Linn closed her eyes for a few seconds before answering.
"I appreciate your offer, Felipe, but the freedom of my people has no price. We will not submit to any throne."
She opened her eyes.
"However... I understand your duty. Perhaps there is a middle ground."
Felipe relaxed his shoulders slightly.
"I'm listening."
Linn placed both hands on the table.
"We will not abandon our lands."
Felipe frowned.
"Then we haven't made any progress."
"I haven't finished."
Linn pointed to the map spread out between them.
"Our people can withdraw from the most dangerous areas of the valley. We can establish camps outside the regions where the beasts are becoming more active."
Felipe studied the map.
"And what would you ask for in return?"
"Free passage."
The answer came immediately.
"Our warriors will be able to enter and leave Carpathian territory without being treated as invaders. No one will stop them for carrying our weapons or demand that they abandon our customs."
Felipe remained silent.
"We also want to trade."
Linn pointed toward the mountains.
"We have minerals, furs, medicinal plants, and knowledge of the forest that your kingdom does not possess. In exchange, we will need food, tools, and materials to build shelters."
Felipe nodded slowly.
"That is reasonable."
"And there is a third condition."
Felipe raised his eyes.
"What is it?"
Linn looked directly at him.
"If our people are attacked by the Empire, Carpathia cannot pretend it never happened."
Silence filled the room.
One of the tribe's elders nodded.
"The Empire has already tried to capture us once," he added. "It won't be long before they return."
Felipe clenched his jaw.
"How many soldiers did they send?"
"A legion."
"And what happened?"
"The forest took care of them."
Felipe raised an eyebrow.
"The forest?"
Linn exchanged a glance with the elders.
"The creatures."
Her expression became more serious.
"But don't mistake that for safety."
Felipe waited.
"The creatures are changing."
Those words caused the atmosphere to tense once again.
"How?"
Linn pointed to the map again.
"They are abandoning their territories. Some are approaching our camps. Others are fleeing toward the mountains."
"Why?"
"We don't know."
Linn slowly shook her head.
"Our shamans say the mana has been disturbed."
Felipe frowned.
"Disturbed?"
"The land no longer behaves as it used to."
Linn took a deep breath.
"There are nights when the forest glows. The rivers change temperature for no reason. Some plants grow within a matter of hours. Beasts are being born with characteristics we have never seen before."
Felipe remained motionless.
"How long has this been happening?"
"Weeks."
Silence fell immediately.
Felipe remembered the reports he had received from the northern regions.
Small earthquakes.
Animals being displaced.
Sudden changes in mana sources.
Until now, they had seemed like isolated incidents.
"Do you think it will get worse?"
Linn did not answer immediately.
"I don't think so."
She lowered her gaze toward the map.
"I know so."
Felipe slowly raised his head.
"What do your shamans say?"
"That something is coming."
The answer caused several people in the room to exchange glances.
"Something?"
Linn nodded.
"They don't know what."
Felipe remained thoughtful.
For the first time since the meeting had begun, he understood that this negotiation wasn't simply about offering refuge to a persecuted tribe.
These people might be living in the first region affected by something they still didn't understand.
"Then we have a common problem," he finally said.
Linn looked at him.
"It seems so."
Felipe picked up the document in front of him.
"Carpathia will not demand that you abandon your lands."
Linn remained attentive.
"But we will establish refuge zones within the kingdom. If the situation worsens, your people will be able to move there without needing permission."
"Agreed."
"You will also be allowed to trade freely."
Linn nodded.
"And you will keep your weapons and customs."
"Yes."
Felipe paused.
"But there will be one condition."
Linn narrowed her eyes.
"What is it?"
"If the Empire enters your territory again, I want you to inform me before responding."
The tribe's warriors tensed.
Linn, however, remained calm.
"Are you afraid we'll attack first?"
"I'm afraid a battle on the border will turn into a war."
Linn studied him for several seconds.
