Ornis pleaded at Nymph with his round red eyes.

“Help you… talk to Aer? Why, did she get mad at you for something?” Nymph smiled. “I understand, her temper is very…”

“No, that’s not it! She hates me, I’m sure.” Ornis turned downcast, sulking as he stared at his shoes.

“Aer doesn’t hate anyone.” Quizzical, Nymph furrowed her brows. “The Lord of Air does not have the capacity to hate.”

That sounds like an insult, Nymph.

Phos watched their interaction from beside Kass and Pyre. He held a strand of his shimmering white hair, twirling it subconsciously. Inside, he felt quite relieved: If Ornis could go with Nymph, then he wouldn’t have to worry about finding Aer with them. Nymph and Aer, as sworn sisters; why wouldn’t they know each other’s locations?

The Lord of Light realised he’d never met Lord Aer before. As a 150-year-old existence, Phos wondered how he hadn’t seen the Lord once. Not even in newspapers. Aer seemed like a phantom—elusive and ghost-like. Almost as if hiding away from the world.

Something in Phos nudged him to join Ornis and Nymph. He suddenly wanted to know about the Lord of Air. A being so crucial to the existence of humans on Earth, yet so out-of-sight and out-of-mind.

Pyre glanced down at Phos. He could see the ideas whirling in the Light Lord’s eyes.

His little victim had a plan?

“I haven’t seen Aer in a while! We should all go greet her.” Out of nowhere, Kass spoke up.

“She really dislikes crowds.” Nymph shook her head, sighing. “If we do go, I don’t think she’d accept us into her home.”

“But it’s only five people—” Ornis interjected, surprised.

“Aer only has 2 servants and 1 butler,” Nymph stated. “You should know this.”

“I’m not going.” A firm, resolute voice cut through the haze of discussion and worry.

Pyre scratched his head. “I don’t need to meet Aer. I haven’t seen her in a while either, but we’re friends. I’m sure she’s fine!”

Nymph thought for a moment. Pyre was definitely the noisiest and most hot-headed of the group… from what she knew. Without Pyre, she only needed to worry about Kass and Ornis. But Kass would definitely listen to Nymph, and Ornis wouldn’t dare disrespect his mentor.

“Then we should be fine!” Nymph beamed. “Let’s go find that sister of mine!”

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“Find?!” Ornis gawked. “You mean, you don’t know where she is either?!”

“Nope!”

A sigh echoed between the five Lords, and Phos could practically see the dark line effect signifying disappointment hanging above their heads.

A ways later, Pyre separated from the group. He simply waved as he left.

Kass and Ornis waved back, while Nymph stood weary next to Phos.

The Light Lord still believed that when he found Pyre at the edge of the cliff in Eos, the man truly was just about to lava-dive. If he wanted to go back and feel the scorching heat on his skin, what right did Phos have to disapprove? To Phos, Pyre was just a bit off in the head. One moment acting silly, suspicious the next with a streak of red in his irises.

What did those colours mean? And what a strange quirk. Phos suspected that they were actually mood indicators, showing all of Pyre’s emotions—maybe that was why the Fire Lord wore a blindfold sometimes!

Having it all figured out in his mind, Phos stamped his fist on his palm and raised his head with a hint of arrogance.

Nymph, standing next to him: “???”

Pyre, sensing someone talking partly incorrectly about him: (sneezes)

So, in Phos’s dictionary, whenever Pyre’s eyes flashed red, it could mean one of three things: Danger, Blood, or Passion. He shook his head like a sieve at the last word—why would Pyre hold such fervent love for Phos? Ruled out immediately.

But a major issue lingered in the back of Phos’s mind. Pyre was so brain-dead that he couldn’t tell apart dead from alive. Phos had long given up trying to persuade Pyre, who immediately cut off his words whenever he brought up the topic.

Was this a warning? Was Phos being monitored?

Hesitant, Phos gripped the edge of his fire-design scarf and patted down his pyjamas for any sensors.

“Since it’s Spring, Aer’s abode should be to the right.” Ornis watched Pyre’s figure disappear before pointing to a path split by the clouds. “Or, at least, if Aer kept her house, she’d be there….”

“It’s been a while for you too, hasn’t it?” Nymph questioned, taking the lead. “We never met when she was still your mentor. But after she disowned you, she did mention you a lot.”

“She did?” Ornis’s eyes suddenly widened. “Does she still hate me?”

Nymph thought for a moment.

“No. Not from what I remember—she looked the same as always.”

“Oh.”

Kass, who had been silent for a while now, raised his hand.

“Mr. Bird, sir, why did you need us to ask Aer about Erpeto, the Lord of Reptiles? Anyone would do, even Erpeto himself.”

“You sure remember names well.” Ornis praised Kass in surprise. “You’re partly correct. However, I had already decided on you two to help me as soon as I saw Kass kneeling outside of Phos’s door.”

Nymph choked.

“Are you alright?!” Kass hurriedly supported Nymph, lightly patting her back.

“Mhm…” Holding Kass's arm, Nymph glanced between him and Phos. “Why were you…”

Phos remembered the whistle hidden in his scarf. He took it out, held it up to the warm light of Nephele, then tossed it to Nymph.

“Right, I forgot I had this.” He smiled.

Kass stared at Phos in horror. What did he mean by this? Was Kass being traded off?? For nothing???

“Phos, what does this do?” Nymph dangled the whistle from the end of her finger, admiring its metalling sheen.

“Blow it whenever you want to see Kass. You’ll be able to imagine him immediately!”

“Is that so..? Why do you have it, Phos???”

Kass’s expression shifted from betrayal to aversion.