Haruka's eyes slowly widened in realization as she slowly turned her head to face him. Reiki raised his hand and gave her a fast wave, Fayeth who still had her ear on the door suddenly vanished. Haruka coughed and said. "I thought you would need more time." Reiki shook his head sideways, he said. "Nope, I learned everything I need." Haruka raised a brow with suspicion, in a questioning tone she said. "In that short of a time frame?" 

He nodded to which Haruka let out a sigh, she said. "It doesn't take a seer to know we have a dark path ahead of us…" Reiki patted her left forearm, he said. "Don't worry about it, I have a few questions to ask-." Before he could finish Melanor appeared behind him and grabbed the back collar of his tunic. Both of them vanished leaving Haruka alone in the hall, she said. "What?..."

______________________________________________________

Private Garden

On the table was a classic English afternoon tea set as Elora was holding onto a teacup with her right hand as she softly blew on it to cool it down slightly and took a sip. Enora was sitting on her right as she stared at the light brown surface of the tea staring at her reflection. A male elf was slowly walking towards the table with both hands behind his back. He was wearing a green tunic, dark brown pants, and had two long daggers by the side of his waist that was sheathed along with partial leather armor. 

The male elf hair was long reaching to his waist and was tied into a long ponytail, parts of small parts of his hair were golden just like Elora and Melanor's were but the majority of his was a sunflower yellow. The male elf had a superior air around him when he arrived near the table he gave a bow just deep enough to show both of them courtesy, he said. "Your majesty. Young majesty." As he pulled back one of the two empty chairs that were next to Enora and sat down.

The male elf immediately reached for one of the sandwiches that had the crust trimmed off and started eating. With his free hand, he picked up the kettle and poured himself some tea, and spilled some on the table. Elora placed down her cup of tea and said. "It's been a while, Valen." Valen took a bite of the sandwich in his hand and pointed it at her, he said. "Valen Flanont. The last remaining bloodline of the great Eledan 'Magi' Flanont, one of the greatest elves that ever lived." 

With a haughty expression on his face, he pushed out his chest in an attempt to make himself look bigger than he is. Valen ate the sandwich in his hand in one go and chugged the tea after, he turned his head towards Enora who was staring at her cup of tea that started to turn lukewarm. With a smirk on his face, he said. "Young majesty, after this shall we indulge ourselves with our usual pastime of investigating?"

Enora kept her gaze on the teacup, without missing a beat she said. "No thank you, I have a busy schedule ahead of me." Valen was surprised to see his offer refused, he put on a forced smile on his face and said. "T-Then how about we-." Melanor suddenly appeared behind the empty chair, with an indifferent expression on her face, she said. "I'm sorry for being late. It took a bit more time searching for the wine for this special occasion." Using the corner of her eye she glanced in Valen's direction, Melanor continued. "Valen…" 

She pulled the chair back and sat on it sitting between Elora and him. Valen rolled his eyes at her, with an undermining mocking tone he said. "Lady Melanor." Melanor picked up the kettle and poured herself a cup of tea and filled Elora's almost empty cup. The air around the elves was heavy as no one spoke a moment passed, Valen placed both his elbows on the table. He interlocked both his fingers and said. "Melanor-."

Melanor immediately interrupted him and said. "That's lady Melanor to you." Valen's eyes narrowed, he faked a cough and said. "Lady Melanor, when exactly is this special wine you chose for this lovely occasion?" Melanor didn't answer as she took a sip of tea while Elora was enjoying the faint fragrance of the tea. Enora was still staring at her cup that had already gone cold. Valen looked around him as he started softly tapping his right foot, before he could say anything a door suddenly opened as Reiki made his way toward the table. 

He was holding a tray with a bottle of wine that was recently opened with four glasses that were half-filled with wine. Reiki stared at Melanor with a look that read, you interrupted me for this? He turned his head and got a good look at Valen who was staring at the glasses on the tray, Reiki thought. This is supposed to be that elf Elora warned me about? He looks like the type to whine about his trust fund not being enough… Reiki's lips almost curved into a slight smile as he managed to stop himself. Valen saw this as his glare on him turned slightly hostile.

