“You?” Three voices yelled in surprise: one with surprise, the second one in incredulity, and the last one in annoyance.

“Why is he here—”

“How did you get here—”

“You were here—”

Three voices yelled in varying levels of trepidation. The newcomer scanned through the pair with astonishment; his eyes twinkled in mischief but he concealed it almost perfectly. His blond hair fell over his eyebrows, the first two buttons of his white cotton shirt unbuttoned. He languidly leaned on the door frame with a smirk on his face.

“Well, well, well. Fancy meeting you here, Master Killen. You look chipper this morning.” He murmured lazily, his eyes glancing between Kai and Seren.

Seren warily took a step unconsciously near Kai. The man they met on the dock was the newcomer; feeling discomfort at the Koa’s shameless coquetry.

“Yes. I’d be dead in a ditch right about now, Koa, but thanks for noticing.” Kai answered mockingly, annoyed at the Koa’s mirth.

Koa opened his arms in surrender. “Yet you’re alive and well, young master. I applaud your ability to stay alive in that situation.” He sighed dramatically. “If you’d just follow me inside the brothel then I—”

Kai immediately smacked Koa’s mouth shut. The two priestesses' eyes opened wide in shock while Seren’s mortified face stared at the two men with judging eyes. Kai pulled Koa out of the room and dragged him into an empty corridor at the side of the temple.

“How the hell did you end up in a temple, man? I never thought you were a religious man—” Koa teased Kai with gleaming eyes. “Or are you here to elope? You told me you didn’t know that beauty yesterday.”

Kai shot him a warning look. Koa lifted his hands in surrender and shook his head at him.

“She found me lying unconscious in an alley and took me here,” Kai explained calmly.

“Why here and not a hospital?” Koa asked curiously.

“I don’t know. But better here than bleeding to death, lying in a dark alley, eh?” Kai reasoned and threw a tin cylinder at Koa. Inside was a paper containing the information he painstakingly got from Mistral.

While scanning the contents of the paper, Koa wondered, “How fortunate for you that she brought you here, young master! The Head Archmage’s been waiting for you for a while, he has bugged me to get you inside all day.” Koa rolled his eyes at the thought of the Head Archmage’s annoying voice.

“I wasn’t aware which temple this one until this morning. I was, erm, inconvenienced this morning so I wasn’t able to get back to the manor.” He explained while cutting through the path towards the Head Archmage's manor with Koa following closely behind.

“Oh?” he heard Koa’s cajoling voice from behind. “Inconvenienced, how?”

Kai cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Take the young lady inside the manor. Do not let her meet 'him'.”

“Got it.” Then they jumped over the fence towards the large manor.

Back at the office of the head priestess, Seren awkwardly asked them, “Was he the devotee that was supposed to help me?”

The head priestess nodded slightly. “Ah, yes. Master Koa has been a devoted follower of the Temple of Binah. He also has access to the Head Archmage’s Manor.” She darted a meaningful glance to Daciana, the young priestess, she immediately went out of the office. “Please have a seat, young lady.”

Seren sat on the chair opposite the head priestess, wondering about the conversation Kai had with Koa before hastily fleeing.

“Ai, young miss. It is a meaningful act that you braved through a storm to fix the statue of the Wind God. It is a true sign of a firm believer. May your unwavering faith bless you, dear.” The head priestess sighed in satisfaction while squeezing her hand.

She nodded awkwardly, wondering if she must tell her the real reason why the statue broke in the first place.

A slight knock on the door sounded, Daciana entered carrying white robes. The head priestess passed the robes to her and informed her, “Master Koa will assist you in entering the Head Archmage’s Manor; I have informed him of your situation. It is required of every woman that entered the Head Archmage’s courtyard to wear these robes. Please, use this instead.”

Seren thanked the head priestess and Daciana. She borrowed a room to change her clothes in. The cotton robes fit her perfectly; it has been a while since she wore one. As a student at the university, they were required to wear one. 

She braided her hair as neat as she could; the tangled wheat-colored hair gleamed under the afternoon light.

