The next day, the leader of the Holy Knights came to meet the queen who was almost recovered from her bedridden state. He had only been informed the evening before by the Hero of the queen's sickly state. He arrived in her room with a trunk.
- How are you doing?
- Arrrgh!" shouted the queen.
- Ah sorry, I didn't know you were getting dressed," Sawyer apologized.
- I'm just kidding," Audisélia reassured him, "as if it could happen while I can hear the whole kingdom.
The queen had lied to the hero. She was using her monitoring system, even in convalescence, but her condition was not stable enough for it not to have a direct impact on her health. Fortunately, she had ended up with a simple migraine, it was painful but it could have been worse.
- Why didn't you tell me that you were sick again? Yet, I had come to see you.
- Because you worry about a yes or a no, every time.
- It's normal: I'm your bodyguard. That's what I do.
- A role, which I think, you take far too much to heart. But since you're here, let's take the opportunity to talk about more urgent things.
Audisélia had waited for Sawyer to come and talk to him about all that the Hero had informed her. She had done well to make him record their conversation, although it was totally disordered, she listened again to the recording and understood many things that had not come to her mind.
She played it to Sawyer and went to get a cloth to soak it in water and put it on his forehead to lower his fever.
When it was over, Sawyer found himself dismayed at all the information they had just obtained-how could they have ignored a plot of this magnitude? Did this mean they were part of it? Yes, there was no question that they were.
However, to learn that these two kids from the Underworld managed to get out of it despite the difficulties, the training that Audisélia and he had provided them was not in vain. Especially not the fairy who came out of it quite different.
Audisélia leaned out the window to feel the fresh air outside and to calm her mind.
- Finally, the level of danger is even higher than one would have thought, says Audisélia.
- This goes way beyond anything we could have thought," Sawyer snarled, "how could something like this go unnoticed? What was Triface doing?
- You know that Triface was busy with bullshit that is beyond us all. If the army outside was in cahoots with them, civil war would be inevitable.
- And they know it," said Audiselia, exasperated, "no king or queen worthy of the name would put his or her kingdom in danger to keep the throne. In any case, I won't do it. If it was a king-combatant, I can't imagine what the kingdom would look like. In the end, it's a good thing Triface didn't know about it.
- And so, we have to rely on Elena's son's plan to get us out of this?
- If we can't trust anyone but these children, because even the children of the nobles could play against us, it may be the only way.
- What about your surveillance system? Normally, if someone is missing, you should know.
- It could be infallible, but its main flaw comes from the fact that yes, I can hear all the plotters who don't have this aluminum but I can't guess the non-presence of someone, they may be sleeping or thinking, the idiots in our country are legion.
- Shit.
- As you say.
- I should at least inform Globox, so we can make some...
- No. No one should know about this but the six of us.
Sawyer seemed to disagree with the queen's order, he has total confidence in Globox, although he is a heavy, selfish, arrogant, lazy and full of himself, he was still one of Audiselia's bodyguards and a reliable friend. She couldn't keep him away from such a big crisis.
Nevertheless, he would not disobey his queen. His orders are absolute.
- Selia, I hope you realize that if they are found, there will be seven of us, including five children, even if the hero of the legend is among them, against a whole army.
- You doubt the power of Sylvania's Weapon of Mass Destruction?
- SELIA!
- Can you think of another solution? If we find one, we can link it to the others and trace the source of all these evils. And anyway, Avelinélia, well, Malalalivia and Lelelitio, why do you think they trained? I don't even have to ask you the question because you know it. If you acquired this ability, it's not because you didn't want this kind of thing like ten years ago to happen again? I am boiling with an immeasurable rage that you are still afraid to use it when the kingdom needs you, when I need you!
Her rage sent her into an uncontrollable coughing fit, Sawyer wanted to help her but she pushed him away.
- It's okay, I've known others as a child.
- That's no reason to overwork yourself.
- If I don't do it, who will?
Audisélia went to sit on a chair to catch her breath.
- Sawyer, I don't understand how you can still have doubts about these two young children. Is it because of the blame she put on us three years ago?
- I don't hold grudges like you, Selia. And their reproaches are more than legitimate, that's why you're on edge.
- Knowing that a kid much younger than me was much more mature... yeah, it pissed me off. But then I realized that this girl didn't just have a lot of magical potential, she was a genius. I think that with her ingenuity and a little more education, she could easily surpass me.
- Until I see it, I won't believe it.
- To the fact that she can beat me?
- First of all. But mostly that she is a genius.
- You may not know it, but I know it, I feel it.
