In a nation named after a beautiful flower, there was a city which bears the meaning of calm and peace. And yet, it was the center of undesirable eyes. In this city of Serene, Wisteria’s royal capital, beings of power lurk within, hidden from the eyes of many. Beings that no ordinary creatures could hope to overpower, nor defeat. 

One of these powerful beings was a man. Young and handsome.

In an alley, this young man with long bronze hair was wandering around. His golden eyes looked at the bottle of liquor in his hand. His smile beamed in delight.

“This is an expensive wine. I hope it's worth the time.”

Well, not that his time was strictly limited.

He had only arrived in the city a couple of days ago, and he did take a leisurely time going around the city. It had been a while since he was here. More than a decade ago, when he heard of something interesting and kind of a big deal.

He peered around the surrounding alleyway.

“Hm, it changed a little.”

One reason he went around the place was because he wanted to see what had changed. As a being such as himself, he appreciated even the tiny things that he deemed interesting, this included the changes in the passages of time.

He gazed at the bottle in his hand once again. “... Fine, just a little sip.”

He was not slacking off amidst his task, just experiencing little things. And a bottle of liquor was one of those little things to enjoy. He opened the cork of the bottle and drank a handful of its content.

“Hm, not bad.”

As he expected, the wine was good. Wisteria was one of those who made good quality wine, after all.

“... It never disappoints. Hm, that aside, there sure are a lot of bothersome guys around here.”

Despite him appearing to be fooling around, he was taking in a lot of what was going on in the city. He had to be extra careful and must hide his presence to avoid being discovered.

“The princess is going to have her hands full.”

The Princess of Wisteria, Estelia. Her hair of platinum was blindingly dazzling, and hypnotizing crimson eyes. He had only just started the observation. But found nothing of note so far. He expected a lot, considering the prophecy.

It’s starting to make me think that it was fake.

But of course it was not, it was absolutely genuine. But he was still a bit confused. Maybe things turned out this way because the gods were in disarray. Or perhaps there were other factors at play. Thinking about the gods’ turmoil, he cheered for the Observer in his heart. He was never on the side of the gods, anyway. That was why he felt elated to hear that the Neverending Observer was rebelling against them.

But the Observer was alone, so there was a high chance he could fail and fall from grace. But if he succeeds…

Good luck to the world then.

He drank a little from the bottle again.

Alright, the Princess is out in the city.

Quite risky, very, in fact. But of course she didn’t know that very risk. 

He could easily imagine what factions were around in the city. The mystic race. Then the Cursed Children. Those two were the first for the time being, but there would surely be others that would join late.

Well, I may be the third faction.

The Mythics.

He may be alone, but he believed he alone was enough to call himself as another faction. Well, for now, he was just watching.

“Whatever… At least this wine right here is good. I can relax for a bit…” He furrowed his brows. “Or not.”

He sighed as he sensed a few presence surrounding him.

They’re fast, as I expected.

He was already completely outnumbered and surrounded, and the other party were no normal beings. Still, he didn’t appear anxious or threatened. He was nonchalant as ever.

Amidst the shadowy shades of the buildings surrounding him, several figures came into view. Humans, perfectly human in appearance. Men and women, young and old. However, they were entirely not what they appeared to be.

A man in his early twenties showed himself in front of him.

“Eternal Wanderer, why have you come here?”

The man had black hair and amber eyes. The others also have the same features.

The Eternal Wanderer raised both his hands, showing he was not intending to fight. These people were serious, openly showing their hostility. He would prefer not to have a fight with them.

And here I thought we had an amicable relationship.

“Why can’t I be here?” the Wanderer asked.

The man glared at him. “Your presence alone is something to be cautious about. So, answer me, why are you here?”

The Wanderer smiled as he glanced at a dark corner. “Well, as you can see… I am merely… wandering, obviously. What else could I be doing here?”

The man narrowed his eyes. “This isn’t the time to be joking around.”

Seeing the man so agitated amused the Wanderer. “Why do you have to be so cold towards me?”

“You know the reason.”

Of course, he knew. He also anticipated that they would show themselves to him, eventually. After all, these guys have more eyes here than the mystic race.

“Ah, yes I do.” He smirked. “The only salvation of the Cursed Children. That is the reason you are here.”

