Chapter 133 - Forest Folks
The dungeon was dark and cold. Their hands were tied with tight ropes that were wrapped around their bodies. They were lined up inside a room, thick metal bars separating them from the dungeon's halls.
It was also dark. Dark that the only thing a normal person could see was the dim ember lamp at the end of the hall. In their Adventurer vision, the brightness was like daytime but the sun was covered with thick clouds.
"I still can't comprehend what has happened," Elliot said. "That Hoot betrayed us and offered us to the guards like we're criminals."
"Where was the assassin she ordered to point us in this situation, anyway?" Connor grunted.
Hope cleared his throat and pointed his lips at the cell in front of them. There laid the man in skin tight body suit. His head was on the ground, chopped off from his body.
The guards made them wear pendants that suppresses magic, making them unable to cast spells. The five of them could only feel despair. There was no hope for them.
"That b*tch must be sick," Ed groaned. "I can't believe we fell for her kindness trap."
"My dragon gut warned you," Hope tsked and sighed. "But I can't believe we're really thinking of disbanding."
"Those fools tricked us," Elliot said. "They used mirror magic to clone each of us, discouraging us with their words."
"So, Florencia's helping them?" Ed asked, making Elliot shook his head.
"I doubt she would do something this awful. But one man could do it, one that has the same affinity as her," Elliot turned to Ed. "Her cousin."
"Madam Hoot," the guard outside spoke. They stopped their conversation so the woman could not hear them.
"Let me see them," Madam Hoot said and the guard agreed.
Elliot snapped his head to the direction of the creaking metal door, watching it open as the woman they once trusted walked inside, lips quirking in a smirk.
"It was a shame that you're in this situation, Lance," Hoot said sarcastically. She walked in front of the metal bars and clicked her tongue. "I never thought anything like this would happen."
"Monster!" Elliot screamed. "How could you do this?"
Madam Hoot fake gasped, cupping her hands over her mouth. "I never did anything wrong, Mr. Max. I was just doing my job. And that is to convict those who have sinned."
Elliot growled and spat, "I never thought of any Elf to be like this, but you–"
"Elf? So, you're a Elf?" Lance asked, cutting Elliot off. It was the first time Lance had spoken ever since they were captured. His lips were sealed the moment the rope was tied over his body, not uttering a single word, and could only stare into the void. "I heard the priest said something about a Forest Magic being casted on to my mother. Or let me rephrase that, a curse from a forest dweller."
Lance looked up and glared at Madam Hoot like he was about to commit murder. "Did you have anything to do with it?"
"For centuries, the Forest Folks lived happily," Madam Hoot spoke, not answering Lance that made the latter growl. "We made sure to cut contact off the outside world because it would be complicated. After all, humans didn't share the same beliefs as us. We may look the same, but we were never in the same pages."
"But then, a Fae escaped the forest and walked into a human territory. The humans, who were not familiar with the being, captured her, putting her in this exact dungeon. And then, their eyes met…"
–
"Father, I do not wish to come into the dungeons," the prince uttered. "I don't want to meet the creature. It might bite my arm off for all I know."
"Nonsense, Leopold!" the previous king said with his dominating voice. "You must come with me and you will see how a king do his job by interrogating a foreign creature. We must see first if we can use them to our advantage."
The prince had no choice but to trail behind his father. They walked through the hard brick castle, through the long red carpets, and through the walls filled with portraits.
It wasn't long before they got in front of the dungeon's entrance. A hidden door just by the staff's quarters.
"Open it," the king commanded one of the guards, to which the guard followed right away. The father and son walked inside the dungeon and there, the young prince's eyes glimmered as he saw the most beautiful being he had ever laid his eyes on. "Behold, my son. This is the prisoner."
The prince's eyes widened, seeing the woman with ropes wrapping around her body like she was some kind of beast.
"Father, why is this woman tied up?" Prince Leopold asked.
"She's not a woman, look at her ears. They are pointed, not like ours. And look at her hands, they're green as the leaves while slowly fading into the color of her pale arms. That's not like us," the king said in fascination. "Her body is abnormally petite and her hair is filled with glitters. She's not a human, Leo. She's a humanoid beast."
The prince leaned in, watching the girl who was trembling in fear. Her eyes were filled with a mix of pain and confusion, seemingly unable to speak for herself.
"She doesn't seem harmful, father," Lance said.
"Nonsense, my boy," the king chuckled. "She's a humanoid beast, the strongest kind of beast out there. But you're only 12, so what do you know?"
The king got worried and left the dungeons with his son. He looked at the boy on the way back to the throne room but the prince seemed to be glancing back from time to time at the direction of the dungeons.
He knew something was not right, so he waited for it to happen.
When the night came, a wooden door slightly creaked open. A figure walked through the halls and into the empty kitchen. The prince took a few pieces of bread and a flask of water, walking into the dungeons as silent as he could.
"Open the door," the prince ordered the guard.
"We're sorry, your majesty but the king would not allow anyone to enter the dungeons without his permission," one of the guards said.
"But I am the prince. I should be allowed, right?" Leopold argued. When the guards didn't budge, he took gold coins in his pocket, handing them to the guard. "Would this be enough?"
"Y-Yes, sire," the guard nodded and walked to the side, opening the door that led to the dark and cold dungeons.
"Milady, why are you in such shackles? Your ever so fair beauty is in contrast with this rugged place," Leopold walked over, handing the woman with the food and water he brought.
"W-What?" the young fae stuttered, looking around to see if the prince was talking to someone else. "You think of me as a woman and not a beast?"
The prince nodded, not leaving his eyes at the girl, "Yes, milady. Here, have some bread and water. You might need it."
The girl hesitantly took the food. She stepped back and smelled them, taking a bite of the bread after she didn't smell any poison. She finished her meal in a blink of an eye. This was how Leopold knew that she was starving.
"My hunch was right." A voice made the prince turn, seeing his father right by the door. "You are seduced by this beast."
"But father–"
A sound of slap echoed the dungeons, a heavy cloud of silence filled the room after the painful sound. "Guards, take my son to his room and don't let him leave until dawn."
Two guards walked over and escorted the prince. He looked at the girl once more before mouthing an apology, exiting the room and leaving his father who was glaring at the elf.
"What scummy magic have you put on my son?" the king spat the words like poison. "He has never been like that with anyone. And why is it with just one look at you, he was instantly attracted?"
"I-I don't know your majesty," the girl said with a low tone. She couldn't bring herself to even look the king in the eyes, afraid of the things the man could do if she does something wrong. "I didn't do anything."
The king kicked the iron bars, making the girl jolt in shock. He leaned in with eyes so wide, it looked as though they were about to pop out from their sockets.
"What kind of creature are you?" the king seethed. "You're not a Succubus, are you? You don't have the horns, not even wings."
"I am a Fae, your majesty," the girl uttered. "I am one of the Forest Folks, but I mistakenly set foot into your lands."
"And you expect me to believe that? You came from the East, the Forest Beasts live in the South. Or perhaps, you're the other kingdom's spy?" the king's eyes widened even more. "You're from Pasernalia aren't you? The kingdom filled with humanoid beasts. You must be a spy."
"Your majesty, I swear I am not," the girl cried. "I am nothing but a Fae living amongst the woods with my fellow Forest Folks."
"Lies," the king whispered. "All lies."
"Your majesty–"
The king took a step back without leaving his gaze at the girl. His eyes were still wide and filled with doubts.
"Prepare the execution tomorrow," the king commanded.. "She is a threat to the kingdom. As a spy from Pasernalia, I, the king, sentence this beast death!"