- Ahrg!" growled the holy knight, "I'll let you rest, because I think you're losing your mind. I will come back to see you when you go.
Sawyer greeted her with a fairy curtsy, then was about to leave but the queen stopped him.
- Sawyer.
- Yes?" asked the guard, intrigued.
- You heard what Elena's son told me.
- "Mama Selia"?
- No. That he was not Elena's biological son.
- You must have had a good time...
Audisélia did not answer, she even looked away.
- Yes, I was. But I regret it bitterly, it was unworthy of me to behave like that, she lamented, that boy must have suffered bitterly from this situation. I don't even deserve to be called mother by him... Why am I so bad? Am I destined to be like him after all?
- I don't think he's particularly upset with you, or he wouldn't have kept joking with you and calling you "mom. He must be aware that, like him, you hadn't recovered from Elena's death. Don't worry, Selia, he's not a beast, he has a heart under all that darkness.
- You're probably right.
- Anyway, Elena entrusted you with the mission to take care of him so that he becomes better because you are alike? So be aware of your mistakes and do your task without reluctance, it's clear.
- Yes!" she said, wiping away her tears.
- Come on, I leave you my queen. Duty does not wait.
Sawyer left, leaving the queen with herself.
This story of a sect worried him, but he was powerless in the face of the enigma that it represented, he was going to have to leave the life of the kingdom in the hands of this Man. Although he doubted the soundness of the bait used, he had confidence in this young boy, he was intelligent and he knew what he was getting into with this crazy idea.
Let's hope Beneltig makes it out alive.
In the evening, the Hero was going to go, well dressed in Fairy fashion, to the place where this famous Samarin party was taking place, just below the Java-Aleim tree. But before going there, he wondered if Malalalivia and Lelelitio were going to come to this party. So he decided to drop by and ask them. Once there, he found only the princess' servant looking after a horde of children that had increased since the last time he left. The hero asked her where she was, and she told him that either she was helping the people of the Nether by hunting down the wild rats and other vermin that swarm here, or she was training.
- And you, don't you work out?
- How do you expect me to train decently with these kids?" he said as he lifted up his arms where a nelf and a fairy were hanging.
Even if he said it, it sounded like an excuse to the Hero's ears, but he said nothing. Perhaps he had some secret techniques that gave him confidence of certain victory? The Hero sent the two children away and they both resumed their conversation, putting away the things the children had left lying around.
- And anyway, she has become much too strong compared to me for me to claim to be her champion...
- Beneltig was indeed the champion of my princess," the Hero replied with a laugh.
- For you, it is less strong than your princess?
- Yes. Absolutely. Without a doubt.
- Think again, although you are jealous of Beneltig...
- Hey!
- ... it remains stronger than the winged fairy. I've seen it before and it has no concept of defense. She has no fighting instinct. That's not a bad thing, she's not the only one, but unfortunately, if she wins, she'll be your partner, so she'll be the one who has to fight with the Nemesis.
- That's right.
- Do you really think it's a good idea for her to be the fairy of the legend?
- If we weren't allies, I would think you were trying to manipulate me into giving up for the sake of my fairy, Lelelitio Grave.
- Maybe so, maybe not.
- Don't worry about them, I don't plan to take her or any other fairy with me after the tournament. I'll take care of this legend thing myself. Well, I'll come back later, I'm expected at the top for the Samsam festival.
- Samarin..., make an effort, even if it's a noble party.
- You don't go.
- It's not mandatory, so no. And who can we trust with these kids.
- That's right. Well, if there are any leftovers I'll bring them to you.
- Very well, hero of the beggars, he mocked him.
He greeted them and left. At the exit of the house, he met Malalalivia. Sweating and a little hurt in her hands, she had wrapped them with bandages. Her hunt for the rats must have been trying.
- I was just looking for you, but I might be late so I'll drop by later.
- Stay! A little... I would like to talk to you.
- Wouldn't you like to wash up first? You're sweaty.
- Unlike you, even though we secrete sweat, it doesn't have an odor like you.
- Convenient, but you're still clingy, but go ahead it's not that bad. I'm not that big on cleanliness.
We all saw it!
He followed her to a bench next to her house and they both sat down. The Hero let her catch her breath, she must have been doing a lot of hard work, so he wouldn't ask too much of her - he could feel the bites and scratches on her body, she had bruises too, but I don't think rodents had the ability to throw punches.
Once she was out of breath, she spoke:
- Don't take this the wrong way, but I think your methods are not worthy of the hero of the legend.
- I know.
