"I'm Sydra Glass, the one you invited to have a discussion with before the Ashlock Ball," Sydra says as he pulls out the letter he received and hands it to King Arthur. Taking the letter, the King reads through it, nodding his head as he hands it back.
"It seems you are just as capable as she said you would be, as you have already saved my son once," King Arthur says, causing Lucas and Gwen to become confused.
"Do you know this man, Arthur?" Gwen asks, glancing at the letter in Sydra's hands. It was rare for the King to invite anyone to the Ashlock Ball, but to wish to discuss something privately beforehand was unheard of.
"I don't know him personally, but I have heard tales of him," King Arthur says as he stands up, "Before I say anymore, let us return to the palace. There may be people listening in around here,"
Looking around, Sydra notices that although the Royal Guard is keeping everyone from coming too close to the King or his family, there are still many people watching from afar, and a few of them are releasing small amounts of killing intent.
'Although this place seems calm on the surface, I get the feeling that something is going to happen soon,' Sydra thinks, noticing a few of the hostile glares disappear into the shadows.
"Would you care for a horse?" Someone asks, startling Sydra with their question. Turning around, Sydra comes face to face with the snout of a horse. Taking a step back, he sees one of the Royal Guards offering the reins of the horse to Sydra. The man has short black hair and a scar passing between his hazel eyes.
"That would be great," Sydra says, accepting the reins from the horse. As he steps into the saddle, Sydra watches the man return to the other Royal Guards, and begin giving them orders to move out. 'His presence... I couldn't sense it,'
Saddling another horse, Lucas makes his way over to Sydra, "That is the Captian of the Royal Guards, Henry Devot. He's been in charge of them for as long as I can remember,"
"Oh? That's good to know," Sydra says, glancing at Lucas. Earlier he didn't have the time to get a good look at him due to the fact he had been busy trying to save him, but now he could see that Lucas closely resembled his father. They both had short dark hair and chiseled jaws, and their movements seemed to reflect each other as well. The only difference was the eyes, as Lucas had light brown eyes like his mother, while his father had blue eyes.
"Also... Thanks for saving me back there. While I was still conscious, I thought I was surely going to die," Lucas says, holding out his hand for Sydra to shake.
"Haha, it was no problem. I'm just glad you're doing better now," Sydra says as he shakes Lucas's hand.
Pulling his hand back, Sydra feels someone watching him from the shadows, but as he turns his head the feeling goes away. 'It seems that I'm pulling attention to myself by interacting with Lucas,'
Urging his horse to go faster, Sydra pulls it up next to the Captain of the Guards and leans down, "I believe we are being watched, and from somewhere over there," Sydra says, nodding his head in the direction of a grand white chapel.
Winking, Henry flicks two of his fingers in the direction of the chapel, and several of the Royal Guards nod their heads to one another. One by one, they split off from the group, leaving no traces of their presence behind.
"I'll have the Night Ivories take care of it," Henry says, before stepping away from Sydra and making his way over to the King, "Your Majesty, are you sure we can trust him?"
Hearing Henry's question, Arthur glances back at Sydra, who is talking to Lucas once more, "I obviously don't trust him completely just yet, but Oracle Oviale recently had a prophecy about him, and I trust her prophecies,"
Nodding his head, Henry steps back from the King and warily glances at Sydra, 'I'll have to keep my eyes on this one. He is an unpredictable piece on the table,'
By now the group had reached the palace, and Sydra noticed that just like everything else in this kingdom, it was white. Making their way through the gates, the King motions for Sydra and Lucas to come over.
"Follow me, the discussion I wish to have involves the two of you," King Arthur says as he leads Sydra and Lucas through a courtyard. Following behind the King, Sydra studies the courtyard closely. Everywhere he looks, he notices multiple Royal Guards either guarding the place or training in earnest.
'Although this is the palace, there seem to be more Guards than there normally would be, almost as if the King is preparing for something,' Sydra thinks as he gauges the strength of the people in the courtyard.
Other than King Arthur, who is at the S-Rank, and the Captain of the Guards, which is also an S-rank, most of the other people in the courtyard are either A-rank or B-rank at the very least. Although it wasn't rare for there to be so many people at those ranks, it was unusual to find so many all following under one person.
'I guess this is what Solomon meant when he said that this Kingdom is one of the five closest to being as strong as the elves or dwarves,' Sydra thinks as he feels the ground under his feet tremble as the guards slam into each other.
"I see you studying our guards," King Arthur says as he opens a door to the palace, "The ones you saw out there are actually the weaker of the group, as our stronger guards are all busy doing other things,"
"From what I was able to see, although they may not be your strongest, the guard out there are still well trained," Sydra says as he follows behind Lucas.
Entering the palace, Sydra feels a cool gust of wind wash over his body, created by runes hidden along the ceiling. As their feet clack against the cold marble floor, the three of them make their way down a hallway, stopping in front of an oak door.
"Beyond this door is something that few people have seen, with most of them dying after they did," King Arthur says, placing his palm against the door. As it swings open, Sydra peers into the dark room, the sound of something shifting further in.
"What... What's in there?" Lucas asks, his body trembling in fear. Walking through the door, King Arthur snaps his fingers, causing a ball of light to appear above them. As the ball of light illuminates the room, a pair of red-feathered wings flutter to life, and the sounds of chains can be heard.
"So, you've brought people to gawk at me, have you?" A voice asks, the speaker hidden behind the wings. Turning around, the speaker glares at the group, her red eyes piercing through her tangled black hair.
"Itheria, move to the side, we wish to pass through," King Arthur says, a sword made from light forming his hand.
Seeing the sword, a fearful gaze appears in Itheria's eyes, and she takes a few steps to the side, "Shall I ever escape from this prison, I swear I will kill you and all of your family," she hisses as they pass by.
Behind her is a stone staircase leading downwards, reeking with the smell of must and mildew. Heading down the stairs, King Arthur glances back at Sydra and Lucas, "I'm sure you must have questions about who that was, and why she is guarding this area,"
"I certainly do, but I am also more interested in what is down there," Lucas says, noticing that the steps seem to go on forever. "Also, was she the only thing guarding this place, or will we meet more creatures?"
"She was the only living thing guarding this place, but if one was to keep heading down the stairs, they would find a few other things waiting for them," King Arthur says as he stops on the stairs. Turning to the wall beside him, King Arthur presses in one of the stone blocks. "But what I wish to show you isn't down there,"
As King Arthur pulls his hand away from the stone, the wall slides to the side, giving just enough room for a person to squeeze through. Passing through the hole, Sydra finds himself in a circular room, surrounded by ivory columns.
"What is this room?" Lucas asks, passing through the space behind Sydra, King Arthur following right behind him.
"This is a room I had created half a year ago, when I first heard the prophecy of the Oracle Oviale, which foretold our Kingdom's demise. That's why I invited you here, Sydra, as I need you to protect my son," King Arthur says as he walks to the center of the room.