Chapter 411: Amongst elders.
Moriganne entered a parlor-like room, it was cold, nothing was warm in the land of Orthias. However, Sanya adjusted the temperature in the room to make it warmer for Moriganne. The Orthias came in and brought food for Moriganne as Sanya had said earlier.
The sizzling cooked meat on the hot plate, the smell of spices and herbs filled Moriganne’s nostrils. She heard her stomach growl and her face turned red in an instant.
"You’ll be surprised by the taste, even us Orthias enjoy food to please our tongues and stomachs. The recipes that we had been using for thousands of years, learned from the previous civilizations," Sanya said as she sat down on the stone chair with the leather and thick fur that made it comfy.
Moriganne cut the tender and juicy meat before she stabbed the piece of meat with her fork and put it in her mouth. She was shocked and speechless as her tongue exploded from the taste and texture of the meat. She had never eaten something like that before, not even the best food made by the best cooks in the North could be compared to this.
After Moriganne finished her plate, she looked out the window where the blue auroras floated in the sky. The thick mist below and the thin blue energy that lingered in the air, making this place like from another world.
"Lady Sanya," Moriganne turned around to look at Sanya. "Can I ask you a question? About who you are, and why everyone seems to respect you here, even the elders seem to see you in a different light," she stared into Sanya’s eyes.
Sanya was playing with the blue flame above her fingers, making it dance to her will. She extinguished the flame when she heard the question, and turned her head to look at Moriganne.
"Because the elders and I, we are the same age. I have lived for so long," Sanya answered, crossing her arms and closing her eyes. "I believe that alone is enough to answer your question," she smiled at Moriganne, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes this time.
Moriganne knew that she shouldn’t pry on it or push it even further. But there were so many questions in her head that were unsolved. There was something about Sanya that felt more unnerving than the elders that Moriganne had just met earlier.
"I’m feel a lot better now, Lady Sanya. I think I’m ready to speak with the elders again," Moriganne said, not wanting to stay in this awkward and uncomfortable atmosphere.
Sanya looked at Moriganne for a moment before she nodded with understanding. She got up from the stone chair and guided Moriganne back to the main hall where the elders gathered. She informed Moriganne of the names of the elders.
"The three names that you need to remember. Vijser, Koria, and Larc. Those three are the oldest, and they’re pretty much the ones who decide and do the talking. The two elders that spoke to you from before, the woman was Koria and the man was Vijser, Larc was the one with golden eyes," Sanya pointed out as she walked the long hallway.
"Yes, I understand, Lady Sanya," Moriganne muttered the names. "But elder Larc, he has golden eyes? Aren’t all Orthias supposed to have blue eyes?" She asked with her brows raised.
"Larc is..." Sanya paused for a moment. "He’s a lucky one to survive the failed attempt to ascend, to become a True Dragon," she answered.
Moriganne hummed, even though she didn’t understand much about it.
They arrived at the main hall and the elders were already waiting for them. Koria pointed at the ground in front of her so Moriganne could stand in the middle when the elders surrounded her. Morrigane nodded and stood where Koria wanted her to stand.
"We Orthias don’t need pleasantries conversation, so we will go straight to the point, Moriganne," Larc’s voice was deep and relaxed. "Tell us everything that has been happening in the North, and what kind of enemy that threaten the whole world," he added.
Moriganne explained about the situation in the North, about the powerful demons and the master behind it. She revealed that the North would fall by the hands of the demons, and there was nothing humans could do to prevent it from happening.
"A third of the North territory has been taken by the demons. The demons could only be killed by divine power, if not, they would come back to life over and over again. Not only that, all the ghosts of the past, the terror that humankind had tried to ignore has finally come to haunt us. They’re unkillable, undeniable strong, and they have become puppets for the demons," Moriganne explained as she looked into the eyes of the elders.
"To win this, one human needs to at least kill a thousand of enemy to defend our land, not to win. The truth? One human could barely kill five enemy, and that alone is enough to understand how dire our situation is," Moriganne added. "We haven’t put the powerful demons and their master in that calculation. We are doomed, elders, humankind is doomed," she continued, she frowned as she looked at Koria.
The Orthias elders stared into Moriganne’s eyes, but their expression was still cold and stoic.
"That’s problematic. How about the other continents, Moriganne? How are they doing?" Vijser asked, his arms crossed and eyes narrowed.
"We don’t know, and I don’t believe that they’re doing any better than us in the North, but the people in the South managed to win against the demons. They removed the demons from their land," Moriganne answered with a serious expression.
"Humankind won against such force? How is that possible?" Koria asked, raising her brows as she stared into Moriganne’s eyes.
"It was because of Aristoria and the child of her predecessor, Rasmus Blackheart," Sanya answered, her voice cold.
The elders looked at each other, and for the first time they broke their stoic expression. They looked disturbed, surprised, and anxious that Moriganne could see them in their eyes. She remembered that Aris was no longer affiliated with the Orthias and chose to cut ties with her own people.
"If they could defeat the enemy of the world, we should be worried about the other continents since those two were out there," Larc said as he stared into Sanya’s eyes.
"No, it’s not that simple," Moriganne shook her head. "Rasmus Blackheart isn’t like us, he has no reason to save humanity. He wants the same thing as the demons, he wants destruction, he wants the world to pay for his suffering. He’s a threat," she revealed.
The elders looked at each other once again, and their expressions were unreadable.
"Sanya, what do you think about this matter?" Koria asked, her words hinted at a bit of accusation since it was Sanya who let go of Aris just like how Sanya let go of Aristoria. "Twice you have caused this problem for us and humankind. Losing another Aristoria while we are preparing for The Threat," she added.
Moriganne furrowed her brows slightly as she turned around to look at Sanya. She wondered what The Threat was that Koria spoke of, and why it sounded so concerning.
"There’s a reason why the current Aristoria has the same path as the previous one. It wasn’t me who let her go, Koria, it was because the current Aristoria is still the same as the previous one, literally the same one," Sanya answered, staring back at Koria with a cold gaze. "You’re questioning me, Koria?" She asked with a cold smile on her face.
"We aren’t questioning you because you never told us about this, Sanya. It’s not that we don’t trust you, it’s because you have always kept things to yourself," Larc answered with a calm expression. "You have been away for so long that you have been keeping us blind," he added.
"Keeping you all blind? Am I obligated to tell you everything I know? If you don’t like it, then why don’t you go out there and do it yourself? Don’t use your status as elders as an excuse," Sanya responded as she crossed her arms and eyes as cold as ice. "How about we switch place? I’ll become an elder and all of you will fill my shoes? I want to see if you’re even capable of doing what I’m doing," she chuckled softly.
Moriganne didn’t like the tension between Sanya and the elders, and the fact that she was standing in the middle of it. She didn’t know what to do and she was nowhere near capable of stopping them since she was just a mere human.
"Moriganne, the reason you came here is to create an alliance with the Orthias. We know how dire the situation is, and we, the Orthias will become your allies and we will send some of us under Sanya’s command," Koria said as she looked down at Moriganne.
Moriganne was confused when suddenly Koria changed the subject, but she knew it wasn’t her place to even think about it. She nodded and lowered her head.
"Thank you, that means so much to us..." Moriganne answered as she exhaled deeply and closed her eyes in relief.