"It must've taken weeks to have made it here," she remarked. Mild curiosity seemed to have overtaken her for it did not cross her mind that advantage was now out the window.

A figure near the fireplace whipped towards Ivelis, hands reaching for the sword sheathed.

The hands were once again loose at the sides of his body, perhaps recognition had hit him then.

Him. It wasn't just a human, but a male one.

She kept her face calm and composed. A talent she always wielded to her advantage.

"Well, you are certainly not wrong, My Lady," admitted the man.

She caught the wariness in his gruff voice, and also the unfinished sentence.

"But?" she countered. Ivelis was curious of the man just as much as he was of her.

Surprise flashed across his face but it went just as quickly as it came.

Perhaps no one warned him of her attitude towards his kin.

Their eyes met across the room and suddenly they were having a staring contest. She begrudgingly admitted that his were the most striking pair of onyx eyes she had ever seen, though pride didn't let her voice out any compliment. A smile was plastered onto her face as she gracefully descended the stairs, never breaking the eye contact.

"But," the man drawled. "There is an important issue that we must discuss."

The eyebrows on Ivelis' face rose slightly in question, beckoning the man to go on.

"The Grand Courts requir-"

"The Grand Court ?" she abruptly noted, the pleasant smile faltering. Her eyes narrowed in feigned shock. 

Now standing a few paces away from the man, it was no doubt that this man was handsome. An absolutely beautiful version of the creature she feared and hated so much. Even if she did hate humans, art was something her heart had appreciated regardless the situation.

Though there was an odd thing about his scent, it wasn't entirely human. She wasn't even sure if it was entirely there either, there was a sense of loss wrapped around it.

As if, he wasn't whole or complete. Her face remained blank but her heart did not sit well.

Peculiar. Very, very peculiar.

The man nodded as he let out a pointed cough, suddenly found the bookshelves extremely interesting. His head was tilted opposed to her direction but his eyes darted between her and the seemingly special bookshelves.

Peculiar indeed.

The pointed coughs continued and so did her observation.

The realization came to her a second late, too late. The stained cheeks gave away small signs of embarrassment if not his shuffling feet. As if she did something that ridiculed him.

He thought she was ogling at him out of lust.

An angry mixture of shame and shock simmered within her but Ivelis kept the mask on. Yes, she was mad but there was no way in hell she was going to let advantage drop into his hands. How dare he? A simple human dared to even think of such nonsense, she hated it. Hated them.

If only murder wasn't a crime.

Oh, she was on fire but this was her home. She will not allow such thing disgraced her for this was her place, fate would run in her favour.

Enraged but cautious,the woman simply raised her chin and asked him to sit.

"Name."

"Thael." A name just as beautiful as the person, the word just as foreign. Interesting.

She decided to play tricks.

Her right brow arched. "Oh? No more pleasant names anymore?"

"Thael, My Lady. Thael Edver," he added.

Perhaps she should be a bit more gentle.

"Hmm... An interesting name, Thael. I have heard of such word in another language. Edver, however is not familiar to me. Which Land do you hail from, Thael?"

Land. Sea. And Sky. Each being came from the Land, Sea or Sky. All so gifted in aspects that were too complementary to not be vital, to go against your own land was to go against nature itself.

Ivelis poured tea into cups she found laying on the table between them. Minute traces of hesitation splayed across his face, from the averted eyes to the tilted head. She was never one to torture people but she very much enjoyed that moment.

There was a sense of respect for the man to have been so patient. Even if he was one.

"My Lady, with all due respect, I am not here for tea or fancy situations. We have a very important issue to discuss," he urged.

Thael was very persistent it seemed.

Years of practiced serenity managed to keep her hand from pulling off his tongue. Solely out of pure hatred or annoyance, she couldn't really tell. But Ivelis had no plans to be convicted of slaughter again.

The onyx eyes staring at her held a silent plead that were the least genuine. Rude.

She sighed.

"Very well. But the curtains have fallen, Thael. Your formalities are fine but your acting is not. Now, about the council... Ah, yes. What would such sophisticated beings want with me anyways?" She breathed in and loosened her shoulders, if it's business that they want then down to business she will get.

He let out a small sigh of relief and proceeded to take out an object from his leather bag. At first glance, it appeared as if he was pulling out a dagger for there was a flash of silver. Ivelis cursed herself for not being alarmed or reacting quicker. However, it seemed to merely be an envelope with the Grand Court's sigil stamped on as a seal.

A letter. As well as the Grand Court's sigil on it. The neutral look showed boredom but frankly, she was perplexed. An official document was the last thing she expected.

From the court itself moreover.

The Grand Court. Royalty from all domains gathered as allies for trading or war potential discussion, the title given to them wasn't for show. They were truly powerful beings, both in their magic and as a person. The court was one of the authorities that ruled the nations. The Grand Court was formed after some ancient war between higher beings in the realm and had continued, power growing as time passed by. For Ivelis to receive a letter from them, it was awfully flattering yet intriguing.

A very urgent and confidential letter if it was in a silver envelope. It could only mean trouble, horrible trouble. Admittedly, it was a dreadful thing when even a court with so much power, they needed help from outside.

Yet, they reached out to her. Out of all the people they could've asked. They chose her. Ivelis.

Why?

The answer lied inside the glittering envelope now placed on the table before her. Even without touching it, she could sense traces of great magic. Her eyes shifted to Thael's face.

She was stunned to find him staring at her but quickly recovered. Ivelis cleared her throat and muttered a thank you as she picked up the envelope. The bundle of nerve seated inside her stomach had began to unravel by then.

The moment her fingers make contact with the paper, shivers ran down her spine. Oh, she could definitely sense them.

Gods, the power was overwhelming.

She clenched her stomach to refrain her hands from shaking as she broke the seal and pulled out the letter. Her eyes scanned the paper vigorously but confusion threatened to swallow her whole.

The letter was... Empty.

Her gaze flitted to her guest, just in time to see Thael pull out something else. Silver as well.

But sharper.