Reiki passed Melanor a glass of wine and walked towards Elora and passed her a glass. He stopped next to Enora and tapped on her shoulder which got her attention, he said. "Drink, eat, or burn down the entire forest for all I care." Enora's eyes slowly focused on him, she said. "Huh?" Reiki passed her a glass to which she held in her right hand, he said. "Do anything to express yourself, bottling it all inside won't change anything." 

Enora stared at the glass of red wine in her glass as Reiki walked towards Valen who was sending daggers at him, he placed the tray closer to him. A cruel smile slowly formed on Valen's face, he said. "It's been a while since I've seen an inferior race, especially you humans. Fragile bodies, barely any affinity with magic, and don't even get me started on how every single one of you stan each other in the back for a meager amount of resources." Reiki had an indifferent expression as he just let him continue.

Valen took the last glass of wine on the tray as he stared at his reflection with a smile on his face, he turned his head and said. "And another thing-." Elora raised a hand which he saw from the corner of his eye and stopped. Elora said. "Now that we've heard what you think. Reiki, what about you?" Reiki turned his head and looked at Melanor who was in the middle of taking a sip of wine. He shrugged his shoulders and said. "Money can't buy class, I don't know anyone who wants to get stuck taking out the trash." 

Valen's smile froze as his glare on him turned dangerous, from the corner of his eye he saw a faint smile on Enora's lips. Valen said. "Trash? Me? I'll have you know I'm Valen Flanont, the only-." Reiki raised his hand, he said. "That's bold of you to assume." The glass of wine in Valen's hand slightly cracked, he said. "No, it is not bold of me to assume-."

Reiki interrupted Valen. Reiki said. "No, what I meant was it's bold of you to assume you're worth more than trash. Some trash from us humans can be recycled, on the other hand, you're just waste. A waste of air, a waste of time, and if I was related to you I would be too ashamed to show myself in public. I can only imagine how your parents must feel giving birth to something like you."

Enora let out a sweet short giggle, Elora who maintained a straight face said. "Nora, manners." Enora faked a cough and said. "Yes, mother." As she took a sip of wine and reached for a sandwich. Valen walked closer to him as he was an arms-length, with the glass of wine in his hands he splashed it all over his face. Red wine slowly dripped down to his clothes and towards the floor, with a smile on Reiki's face he said. "More wine?" 

Elora's eyes narrowed while Enora was watching with doubt written all over her face. Melanor was enjoying this as she had a visible smile on her face. Valen let out a scoff and said. "That's what I thought-." Reiki reached for the neck of the bottle as his left hand suddenly blurred.

[System: User has dealt 452 Damage.]

Melanor appeared on Reiki's right as her right hand was in front of Valen's face holding the bottle of wine that was about to smack him. Reiki made the full motion of the swing as the bottle had a clean cut from the neck. The wine inside started pouring all over Valen, he let out a loud shout as he stared at his clothes in disbelief, he said. "Do you know how much this cost!?" 

Without missing a beat, Reiki said. "Nope, but I have the feeling you'll tell us anyway." Valen raised a fist at him, he said. "It cost-!" Valen became angrier, he stopped mid-sentence and grabbed the collar of his tunic. Reiki's eyes turned semi-hollow as raised his right hand and aimed for Valen's throat. Melanor pushed both of them away from each other as she added more force to Valen as he fell on the floor where a small puddle of wine was. 

Valen quickly stood up before he could say anything Melanor said. "Gentlemen." Melanor looked at Reiki, she turned her gaze onto Valen and continued. "Elf." Valen's upper body was shaking in anger as he was breathing loudly, his eyes were starting to turn bloodshot.

Melanor stood between the two of them and said. "The two of you are in the presence of her majesty, have your fight somewhere else. How about an apology to patch things-." Before she could finish, Reiki immediately raised his right hand that was holding the neck of the bottle that had a clean-cut, he said. "I'm sorry for describing you." 

Enora let out a laugh as she placed a hand on her mouth to stop herself, Elora had a smile on her face while Melanor had a grin on hers. The fist on Valen's joints started making a cracking noise as it slightly shook, he took a step forward to which Reiki didn't react and stood in place. Valen was on the verge of exploding while Reiki was completely calm, Melanor wiped the grin on her face and pretended to think. Melanor said. "Reiki, I think you've overstayed your welcome." Melanor walked toward the direction of the door and dragged Reiki by the collar of his tunic with her left hand. Reiki said. "At least I was welcomed."

