The Only Son Amongst The Daughters Of Eros

She didn't answer Lord Damon's question immediately, and the silence got oppressive very quickly because of it.

This oppressive lingered in the suite for a while as the green mist from the mirror thickened once again, heralding the Snake Queen's return.

Her facial figure sharpened into better view, her changing between green and yellow colors, narrowing at the Zorath Family Lord. The serpent coiled around her neck hissed softly, its tongue flicking toward the couple as though it could sense their discomfort.

"Since when was it that I needed your permission before demanding an audience?" she asked with a menacing, purring voice.

Damon's eyes lowered in respect. "I have erred. Forgive me."

The Snake Queen eyed him disrespectfully, as though he was a common ant compared to her. An ant who was not worth a sliver of her time, and yet had it due to circumstances she could not control.

"Have you arrived in the Royal Township?" she questioned him with an air-cutting voice, icy and commanding.

"Indeed," Damon answered. "We are in one of the hotel cottages as we speak."

Aspasia nodded thoughtfully, noting that that was why this mirror felt different than the usual one. "This meeting?" she asked. "Do you know the day it is supposed to take place?"

"On the last day of the week," he replied. "And that is what makes this so unbelievably comedic. It was set on that day because the boy won't have school then. What a joke this is. We answer to a boy now."

The Snake Queen raised a wicked brow. "That boy is the Prince, isn't he?"

Damon frowned defeatedly. "Yes, but still..."

Kavria, now seated with one leg crossed elegantly over the other, raised a hand dismissively. "I am sorry, Mother of Drakes, I can not keep my burning curiosity in check. This is a meeting organized by a boy who Awakened only a week ago. The meeting seems absurd. Mother Guinevere won't even be there, so I fail to see why—"

"The boy!" Aspasia's voice thundered, shaking the very room. The serpent around her neck hissed louder, its black eyes glowing with malevolence. "The boy Prince is the reason! He is what I am interested in! All my years of storming Erothyria, I've never heard of a Son! But I know of him, my interest has been caught! So end these stupid questions before I lose my patience."

Kavria flinched, biting her lip to suppress the retort that danced on her tongue.

Damon turned to his wife with a pointed glare, his voice dangerously low. "Kavria, from this moment you do not open your mouth. Stay seated, stay silent, and listen to the Queen."

Kavria glared at him briefly, but the menace in his tone left her no choice. She shifted uncomfortably, her usual sharp tongue subdued as she settled back into her chair.

Even though she was angry, she knew not to test her husband. Lord Damon was Diamond Ranked Ascendant Player, and his Class was [Dark Elementalist]. He didn't have to raise his fist for one to know how threatening he was.

He returned his attention to the Snake Queen , his expression schooled into careful neutrality. His mind, however, wandered momentarily to the pact that bound his family to this woman.

Years ago, when he had stood on the precipice of financial ruin, after meeting with many involved in the dark arts, they led him to the only one who was as desperate as him.

Damon found the path to the Snake Queen through this desperation. She had offered him wealth and power beyond his imagination, by sending him the rarest and most expensive beast cores and body parts from the monstrous and most powerful beasts inside Anti-Life.

These items were of course immensely valuable in the black market and magical trade.

But wealth was never freely given. The price had been a Divine Contract that tethered his family to her will.

Just as other secretive families in other Regions who signed the same contract, as their wealth grew, so too did their obligation to sow unrest in Starlight, paving the way for her eventual takeover. In exchange, she had promised Damon and his family a place of privilege in her new world order.

And now, here they were, entangled deeper in her web with every passing day.

Aspasia leaned closer to the mirror, her serpentine gaze unsettling. "There is something you must do for me when you get there," she said, her voice dripping with honeyed malice.

Her raised hand came into view in the mirror, and green mist swirled within her palm, coalescing into a small, perfectly round ball. The surface shimmered like liquid emerald, reflecting light in a way that seemed almost alive.

"This," she said, her voice a mixture of command and anticipation, "is your tool. During the meeting with the boy, use it to capture a clear image of his face and form. I want to see exactly what he looks like."

Damon stepped forward, extended his hand into the mirror and accepted the ball, the cool weight of it pressing into his palm.

With his eyes, he studied it for a moment, the faint glow within the orb mesmerizing yet ominous. "It looks like a normal Mirror Ball, no?"

Aspasia looked at him curtly. "What does it matter? Just do what you're told."

Damon's gaze flicked back to the Snake Queen, his curiosity finally breaking through his careful mask.

"Can you at least answer this question? What is it you want with the Son of Starlight?" he asked cautiously. "Why does he intrigue you so much?"

The Snake Queen's expression darkened, her irritation evaporating like smoke. "No I may not answer your question as it is none of your concern," she said sharply. "Do what I have told you to do, Lord Damon. Relay back to me everything he says, everything he asks for. Do not disappoint me."

Damon said nothing, looking at her coldly.

Her image began to dissolve, the green mist retreating back into the mirror's edges. Her parting words hung in the air like a curse. "Fail me, and I promise you will come to regret it."

The mist vanished entirely, leaving the room bathed in silence and shadows.

Kavria exhaled sharply, her nerves finally breaking free of her composure. "I'll tell you now, Damon. I truly am tired of that hag," she muttered, though her voice lacked its usual bite.

Damon, still holding the emerald ball, ignored her. His thoughts churned as he stared at the now-ordinary mirror, his fingers tightening around the orb. Whatever the Snake Queen's interest in Aeric was, it was also making him curious now.

"We do as we're told," he said finally, his voice cold and decisive. "No mistakes."

Kavria glanced at him but said nothing more. And the night in the cottage room went on as any other night would.