Finally, the four of you (and a whole lot of guards stationed by the walls) made it to the king's bedchambers after way too many flights of stairs to count.

While you were busy catching your breath, Mayor Twyx turned to Joy and Min.

"Miss y/n and I will be back after a few questions. Please wait for us here, Min, Miss Joy."

The maid and knight stood on either side of the door, almost in a protective manner. Earlier you thought that maybe you were overthinking things, but this only made your suspicions grow further. Something was off, and you didn't have a clue why. Should you ask Mayor Twyx about it later?

Snapping out of your thoughts, you gave Joy a nervous smile and Min a subtle look of annoyance before following the mayor into the king's room.

The moment you stepped inside, the scent of chocolate and mint filled your nostrils. Guess the king was some kind of minty chocolate? Wait, so were Candis born the same way as humans were? Unfortunately, your amnesia didn't wipe your knowledge of childbirth and child making as well, so here you were thinking about how Candi conceptualization happened. To be fair, it was an intriguing question. Like if two completely different Candis came together to create a new one, would it be a mix of the parents or was it completely randomized? Man, so many questions... so little answers.

Okay wait, you were about to meet a king and you were thinking about this of all things? You quickly pinched your arm, snapping yourself out of your unholy thoughts.

The room you were in had little to no light besides a single torch on the wall. In the center was a large bed draped with opaque red curtains over it. There was the silhouette of a figure lying down, but besides that you couldn't see much.

The figure coughed, causing you to flinch in surprise.

"...Twyx? Is that you?" a hoarse voice called out. The mayor went up to the bed and slowly pulled the curtains back, revealing the king staring up at the two of you.

Kind, pale green eyes met yours, and you could definitely see the resemblance between the king and his son. Dark brown hair, sepia-colored skin, and soft bushy brows. He seemed like he could be the tiredest man in the world with the wrinkles and bags he had under his eyes, yet he still made sure to greet you with a smile. There was an aching in your heart that appeared the moment you laid your eyes on him.

"Yes father, it's me." Twyx returned a soft smile, "How have you been? Miss y/n is here with me today as well." He turned to you and nodded. With your heart pounding, you walked up and bowed your head to the bedridden man.

"G-greetings, Your High-- I mean, Your Majesty." You said, already wanting to fling open the door, book it out of the room, and live in a cabin in the woods far away from civilization. "My name is y/n. As the mayor said, I'm... human."

His pale green eyes widened. A moment passed by as he studied your features, and then, he laughed.

"How blessed I am to come across two humans in my lifetime," the king wistfully said. Then, he started to cough violently. Twyx stared down at him in worry, and turned around as if he was going to call for help until he was stopped by the king. "I-it's alright, my son. Just stay where you are." He met your eyes, "I'm sorry I'm not in tip-top shape for our first meeting, y/n. I've been... quite ill for some time now."

You quickly waved your hands around, "N-not at all! Please don't worry, Your Majesty. Seriously, it doesn't bother me. Besides, it's not like you brought this sickness on yourself."

For some reason, the atmosphere in the room abruptly changed once you said that. The king averted his eyes, and even Mayor Twyx looked uncomfortable. You made a mental note of how you just royally screwed up, immediately brainstorming any excuses to leave the room.

"I-I'm so sorry! Was I being rude?" you frantically said, feeling the sweat drops fall down your face. "I'll never say it again so please don't make my head fall or anything!"

With this, Twyx turned to you with wide eyes.

"You would never be executed because of something like this, Miss y/n. There's no need to worry, I understand you were only trying to lighten the mood. It's just that..." he trailed off.

"My son is right, don't berate yourself my dear." The king weakly smiled, "Your words merely reminded me of something. Although, that's all in the past... No need to fret over it." For a split second, it seemed like there was a deep sadness in his eyes, but it flickered away so fast you wondered if you were imagining things. "I am very happy to meet you today, y/n. While you're already aware of it, my name is King Kane, the ruler and protector of all who reside in Kandel. Now, tell me, how can I be of service to you?"

You swallowed your saliva, touched at how welcoming the king was.

"I-I'm looking for a way home, Your Majesty. Back to a world named Earth. However, I... I'm missing my memories."

"Missing your memories?" the king furrowed his brows, "What do you mean by that?"

"Miss y/n woke up in front of Snowflake Lake with no recollection of how and why she got there. So far, she can only remember her name and that she comes from Earth."

"How puzzling indeed," the king replied, "You really can't remember how you got here, my dear?"

"Nope," you said, "I get a massive headache everytime I try to remember. But Mayor Twyx told me that you could answer my questions, Your Majesty. Please, can you tell me how to get home?"

There was a brief pause.

"A long time ago, when I was only a mere boy, a human just like yourself arrived in Kandel. He had also woken up in front of Snowflake Lake, except he was a much older man and even eccentric in a way. My memory fails me as I can't recall his name, but I do remember that after a few months, my parents informed me he had returned back to his world." King Kane recalled his memories almost in a fond, nostalgic manner. You listened carefully, making sure your ears were as open as they could be.