“Then you being here is no mere coincidence.”

“But what if it is? I mean, I always go around places, so it’s certain that I would end up here, at this place, at some point.”

“As if.” He scoffed. He didn’t believe him at all, despite how honest he might look.

“Come now, young man, you were not that hostile to me in the past. What’s your name again?”

He only met this person for a short while, so he had forgotten his name since he wasn’t all that important at the time.

“I don’t need to answer that. Now, why are you truly here? Have you come to intervene?”

“What? No, of course not.”

The man gritted his teeth before speaking in a threatening tone. “This is not your battle, Wanderer.”

“You’re right. I’m just here to drink the wine I just bought.”

The man walked closer to him, keeping his sharp glaring eyes pointed at him. “Just as the Princess survived from the absolute prophecy, you came here. There must be a reason.”

The Wanderer smiled, as though reminded of something. “Ah yes! I should congratulate you on that. Good for you! And if I do have a reason to be here, it is surely not to intervene with you, or the mystic race.”

“Really now? Hah! As if I will take your word for it. If you even dare try to harm her, we will hunt you down.”

The Wanderer chuckled at his absurd declaration.

“Really now? Kill me? That would never work. And, if my goal here was to slay the Princess, I would have done so already.” The Wander’s power began to emanate just a little. A presence and aura that could drive away mild beasts and monsters in fear. “You wouldn’t have seen her, the hope you so cherished would have vanished from your grasp, you would have returned to your pitiful home, crying in agony and despair. Praying that your torment would end.”

“You bastard. If it comes to it, I will just destroy your entire being until there is nothing left of you.”

“Then better ask the gods for a blessing if you wish to do that.”

“Damn the gods!” 

The man’s anger and irritation was evident in his voice and eyes.

The Wanderer sighed and turned towards a corner as his strong aura vanished. “Old man, why don’t you come out already? I already know you’re there.”

There was indeed someone there.

“It seems I can’t trick your senses.”

A faint fog which camouflage with the shadows spoke and slowly formed into a man. He looked around his late early forties, the same black hair and amber eyes.

“Nice try, though,” the Wanderer casually said.

“I should be the one calling you old man.”

“But I look way younger. Anyway, you don’t have to be so hostile towards me.”

“Perhaps. We may have been acquaintances in the far past, but we still have different goals. And as you said, this is our salvation, our one and only. We can’t tread lightly. I hope you understand, Taneva.”

“Of course I understand. But if I am planning to do something, I would have been acting on it now, or have done it already.”

Taneva turned back to the young man with a grin. The man merely scoffed as he stepped back. The older man stepped forward, but still kept a distance from Taneva.

“Not everything is as it appears.”

“True. However, I ask you, Heneis. If I were to fight either of your factions. Them and you. Which one do you think I would slaughter first?”

Taneva and Heneis stared at each other for a long moment.

Heneis nodded. “Indeed. You are not a threat…for now. And, I couldn’t think what motives could the Mythics have to execute the Princess.”

“See?”

“We are going.”

The older man was about to leave when Taneva called out to him. “Ah, before you go. May I suggest something?”

“What could you suggest?”

“Well, you wanted to keep the Princess safe, right? Then I suggest you do not keep her in the dark. If she had even the slightest idea what is going on, or what she should be wary about, that could at least extend her life.”

“We are planning just that.”

“But not everything, I suppose? You need her for yourself, after all.”

Hell, she might even die in these people’s hands. Eventually, they will need her out of the palace and this kingdom, and have her for themselves.

“Taneva, that is our business. No need to poke your nose in.”

Taneva shrugged. “Fine, fine.”

With that, all of them turned into black fogs as they ascended into the air and they became faint to the point that the human eye could barely see them.

Taneva looked at the bottle in his hand as he pondered. “It’s fortunate that I didn’t encounter them at night. That would be troublesome.” He took a sip of his wine.

He thought about the Princess. Taneva began to wonder why his old friend sent him to watch. There was no point in it. Maybe it was just him.

However, he found the situation interesting and so accepted his friend’s request. And he rarely questions what reason could his friend have for requesting things. No harm will come to him anyways.

Ultimately, he fully trusts that dragon friend of his. But he didn’t know how everything would turn out.

“Good grief, the entire world feels like it’s on the move.”