- So why do you continue on this path?" asked the fairy.
- Because it's faster and fuck the hero of the legend.
- Why?" she complained, "you have the great honor of being the hero of the legend and you behave like a scoundrel. Or even worse!
He sighed in despair. Why did she have to pick on him about the hero of the legend on a night of celebration? He slumped on the bench, exhaling air between his lips, making them tremble and sputter.
- I became one, neither by choice nor because I was elected as one. I became one because I was the closest to it when my mother died. So instead of dying from the disease that eats away at my body, I will simply die at the end of my mission or at the hand of the Nemesis. Maybe you'll have a chance to be the hero of the legend like you dream of being," he laughed.
- There's nothing funny about it," the fairy grumbled, "that's no excuse for you to let a child die for the sake of others.
- Don't worry about it. Even if I am cruel as people peddle, I have principles and if my plan works, it will be alive.
- What if it doesn't work?
- Not only will he be dead, but we'll be back to square one, or rather, the square where we were when he revealed the organization that was going to kill the Fairy-Without-Wings-And-NoName. That's a pretty long name just to give it a name anyway, right?
- I don't make the rules, and I want to win this tournament to make them.
- So let these murderers kill my fairy.
Malalalivia's eyes widened at the Hero's proposal. He had said it in such a harmless and... frank way that it disturbed the princess. She even stammered.
- Huh? But... of what?
- Well, yes. If the nameless airy fairy dies, that's one less candidate for the throne, and Lelelitio won't have to face me in the arena. Yes, a few children will die in the process, but that's the price you'll have to pay for your chances of getting that throne.
- No, but I can't do that.
- And yet, it would be easier. You could even pretend to agree with their desire to resurrect the Feline so that he can help you take Mom's place.
- Mom?
- The queen Audisélia, I wanted to say! rectified itself the Hero, forget my mistake, it is mistakes of children at the school, it is nothing! Concentrate on what I have just said! he said to her by catching her jaw and by fixing her right in the eyes, if we let the faithful ones kill my protected, that increases inevitably your chances.
The fairy took a deep breath, took the Hero's hand and put it on her knee, she kept her hand on his and raised her head and answered him:
- First of all, I refuse. Under no circumstances will I let someone die for me and my people. Secondly, there is no indication that letting her be killed and me take the throne will stop these fanatics from killing, besides...
- It's okay, I get it. I just wanted to test you and see if you obey human precepts like "The game is worth the candle" or the more evocative "The end justifies the means".
- I think you meant (?), right?
- It's good! I've got it under control, that's enough already.
- It's amazing, in fact, that you master the colloquial register to such an extent, normally it's the low Oli'Ane that one masters before perfecting oneself and speaking the high Oli'Ane, you speak the Oli'Ane of the young and the... "rascals", Malalalivia notified.
- Yeah, my teachers weren't the best at teaching it to me properly and the idiots inside my head messed up, so I speak it like this. Without the negation as the airy fairy says. And stop saying "rascal".
Malalalivia chuckled.
- Anyway, I would have thought you would have hit me.
- I'm not going to hit the hero of the legend.
- And stop seeing the hero of the legend in me, I'm just me...
- Okay.
The fairy hit him in the chest, which made the hero bleed. She had hit him right in one of his wounds that had not closed properly.
- Oh shit, my clothes," exclaimed the Hero as he stood up and patted his chest.
- Holy Ciem! Wait, I'll fix it for you.
She waved her hands and a magic circle appeared in front of the bloodstain, then the stain disappeared. At the end of the spell, the fairy let out a cry of pain when she touched her back.
- How are you?
- No, it's nothing. It's just that I used too much magic.
"The wings of fairies are the center of their power, more precisely their backbone," the Hero remembered.
The Hero sat down next to Malalalivia, lifted her top and blew on her back.
- What are you doing? Don't look!
- I read in a book a long time ago that it was a way to relieve the pain of magical amputations.
- Yes, but the person's breath must be filled with magical essence! And you, you are devoid of it! So stop!
- Does it make you feel better or not?
- A little...
- So stop complaining.
The Hero continued to blow on her back. The human could observe in all its horror the back scars that the princess had. Indeed, the villain who had amputated her wings had not gone easy on her. Despite the years, they were still red, it seems that the magic had not been enough to heal her properly and it had not given a beautiful scar. Especially since she had a beautiful clear so it was more than conspicuous. If she had gone to a human city, they would have applied a cream so that she would have a nice scar, but the Hero didn't know if on the magic source of a Fairy being, the remodeling of the skin would have worked.
