Alto and I follow Nina, led by Cayla, towards a different part of the palace than the normal conference room. We arrive at a set of double doors protected by Elira's two personal guards, and Cayla guides us into the room.
Inside, there is a large roundtable with eight chairs. Seated at it are Elira and five other elves. Each person has two guests standing behind them towards the room's walls, and Ilina and Dargo are standing behind Elira.
Nina walks into the room and takes a seat in the middle of the three empty chairs, so she's separated from any of the elves, and Alto and I take up positions behind her. Besides Elira, there are two women and two men at the table, all appearing in their 30s, and one young woman who looks about 20. Based on what I heard, the latter must be Cara Egris.
Cara is beautiful, but she has peculiar features for an elf – long, dark red hair, with pale skin and amber eyes. I've never seen another elf that resembles her at all. She's accompanied by two guards, but no apparent heir or spouse, which makes sense given her age. She, like all the others, is staring at Nina and us, and her expression is a mix of confusion and curiosity.
One of the male elves, who seems visibly upset by our arrival, gestures at us rudely while looking at Elira.
"Why the hell are these humans here!? What is the meaning of one of them waltzing in here and sitting at this table like our equal?" (…)
Based on his cranky attitude, and hateful remarks, I can assume that this guy is Jorah of Abel house. He's a generic looking elf with brown hair and eyes, but his face seems almost permanently twisted into a scowl. Before I can assess him further, the other elven man speaks up.
"Jorah, I assume you meant, 'Why the hell are these humans here, my Queen?'. Also, I believe that the lovely lady who has just sat down at the table is not a human, but rather Nedonera the Elder Dragon of earth. So, you might want to watch your tone with her as well. The other one is in fact human to my knowledge, and I believe his name is Mizuki. I suspect that Lady Nedonera is quite fond of him…so tread carefully." (…)
Yeah, based on that cool attitude and spot-on assessment, this must be Darak Zardo. He's got long black hair, and pale blue eyes. He looks like a handsome middle-aged man that works out regularly, and he's wearing a warm smile. However, his eyes are watching us closely…especially me.
Hearing Darak's assessment, Jorah and the other nobles look to Nina in surprise and grow quiet. The exception is an elven woman with silvery hair, who remains calm. I'd guess that she's Tessa Uril, the infamous cousin of Elira, and she must have known about us some other way. That means that the blonde elven woman staring at us warily is Helena Izthil.
Elira takes charge of the confusion.
"Yes, Darak, you're correct on all accounts. This woman is Lady Nedonera, the Elder Dragon of earth, and the two people behind her are Mizuki and Alto. They are all royal guests, and I would like to emphasize that I will not tolerate any disrespect or hostility towards them. In case it needs to be clarified just because he's human, this is equally true for Mizuki." (Elira)
The nobles give Elira a surprised look, and some glance back at us suspiciously, but they don't argue further. Tessa Uril speaks out in a calm voice to break the silence.
"Very well, my Queen. May we ask what Lady Nedonera and her guests are doing here? Similarly, could you explain why the Princess with you is Ilina and not Alara? I'm also personally curious about why an elf is one of your guests, Great Dragon, but I suppose that question can wait." (Tessa Uril)
"Of course, Tessa, thank you for getting us back on topic. The answer to your first two questions is the same. It's because Lady Nedonera and Ilina are directly involved with what I asked you here to discuss. That would be the crisis of a potential war with the demons, which I'm sure you are all aware of. Some of you may also have heard about surveillance reports that Veyron the Elder Dragon was likely to join the demons' side in any conflict." (Elira)
It seems that not everyone was up to speed on this news.
"Veyron!? This is most urgent! Would we not be wiped out by an unrestrained Elder Dragon!? Why is this the first that I'm hearing of this!?" (Jorah Abel)
"Ehem…Jorah, the rest of us likely heard this news through our own information networks. From what I recall, the information was far from definitive, which was why Queen Elira didn't send formal notices. You not hearing is simply a reflection of your own poor information gathering. Moving on…I can assume that Lady Nedonera is here as a potential countermeasure against Veyron, but how is Princess Ilina involved?" (Tessa Uril)
Elira becomes visibly uncomfortable. Jorah Abel stares at Tessa Uril in shock, but he remains silent.
