Elves(1)

As I walked to my brother, I fell under his caring gaze as I pulled up the brown hood. He then announced that he had to go and guide me back to the mansion.

"So, how was the expedition this time?" I asked, intrigued by the rumours that had started spreading in the town

"Let's say that the results aren't good. The elves are slowly pushing back the border. Soon enough, they will push us out of the forest entirely... We will soon have to ask the elders for help as this has been a recuring occurrence for both us and the neighbouring territories"

"The elders? Is the situation really that bad?" I commented, a frown on my face

"The trees have recently grown pointy ears; we will talk about it with father and the rest of the family"

After this brief interaction, we thus walked at a quicker pace and soon arrived in front of the imposing building. There, we were greeted by a butler with long, Spanish grey hairs, a black tailcoat with a matching deep crimson tie.

One could glimpse at toned muscles under his formal attire. His aura was similar to a caring grandfather. He was the head of the family's domestic affairs and was also my affected butler.

He had made himself a reputation in being a perfectionist, even more so than the infamous librarian, and was always eager to learn something new which could improve his already flawless resume. These qualities made him into the perfect butler, and as such, he quickly raised in the hierarchy of the household, before arriving at his current post.

He greeted me. "Welcome back, young master" I nodded my head as to reply to his greetings without breaching the etiquette that had been enforced on me since my early childhood. Etiquette an umbrella term for a bunch of rules made by old peoples to recognize and communicate to one another without using words. It was taught to me. It included things such as how to walk with a perfectly straight back and the uses of learning about various artists and pillars of our culture.

These useless rules were only used by our parent to flaunt in purposeless meetings. During these meetings, except gossiping and talking behind everyone's back, noblemen also liked to see their offspring making or reinforcing connections through the art of conversation.

The rest of the time it was used to differentiate myself from commoners. Although some commoners were more powerful than my family due to their talent in magic.

After entering our house, I gave the dark coat that I was wearing to Gerard. He then called a maid with a strange watch which had cryptic inscriptions positioned into a circle all over it. At a glance, someone knowledgeable in the mystic arts could more or less tell the enchantments which were inscribed.

We thus made our way up the second story of the building and with the company of my elder brother and Gerard, I made it to my room. There, the latter changed me into fitting garments for a family dinner.

After he finished dressing me up, he took a step back and verified my appearance. He was satisfied with it.

After getting clothed, I waited for a few minutes before going out of my room to eat. I made my way to the dining room whilst my butler started communicating orders via a complicated system which was built inside the familial manor.

It was extravagant but we had quite a few magical crystal mines in our territory, so we could afford it. Furthermore, as dragons have very long lifespan, they tend to hoard resources and magical trinkets.

I entered the dining room, but once I entered, my brother and my father had a gloom expression on their faces. On the table there was a scroll that was conserved in a beautiful wooden box carved with engravings of trees and life.

"Now that we are inside, can you tell me what happened during the expedition, brother?" I asked, a concerned expression painted on my face.

"We have intel on the elves," initiated my brother "but it only means our situation will be more dire in the future." My brother looked at my father as if asking for his permission.

My father took the initiative to continue and said "The elves started increasing import of iron, adamant and other magical metal. If we think logically, they are either working towards gigantic magical project or they are increasing their production of weapons."