18 || Chapter 17 Part 2 || Cataclysmic Red War

A stray wind blew throughout the inside of the wide silent pavilion. The white curtains danced wildly as if punished.

Without care, Moulin let the wind brush through his hair. His eyes remained as it was, suspiciously glaring. Even after hearing his secret unearthed easily, spoken by the elven woman in front of him, he remained dangerously silent.

Phaelona, who was still utterly shocked, she immediately apologized for her inconsiderate behavior. She acted on her own completely lackadaisical to the third young master. She was too rash but was sincere about helping the young man.

"Are you hurt?" She asked, worriedly.

Once again, Moulin only looked at her silently. Even the little fox beside him made no move but stared at her.

Moulin's thoughts weren't panicking but the complete opposite. He calmly watched the elf who had learned his secret. It wasn't such a big deal if his ability was revealed, he just didn't expect the event to happen in a situation like this.

Sighing, Moulin relaxed his stance and slowly sat down on his seat, softly apologizing for the mess on the table.

"Forgive me, It was very rude of me. Are you alright?" She asked again, tempted to check on him again but declined to do so.

Moulin turned to her with an unreadable face "I'm not hurt".

"Thank goodness..." The elf sighed in relief.

"However, I would be very thankful if you only keep this secret to yourself, Lady Phaelona" Hia smile was kind but his tone was threatening. Gone was the previously laughing youth she had chattered with.

"Of course, Moulin. If it means to you that much, I will support you" She returned a smile to him. "I was very rash earlier and I assure you it wouldn't happen again. I was trying to break through a hidden force inside your internal body and discovered your mana core strongly hidden within. I realized then that you are an ability wielder. I want to help you, Moulin. But if you find it really troublesome you can refuse me. I understand if you want to keep it hidden".

Moulin felt the sincerity in her voice but after the performance, she did earlier, he was tempted to avoid trusting her at all. He will never put his guard down ever again.

Narrowing his gleaming silver eyes, his doubts were spoken openly by the frost in his eyes. Phaelona knew then that this youth in front of her was extremely different from his two brothers. Break his trust once and he will never trust you again.

Moulin only stared at her for a long time as if to search for any suspicions. After failing to find any except for the elf's look of undeniable sincerity, he began to relax slightly. "I appreciate your offer, My Lady. But I'm afraid I must decline, perhaps, some other time. The tea was excellent and I had a great time so if you would excuse me, I will be heading back".

Placing back the overturned teacup, Moulin smiled at Phaelona as he stood up. Without waiting for a reply from the woman, he beckoned Snow to follow him as they exited the place without even glancing back.

Kashter flew and landed on top of the table as she stared at her master, curiously.

Blinking her shocked eyes, Phaelona sighed regretfully. Why did she carelessly offend the boy? Wasn't it going well?

Recalling Moulin's cautiousness from the gleam in his eyes, she was sure this boy had experienced something harsh to attain this kind of vigilance. Perhaps, it was really true that Moulin had survived all on his own in his life in the mountains. This boy had the power to defend himself of what endangers him.

Although, his release of anger earlier was kind of cute. Like a kitten baring his claws and ready to pounce.

Chuckling quietly she looked over the mess on the table. A pity... this was good tea...

Reaching out to pick up Moulin's teacup, she froze in her seat.

The wide-eyed elf fixed her eyes on the sheet of frost that had spread from the teacup handle outwards covering the whole teacup in ice.

She didn't know if should be terrified or ecstatic. To show her this kind of move, Moulin must have a bit of trust in her!

The boy had really inherited his family's symbolic ability of ice! If the Lord and the Lady knew about this, it would shock their souls out from their bodies! What a discovery this is!

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Silver soft clouds cloaked the sea-blue sky and the sound clicking hooves were sharp against one's ear. Hair tied in a simple ponytail, the youth with silver eyes had the urge to cover his ears and drown the sound of overly concerned voices surrounding him. It was already five days since Moulin's discussion with the elf Phaelona and they were ready to depart for Faerim City.

"If you find yourself lost, this bracelet will help you"

"Make sure to stay warm in the night, young master"

"Don't talk to any strangers, dear"

"Make sure to eat more than one plate, you're not getting any fatter, young master"

Moulin: (#^▽^)

"We are only staying for no longer than a week" Emlen pinched the bridge of his nose as he endured the worrisome people clutching his brother. Even the family chef started to warm up on Moulin.

"Honey, stay safe okay? And always stay close to your brother" Lady Maxiel adjusted Moulin's cloak, worriedly concerned about their safety.

"I will, Mother" Moulin gave her a hug, smiling sweetly.

"Maxille will catch up once he finishes his work here. Don't stray from the guards" His father patted his back, hesitating to just keep Moulin inside the house where he could be safe but his youngest son was very persistent to go to the gathering. He was already regretting of approving his son's decision. What if he would encounter something terrible?

"I'll be fine..." Moulin practically knew of his father's current thoughts.

Lord Fraunces paused, staring at his son. Yes, he'll be fine. He searched something from his pocket and handed it to Moulin.

"...this?"

Revealing the object resting on his palm, Lord Fraunces smiled dotingly at his son "This is a charm created by Phaelona herself. It will protect you". It was a small oval stone the size of a thumb, engraved with a white complex symbol Moulin could not recognize. Elves are really confusing creatures. Wasn't he really rude to her the last time they met?

He caught sight of a swift shadow on the stoned floor. Looking up, he saw Kashter flying above them as if bidding them farewell. Moulin received the charm and kept it in his pocket.