"You're correct, Tessa. Ilina is the one who convinced Lady Nedonera to come to the Elven Kingdom and potentially offer her assistance against Veyron." (Elira)
"My Queen, I believe everyone is aware that Lady Nedonera lives deep in the Delmura Forest on the opposite side of the continent. Perhaps you could start from the beginning and have Ilina explain how Lady Nedonera came to be a guest in our country? From what I've heard, I expect that will be the fastest way to get us all up to speed, with important details intact." (Darak Zardo)
Elira nods dejectedly and signals to Ilina to do as he requested. Yeah, I'm sure she was hoping to avoid discussion of Ilina's escape from the country. Ilina steps forward and gives a light nod to the nobles before beginning.
She proceeds to give an overview of her clandestine trip to Elmesia, chance encounter with me, and proposition to Nina, but she glosses over details that would raise concerns about my abilities or intentions. She ends her initial explanation with how we parted ways in Elmesia with the intention for Lady Nedonera to consider her plea for aid. Everyone is silent for a moment, so Ilina continues.
"A short time later, our paths crossed again in Cedonia within the Ralzen Empire. Lady Nedonera and Mizuki were there investigating rumors that elves had been kidnapped into the slave trade, just as I was. Ultimately, they learned the location of the elven slaves and freed them along with the wolf-kin children being kept there, then they offered to return both to their respective homes. After such a display, I felt that it was appropriate to invite Lady Nedonera here as a royal guest, to help convince her to aid us." (Ilina)
I glance around the room to see surprised faces. Not unexpected, since Ilina just dumped an absurd amount of troubling information on them. I catch one of Darak Zardo's guests staring at me intently.
She's an elf that is about 20 by appearance, with dark black hair, blue eyes, and marble white skin, and her appearance is somewhat familiar. I assume that's his heir, since the other guest looks like a guard.
I meet her gaze, then smile and nod politely to her. Her expression becomes one of brief confusion, but then she smirks like she's amused. Afterward, she returns her attention to the meeting.
Jorah Abel is the first to respond to the influx of information from Ilina.
"I doubt that I'm the only one concerned about our Second Princess running off to dangerous countries alone without our knowledge, but since she is safe and was successful in her mission, we can defer chastising her for now. I agree with Princess Ilina's decision to invite Lady Nedonera here, but that does not excuse the presence of her human pet. Lady Nedonera is certainly entitled to an escort, but it could have been spirits or fey, which wouldn't violate our policy against human travelers in the kingdom." (Jorah Abel)
I feel a surge of irritation from Nina. However, she responds with a calm voice.
"Fufufu…I refused to visit your kingdom if Mizuki, my most trusted subordinate, was not allowed to accompany me. From the beginning, the only reason I even entertained your plea for help was because Mizuki asked me to, and Princess Ilina was aware of this. It's also been brought to my attention that there is no explicit mention in your policies that the ban on human travelers extends to royal guests." (Nina)
Nina's frank defense of my presence catches every noble off guard, even Darak Zardo, and it shows on their faces. Cara Egris recovers first, and she directs an intensely curious look at me again before speaking for the first time.
"Well, Lady Nedonera's assessment is correct – there is technically no policy violation here given Princess Ilina's invitation. I also don't agree that we should be chastising the Princess's actions in traveling to Elmesia. It was quite admirable, and her doing it covertly with Klaus was the wisest choice, though I wish we'd been informed. What I'd rather have answered now is Tessa's earlier question about why there is an elf as your guest, Great Dragon. Could you explain?" (Cara Egris)
"Alto is one of the elves that we freed from the human slavers. She asked to join my party while we were in the Elven Kingdom, and I simply agreed. That's all." (Nina)
Tessa Uril appears confused by Nina's response, and she decides to address Alto directly.
"Alto, was it? Why would you make such a request? While I understand you feeling some gratitude towards Lady Nedonera, I don't think you need to act as her servant for the whole time she's here. Especially when it means working alongside a human, like the ones that abducted you and planned to treat you like cattle." (Tessa Uril)
Alto steps forward and gives a polite curtsy to the nobles before responding with her gaze directed at Tessa Uril. Her expression is fierce, and it concerns me a little. Although, it's Alto, so I can't imagine her saying anything too incendiary.