Queen Of Adis

"So this is the place where you've seen the ritual circle?" *Adis inquired as he looked at his wife.

*Haru shook her head vehemently. "I may not remember the exact place where I've seen it, but I'm sure as hell that it's not here. This is the first time I've been here. I didn't even know that this place exists. Wait, does imply that this entrance is connected to Ilyas' cave?"

"I don't think so," he replied with certainty. "Ilyas' cave is located at the back of our villa and it's still within the estate. This place is a bit..hidden." He looked back at the narrow trail they traversed.

If not for the guidance of the wisps, he wouldn't even step foot to this place. His scowl deepened as he concluded the situation. "If this is not the place where you've seen the ritual circle, then that means this kind of mark was scattered throughout the realms, with one right under my nose. This is getting more and more disturbing. I am appalled that something as ominous as this missed my radar."

She patted his shoulders to alleviate his worry. "Don't think too much about it. It already happened anyway. What's important is we are given a chance to stop them, right?"

*Adis nodded and smiled slightly. He kissed the fingers that were entwined with his before pulling her forward.

As they entered the dank place, their shadows blended into the darkness and an almost impenetrable blackness instantly swallowed their body and only the sound of dripping water could be heard.

But thanks to the glowing radiance emitted by the wisps on his shoulders, the light eventually came to guide their path and he no longer needed to use his fire spell in the eerie cave anymore.

From the entrance of the cave, the tunnel was narrow that one had to walk sideways in order to move further in. Stone walls were jagged and uneven while the path after the tunnel was dangerously steep.

Good thing that they were in ghost-like form as they could just pass through the cavern walls with breeze. If their true form were here, *Haru won't be able to enter due to her slightly protruding belly.

After the couple walked for few minutes, *Adis came to an abrupt stop when he felt the wisps' fire became agitated as though they wanted to say something. He extended his arm sideways to prevent *Haru from moving forward.

Then he gazed to the glowing orbs resting on his shoulders and spoke softly. "My good friends, I'm afraid this king's magic doesn't work at this time. Would you mind gracing this darkness with your golden fire and show us what lies ahead?"

The two orbs' l.u.s.ter blinked twice before they floated in the air and their light grew brighter, enveloping the entire cavern into a flickering orange glow.

The numerous bats made an uproar from the sudden radiance and disturbance. Their shrill squeaks and squawks echoed throughout the cavern before they finally spread their wings and moved out from their roosts.

*Haru reflexively hid behind her husband's broad back and hugged him tight, completely forgetting the fact that the bats would just pass through their bodies and couldn't do anything to them. Nevertheless, *Adis c.a.r.e.s.sed her arms assuringly as he stood straight and mighty as ever.

When the colony of bats finally gone, the cave came into view.

His eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched when he saw that just a step further was a gigantic pit, but due to the darkness, he couldn't see how deep it would go. On the other side of the hole was another entryway, but the distance was too far to be reached with just a long jump.

'So, is it dead-end already?' he thought to himself.

He felt the ground with his foot and kicked a small rock. It created a faint sound as it fell; however, they looked at each other in shock when they didn't hear the stone touched any surface after a minute or two.

"It's a f.u.c.k.i.n.g bottomless pit?" he exclaimed in a daze.

His grip on *Haru's arms tightened when he realized that they almost fell if he didn't pay attention to the wisps' warning. He looked up at the two floating orbs, smiled gratefully and mouthed a sincere thank you.

However, his smile stiffened when he suddenly heard sweet giggles of babies. His pupils dilated and his lips trembled in disbelief. When he opened his mouth to speak, *Haru tugged his sleeve to wake him up from his unexpected reverie.

"Adis, what's wrong?"

He snapped his head towards his wife and his hands instantly c.a.r.e.s.sed her baby bump. His heart was beating erratically as he repeatedly inhaled and exhaled to calm his nerves. "A-are you feeling okay, Haru? How about our... babies?"

*Haru tilted her head sideways and blinked her eyes. She cupped his left cheek while her other hand was also on her belly. "What happened to you? Why do you seem to be in a panic?" She then chuckled as if he just spouted something stupid. "Babies? Are you talking about Fenghuang's theory? Oh, that's right we were not able to talk to Frost about it before we left. But I don't think it's twins since I don't feel much difficulty with the pregnancy."

*Adis' eyes discreetly darted to the golden orbs that were still drifting playfully in the air. Their fire flickered as though they were trying to get the couple's attention.

He looked down at his beautiful queen and kissed her forehead. "Well, as long as you are feeling okay, then that's more than enough for me."

She creased her eyebrows at her weird husband and was about to comment when he suddenly covered her mouth with his hand and motioned her to be quiet.

The cavern fell into a deafening silence once more as they both listened to their surroundings.

*Haru's eyes grew wide when she heard incoming footsteps. She saw her devil quickly called the two will-o'-wisps back and hid it inside the black cloak that she was wearing.

"You two, conceal your light for a while and stay inside my magic cloak." *Adis gently spoke to the orbs as though he was talking to small children.

She noticed that the wisps seemed to really like him as they had been obediently following all his requests since earlier, leaving her truly fascinated.

She embraced the two warm lights as they stood on the side.

It didn't take long before the sound of the footsteps became closer. Then a lanky man with average features came; a torch in his right hand and an injured bulky man on his left.

A small gasped came out from *Haru's lips upon seeing the newcomers. They may look younger at that moment, but she could never mistake them for anyone else.

The lanky man helped his companion to sit on the cold ground and examined his wounds. Afterward, he repeatedly kowtowed in front of him. "Y-young master, please forgive this insignificant man for causing you trouble. It was because you helped me today from those bullies that you are injured in such a state. You did not think twice about lending someone you don't know a helping hand. I-I am truly in your debt, young master."

"Nah, this wound is just a small scratch. Besides, someone has to take a stand on those nobles who always take advantage of the commoners. I just happened to have too much time to waste." The man gave a genuine smile despite the pain he was feeling from his wound. He even extended his hand to offer a handshake. "Stop calling me young master. My name is Pier, what about you?"

The lanky man stared at the huge hand for a moment before he timidly reached out for it. But when he saw that his hands were grimy, he earnestly wiped it on his equally grimy clothes before he finally shook Pier's hand.

He blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall from his reddened eyes. With a trembling voice, he answered, "...A-Alfred, my name is Alfred, young master Pier. Please forgive my lack of manners as this is the first time someone showed me kindness and treated me with respect."

"Liar!" *Adis gnashed when he finally snapped. "Are you saying that everything Ilyas did for you are all for naught? I never thought that you are such a good actor, Alfred. How ungrateful!" He circled around the lanky man as he continued his pitiful act.

Pier shook his head at Alfred's misfortune but he didn't know the right words to say in this situation. He just gave him a good old pat on the back. Subsequently, he squinted his eyes at the darkness in the surrounding, then face his new acquaintance back.

"So, where are we? Why did you take me here?"

"Ah, young master, welcome to my humble abode. My mother and I are the only person who lives here. I don't have anything to pay you in return. But, my mother is really good at medicine. She can heal your wounds in no time."

When *Adis heard Alfred's words, his eyes instantly glared at the entrance on the other side of the pit. "If I remember correctly, Alfred once said that his mother was a demoness but she was also gravely ill."

"Perhaps, tonight, we'll get more information than we ever hoped for."