Emlen and Moulin bade their farewells as the Vinch carriage and two others departed from the manor. Of course, their destination was quite distant but if they hastened they would be able to arrive before sunrise. As the white-golden gates closed after they exited the estate, Moulin stared at his home as it shrunk the farther the carriage moved.

He watched as they passed by countless houses and shops. He watched as people looked over their carriage with the usual strange looks. He watched as the City gates closed behind them as they exited Zenin City. He remembered his first time arriving here and the amazement he felt. And now, he hadn't changed a bit as he looked at the vast fields of white flowers as they stretched as far as the eye could see. It was still very magnificent.

"How long are you going to keep looking at the window? Why don't you sit with your brother and read?" Emlen interrupted Moulin's thoughts while he sorted out some papers on his desk wearing a face filled with boredom.

Moulin hadn't really thought of how to spend his time stuck inside the carriage. Snow was already slumbering on the bed to save his energy so that he could stay awake for the whole night.

Moulin shortly strode towards the rows of large bookshelves arranged side by side like a long hedge occupying the space of the whole wall by his right. He decided to spend his time reading as his brother told him to.

His slender fingers paused on a certain book he had been reading for the past few weeks. The History of Corahn...

Taking out the thick book crammed in the shelf, he carefully dragged a chair beside Emlen's side of the table. Moulin sat comfortably and began to delicately open the book. The scent of paper was something he finds pleasant and the sound of turning pages was very delightful for the third young master. The feeling was something that Emlen could not understand as he watched Moulin's satisfied expression. What's so special about reading a book?

As minutes went by, only the sound of their breathing and Snow's snoring could be heard inside the room.

Moulin was quite fascinated yet at the same time fearful of the historical events of Corahn. No matter how many times he read it. For a human originating from earth, it was quite impossible for him to believe it.

Millennials ago, the races on Corahn were never harmonious as it is at present. They all had their differences which led them to despise foreign races except for their own. Controversies

were always present in every argument which resulted in countless disputes between the races. Especially to humans who were populated enough to create numerous kingdoms. What also settled the conflicts and unified the races was a single war with a so-called race, the Demons.

It wasn't like the humanoid demons Moulin had read as a digital writer. These demons were ones of the first existing creatures ever created and the first to walk and roam the land. They are mindless, monstrously bred, and possess grotesque features. Their forms were like a sickening mixture of rotten beast corpses, mostly acquiring the characteristics of the things they eat. They were more like beasts depending only on their mouth to feed and survive. Flesh or not, they eat what they believe they can eat. They breed on the flesh of a living host, be it male or female, nurturing their young inside.

What made them demons wasn't because of their ghastly deformed forms but because of a specific aspect each of them possesses. If blood, saliva, flesh and any part of their body comes in contact or is consumed by a creature of another race, the latter becomes infected and sooner acquires a deformity on their body, an extremely miasmal smell, and the urge to consume anything they can grasp, they become monsters themselves. But this wasn't the worse of them yet, these demons were categorized in different classes. From the mindless class E, demons who lived only to eat and breed, to the destructive class S, demons whose intelligence are on a heavenly level, treacherous enough to raze an entire city.

These demons have invaded numerous countries and killed millions of living creatures over the thousand years they have existed. Unable to bear their endless growth, the faces of their infected people, and their declining population, the races finally unified to face these monsters. The war of the alliance and the demons raged for hundreds of years dying the lands red and black with blood, this event was recorded as the Cataclysmic Red War.

The war ended with the defeat of the demon queen and the sealing of the Demonic Abyss by Holy guilds. The land was cleansed and purified, the demons eradicated. The victorious Alliance was forever in debt with each other, unifying the races in Corahn. How heroic was their victory...

The events were both heroic and terrifying. Moulin stroked the old printed pictures printed on the yellow pages of the book as if to feel the emotions of millions of people as they were freed from the devil's hands.

Moulin had read the book for the hundredth time and yet he could still feel the realism depicting the events as his eyes skimmed every word.

"Moulin... It's time to sleep"

Moulin was startled by the sudden call and turned his head to face Emlen "Brother?...".

"Hm?..." Emlen looked up from the papers he had written and met his little brother's gaze. "What is it?..."

"...?" Moulin blinked. "Didn't you called me?..."

Emlen creased his forehead out of confusion. He didn't recall ever speaking to Moulin while he was writing. He was too focused to finish the report to even glance at him for the last few hours. "I didn't say anything..."

"Oh..." Moulin's voice faded out as Emlen lowered his head to continue on his work.

Then who spoke to me?...

Shaking his head he closed the thick book stood up from his seat. Looking out the window, he didn't realize how much time he had spent reading. The moonlight was peeking through the curtains covering the window.

A soft sound caught Moulin's attention as he looked at Snow's curled form, sleeping comfortably on the bed. As if Moulin was affected by the snoring, he yawned softly. It's best to sleep early for tomorrow.

"Brother, I'm going to sleep ahead..."

"Make sure your blankets reach above your shoulders. It's cold at night. I don't want you to catch a cold" Emlen reminded, looking at him with a deep gaze, waiting for Moulin to do as he says.

Rolling his eyes in amusement, Moulin tucked himself into bed with the blankets exactly how Emlen wanted it to be. After a satisfied nod, the second young master resumed his work.

Feeling his master's warm body, the little fox snuggled inside Moulin's arms, completely forgetting about staying up all night.

Silver eyes gradually closed, his sight never leaving the moonlight beaming through the curtains. Moulin drifted into a slumber...

Good night...