II

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Arc II Chapter 7

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Little Aurora was occupied with a task of immense importance. A task that required her full attention and dedication, namely plundering the local cookie supplies. The cookies were hers. All of them, without exception. The sugary temptation proved too strong.

Aurora hugged her cookie jar, determined to protected her sweets with her life, determined to fight to the last cookie.

Arwing's tender heart cried. Her teary eyes witnessed a massacre of unimaginable proportions. Her beloved cookies! No!!!

But her desperate pleas were all in vain, the voracious demon didn't stop. Aurora devoured them all. One cookie after another fell victim to her gluttony, and the cookie jar emptied.

No cookie was spared. No cookie survived. With every fallen cookie, a portion of Arwing's soul withered.

Arwing had never expected the girl to harbour so much evil. The girl took the entire jar when she offered her cookies.

Arwing shared her personal cookie supplies with the poor girl, but the girl confiscated them all. Arwing gave her little finger, and she took the whole hand.

This wasn't fair! This was outright evil!

Aurora munched on her cookies, her cheeks stuffed like a hamster. “Big sister Arwing, are you crying?”

Arwing sniffed. She wouldn't succumb to sadness. “It's nothing. I just got some dust in my eyes. Nothing to worry about.”

“If you say so.” Aurora smiled and handed Arwing a cookie. “Take a cookie. I am sure it will help. You look like you could need one.”

Arwing accepted her offer. Her eyes sparkled with joy, with hope. “Thank you, the cookie helps.”

It did. Arwing relished every last crumb. Her palate rejoiced. Her tongue tasted the sweet bitter flavour of molten chocolate, pure cacao bliss. Chocolate never tasted better. Arwing was in heaven.

Aurora raised her eyebrow. Apparently, cookies were her weakness. Chocolate proved effective against Arwing. Noted.

Nelaeryn rolled his eyes. As usual, Arwing and her beloved cookies.

Nelaeryn sighed and changed topic. “Lambert!

Lambert listened. “What's the matter, Nelaeryn?”

“My knowledge of human customs is admittedly ... limited, but we shouldn't leave the dead behind just like this.”

“We should grant them a proper burial, or at least notify the adventurers' guild about the carriage.” Nelaeryn didn't care about a bunch of dead humans, but he cared about the forest and the spirits.

Human blood stained the ground and distorted the aether flow. Carnage, violence, murder corrupted the forest like a curse. The blight expanded, and the area needed to be purified to not attract malevolent spirits. Such was common wisdom, but he erred. The adventurers didn't mind. Human ignorance blinded them.

Lambert stiffened. Dread gripped him. “I would strongly advise against it. Both options are ... suboptimal.”

“Why?”

“Trust me, this carriage is a ... delicate matter. We don't want to have to do anything with this affair. We touched nothing. We saw nothing. We know nothing. We remember nothing, understood? Better don't get involved with this. Bad idea. Don't catch attention and lie low.”

Nelaeryn didn't look convinced. “I can't follow.”

Lambert took a breath. “Did you notice the black eagle on the carriage? It's the coat of arms of the ...”

“ ... of the Schwarz family.”

Lambert's eyes widened. “You know?”

Nelaeryn nodded. “I do.”

“Their reputation precedes them. The proud Scharzean eagle is known across the lands, even across elven lands.”

“We entered Arcadia with their permission. They authorised our expedition. After all, we are scholars, archaeologists, not thieves and smugglers.”

“I see.” Lambert offered a strained smile. Fucking elves and their connections.

They got special treatment because of their background. The Royal Alfreikian Academy opened doors that remained closed for mere mortals like them. They had to wait years even for the simplest permit.

“Still, we shouldn't get involved with this entire affair. Not recommendable. Too hot for me.”

“The Schwarz are powerful and so are their enemies. Knights escorted the carriage, trained and heavily armed, yet they got slaughtered. This wasn't the work of some petty thieves and bandits. They would never dare to provoke nobility.”

“The carriage was targeted and attacked by professionals. The attackers knew their craft. They struck hard and fast. They planned the attack. The scorch marks also suggest they deployed mages, a considerable number, judging by the destruction.”

“This affair is well beyond our pay grade. Nothing we want to get sucked into.”

The entire situation screamed danger. They probably stumbled across an assassination plot. Lambert had no interest in nobles and their games of power and influence. Way too dangerous. They were just simple adventurers.

“Trust me, Nelaeryn, nobles are troublesome. I speak from experience. Don't meddle with them, better for everyone.”

“I understand.” Nelaeryn merely nodded. The divide between human nobility and the common masses was considerable. Elven society was also divided into strata, but not to this degree.

Aurora followed the conversation with interest. “Lambert ... Lambert ... Lambert, who are these Schwarz?”

...

...

...

Time stopped, and the forest fell silent. Only chirping birds disturbed the eerie silence.

Lambert nearly choked. “You ... What? You don't know the Schwarz?”

Aurora shook her head. Of course, she didn't. “I don't.”

“You never ever heard about them?”

Her answer was again negative. “Never.”

Aurora consumed another cookie. They were delicious, irresistible. “Are they important people?”

“Important? Important?! IMPORTANT? They are immensely important! They rule Schwarzwalt for centuries. Every child learns their name.”

“So how don't you know them? Did you grow up in a cave, or what?”

Aurora tilted her head. “Not in a cave, but I guess I grew up in this forest. I don't remember any other place, so the forest has to be my home.”

“But forests and caves are comparable. They both share many qualities. They are both dark and humid.”

Lambert was lost for words. The girl messed with him, didn't she? The girl provoked him deliberately.

“Listen, girl, amnesia well and good, but stop messing with ...”

His punishment came swiftly. Iris hit him with her staff. She disapproved of his actions. “Calm down, Lambert, the girl suffers from severe amnesia. She doesn't even remember her name. It's quite likely she lost her entire memory.”

“I know, you don't need to tell me. It's just ... It's just ...”

“Just what?”

Lambert waved his hand. “Nothing, forget it.” He conceded defeat. For now, the cheeky princess had won.

“Do you at least know where we are?” Lambert turned to the girl.

Aurora stroked her chin, thinking, and thinking, and thinking. “No, not really, but I feel it was something along the line of ... Arcania?”

Lambert lowered his head. The girl was a lost case, a country bumpkin, in the truest sense of the word. “Arcadia. Arcadia, not Arcania.”

Aurora clenched her fists and puffed up her cheeks. “Understood, I will give my best to memorise it.”

“Arcadia ... Arcadia ... Arcadia ...”

“Arcadia ... Arcadia ... Arcadia ...”

“Arcadia ... Arcadia ... Arcadia ...”

“Arcadia ... Arcadia ... Arcadia ... Arcadia.” Aurora nodded, satisfied. Information saved. The kingdom was called Arcadia.

Lambert shook his head. What a strange girl. Impossible to understand, impossible to comprehend. The girl made no sense. Her actions defied logic.

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