simply sighs at this. Despite her act, her eldest has always been the most level-headed and reliable of her four children. If only she could give face to others sometimes.
"Your Majesty", Laris bows. "My sincerest apologies for our unannounced arrival. For some reason, we were repeatedly being denied the right to request for your presence."
At the corner of my eye, I see Muzi squeezing his fists.
"Is that right", The Queen frowns.
"Mother!" Afzal tries to get her attention back in vain.
"Why don't we move to the throne room. There seems to be an issue I did not expect to arise." She glances at Afzal who was forced to silence. Her maids hustled and followed after her while a few gestured for us to follow.
The throne room wasn't that far. After a few turns, we enter a larger door with a few golden vines and flowers on its design. It looked like it was padded as well, but unlike the salon door, the throne room door was padded with red velvet-type of cloth that I wasn't familiar with.
The Queen walks straight to the only tall chair that stood on the top of a few stairs. When she turned around, the few people in the room, including Laris, bowed their heads. Only when she sat down did the people start to rise.
"So tell me, are you here as well to quarrel over this 'servant's sword'?" The Queen asks.
I open my mouth to argue when Laris pulls at my coat sleeve, indicating for me to let him answer.
"Firstly, I thank her Majesty for giving us audience. Part of the reason why we have arrived unannounced may be to enlighten the situation."
"And the other part?"
"The other part is that I would feel rather lamentful and ashamed of my manners if I were not to bid farewell to the most beautiful person in Faerie Valley." Laris bows, his hand on his chest.
"My, is that so." The Queen smiles, upon hearing such flawless flattering. It becomes all the more effective if they can't find any lie within it. On the side, the tenseness on Afzal's shoulders made him look stiff.
"Also, I would like to apologize to his Highness, Afzal, for ending our conversation on bad terms. Would it not be better to part ways as friends still?"
Afzal finally looks at Laris. Having spent quite some time hesitantly glancing at him, Afzal's shoulders finally eased.
"I, too, may have been rash, Laris. Apologies", he awkward but earnest smiles. "For the sake of you chasing me all the way here, and as well as for our friendship, I suppose I could let this go. I only ask for Muzi's sword be returned to him, and we can forget this incident ever happening, Laris."
Futuo! Why are you so stubborn?!