“Would you care to invite me in first, daughter? Since out here, we might get a lot of unwanted interruptions.” The man gestured towards the dark outlines of the buildings.

—Daughter? He looks so... unique.

Celeste's grandfather, Urie surmised. The appearance of the tall man caused an involuntary scratch at his nape. He blinked with wonder; with pale skin, lengthy light brown hair, and emerald green eyes, the man bore great resemblance to Simone and Stella—the only difference being he had longer pointed ears. Such a trait could earn him all the eyes within Daerin if he ever took a stroll during daylight.

“Inside.” Stella reluctantly agreed. Although her hands were clenched to calm her anger, she was curious about what the old man knew. They all entered the house and returned to the dining room, as it was the easiest place to have a conversation.

After they had taken their seats, the long-eared man had a query for Urie, “Judging by the color of your hair, child, I presume you are a child of the Loeth House?”

—Aunt Stella and the others didn't ask about the color of my hair so I didn't expect his first question to be about my family.

Urie was surprised. He replied, “Yes sir, you know of my family?”

“Child, don't call me sir. You may refer to the name bestowed by my father and blessed by the greater spirit, Willow—Ashur.” The tall man insisted sternly. Ashur, Urie hadn't known yet but it was the name of the elven elder holding the highest authority within the Elder Council. Luca and Simone were supposed to inform Stella of his intent to visit but the thought slipped their minds.

He continued, “I know of the Loeth, indeed. As well as of the other pillars of Daerin—Vinney and Perid. They... No, we can talk of them later. I shall first ask, how have you come to be here, child?”

“-About that,” Luca entered the conversation and explained the situation—Urie's predicament, and the details with Volcanus, the fire spirit. Urie chimed in and added any details Luca had missed. Luca said lastly, “The kid will be staying with us until we find a way to bring him back. Maybe find a way to bring my daughter back as well.”

Ashur nodded and then asked a different question, “Child, how are things on the other side? Have you an idea?”

—Is...Is he asking if there are any Nifyr in Daerin?

Urie promptly replied, “The city is fine if that's what you mean, grandpa Ashur. If you mean to ask about the wall, then mana beasts seem to have started attacking again.”

Being called grandpa was a first for Ashur, but his reaction to the form of address had to wait; it seemed far insignificant compared to issue Urie mentioned. Ashur raised his posture in slight alarm, “Mana beasts? Do you mean magic creatures?”

—Huh? Doesn't he know what mana beasts are?

Urie made a circling gesture around his pupils with his hands, “No. The mana beasts are magic creatures but are more dangerous than the usual kind. You can tell them apart if you look at their eyes—they glow in a similar manner to that of a Nifyr's.”

Ashur skewed his jaw and mumbled, “Aberrant behavior, irregularities... Is it about time? Things have been quiet for too long.” His upright seated posture faltered for a moment, and apprehension escaped from his lips. It was barely noticeable, but in the enclosed space of the room, Stella easily caught his sigh.

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“You know something, old man?” She said.

Hearing his daughter's rude call, Ashur furrowed his brows but didn't reproach. Instead, he replied with an answer... but for a question unasked, “I may know of a way to send him the boy home. Although... I don't think the greater fire spirit would approve.”

Everyone perked their ears. An option to send Urie back to the land of the blue sky could also mean a way to bring Celeste back home.

“Come on. It doesn't hurt to just tell us, right?” Simone said eagerly and with a clenched hand. At the back of his mind, he wondered why this had never been mentioned before.

Ashur contemplated—a feeling of helplessness came over him as he met with everyone's expectant gaze. “Alright, but do not speak of the matter outside of this dwelling. They pertain to some of the more sensitive topics that the elder council would rather not mention.”

“Oh?” Stella chuckled, then spoke sardonically, ”The high elder leaking secrets of the council?”

“There's no strict confidentiality, but a matter kept quiet to avoid unrest among the city's populace.”

Simone prodded, “We're already in a state of unrest, why hold back?” The recent Nifyr problem was steadily escalating, what else could there be that would affect the whole city?

Ashur declared, “It is a suggestion, but there will be a caveat before proceeding—a warning. As we will have to momentarily restore the bond between the tower of the blue sky to our tower under the vermillion moon.”

Slowly, the faces around the table indicated everything but understanding. Stella had an irritated expression, Luca nodded like he had understood; it was only Urie and Simon that were still trying to comprehend what he had said.

Simone knocked the table gently as he asked, “Are you talking about Volcanus' severed connection with the Erden Tower? Why would that cause unrest?”

Ashur was aware that this son of his was bright—prone to ask questions to get a clear picture—but the child seated beside Stella, he was surprised that there was no hint of confusion in the boy's pair of blue eyes. Rather, a curious itch at the nape of his neck seemed to bother him as he pondered.

—It appears that there has long been an existing relationship between this place and the city of Daerin... Mana beasts and Nifyr; the greater spirits; Volcanus mentioning the dragon; Erden's Tower...

It was only now that Urie had time to digest everything. However, up to that train of thought, he could proceed no further. The tracks only reached up to what he had experienced so far. He brought his hand up to the back of his neck and scratched lightly. He wanted to know more.

Ashur tapped his fingers repeatedly on the table in thought. He felt Urie's gaze and recognized the look of an eager student. It was a shame that they'd met in such unfavorable circumstances.

He decided that it might be better to disclose the other information the elder council withheld before continuing with the discussion, at least to alleviate some confusion.

“The city of Daerin—the one on the boy's side as well as on ours—are two sides of the same coin. Rather, it would be more fitting to say they were two halves of a whole,” Ashur spoke seriously.

—Daerin was originally two cities? No. Was it a single city? I'd never heard of this. Not in any of mother's stories. Nor from any of the city folk. When was this?

Urie grew more intrigued. Luca, who was silent for the entire discussion, blurted out while clasping his fist into his other hand, “Oh, right!”There was that!”

“Huh? There was what? Did you know about this?” Simone retorted.

“Bah. I'm not exactly from here either, remember? I didn't know this was a secret. I only found it out by accident,” Luca averted his eyes.

Ashur cleared his throat to silence the two. He continued, “Our half of the city was sealed within a separate domain held by the shrine of the greater spirits inside of Erden's Tower. Using a particular medium, we can just loosen that seal. That will allow this little one to return.”

Simone felt skeptical, “It feels like you're skipping a lot of the details, high elder.”

“...Originally, the city being swallowed with Volcanus wasn't the plan...” Ashur chewed on his lip. He wasn't sure if he was allowed to disclose any further. Despite his hesitance, a deep and husky voice echoed inside their heads, answering for him.

[It was the city that was sealed along with me.]