As we were led further into the castle, I became increasingly nervous. The palace was so huge and intricately detailed. Everything was made of gold and stone, and murals of ancient wars were displayed on the walls. There was one that caught my eye. One of a humanoid completely engulfed in shadow standing on a mountain with what looked like its defeated enemies. I shivered. This king had a lot of power and wealth and he was not afraid to show it.
We entered the main hall where the king sat on his overwhelmingly large throne, waiting for our meeting to start.
He looked to be in his fifties. His hair grey and down to his shoulders. His crown made of pure gold and jewels. It looked to be so heavy it made his forehead crease slightly. His eyes dark and intimidating, his beard adding to his threatening look ended in a point. He wore the finest red robes with gold embellishments, matching the colors of the flags and capes of the kings’ guard.
Galadar was beside the king and looked at Taehyung suspiciously, as though he knew he was up to something because of his disguise. He seemed to be the only one in the room to recognize him.
The four of us bowed out of respect and waited for his permission to start our discussion.
"Rise" the Kings’ voice was stern. "What brings you to my kingdom?" he looked to be bored of us already.
"We have come here to discuss a matter of war" Hoseok stated.
"War?" the King laughed. "We haven't had war in years nor have I heard of any to come."
"Yes, but we have reason to believe that there is an evil rising that will have many on its side." Hoseok was skilled at keeping the conversation going.
"What are your reasons for believing this?" the King seemed to be a bit more curious.
The wizard didn't hesitate "A village nearby was burnt to the ground because of a raid of orcs. I'm sure you already know of this news my King, but these orcs are under the control of a mage who goes by the name of Maldril."
"Maldril? The mage that slaughtered the last of the moon elves? The one who brought terror to many creatures a century ago?" The king pressed. "I should congratulate the man for doing us a favor!"
Taehyung had warned me that the king was extremely racist, but I couldn't believe he could be so blatantly rude.
"My King, may I remind you that this mage is not human." Hoseok countered. "He is not trustworthy"
The king pressed his lips together in frustration.
"If he were preparing an army why would I need to fight on your side?"
"Because he is slaughtering your people, innocent humans and children…” Hoseok seemed to drift off for a moment. His mind failing him again. I could see on his face that he knew the king wouldn’t care about the innocent.
The king smiled then. "I heard whispers that he is only searching for one person... A man with blue eyes..."
Taehyung stiffened a little. I knew this wasn't good. This seemed very similar to how his parents handled this situation before.
"If we give him what he wants why would I need to waste my resources? I have the largest and best army of the land. Why should I waste it for a fight that can be avoided?" King Derlanty leaned back seeming to be comfortable even when speaking of war and death.
"That is exactly what the King of the moon elves thought and that is why they were slaughtered." Taehyung spoke up seeing Hoseok was struggling to set his mind straight again.
