Upon touching the necklace, Archer felt a surge of mana flowing into him, though it posed no cause for concern. He glanced up at the woman, inquiring, "Why is mana coming from this?"
The stall owner smiled in response, meeting his gaze. "I bet your girl will love that; they come in pairs."
She took out a necklace with a green gem and showed him. ''It is said these gems are linked somehow; rumor says they can communicate in dire circumstances; just drop some blood on it and watch it work.''
''How much?'' Archer asked.
''Two gold.'' The woman answered.
Archer took out the coins and handed them over with a big smile. ''Thank you.''
Leaving the stall behind, he headed towards the castle. It was late afternoon, so he waited for the sun to see her.
A few hours later, Archer was having a feast while sitting on a roof across from the castle. He could see guards patrolling the area.
Watching over the grounds as night fell, he couldn't use his hood anymore due to his horns, but that didn't bother him.
He Blinked onto the castle walls as the guard watching that section walked off. Archer sneaks along the wall to reach the courtyard. He has to find a way into the servant's quarters.
Making his way down the stairs, he heard footsteps approaching. Looking around and using Blink again, he appeared further into the courtyard, sneaking towards the servant's area.
Ten minutes later, he arrived at the backside of the castle and spotted the balcony attached to Ella's room.
Archer used Blink to appear on the balcony without any issues. Looking around, I saw it was basic but well-kept, with plants and furniture littering the place.
That's when he noticed the lights in her room were off. Archer sat down and waited, falling asleep on a comfortable chair, but his body may not be tired, but his mind.
***
[Ella's P.O.V]
After finishing her work, Ella was tired, so she returned to her room. 'I wonder how Archer's doing, and it's been nearly three weeks since I've heard from him.'
Ella was thinking about Archer, who she missed dearly. It hadn't been bad since he left, but she had noticed Aldwulf was paying more attention to her.
But she ignored him, not wanting to associate with someone who treated Archer horribly. Walking down the dimly lit hallway, Ella felt the cold touch of the stone floor beneath her feet.
The plain walls, devoid of adornment except for the first wife's personal touches, were clean and unremarkable.
The neglect from the other two wives was evident. Noticing her door drawing near, Ella trudged until she finally reached her room.
Stepping inside, she lit a warm candle as she prepared for bed. But as she passed by the window, something caught her eye in the periphery of her vision.
Pausing in her tracks, Ella approached the window, curiosity compelling her to peer outside.
There, she spotted him, unmistakable yet different. His once familiar form was now adorned with magnificent white horns and scales that trailed along his neck and body.
"It's him," she whispered, her thoughts racing, "but different, transformed into something." She said to herself.
Wondering what had happened to him, she didn't bother thinking about it anymore and rushed out the door.
Approaching the slumbering Archer, Ella carefully examined him. Noticing only a few changes, she observed the emergence of horns on his head and scales on his hands.
His horns were above his ears, curving in different directions before pointing upwards. Ella began to poke the horns on his head gently.
They seemed strong, similar to tough nails, and they felt dry when she touched them. The scales are a beautiful snow-white color.
She wondered what happened to him, and that's when she looked down and saw a pair of cat-like violet eyes looking at her with a smile.
***
[Back to Archer]
He felt the poking as he was sleeping, his eyes opened to see her poking his hand. He just stared at her with a smile on his face.
Ella looked down to see him staring at her, and that's when she turned beet red as she hopped back like a scared rabbit. ''It's good to see you. How have you been?''
She wouldn't look at him and kept looking down. 'So shy Hehe.' He thought to himself.
Archer stepped forward, and she took a step back. He was getting amused at her adorable behavior.
''Why are you so shy? I told you I would come to see you.'' He said in a loving tone.
Looking up at him, she spoke in a caring tone. ''You're late, what's happened to you?''
Archer looked away before answering. ''Well, as you can see, I evolved to level twenty. I got the eyes, scales, horns, and a dramatic improvement of my senses.''
She looked at him before asking with a curious voice. ''I know you were a Dragon-kin? But what are you?''
Scratching his cheek before answering. ''A white dragon.''
Ella's eyes opened before getting an excited look on her face. ''You're a dragon?''
He nodded at her question, and she got happy and smiled. ''I'm happy for you. I knew you weren't useless like everyone else thought.''
Smiling as he heard what she said. They caught up and spoke for hours under the moon's light.
He felt so relaxed that the thoughts that usually plagued his mind were gone. The two of them were sitting there in silence before Ella spoke.''Do you want a drink, Arch?''
Nodding, Ella smiled before standing up to fetch some drinks. She was away for a while, returning with tea that she carefully poured into cups.
As Archer sipped his tea, the memory of the necklaces crossed his mind. He stopped drinking, retrieving them along with a knife.
Slashing his hand, he let the blood flow over the necklaces. Panicking at the sight, Ella rushed over to him, trying to stop him. "Archer, what are you doing?"
He smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, I'm used to the pain already. Here."
The half-elf looked at the necklace and slowly reached out her hand to grab it. She started looking at it and felt so happy. Only her mother had ever gotten her something. ''Sorry about the blood, Ella.''
Archer explained what he had done. ''Well, I went to buy you something, and the woman behind the stall started her sales pitch, and in the end, I bought them.''
She put it on with a huge smile before lunging forward and hugging Archer while thanking him, which caught him by surprise.
He happily returned the hug, and they lingered in that embrace for a little while. As she lifted her head, her sky-blue eyes locked onto his.
They stared at each other for a while before she pulled him closer and looked into his eyes with a particular look and a smile on her pretty face.
Archer blushed in response to her smile, and as she pulled him closer, she surprised him with a kiss. The sensation was delightful, her lips soft and lavender wafting.
In retrospect, he probably should have seen it coming; the way she looked at him with those sky-blue eyes held a specific promise.
But he was still unprepared for it. They stayed there for an unknown amount of time, arms around each other until she drew away.
Her typically pale cheeks now glowed a bright red, and she smiled sheepishly. Archer felt a surge of happiness; he hadn't anticipated her kissing him.
Knowing her usual shyness, the bold side she revealed was attractive to him, and he spoke with a smile. ''Thank you, Ella.''
She nodded and didn't speak. They both went and sat down. Archer remembered the church of Light and asked if she knew anything. ''Ella, what do you know about the Church Of Light?''
She snapped out of her daze and nodded her head. ''Yeah, Mother taught me about them.''
A look of shock appeared on her face as she remembered something. ''Archer, they will be after you. They hate dragons more than anything.''
''Why?'' He asked with a curious voice.
Ella gazed at him as if he were lost, then recalled his memory loss. "So, the Church of Light harbors a deep hatred for dragons who once ruled the continent thousands of years ago. After the church survivors managed to escape, the dragons retaliated by nearly destroying the church, forcing them into hiding, and vowing to eliminate every dragon that appears."
She drank some tea and then continued. ''The Draconic-human wars kicked off thanks to the influence of the Church Of Light; ever since those times, they have hunted down all dragon-kin.''
They continued speaking late into the night before they went their ways. They had planned to meet up a couple of days later.
After they finished speaking, Ella kissed him again and returned to her room while Archer watched with a smile.