Ilian awakes to bright sunlight with a grimace. "How many times this week am I going to wake up, unsure of where I am?"
Castria giggles, "Sorry about that love, but it's your first time visiting us here in the Vale, so I can't exactly show you how to get to the heart of our haven so soon." She responds.
"So, what exactly are we doing here?" Ilian asks, looking over at the demon prince, Xephor, who is still unconscious due to whatever Castria slipped into his food. "And why is he with us again?"
"Well, your contact in Duskgrove was supposed to bring you here, but since you two were unable to meet, I chose to intervene. As for why Xephor is here, it's because there are far more important things in this world than the petty squabbles between your two races."
"Petty squabbles?" Ilian replies with a grimace. "Razing our towns unprompted is more than enough reason for us to start a war. I wouldn't call them petty."
"While yes, razing towns is definitely cause for raising arms against an opposing kingdom, I'm moreso talking about the petty squabbles that escalate into things such as razing towns." Castria responds kindly, but with a tone of authority letting him know she doesn't intend to argue further.
"Now, would you like for me to show you around? Don't worry about our friend here, I have a friend coming to show him around as well.
"But remember, we don't have the grand structures your kind prefers within our forests. We prefer to live as a part of nature, using only what we can take without harming the life around us."
"If it is your wish to show me around, I would be honored." Ilian responds, thinking to himself I don't know why this elf thinks I know nothing of their culture. Why else would King Mikel send me as an ambassador to discuss whatever it is they wish to discuss?
"Very well, follow me." Castria says as she spins around and starts to walk at a moderate pace, leading him through the majestic gardens of the Vale.
"And please, try not to stare at the people here. This may be the haven of the elves, but we have many other races who live among us peacefully."
"Understood," Ilian responds with a sigh. Why does everyone always think I'm going to cause trouble? It's not like I have the same reputation as those twins, Caleb and Carson, back home.
"Over here, you'll find where most of our healers live." She points to a large building, made entirely out of wood, with people streaming in and out.
"You see, the top floor is where they sleep. The two floors below that work as a hospital. Then the main floor functions as a clinic." She says, eyes twinkling.
"And just beyond these flower gardens is one of our academies, where we teach all who have the potential, the basics of nature magic."
She points to a smaller building, also made entirely out of wood, where young elves and children of other races were gathered outside.
"To your left is the temple to the nature gods, who grant us the power to defend ourselves and our lands in desperate times."
She pointed across the pathway to a tall tree that had stairs grown out of the side of it, spiraling up over a hundred feet, before reaching a large platform that covered a large portion of the village.
"And just beside it is the dining hall. Not that I expect you're hungry? The sleeping herb I added to your meal last night should leave you feeling sated for quite a while longer." She says with an amused tone, while pointing at a short building that was twice the length of the others.
"You have that right, but you said last night? How did we cross half the continent overnight? Last I saw a map, Moonshadow Vale was located within the northernmost forests of the continent, and Twilight Hollow should be near the center of the continent if memory serves correctly."
"Well, my dear, innocent archangel, us nature sorceresses do have many secrets. Unfortunately my means of travel is one of them." Castria says playfully, a smirk on her face and a twinkle in her eyes.
"Well, I believe our tour has gone on long enough, how about we go back to see how Xephor is faring with my friend, shall we?" Castria says firmly.
"Yes, lets."
Before Ilian can fully finish saying these words, they both hear a very high pitched scream, coming from the clearing they were in when he first woke up.
"Well, looks like my friend just woke him up," Castria says with a grin. "Let's go see if he needs a change of clothes."
As they're nearing the clearing, Ilian notices a large, chocolate colored wolf, with its front paw holding Xephor down as he's struggling to attack her.
"Aurora, darling please let him up. And Xephor, don't let me see that fire again unless you're using it to protect this forest and it's denizens." Castria says after clearing her throat upon reaching the clearing.
Aurora reluctantly steps back. "Ugh you just had to show up when it was getting fun. You should have saw the look on his face, I think he might need a change of clothes." She says as she sniffs the air.
"Actually, make that he definitely needs a change of clothes. Especially if he's going to be anywhere near the wolves today. You know how sensitive our noses are."
"Yes, yes, take him to the temple. They always carry extra clothes for weary travelers coming from other parts of the Vale." Castria responds, while attempting to keep a straight face.
"Are we just going to ignore that a werewolf was standing ON TOP of me when I woke up?" Xephor pipes up, receiving a glare from Aurora that swiftly shuts him up.
"Well, off you two go. I'll see to it that our cooks know to prepare dinner with two extra guests in mind tonight. Then delegations among the races will begin tomorrow." Castria says with a hint of exasperation in her voice, as if already fed up with the feuding between the demon and the werewolf.
I should have seen this coming, she thought as she watched them head toward the temple, Xephor looking back with his crimson eyes being darker than usual, showing genuine fear that left her wondering how long it would take for one of them to fully snap at the other.
Well, I suppose it could have went worse. Sometimes I forget how much of a trickster she can be.
She was lost in thought, seemingly forgetting that she also had a guest. "Well, I guess we'll be heading back to the dining hall. After that I'll show you to your quarters, make sure to be up with the dawn.
"We won't wait for you if you oversleep. What he have to speak about is of utmost importance, vital to the protection of our world."
"Understood," Ilian responds, trying to stay with short answers because he wants to leave a good impression on this elf, who seemed to have made it her mission to not trust any foreigners in her realm.
(A/N: In the previous chapter, Castria refers to Ilian as "friend". This is not denoting an actual friendship before the start of the novel, but rather that they come from allied territories/kingdoms. Sorry if there was any confusion.)