"Can you give me more details on the situation? I do not think the information you gave me is enough." The girl said as she put in the vegetables and the noodles.
"Honestly, we do not know much of the situation either." Conrad began. "The collapse of Verbena was sudden and we were all taken by surprise. All we know was Alcove was the last territory to fall and Aliester was the last of the ducal heirs to get captured."
"You are making me confused." Aria commented as she served the cooked dishes.
"Do you remember your stepmother-Lobelia?" the mage inquired.
Aria seemed to have been in deep thought. She was probably recalling the person, they were talking about. "If I remember correctly, she married the King of Verbena when Innocia is twelve."
"After the princess manifested some of her powers, the queen made her move." Conrad said.
The knight added. "The queen seemed to put an enchantment on your father. He was the head of the Enclave during that time and the rest of the kings would ask for his counsel."
The mage continued. "During the summit at the Enclave, she was able to put a curse to the rest of the kings and had some of the heirs abducted. Truthfully, we do not know the state of things outside the prison."
"What does she want?" Aria asked as she took her place on the dining table with them.
"She wanted the keys. In order to gain more power." The wizard answered.
"If she managed to capture all the kings, then she may already have all the keys." Aria said almost in a whisper.`
"She doesn't have all the keys." Aliester incised. He had been only been listening earlier but since Conrad brought up the matter about the keys, Zarame and some memories from his predecessor filled his head. "The key from Verbena is missing."
Putting two and two together, Aria's eyes widened. "You think I have it."
They nodded.
"Let us assume that I have it… which I doubt. What are your plans then?" the girl asked.
"Ahhhh…"
No one answered. The only thing that gave a loud sound was the knight's grumbling stomach.
Aria sighed. "I knew it. Let's just eat and think about your plans later."
"Princess, where is the fork?" Blaze asked as he eyed the utensils. They don't have a fork, not even a spoon or a knife. The only things on the table are the food, five plates and five pairs of sticks.
"I forgot." Aria facepalmed. She took the sticks and showed them how they are used. "These are chopsticks and they are used to pick the food, like we do with the fork."
"Thank you for the food!" Aliester and the girl prayed before eating.
The pair tried to hide their snickers as they watched the males as they tried their hands with the chopsticks.
The three from the other realm were obviously struggling to pick the noodles but the food slip their hold. The trio were holding the sticks awkwardly.
Finally, when they had enough having fun at their expense, Aliester went to the kitchen and fetch a couple of spoons, forks and knives.
"Aria, you are mean." He chided his twin before giving the utensils to the other males. "I am really sorry. Here."
"I apologize." Aria followed her brother.
When they eventually tasted the food, Aliester observed their reactions.
"These are good!" Conrad complimented as he sipped the soup. "A bit salty but very flavorful."
"I haven't had anything that taste like this in our realm." Blaze added as he took a spoonful of noodles.
"I am glad it suits your taste. I was worried that you wouldn't be able to stomach the food from this realm." She said as she ate her own food.
After eating their meal, their talk resumed.
Without beating around the bush, Aliester brought up the topic once again. "Aria, we need your help in stopping Queen Lobelia. The guardian had spoken. You have the key of Verbena and you are the only one strong enough to defeat the queen."
Aria looked at him like he had grown two heads. "You are kidding, right? For one, I do not have the key. Nothing from the fragments of memories that I got had anything about the key. And two, I am not that strong. What makes you think that I can defeat the queen?"
"You are strong." Conrad answered cryptically. "You were just untrained in using your skills. We knew that you can definitely defeat her."
Daxton added. "Not to mention, we saw you fight earlier. Unlike Princess Innocia, you have the bearings of a warrior."
"Even that is the case, you are aware that I could not just waltz back to the other realm. How many souls did you sacrifice to get here?" she asked while narrowing her eyes at them.
"There was a prison riot, so people died and the souls from those who died were the ones who got sacrificed." Aliester answered.
"Does that mean that we will be sacrificing people here in Linden to get back to Lamiales?" Aria queried.
Aliester could not answer. The spell he used from the Hallows was taboo and it as only one way ticket. In order to get back, they needed to use another means of transport.
Zarame was still searching for another spell so that they won't have to sacrifice people.
"We will find a way to get back without killing anyone." Aliester answered.
Aria looked like she was not convinced. After a moment of silence, the girl said. "I want this to be clear. Princess Innocia is dead and I am not her."
"I have nothing to do with the other realm. With the way things are…" the girl sighed disappointedly. "You have no plans, your way of traveling entails sacrificing souls and the like-those will not persuade me to go back to that hell."
Aliester knew that it would be hard to convince his twin. Heck, if he had a choice, he would not have accepted that mission from the guardian. Hence, he could understand why Aria rejected them.
"Do they still discriminate black hair? The people there hate Innocia's very existence." She reminded the Verbenians. "I got a feeling that those people would be very happy to see my head severed."
"We will make sure that you won't get beheaded. Please help us." Blaze was the one who reassured her. "The Enclave is in grave danger."
Aria was quiet. It seemed as though she was weighing what the king said. After a while, she broke her silence. "I will think about it… I hope you understand. I have my life here and I am just an ordinary high schooler. I am not cut to save an entire kingdom."
The king sighed. "we understand. We will wait until you decide for yourself that you will help us."