She waited patiently at the garden of the temple, watching fascinatedly the small fish inside the small pond. The calm, murky green water glistened under the orange light; a single leaf fell on the surface, creating small waves. The small fish was startled, it quickly went deeper into the cloudy water. The tranquil scene was almost magical - straight out of a painting.

Seren hugged the statue of the Wind God close to her chest, praying silently for everything to go smoothly. She desperately misses home; she wondered how Theon fared the night before if he was eating his meals properly. The wind picked up slightly, tangling her long braided hair; the small flowers on the trees shook slightly, showering her like snowflakes.

“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting, my lady.” Seren lifted her head and found Koa lazily leaning on the arbor of the garden. She stood immediately and clutched the statue tightly.

Seren awkwardly smiled at Koa, “Thank you for helping me.”

“No need for that, young miss. Anything for a damsel in distress.” Koa declared with a flare, winking and bowing slightly.

Seren cleared her throat uncomfortably. “Please lead the way, master Koa.”

Koa chuckled at her discomfort and slowly made way for the small gravel path behind him. A few minutes passed by and a large wooden door loomed before them. Koa knocked slightly and it opened slowly with creaking sounds by a guard saluting him with a smile. “Commander, I haven’t seen you in a while.” Noticing the young woman following him, he asked. “This is...?”

Koa flashed him a grin. “Master Kai asked me to escort her in.”

The young guard stared at Koa with shock, incredulity, and awe.

“Master Kai did?” He scanned Seren up and down, disbelief written in his eyes. Seren unconsciously bowed her head, uncomfortable at the attention.

Koa chuckled at the young guard. “Me too, young man. Me too.” Shaking his head, he beckoned for Seren to follow him quickly.

Seren followed him through paved walkways, bare dirt, and tall grass. She almost expected Koa to tell her to climb through a fence, thinking they are running around the large manor. Trying not to complain, Seren silently tried to keep up with Koa’s long strides.

In a covered walkway, no soul could be seen aside from the pair. Koa whistled slightly while leisurely watching the scenic view.

“You know, I didn’t even know your name.” Koa observed.

Seren pursed her lips slightly. Of course. “It’s Seren, young master.”

Koa nodded his head approvingly. “A pretty name for a beauty.”

Seren smiled at him awkwardly.

Collective footsteps suddenly echoed through the vacant courtyard and uniformed guards surrounded them. All of them were armed and pointed their weapons at the pair. Koa instinctively stood in front of Seren and stood in a fighting stance.

The guards were wearing black armors lined with golden filigree, with the House of Hanluan’s coat of arms molded on their chest, heavily plated as if going to war. They are wearing black cloth masks and only their dark eyes were visible. There were about thirty to fifty of them, each carrying menacing killing instincts.

A cold feeling settled into Seren’s stomach, it was the first time she encountered a large group of soldiers and her anxiety skyrocketed. Seren watched the scene warily, knowing she’s useless in close contact combat or any type of fighting for that matter. She couldn’t even run to save her life.

In the middle of the group came a young man; wearing pristine white robes, lined with gold. His shiny dark hair shone underneath a small coronet; his bright raven eyes shone with intelligence. The sneer on his thin lips marred his handsome face. He looks to be about thirteen, with baby fat still visible on his face.

“And here I thought, a rat was sneaking into my manor.” The young boy smirked, staring at Koa condescendingly. “Why are you sneaking in, Commander Lynnis?”

 Koa clicked his tongue and bowed slightly. “I apologize for alarming you, Your Grace.”

The young boy harrumphed at Koa as his eyes slid into Seren; just a glance and sneered at the both of them. “I thought I told you, Commander Lynnis, not to smear our house’s reputation by bringing your…’business’ inside.”

Did he think I was a prostitute? With these clothes? Seren felt cold sweat run down her back. She could feel the heavy atmosphere.

Koa sighed slightly. 

“I apologize. It’s a misunderstanding, Your Grace.” Bowing slightly, he presented the young woman behind him. “This young lady was requesting an audience with you—”

“Hmph. What impudence!” The young boy sneered at Seren loftily. “Why would I grace this woman with my presence just because she wanted to?”

Koa was about to answer when a sudden breeze came to the courtyard, stirring up the dead leaves.

(Cont...)

Notes:

Kai = Killen