The Southern part of the Arcadian Kingdom was filled with lush forests of evergreen, its leaves spreading wide and almost covering one-third of the whole continent.

In the utmost southern part, where snow periodically fell and blanketed the leaves and the ground in white, the most ancient of the trees grew away from the affairs of men. Each tree stretched tall, its height rivaling even the capital palace.

This was also the area where the Vanyar elves reside.

The trees in that area are tall, each with thick bark. The combination of those factors made the area the best living place. Usually, the elves live either inside the bark or on the upper side of the trees.

In the center of the verdant Vanyar kingdom, a crystal palace stood tall and shone under the rays of the sunlight. The palace was built across several of the bigger trees.

Within one of its balconies, a group of elves in silver armor stood in a neat row while. They all watched as a beautiful, blonde-haired elf tamed a large white tiger.

Rooooarrrr!

“Mina! Mina, listen to me. It’s been a few days, what happened? It’s me, Serene.”

Rooooarrrr! Rooooarrrr!

The white tiger kept struggling and roaring despite being bound by chains. There was no indication the beast even heard what the lady said.

“That lying elf! What did he do to you? Just wait, when I find him… he’ll regret doing this to Mina and I!”

Suddenly, sounds of marching alerted the woman, and she turned her head to see the silver-armored soldiers stand apart to make way before nodding their head in respect. Right as they parted, a stunning elf woman walked in. She has long blonde hair similar to Serene, but she wore a long dress that glitters with silver under the light.

Serene looked at the woman for a moment before kneeling and putting one of her hands on her chest.

“My respect to you, my queen, for you have finally returned.”

The lady smiled at the girl, helped her stand, ruffled her hair, and talk in a calm manner “Daughter, you can stop being so tense around me”

Serene nodded and asked. “My queen, is there anything I could assist you with?”

The queen looked at her daughter, frowned, and sighed in resignation. “Serene… I heard you had some trouble on your last patrol, and I came to see what happened.”

Serena stared at the raging beast in chains, and the queen approached the tiger without a hint of fear. Rather, her eyes had a glint of interest.

“Poor creature… Something happened to her..” said the queen

The queen looked at the tiger’s empty eyes for a moment, before her smile faltered and turned into a frown.

“What happened, my queen?” Serena asked upon seeing the reaction.

The queen raised her hand and pointed her index finger at the tiger’s forehead, right between its eyes. A bright light entered the creature, and within a few seconds, the light came back. However, the light was no longer pristine, for it had been tainted with a red glint reminiscent of a ruby.

Upon seeing the crimson light, the queen took a few steps back.

“This is… This is Blood Magic!” The queen exclaimed, disbelief evident in her expression.

Serene quickly walked towards her mother’s side and touched her shoulders to calm her down. “Mother, what happened?”

The queen looked at the disappearing red light, took a few deep breaths, and looked at Serene with a serious expression “Serene, tell me… tell me what happened during your patrol?”

Serena talked about how she was sent to explore the forbidden ruins of Aesir, and how she managed to capture a group of around 30 outlander humans during her patrol mission.

The queen listened attentively, not a trace of her playfulness in place. Everyone present knew that such a thing has never happened before, at least not in their view. It was clear that the situation has escalated beyond what they previously thought

“We captured 30 humans, five were too hard to deal with and we had to put them in the dungeon, while the rest were treated as usual in accordance to our treaty with King Callan… Ah, speaking of him, I was wondering if we should send the prisoners back to their kingdom.”

The queen shook her head, uninterested with all the politics. “That is not what I wish to know, my dear daughter… Tell me; was there an elf among those you have captured?”

“No, but I did encounter an elf during my mission there. I think he was an outcast from some other collective.”

“No, it is not.” The queen looked at the still-raging beast. “This elf is different”

“An outlander elf?” Serene raised her eyebrows. “We have never encountered an outlander elf before, and I know no cases that confirm such a thing is possible…”

Serene talked about that elf, about how she found the elf guarding a human, about how she decided to trust him, and what happened afterwards.

Just like before, the queen listened attentively. From her expression, Serene could tell that the queen was really bothered with something.

“What could I do to help ease your concern, my queen?” Serene asked.

The queen looked at her daughter’s eyes and said. “Serene, it’s with great importance that I speak to him, bring me the elf. This will be your quest”

Serene kneeled before her mother, put her hand on her chest, and spoke solemnly. “Yes, my queen, I will do as you have commanded.”

Serene walked out of the balcony and ordered her team to begin preparing for the mission.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Serene, the queen walked to the edge of the balcony and looked up towards the sky in a despondent expression. Not even one person was there to witness her moment of weakness.

“Has the time finally come?”