The Hero wanted to reassure her, but hearing her crying prevented him from acting. He had gotten better at social communication, but this situation was far too familiar for him not to be directly affected. Although he felt close to the Nameless Fairy, she and he, in terms of drama, were not so different. She may not have possessed a disease as compelling as his, but the way she reacted to the sight of his scar reminded the Hero of who he was before the destruction of Novillios. The shell that allowed him to stand up every Latin and help others must have been immense. It seemed to him, then, much more courageous than he had ever been.
Perhaps she deserved the Fate of the hero of the legend more than he did? That was even certain.
Malalalivia wiped away her tears and told her that she was doing better. She gave him a smile in thanks.
- Princess Malalalivia, you are brave. Lelelitio told me what happened to you and the source of the big scar on your back... I feel so sorry for you.
- You don't have to be, it's not your fault.
In truth, he knew the man who had slashed his back, he had even dealt with him, well... Asteron had dealt with him and the Hero had found himself working for and with Zajo on some mercenary missions. If they had known he was trafficking in living beings, they would never have collaborated with him - given what they had already done with Asteron and his younger brother, I don't think it's very relevant to feel indignant about the smuggler's bad deeds, with the track record they both had.
The Hero scratched his cheek in embarrassment as he thought about knowing the forger of Malalalivia.
- You know, I find it fascinating that despite everything that has happened to you, you still want to change things and hope that you can be better because of the power of the hero of the legend. Lelelitio told me how brave you were when you stood up for those children in that dark alley. A true hero.
- Really? How did he tell you about this event?
- Well, you have fought two huge monsters with a flaming courage in your eyes and you have sworn to defend his children as you would have them defend you on the day you had your wings torn off, and it is with this new conviction that you have decided to want to be queen of Sylvania and heroine of legend.
- She said with great astonishment, he can't help but tell this story in a grandiloquent way. I don't even see how he can be so admiring of this event.
- Why? Few people would have thrown themselves into the battle, disability or not, strength or not.
Malalalivia sighed heavily and looked away. She crossed her hands over her knees and had a strange tic: the corner of her lips kept going up and down. The image of the strong, confident woman was beginning to crumble in the Hero's mind, but it didn't bother him that much, her monolithic straightness was rather... guilt-inducing.
- He's the boy who protected me from the two faeries that attacked me..., the fairy-princess explained, I don't even remember why I went to the depths of the Nether, maybe to find the one who made Lelelitio's mother into mincemeat. Finally, I met her two sons who were able to track down lonely and wounded beasts like me, they cornered me in a dead end street like this. I would have had my wings, I could have run away but well... While I could only see my life coming to an end, a boy as filthy as me landed and blocked me with his body, his sisters helped me to get up as I had no strength left in my legs in front of this threat. At first they ignored him, then, knowing the terrible fate I was going to suffer, they unleashed themselves on him under the terrified eyes of the girls, I was powerless, my eyes haggard, facing this boy who was trying to protect me as best he could. And in spite of the blows and my crushes which he underwent, he remained right and encouraged me to flee, I asked him then why... Why to defend me, he answered me quite simply "Because if I do not make it who will make it. And while the two giants openly laughed at him for his sentence, I fell to my knees with tears in my eyes. I was...
She exhaled as she looked up at the black sky above us, her eyes filled with admiration as she recalled this past episode.
- I was mortified to see that gleam in the eye of this boy that I wanted so badly to look like the "heroine" that my mother was in her writings, even if she wasn't the heroine of legend. Did he know the hero of the legend? Surely! Everyone knew her, beggar or god on this earth. And even though adults struggled to find their lost hope, children in all strata of society never ceased to have hope and to seek a role model despite the vicissitudes of life. And yet, even though we shared the same model, both of us had disabilities, he was missing an arm, he was undaunted to protect others and fought valiantly to protect others. I blame myself because that day I didn't manage to escape, he must have been the kind of mischievous boy to play his opponents, but as I was taking a long time, he was trying hard to win to allow my escape.
"I won't let him pass then... Run away!", remembered the Hero, when did this memory come from? Why is it coming back to me?
- In the end, did you manage to save these kids?
- Yes... you can say it like that... But not with the same feelings that Lelelitio described: I had a versilia twisting my guts when I fought those two anthropophagi!
- A what?
- A blue scare, if you prefer," she said in Franca.
- I didn't know you spoke Franca.
