PART FOUR

[Narrator's POV]

While the sun is preparing to glow, the moon silently plans to take over its light. It's true that darkness never sleeps, and neither does evil.

All of its traces are scattered around the withered place and will surely cause anyone to tremble with fear. You can see a thick smoke that is darker than a specific shade of grey, continuously traveling from the unknown hole to the Dark Realm where the man named Pricus—the youngest son of Zeus—rules.

He began to conquer and cursed the whole forest by the time he took over the magic stone of Astria after killing his wife named Aria—the Queen of Swan Maidens. The said stone has the power to maintain the beauty of nature and peace inside this other world, and the said Queen was assigned by the King and Gods to take care of it. She and her successor are the only ones who have the ability to use the power of the said stone. Pricus wasn't aware of this fact. He began to declare war and take the throne from the late king named Alasdair, having the thought that he could use its power to kill the King. He may have succeeded in defeating him, but the fact that he couldn't end his life using just his own power made him feel extremely mad. He drained almost all of Alasdair's strength and power right before Arphen saved the weak king by teleportation.

Pricus continuously spreads darkness all over the place. He wants everyone to feel his wrath. The only goal in his mind is to find the successor and kill everyone that gets in his way, especially the chosen warrior destined to put an end to his plan.

“Your highness, the centaurs are back from their mission,” a long-haired female creature said after bowing her head.

“Let them in,” Pricus uttered with a straight face.

You can hear the sound of hooves clattering and echoing around the castle.

Five centaurs appeared a few seconds after the noise, and all of them began to bow their heads as a sign of respect. “Our majesty.” They all greeted him.

They were all afraid to face him with bad news, but they are also aware that running away from him couldn't give them luck.

“We failed in our mission to abduct the orphans. Two fairies got in our way while we were about to catch them,” Giovanni—the Head of Centaurs in the Dark Realm—uttered.

Pricus faced them with a sarcastic smile. “Giovanni. You knew so well that bad news isn't my thing.”

“Forgive us, your majesty. Please spare us.” All of them are trembling with fear as they beg for their life, but Giovanni remains calm.

That unique reaction of the said centaur drew the attention of the king. “What makes you so calm, Head of Centaurs?” said Pricus.

“We already gave our life and soul to you, King Pricus. It's your decision whether you want to end our lives or give us another chance. I came back here with the thought that dying is nothing compared to what we have done. Because failing our mission means we failed to serve you, your highness.” Giovanni bowed his head once again.

The Head of Centaurs now has the King's eyes locked onto him.

“Hmm.”

King Pricus is known as the ruler who never lends an ear to anyone's opinion. He rarely gives his trust even to his most loyal female servant Algea—a creature that has the ability to transform into different kinds of monsters. She was the only daughter of Lamia—mistress of Zeus, who survived the wrath of Hera.

“I admire your courage, my loyal servant. The mission of disrupting their plan is now under your command.”

Giovanni suddenly lifted his head up while the others were still lowering their gaze. Both of his eyelids raise to open his eyes wider. “A-As you wish, your majesty,” said the Head of Centaurs.

He bowed his head once again before leading all of the centaurs on their way out of the castle.

[Algea's POV]

From the form of a big hawk, I began to fly and clasped my talons on the right arm of the throne. The look of despair on their faces made my heart race, and I couldn't help but wonder how they were all going to die.

Everyone appeared to be unusually quiet. Nobody dared to break the silence, and with the cold atmosphere surrounding the whole place, I bet all of their hands are already freezing as they wait for their death.

The king with a straight face places his right hand on his chin, gently pinching it. Looks like he is currently having a deep thought about the courageous words which came from the mouth of the head centaur.

A few seconds later, the King's sudden movement made my wings flap. He sat on his throne and began to utter a word that brought them hope.

After a bunch of centaurs left the place. I began flapping my wings and then landed on the floor in the form of a snake. I crawled near the place where he is currently standing and then I started transforming to my normal appearance.

I gently pull my head down towards my right shoulder, causing my black curly hair to reach my thigh.

“I admire his courage but not his ability.” I said as I stretched my neck. Once you have decided to rest from shapeshifting, it will never be a good idea to suddenly come back on it.

I raise my head and watch him take a quick glance sideways. “Your opinion matters, Algea. But now is not the right time to commence an argument.”

“Forgive me, My Lord.”

It never came into my mind that the King would spare the life of centaurs. Seems like the majesty is open to giving second chances but until when? Though I knew that his reason is considered acceptable, this kind of personality still causes me to feel anxious.

[Arphen's POV]

Most often, a man travels from a world to another magical world, and that couldn't happen without a portal. Helpful, indeed. But sometimes problems of traveling between dimensions might occur, locking your doors and blocking your way home, causing you to get trapped into a different world without even knowing if there will be a possible way for you to get out.

The ability to watch over anyone that is under my power and to create a portal are both blessings and curses. I am glad that I am able to save the King's life from his brother's wrath by the help of these but then at some point, strong abilities come after a heavy burden of responsibility.

“My powers are not able to keep this portal open for a long period of time.” I calmly said, trying to stop my arms from shaking. “All of our companions have already passed through. I need your final decisions now.”

Both orphans are still undecided up to this moment, and in my case, keeping this portal open for another minute can cause my body to feel numb and the portal will be inaccessible.

My shoulders are now about to fall, which made the opening rounded out from its original size. “I've already given you enough time, orphans. I am now leaving.” I said wearing a blank expression.

Based on my observation, I think Moha and Nowo are the most stubborn orphans I have ever handled, but they seem to be the toughest and bravest ones though. I hope they were also wise enough to choose the right path earlier when I was still asking them nicely.

The sight of the defender's realm is now clearly visible. I can feel my single eye burning; my swollen feet are taking me towards the headmaster's place, not even paying attention to the unsealed portal. I can still hear noises from it, but the feeling of disappointment from my unsuccessful mission made me lose my focus and ability to care.

Suddenly, a man's scream coming from the nearly closed portal drew my attention. “Watch out!”

I tilted my head to check. My jaw almost dropped to the floor the moment I saw an image of the two orphans jumping out from the hole. They both fell into the ground in a very bad position.

“A-Ah..my back.” The woman complained as they were both trying to stand up.

“Orphans?” I said right after blinking my eyes.

They started flashing a warm smile on their faces and greeted me.

“Hey man,” said Moha while scratching his nape. “Hi Arphen! It's nice to see you again,” said Nowo.

-----

“Wise decisions take a lot of time to make, unlike the smart ones. Wiser people tend to be quiet while trying to analyze whether a certain offer would be helpful or not, whether it will be an advantage or disadvantage. You always have to keep in mind that being wise is better than being smart.”