Melanor opened the door as a female elf holding a tray with a few containers of whipped cream, strawberry jam, and some marmalade. The elf made it near the table near a wine-soaked Valen who was staring at his clothes. When the female elf was in the middle of placing the tray down Valen smiled as his hand blurred. The female elf let out a yell as she fell over as cream, jam, and marmalade were all over the floor and some on her tunic. 

The elf immediately said. "M-My apologies!" She rummaged through her pocket and took out a dark piece of fabric and tried to clean the mess up. Valen's smile grew bigger, he gestured at the panicked elf as if he was showcasing something. Enora stood up from her chair and walked near the elf who was cleaning, she looked down and said. "Are you alright?" Which made the elf panic as she started wiping faster and used her tunic, instead of cleaning it properly the cream and the jam started to mix and ended being harder to wipe off.

Enora gently picked the elf up by her forearm, without minding the marmalade on her hand. Enora tried to speak calmly and gently as much as possible, she said. "Take the day off."  The female elf was frightened as she immediately said. "Y-Young majesty, I-I know you wouldn't give an elf such as myself a second glance. B-But please reconsider, I-I have a couple of young elves to support. I-I know this may be asking for too much, c-can you please give this humble one another chance?" 

The elf hugged herself as she slowly slouched her body, she had a fragile air around her as she glued her eyes on the floor. Enora slowly exhaled which made the elf visibly tremble, Valen smiled brighter when he saw this. Enora said. "It's fine, you're not in trouble or anything. Take the day off and make yourself presentable, no one will deduct this from your pay." The female elf and Valen were stunned, the elf slowly looked up. She said. "Y-Young m-majesty?..."

______________________________________________________

Somewhere In The Hallway

Reiki had his back facing Melanor and was wiping off the wine on him using the sleeves of his tunic, he took his tunic off and used it to dry his hair. Melanor looked at his pasty white skin that was almost unhealthy and compared it to her own, she said. "You might want to expose yourself to the sun more." Reiki wore his tunic back on as his hair was even messier than before, he turned his head sideways and said. "Jealous?" Melanor let out a scoff, she said. "... Only a little bit…" 

Reiki smelled his sleeve and thought. Yep, wine… He let out a sigh before he could say anything Melanor said. "Give me a minute and a bath will be ready for you, so you can wash off the smell." Reiki shook his head, he said. "That's not important right now… I need to go back to the library." He turned around and looked up at her. 

Melanor let out a laugh and said. "Give me half a minute." Reiki raised his hand and was about to say something but stopped and nodded, he said. "Is that new elf going to be okay?" Melanor leaned on a wall, she said. "Sharp eyes… Probably."

With a questioning look, Melanor said. "What's so important that you're in a rush to go back to the library?" Reiki quickly said. "Learning." As he crossed his arms, Melanor raised a brow in suspicion and said. "Learning?..." Reiki nodded and said. "My stay here isn't permanent and it's not every day I have access to an elf's library." Melanor let out a sigh, she said. "You're too good at lying…" 

Reiki let out a chuckle, he said. "When you deal with humans daily you'll be good at it too." While leaning on the wall Melanor also crossed her arms, she said. "Seriously, what is so important at the library?" Reiki moved his gaze to the ceiling as a light sphere slowly moved, he said. "I'm just going to try my hand at formations, nothing special."

______________________________________________________

Private Garden

The elf gaze wandered onto Elora who had her eyes closed as she enjoyed her cup of tea, having no idea how to react, the elf said. "Y-Young majesty, what do you mean?" Enora said. "Nothing, you've been through enough for the day. So take the day off to calm down and spend some time with your family ms…" The elf reluctantly said. "Soliana, young majesty." Enora nodded, she tidied up Soliana's tunic that was covered in two types of jams and cream. 