- I have some knowledge, but not much like the other princesses," she said shamefully, "but to get back to the end of my rescue, I was scared to death. I was down to not knowing how to use magic, but I couldn't bring myself to let a kid die for me, so I went into battle not knowing if I was going to make it, with my little pound to fight these two giants, and I don't even know how I managed to get away. I don't know if Lelelitio told you that I killed them, but that's not the case at all, I don't even think that it was me who made them run away, but the sudden arrival of the guards sent by Lelelitio. When he found me, I had the body of the boy who defended me in my arms, begging the guards to take him to the hospital in the capital, to take him to the Sanctuary, but they refused, because he was a filthy from the Nether so I had to take him home and placed him in my bed, unable to heal him. I witnessed his long agony... He didn't even have the strength to speak at the end. Until he died, I only apologized to him, asking him to forgive me for being so weak and that he had to protect me from the bad guys. But in his look, I could not see any hatred towards me, he just said to me, with all the strength he had left: "It's okay, ma'am, as long as you are well...". Then he passed away before my helpless eyes, in front of his sisters. I can tell you that I cried. With the death of this boy, I swore to myself not to be weak any more, to make of this body the shield of the most deprived and the poorest of this kingdom, to be a radiant model making flee the evil and giving hope to the most virtuous... like the hero of the legend, in short, she concluded.
- And the queen couldn't take care of him?
- She did not come until the next day. She didn't even know about this boy, she had been informed rather late about what had happened to me in the Nether. After all, princess or not, I was still a Basfond wench, so my fate didn't matter much to the guards of this district. However, when she heard about it, she came to us in a hurry. And the rest must be as my kind servant with the failing memory told you.
- I think that at that moment, helplessly he too, in front of what you have suffered, twice, found himself admiring your courage and that his memories overshadowed this passage of your lives, so happy was he not to lose you.
Malalalivia laughed a little.
- What is it?" asked the Hero.
- When I think about it, this way of thinking: it's not so altruistic. I do it because I have experienced something, instead of being driven by an ideal and...
- Let me stop you right there: that's bullshit. It's from their experience that people act.
- Don't you think you can be born with this feeling?
- Maybe. But I still haven't met those people, the Man answered soberly, in truth, don't bother with this kind of big person nonsense above our heads, I only see Christ to be moved by this feeling at birth. It is admirable what you do for others, so be proud of it, few people in this world that is running towards its perdition would take the time to help others.
- I see.
Out of curiosity, I look at the time on the pocket watch that came with my clothes and see that I will be late in twenty seconds.
- Okay. I had originally come to see if you were going to come to the party at the summit, but Lelelitio told me that it wasn't really your thing.
- Noble thing. It's been a long time since my family was considered as such.
- Because I look like a nobleman, maybe?
- Given your attire, one would think so.
- Yeah, I admit it. But I'm going there because my protégée is going there and I want to check if Beneltig is alive. This is the best place, otherwise I'll have to break into his house again, he laughs, see you later. I'll come back to see you in a little while with some food or if I have any information about our insurgents.
The Hero shook off his clothes and headed back to the heights of the kingdom, however, before he got too far, the fairy caught up with him and asked him a question:
- Uh...
- Are you looking for what to call me?
- Well, you don't really have a name.
- Call me, Hero, it's easy. But not in front of everyone please.
- I can see that you are not that bad, Hero, so why are you fighting for a girl who doesn't care about this kingdom and only cares about herself. You and I want these children to live happily, so why make her win?
- It's very simple, my dear: she asked me first.
Are you rewriting history, my young child? You volunteered.
- And since I only have one word... But train Lelelitio so that if we meet, it is a chance to represent you well!
- Did you look at the painting?
- No, I'm saving the surprise for my future fighters.
- You're a little arrogant.
- Or a man with no real source of happiness and who takes advantage of a little nothing.
- That's it... so I'll leave you with your little nothing.
And both took their respective roads. The one advancing towards the lights of Haute-Ville, the other by the one of this house sunk in the root of this multi-centennial tree.
The Hero replayed in his mind the words of Malalalivia.
Fighting while being invested with the will of corpses from the past... Without even being the heroine of legend, she already had this unnecessary pressure on her shoulders.
The boy was beginning to understand a little the desire of this fairy to resemble the only savior of humanity capable of eradicating the evil that had put this black sky over their heads. Both of them had lived through unspeakable tragedies, perhaps more than he had, and yet she, despite what she let on, was much more valiant than he, selfless despite the corpses on her back, unfailingly kind - I don't think either he or I would waste our time chasing rats with our bare hands. He would come to believe that the two of them were much closer than he could be with the Fairy. He understood the admiration that Lelelitio had for his "cousin".
She was a beautiful and admirable person.