"Really?" you breathed, "that's great news then! It means it's totally possible to get home."

The king nods, "Yes... but I'm afraid I don't know how he returned back to Earth."

You blinked, "What? What do you mean, Your Majesty?"

"I was never told of how he was able to get back to your world. After he left, no one spoke of him again." The king stared at you sadly, "I'm sorry, my dear. I'm afraid I don't know how to get you home."

"W-well maybe it's through Snowflake Lake," you stammered, "Mayor Twyx told me it was a portal of some sort between Earth and Candie Land. Maybe if I jump in it, it'll transport me back to--"

All of a sudden, there was a hand on your shoulder. Your eyes trailed up to be met with a golden brown. Except their usual gentleness was replaced with a cold expression.

"No," Mayor Twyx shook his head, "you can't. Don't do that, Miss y/n." You blinked in surprise, wondering if you heard wrong.

"What? Why not? You never know, it could work--"

"--It won't. Snowflake Lake is extremely dangerous for us Candis. Those who go inside risk being frozen and shattered into a dozen pieces due to the freezing temperature. You may be human, so I can not say for certain that it'd happen to you, but I will not allow you to risk your life by going inside. Even... if it's to get you home." Twyx stared at you with a look that you couldn't quite decipher. You stared back, frozen in place. This was the first time the mayor spoke in such a serious manner that it threw you off and gave you the most whiplashiest whiplash possible.

"Okay...," you slowly nodded, "I won't go inside Snowflake Lake." A look of gratitude instantly appeared on the mayor's face.

"Thank you, Miss y/n."

There was a brief silence in the room before you spoke up.

"But, as the king said, he doesn't know how the last human returned to Earth. And if I can't go inside Snowflake Lake again, how else am I supposed to get home?"

King Kane stayed quiet for a moment before lighting up, "Ah!"

You perked up, "you remembered how to get me home?"

"Oh, not exactly." You deflated again, "But, I thought of a place that might tell you how to do so." The sparkles in your eyes returned. Mayor Twyx blinked and stepped closer to the king.

"What place, father?"

King Kane coughed before responding, "The Kandel Library, a library that seems perfectly ordinary on the outside, but secretly holds records of all the previous humans that arrived here. Only those in the royal family may access it with a special key the librarian holds. I believe if you go there, you may find the answers I could not give you."

"T-that's perfect!" you exclaimed, "Where's this library?"

"It is located near the lower parts of town. Although the librarian will recognize you at a glance, my son, he still requires a code in order for you to access the records. When he asks, tell him, 'Earth'."

You nodded, thinking it was kinda silly that the password for the secret human archive was the name of your world. "Earth. Got it. Thank you so much, Your Majesty."

He smiled weakly, "It was a pleasure meeting you today, my dear. If you recall your memories, I'd love to hear about your world and your life."

"Oh! Of course..." you scratched your cheek, "I don't know if my memories are coming back anytime soon, haha, but if they do, I'd be more than happy to tell you." Then, you looked at Mayor Twyx. "Shall we go?"

"Yes," he nodded, "Though, do you mind if I get a moment with my father? I need to discuss a private matter with him."

"Yeah, no problem! I'll just be waiting outside. I'll tell Joy," you scoffed, "...and Min about our change of plans. So take your time!" Then, you disappeared outside.

Once you were gone, Twyx turned to face his father.

"How are you feeling?" he softly asked. "Is... is your heart any better? What did the healers say?"

The king stayed silent for a moment.

"I'll be fine, my son." He reached out to touch Twyx's face, only to be seized by another violent coughing fit. "I-It's the cough that's persistent, that's all. It's gotten to the point where I can predict when I'll get one-" he coughed, "knew it." Although King Kane was trying to lighten the situation, Twyx didn't laugh. Instead, he furrowed his brows.

"Ever since that day, your health has been decreasing year after year. The healers are able to slow the decay down, but it's been a decade since this happened." He sighed, "If only... if only mother-" Immediately, Twyx looked up with immense guilt on his face. "I-I apologize, father, I shouldn't have said-"

"It's alright," The king smiled sadly, "after all, I still think about your mother every day as well. Now then, I'll be alright. You shouldn't keep a lady waiting."

Twyx's gaze lingered on his father for a bit longer before he nodded.

"Of course. I'll send you a letter soon, father. Until next time we meet," with that, the mayor shut the door behind him.

"Welcome back, my lord!" Joy greeted, "I was informed by my lady that we'll be going to the Kandel Library right about now?"

The mayor stared at her, "Oh, indeed. Let us go."

As the four of you made the trip back down, you couldn't help but observe how Mayor Twyx's expression seemed a bit off. Maybe you were imagining things, but he seemed...

His golden eyes made contact with yours, and you flinched. Oh shit. A smile instantly appeared on his lips, "Hm?"

"Oh! Nothing," you sheepishly grinned.

Once he turned back around, you let out a sigh of relief. Whatever, maybe you were imagining things. Besides, you were going to return to Earth in the end, meaning you couldn't afford to get attached to anyone here.