Soliana immediately took a step back and said. "I-It is quite alright your majesty, I can wash these clothes when I get home after my shift." Enora slightly frowned, he said. "Not going to accept my offer of going home early?" Soliana shook her head sideways, before she could say anything Enora raised a finger and said. "It's fine, you have my word that nothing bad will happen to you. If that is not enough, her majesty is here and can act as a witness." 

Soliana turned her head onto Elora, who took a sip of tea and nodded. Soliana didn't know how to react as she played with her fingers while keeping her head low, she said. "In that case young majesty." She gave Enora a respectful bow and continued. "I shall accept you on your offer." Soliana was about to crouch but stopped when she heard her speak. Enora said. "Don't worry about the mess, the heads will take care of it."

Soliana gave her a bow, turned around, and headed for the door. She stood on the other side of the door with the door open, Soliana said. "Pardon the intrusion." As she gave a respectful bow and gently closed the door. Enora appeared back in her seat as if nothing happened, she picked up a napkin and casually wiped some cream and jam off her hand. Valen was still stunned in his seat, he managed to snap himself back into reality as he cleared his throat and said. "Young majesty, how befitting of you to show-." 

Enora raised her hand that was holding a napkin that had some strawberry jam and cream on it which made him stop, she said. "Valen… Have you always been this boring?..." She glanced at him from the corner of her eye as she neatly folded the used napkin and placed it down on the table. 

Valen was shocked as he couldn't think of anything to say, both of them were casting glances in his way as he felt they were filled with judgment, he stood up and said. "Your majesty, young majesty. I just remembered that I have something to do today-." He took a step back to which he hit the chair and fell to the ground.

He flashed both of them a smile and disappeared. Enora let out a sigh filled with frustration as she reached out for a biscuit on the table. Elora picked up the kettle and poured her daughter's cup with warm tea. Enora looked at her cup of tea and said. "What happened to my previous cup?" Elora reached out and picked up a sandwich with thinly sliced cucumber and a thin layer of mayo, she said. "I threw it." With a surprised look on her face, Enora said. "You wasted food?" 

Elora let out a chuckle, she said. "Technically speaking you wasted it by letting the tea get cold." As she took a bite of the sandwich in her hand. Enora nodded in acknowledgment and said. "Fair point." As she took a bite of the biscuit in her hand.

______________________________________________________

Private Library Room

Haruka was sitting by the workbench and scribbling on her notebook, in front of her were three books of varying sizes that were open. Two individuals appeared inside the room, Melanor held Reiki by the collar of his tunic and dropped him. With a soft thud, he landed on the floor, Reiki looked up to Melanor and said. "Thank you." Melanor nodded at him as she walked towards the door and vanished, he thought. She has more than one teleportation spell… 

Haruka was still writing in her notebook and only stopped when she found a good spot. She stood up from the chair and with a wave of her hand all the books on top of the workbench closed, Haruka said. "Your questions?" Reiki walked towards the bed and sat on it, he looked up to her and said. "How much do you know about the elves that are currently reading?" He gave her a meaningful look. Haruka leaned on the wall next to the workbench, she said. "Fayeth is expensive." Reiki let out a chuckle as he coughed afterward, he said. "Continue."

Haruka looked at him oddly, she said. "Anyway… In human terms, they would be in their second year of high school. And-." Reiki waved his hand in dismissal, he said. "Not that kind of information. Do some of them have any formations on hand? Are they the next heir of their respective household?" Haruka's eyes narrowed, she looked at him suspiciously and didn't answer. Reiki rolled his eyes at her, he said. "Just treat it as a yes or no question. I don't have any money on me to pay you." 

He thought. I do have money, but that doesn't mean I'm going to pay you since I've decided to bring you along the second floor… A moment of silence passed, Haruka said. "Yes." Reiki smiled, he said. "Perfect." He stood up from the bed and walked towards the door, he suddenly stopped and turned his head to face Haruka who was behind him. Reiki said. "One last thing."

______________________________________________________

Dark Large Room

Valen was wearing an entirely new tunic, pants, and partial leather armor. He was kneeling on one leg and in front of him were twelve old elves sitting on chairs by a large table, they had visible wrinkles on their faces as parts of their hair started turning grey. All of them were wearing long green cloaks and had their hoods down. The old elf sitting in the middle said. "You only had one simple thing to do."