CHAPTER NINE

"So what are you going to do about that little knight you like so much"

Zarel brushed his hands through her hair while trying to focus on the conversation they were having and not get distracted by the feeling of her hair flowing through his fingers.

"You mean Aria?"

"Yes, I think that was her name"

"Yes it is, you should try remembering it at least once"

"I will"

He hummed without pausing his hand that was still brushing through her hair, already a bit distracted by what he was doing.

"You aren't even paying attention"

"Yes I am, I just have to remember a name right?"

He denied it and though it was very obvious, she decided it wasn't worth the effort to start a conversation that was doomed to fail. He would just keep denying until she finally dropped the topic, it would only turn out pointless.

His strange obsession with her hair was another issue entirely, he had developed the really odd habit of playing with her hair and would spend a considerable amount of time with his fingers entangled with hair strands whenever he got the chance. She found it rather odd but she didn't really mind it, it caused her no harm and she certainly didn't hate the feeling so it was easy for her to indulge his strange habit.

"So what are you going to do about her or do you plan on bringing her with us"

Kharis took a moment to sort out her thoughts.

"No, I don't want her to get entangled in my problems"

"What's your plan, she might bear most of consequences if you suddenly disappear"

"isn't she supposed to be your guardian knight to prevent such things from happening"

"Alistair won't let anything happen to her"

Hearing the unfamiliar name made him quite confused. He flipped through his memories in an attempt to recall who that was but the name remained unfamiliar.

"That's her brother"

Kharis perfectly understood the reason for the sudden quiet since it wasn't her first time encountering his forgetfulness when it came to names.

"Are all dragons this forgetful"

"I remember what I need to little birdie"

He chuckled a little, the spark of playfulness returning to his eyes.

"How am I supposed to remember every single detail of thousands of years worth of memories, all I need are the important things"

Kharis could only sigh before continuing their initial conversation.

"I'm sure she will be fine but I'll leave an alternative just in case"

"I'll leave her the location of the ancient library and a talisman that can teleport her directly into black forest"

"Sounds good but black forest can be a very dangerous place"

"She is a knight with the bloodline of Polemos running through her veins, the blessing of the god of light may have been reduced to mere remnants of what it used to be but she is still an exceptional knight"

"With some safety measures and a bit of assistance, she should be fine"

"I know of the dangers but I trust in her abilities"

"I trust your judgement birdie, if you believe in her abilities then I'll also do the same"

"I'll just have to engrave defensive magic along with some attack magic on the talisman just to avoid unforeseen circumstances"

"Can you handle that on your own"

His voice showed signs of obvious worry, his eyes mirroring his concerns but she quickly dismissed them.

"Of course not, that's why I have you to assist me"

"My magic is definitely not what it used to be but a few simple barriers shouldn't be a problem and if even that turns out to be too difficult, I still have you"

Grisha originally planned to leave her completely powerless with not even a shadow of her previous powers left. However, he had failed without even realising it, both the cautious Emperor and the sorceress assisting him with his ambitions had severely underestimated just how powerful she was. It didn't mean that she was able to escape their plans unharmed as even now, the effects of the curse albeit slowed was still ravaging her body and weakening her powers with each passing moment but she had still yet to become truly powerless.

"I admit that I'm weak right now so you will help me right?"

"With whatever you need"

Zarel said with a smile.

Even though, he already knew that she had enough trust in him to ask for help when she needed it, he couldn't help the happiness blooming in his heart from hearing her say it.

"By the way"

Zarel seemed to have suddenly remembered something.

"What?"

"I didn't know that you had any teleportation talismans"

"I don't"

She immediately replied.

"But you do"

His eyes suddenly widened to the point of nearly popping out of their sockets.

"Those are my treasures birdie, are you planning to give away my babies?"

He continued to whine about losing his precious treasures while in turn, she also continued to ignore him.

"How can you be so evil"

"Stop being so dramatic"

She finally responded, deciding it was time to interrupt his endless whining.

"You have way more than you can ever use anyway, I'm just helping you make proper use of them"

"My poor babies"

Kharis burst into a fit of laughter before he could resume his whining.

"Birdie?"

Zarel called out to her, a bit taken aback by the surprising outburst.

"I really missed you"

She finally calmed down enough to speak.

"I missed you a lot too birdie"

The two of them fell into comfortable silence after that, simply enjoying each other's presence while Zarel busied himself with twirling strands of her hair around his finger.

"I noticed something weird when I was summoned to the palace"

Kharis was the first to speak after a few minutes of silence. She lifted her head from it's place on his lap so she could look at his face.

"What is it"

He questioned.

"The natural and magic energy surrounding the palace was contaminated by something, it seemed twisted and I clearly sensed a very dangerous aura"

"I felt suffocated, it was like my body was rejecting the surrounding energy"

She tried to recount what she had experienced in hopes that he had an idea about what caused it.

"I found it really strange and no one else showed any signs of noticing it, there wasn't even the slightest hint of discomfort from anyone"

"You're right, it is definitely strange, magic energy is something that can be easily manipulated but the same can't be said about natural energy"

"Natural energy can hardly be sensed much less manipulated, only an extremely powerful entity or a divine item can achieve that"

Zarel fell into deep thought as he tried to revisit a particular memory.

"Do you know anything powerful enough to cause something like that"

"I don't"

"However, I think I have experienced a similar feeling"

"About a thousand years ago, around the time I first arrived in Demidera, I stumbled upon a village of demonic worshippers that had just been raided by the holy knights of the church of light, they were still quite serious about eliminating pagans at that time"

"I haven't felt anything like that around the sorceress before and I'm sure she visits the palace very often but I didn't notice anything"

"If you didn't notice anything even with your level of sensitivity to fluctuations in natural energy then it must not be about the presence of a demonic worshipper but something else"

"What do you mean"

Kharis didn't hesitate to ask despite the fact that something within her dreaded the answer.

"I have come across many pagan villages in similar conditions so it wasn't my first time seeing such a sight, the reason I vividly remember this particular one was because they were trying to attempt a summoning ceremony"

Kharis was completely stunned but he still had more to say.

"The entire village reeked of blood and rotten corpses, I can still recall the massive magic circle with a pile of corpses at its centre"

"With closer inspection, I realised that the circle itself was drawn with blood and I am certain that it belonged to a human, it was almost like the corpses were the core of the magic circle"

"Are you sure"

Kharis asked, her voice turning a bit shaky.

"I am"

"After that incident, I looked into demonic worshippers and their rituals, that's how I came to know that they were attempting to summon a demon god"

"Dragons usually sustain themselves with natural energy in place of food but my body strongly rejected the energy in that area"

"If you are right then whatever they are involving themselves with is definitely dangerous"

"I have come across summoning ceremonies and their requirements while I was searching through the records of the church, they require a massive amount of sacrifices in the form of humans"

Kharis was shaken up by merely the thought that such a thing could be a possibility.

"I may be right but it's still just a guess for now"

Zarel attempted to steer away from the worst outcome.

"We can only hope that I am wrong and the situation isn't as grave as I think it is"

"I can only hope so too"

Kharis tried not to think of the worst case scenario just yet.

"Summoning a demon god has never been successful but I can only hope that Grisha isn't willing to attempt something that will only end in obvious disaster"

She desperately wished she was right but the uneasiness in her heart refused to disappear