Finally, a small smile appeared on her face.
"That proves you're not a fool."
Felipe let out a brief laugh.
"I try not to be."
Linn extended her hand across the table.
"Then we have a deal."
Felipe shook her hand.
"We have a deal."
Neither of them knew how long it would last.
But they both understood one thing.
Carpathia had just opened its doors to a people who might soon need somewhere to survive.
And the Refrvollr tribe had just found a place to retreat to when their forest was no longer safe.
When Kara returned to the Bourlance mansion with Brigir, she found her grandmother sitting by the fire, going through some ancient records.
"I met a young man," Brigir said. "Lusian Douglas."
The old woman looked up.
"What is so special about him?"
Brigir took several seconds to answer.
"He knew things he shouldn't have known."
She told her what had happened: animals abandoning their territories, plants growing too quickly, changes in the rivers, and the strange disturbance in the mana.
The old woman slowly placed the record on the table.
"He said all that?"
"Yes."
Brigir clenched her fists.
"Our people have lived in that forest for generations. We revere it as a mother. Every tree has a meaning. Every river is part of our stories."
Her voice became more serious.
"But now the animals are fleeing. The plants are changing. Creatures are approaching our homes. We no longer recognize our own homeland."
The old woman remained silent.
"Our shamans don't know what's happening," Brigir continued. "And if this keeps getting worse, we'll have to leave."
The old woman remained thoughtful.
"And that boy?"
"He said he had read about something similar."
The old woman slowly raised her gaze.
"Books?"
"That is what he claimed."
For several seconds, no one spoke.
Finally, the old woman stood.
"Then I want to speak with him."
Brigir frowned.
"Do you think he knows what's happening?"
"I don't know."
The old woman picked up one of the records.
"But if there are books that talk about this, I want to know what that boy read."
Brigir nodded.
For the first time since leaving the forest, she felt that perhaps they had found a clue.
Lusian stepped out of the bath, his hair still damp.
It had been an exhausting day. He just wanted to return to his room when he heard music.
He stopped.
Isabella was sitting at the piano.
Lusian recognized the melody immediately.
It was a song from his old world.
But he had never heard it played like this.
He remained silent until the final note faded away.
Isabella looked up and startled.
"My lord."
"Don't stop."
She hesitated.
"Do you like it?"
Lusian entered the room.
"Where did you learn that song?"
Isabella pointed to the flute she carried with her.
"From you."
Lusian blinked.
"From me?"
"You play it some nights."
"I thought no one was listening."
Isabella smiled slightly.
"I thought so too."
Lusian laughed.
"So you've been spying on me for a while."
"That wasn't my intention."
"How long?"
She lowered her gaze.
"Long enough to memorize it."
Lusian looked at the piano.
"Can you play it again?"
Isabella nodded.
The melody began again.
Lusian closed his eyes.
It was the same song.
And yet, it wasn't.
Isabella had added small changes. Harmonies he had never heard before.
When she finished, Lusian remained silent.
"What?" she asked.
"You changed it."
Isabella looked concerned.
"Is that bad?"
"No."
Lusian smiled.
"It's better."
She raised her eyebrows slightly.
"Really?"
"Yes."
Lusian sat beside the piano.
"Show me how you play it."
Isabella moved aside.
Their shoulders ended up closer than necessary.
Neither of them seemed to notice.
Lusian played the melody on the flute.
Isabella followed him on the piano.
Once.
Then again.
Little by little, they stopped correcting each other.
They simply began playing together.
When they finished, neither spoke immediately.
Lusian looked at the keys.
"In my world..."
He stopped.
"Yes?"
"Nothing."
Isabella watched him for several seconds.
"Is it an important song?"
Lusian took a moment to answer.
"It was."
She didn't ask why.
She simply placed her hands back on the piano.
"Then we can play it again."
Lusian looked at her.
And smiled.
"Yes."
And the music filled the room once again.