Chapter 35
Elyra rose swiftly from the bed, her bare feet making not a single sound as they touched the cool hardwood floor.
She cast a fleeting glance back toward the covers. Eldern was fast asleep, his small chest rising and falling in a rhythmic, peaceful tempo while the delicate, crystal notes of the Fue music crystal continued to hum soft lullabies into the ambient darkness.
Without pausing, she slipped through the heavy velvet drapes and pushed open the balcony doors, stepping out into the crisp midnight air.
Bathed in the ethereal wash of a brilliant full moon stood the compact silhouette of the intruder—a young boy with midnight-black hair, his frame balanced lightly atop the stone railing as if preparing to melt back into the shadows at a moment's notice.
"I didn' tink you would 'tually come," Elyra murmured, keeping her voice low to prevent her words from carrying into the silent depths of the manor.
The boy turned his head slightly, his striking purple eyes gleaming like polished amethysts beneath the moonlight. "If I didn't come, it might have caused me unnecessary trouble in the future."
Besides, he added silently to himself, his sharp, unblinking gaze lingering on her tiny frame, I'm curious about you, kid.
I knew it, Elyra thought, her internal tactical alarms ringing with absolute certainty. He's a reincarnated soul too.
He might possess the physical appearance of a three-year-old, but his spatial control and presence were anything but ordinary. A normal child could never infiltrate a Solv family estate, let alone navigate high-tier defensive wards with the casual ease of a phantom.
Why isn't his strength reset? I'm so jealous... she added bitterly in the quiet of her mind.
"You planned this whole encounter, didn't you?" he asked aloud, his tone flat and chillingly calculating.
"I want you to be my a-ly," Elyra stated plainly, completely abandoning all pretense of childish innocence.
The boy didn't so much as flinch. "I refuse."
Folding his arms, he stared down at her with a look far too cold for his apparent age. "What could you possibly offer me? And what is your ultimate goal? I don't have time to play house with—"
"Pwotection an' money," Elyra cut in smoothly.
If I ask Damnern for money, he'll definitely give it to me without hesitation, right? Elyra reasoned mentally.
The boy's left eyelid twitched. This kid...
"I only need 'mation fwom you," Elyra pressed on. Because I can't freely leave this estate, she reminded herself bitterly. This family kept her trapped beneath an oppressive blanket of absolute, suffocating protection.
"Still no. You still lisp when you speak, kid," the boy replied without an ounce of hesitation. "Even if you could step outside these walls, what could you possibly do? Could you even handle those three thugs in the alley earlier?" He turned his back on her, taking a deliberate step toward the drop. "I don't need money, and I certainly don't need protection from a toddler."
The way she thinks... it's completely warped for a child, the boy noted mentally, shaking his head. Is this kid broken?
"W-Wait!" Elyra took a quick step forward, her tiny hands clenching into tight fists. "Our 'lationship will be 'qual!"
The black-haired boy ignored her entirely, swinging one leg over the stone balustrade.
"I jus' want to know what's 'appenin' in da outside world!" she urged, her voice laced with a rare, genuine edge of frustration.
Again, he paid her no mind, raising his other leg to balance atop the narrow railing, his muscles coiling to spring down into the pitch-black shadows below.
"I 'ave access to a gwand wibwawy!" Elyra blurted out, her mind racing as she began to babble desperately to keep him from vanishing into the night. "Dere are countwess histowy books detailing da entiwe foundation of dis Kingdom—"
The boy's foot froze mid-air, mere inches above the drop.
History books about this Kingdom?
Grasping at straws, Elyra continued rambling frantically, "I-I also 'ave stowybooks! An' plenty of toys if you like to play—"
"So, you have historical data about this world?" he interrupted, pivoting his head back toward her, his purple eyes narrowing.
Then again, he reasoned, analyzing the proposition, she is a Count's daughter. It's entirely plausible she has access to restricted, high-level records.
"I... Ah, yes," Elyra caught herself, instantly smoothing her frantic expression as her analytical intellect reasserted control. "I 'ave books... compwehensive histowical awchives."
The boy stared at her for a long, quiet moment before stepping down from the ledge. He extended a small, pale hand toward her.
"My name is Nufer," he said simply.
What? Elyra blinked, looking down at his outstretched hand, then back up to his face. "So... you agree?"
Why did he accept so suddenly? Elyra wondered, her swift mind immediately searching for his underlying motives. Her thoughts drifted unbidden back to her past life as Ryudien—a dark, agonizing existence devoid of warmth, education, or peace, where she had been treated merely as a mindless weapon.
Could it be... that in his past life, he was just like me? Someone who was never given the chance to learn?
A heavy, solemn shadow fell over her small face, her sapphire eyes welling with a sudden wave of sorrowful, unbidden empathy.
Nufer frowned slightly, watching her sudden shift in demeanor. Why is she making an expression like that?
"Elyra...?"
A sleepy, muffled voice drifted from the interior of the bedroom. Eldern was stirring.
"I'll return tomorrow night," Nufer said rapidly, turning back to the balcony railing. As he hoisted himself onto the stone edge, he paused, looking over his shoulder. "Oh, by the way... what year is it right now?"
"It's... da year 1356?" Elyra answered, her tone carrying a faint hint of uncertainty.
Nufer's luminous purple eyes widened in a rare, momentary flash of shock. 1356...?
"See you tomorrow, broken kid," Nufer uttered dryly before pushing off the ledge, his silhouette dissolving instantly into the moonlit abyss below.
B-Broken kid?! Elyra screamed internally, a vein practically throbbing on her forehead as a flush of sheer annoyance washed across her face.
"Elyra?" Eldern called out again, padding softly toward the open balcony while rubbing his sleep-heavy eyes. He blinked at his little sister standing alone in the chilly night air. "What are you doing out on the balcony by yourself?"
Elyra smoothed down her nightgown, turning around with a perfectly sweet, innocent smile plastered across her face.
"It's nothing, Eden," she replied smoothly, her voice as gentle and clear as a morning breeze. "I was jus' lookin' at da stars."
She reached out, taking her brother's hand to guide him back toward the warmth of the room. "Come on, let's go back to sleep."
Morning arrived in a flare of radiant gold, bright sunlight streaming through the arched windows and catching the spun-gold strands of Elyra's blonde hair.
Standing directly before Damnern in his study, her vibrant blue eyes wide and earnest, she puffed out her baby cheeks.
"Papa... Eyya wants a room just for Eyya!" she pleaded.
"E-Eh?!" Damnern blinked, his jaw dropping as he was caught completely off guard by her sudden request.
To be continued...