When Draven entered the council hall, he found that all the council members were present and simply waiting for his arrival. The various leaders and elders that represented the different territories of the kingdom were seated inside the solemn hall made out of carved stone, making idle chatter with each other or their subordinates.

If an ordinary human were to see the sight, they would be stunned with eyes bulging in disbelief, as each and every person inside the council hall were creatures that they thought were figures of folktales and legends. There were beautiful elegant elves, tiny winged faeries, shapeshifters in their animal forms and females who looked like humans in ancient clothing on the surface but were in fact witches.

As the Draven entered the council hall, the fourteen council members all rose from their seats to greet him.

The eleven High Elders of each elf clan, the Queen of the Fae, the Head of the Witches, the Chief of the Shapeshifters and the Devil.

These fifteen existences composed the highest governing body of Agartha.

Draven sat on the throne at the forefront of the hall and only then did the others sat down in their respective chairs. Leeora, the Head Elder and representative of the Wood Elf Clan, were among them.

“How are the races and clans faring for the past month?” Draven asked straight to the point with a nonchalant face.

Although Agartha was called a kingdom, it was in fact more a blessed land that Draven protected, a haven for the supernatural creatures that could not coexist with the humans of the continent. There was little sense of formality and he didn’t generally care about how each race governed themselves. In fact, he mostly found the council meeting that happens once a month redundant since he felt that each clan elder or leader of the race didn’t really need him to fix their individual issues.

“Your Majesty is as impatient as usual,” one of the council members chuckled.

It was a male elf with long bushy white hair, his pointed ears somewhat longer than average, wearing a long white robe that was open in front yet its hems touched the floor. He was Halifax, the High Elder of the Moon Elf Clan and acting figurehead of the elf race. He was the oldest living existence amongst his kind, even much older than Leeora, the High Elder of the Wood Elf Clan.

In general, the inhabitants of Agartha belonged to five major races—the elves, the witches, the faeries, the shapeshifters and the humans—each of them having their own territories that were self-governing and self-sustaining.

Out of five territories, the elf race was the largest one with eleven clans, each of them with a representative within the council. As elves were the most dominant race in terms of population, their territory spanned almost half of the kingdom, including the royal palace where the King resides, while the other magical races occupied the rest of the kingdom, dividing it equally among themselves.

As for humans?

Those pitiful humans who were refugees lucky enough to stumble upon the hidden Kingdom of Agartha were welcomed to stay, but they were confined to the villages at the border of the kingdom, generally not mingling with the other races. Though some of them were bad seeds, many of them were war orphans or victims of crimes, thus the magical races pitied them. It was out of pure kindness of the heart that they were allowed to stay.

However, they were treated like stray cats and not actual people of the kingdom, thus, although they occupy a territory, there were no human representatives in the council meeting. As the remaining minority, humans were as good as non-existent in the eyes of the other races.

Halifax spoke up, “Your Majesty, we have heard that you brought a female human to the palace.”

Draven simply nodded as he knew what would come next.

Seeing the King not bothered by these questions, everyone exchanged gazes.

Halifax continued, “Your Majesty, you must have your own considerations, but for more than a century, we have been following this rule that no human is allowed in the territories of our races. Humans are only allowed to stay at the human villages at the borders of the kingdom. May we know the reason for Your Majesty to break this rule?”

Draven remained silent, sitting calmly in his throne with his red eyes only observing the members of the council.

“Indeed, Your Majesty, we all wish to know the reason,” a graceful lady representing the witches said as she stood up and lowered her head in front of the King.

“Your Majesty,” a few others said in unison as they also stood up.

“Do I need anyone’s permission in this kingdom?”

Everyone heard a cold, calm but authoritative voice ring inside the stone walls of the council hall.

More than several centuries back, this powerful man had alone saved their races from the cruel hands of humans and built this kingdom to protect the supernatural beings seeking refuge. His powers were immeasurable and he feared no one.

Yet despite this, he was more a guardian protecting Agartha from outside threats than an actual king sitting on the throne. Draven mostly never involved himself in territorial matters and each race lived without control from him, able to live with freedom under his protection.

Someone with such power, high status and freehand attitude towards his people, did he need anyone’s permission in the kingdom he himself created?

“Apologies, Your Majesty if our words have offended you,” said Halifax as he bowed to the king and others did the same.

An uncomfortable silence enveloped the hall, and it was the Queen of the Fae who broke it as she nervously fluttered her beautiful wings behind her. “We are sorry. We just wish to know why His Majesty broke this rule and brought a human to the palace. Perhaps she’s special?”

“I have my reasons,” the King replied coldly.

Halifax sighed. “We know, Your Majesty. It is just… the fear and hatred of our people remains, and we will have to explain ourselves to them once they ask why a human is coexisting among elves. Have we not learned our lesson? We gave humans chances, again and again in the past, but weren’t we betrayed? Our kins enslaved or killed? We have lost so much…remember that cruel slaughter…?”

The council members turned silent at the mention of what Halifax said. Erlos, who was standing near Draven, lowered his head.

What happened in the past, the passing time did not wash away the pain and fury that the supernatural beings involved had felt back then.

Others supported what Halifax said. All they wanted was an explanation, otherwise, many of the wounds and scars that these long-lived beings kept would probably be reopened. By that time, wouldn’t the populace start to question King Draven’s intentions? The peace that the people of Agartha were experiencing would fade into oblivion.

“Please send that human to the villages, Your Majesty.”

“Indeed. Letting her stay for a couple more days to recover is acceptable, but any longer than that, the hostility of the elves against humans would flare up.”

“Your Majesty—”

Draven had it enough. “Once I find the things I am searching for, I will think about it.”

His response silenced everyone. It seemed like the King needed the human to look for something.

“And… how long will that take, Your Majesty?” asked the Queen of the Fae.

“As long as I want,” Draven replied as he looked at the tiny fairy with an icy glare.

King Draven listened to no one, and it was already lucky for him to indulge them with a response. Since the King gave them an explanation, Halifax felt that it would be bad for everyone to continue probing. The High Elder of the Moon Elves decided to interrupt.

“We thank His Majesty for letting us know that you are keeping that human for a reason. We will patiently wait for His Majesty. We believe His Majesty won’t overlook our worries.”

Draven stayed quiet as he didn’t find it necessary to answer or assure anyone. With that concern cleared up, the council reported about the various issues their clans and races were experiencing. Though Draven didn’t interfere in territorial matters, he always kept himself aware of what was happening in his kingdom.