THE biggest indoor auditorium in the heart of Bardunn City was filled with creatures of different races, mostly wealthy vatreans who were there to participate in the auction. Others were mercenaries and bounty hunters who would sell their most prized possessions.
Mercenaries who traded slaves like elves and mermaids, who were capable of magic, were deemed for the highest price by the royals, who would not bat an eye at spending a fortune to get them.
Junius, the one who captured Izora, finally let the little elf loose on the iron wire from the bamboo pole. He put a magic leash on her neck to limit her movement, and it also made her obey his command since the leash could electrocute her.
“Let go of me!” Izora’s eyes were on her crystal flute, tucked on Junius’ hips. Junius planned to sell it separately once he sold her.
“Behave yourself, little elf. Did you notice that a hundred pairs of eyes are on you? They're
JIE’S jaw flexed hard as the man riding on Kafle’s back whipped him, forcing him to crawl in front of the stage. Even Izora swallowed hard, watching her father do such a thing. She looked at Jie as if asking what to do, but Jie’s eyes remained calm despite his raging emotions. “Look at that! Isn’t it your father?” Junius asked Izora, pointing to Kafle on the stage while laughing. “He’s perfect!” Izora tried to break free, but Junius pulled hard on the magic leash, causing her to be electrocuted. “Oops, did I overdo it?” Junius smirked as he noticed that the little elf had quickly recovered. “Let go of me! I’ll make sure every one of you dies. You all deserve a cruel death for hurting my kind!” Izora couldn’t hold on any longer. Her eyes welled up as she watched a lot of child elves suffer this odious situation. Being a Hanumese, she knew that their race could not easily reproduce, which was why their population remained so small despite them living for up to a thousand years. A
“HOW the hell did you come here this quick? I was worried about you guys!” Jie asked Damien as they were flying safely in the sky on Habicht’s back.“Others are still injured, and we lost a lot of people in the guild.” He let out a sigh before he added, “To make a long story short, we use portals to reach here quickly.”Jie gazed at his companions, who rode Rave and Ifrita. “We have just arrived here, and then I saw that Izora was captured.”“We were informed about it. My knights relayed the information when Kafle failed to reach the meeting place.” Damien looked back at Deirdre and Izora. “Where is Nyssa?”Jie smiled. “She’s with Bucca; I need to fetch them.”Deirdre dived into their conversation. “I’ll inform my brother about the meeting place. However, I don’t know where the safest place is in Amaris.”&ldq
EVERYONE was in awe as they witnessed large, different sea creatures for the first time. Translucent jellyfish that glowed in different colors swam around the bubbles as if curious about them.“Whoa! I wonder if that giant squid is edible.” Jie’s eyes followed the gigantic squid with a gleaming turquoise lining. “Does anyone of you have been to Azuria?”Everyone shook their heads, except Kafle. “I was there long ago. During King Ragat’s reign, it was a good time.”Pearlie looked up at him. “You met my grandfather? I heard a lot of good stories about him. Too bad that he died before I was born.”“He was a good king who took good care of all his subjects.” Kafle smiled, remembering him. “Those were the good times. He maintained good relations with other kingdoms on the surface.”“Pearlie, how old are you, if you don't mind?” Jie queried. He carried Nyssa on his back.“I'm seventeen now. I ran away from Azuria three years ago to seek help on the surface. Only to find out that it's a lot
“COULD it be that the pressure is affecting him?” Jie asked. Damien lay on the dried seafloor inside the bubble. Izora and Kafle were tending to him. When they stepped inside Pearlie's air ball, all of the Azurians had grown feet.“I don’t think it’s the pressure underwater since all of us are not affected by it. It may be because Captain Winward is severely injured. Although it’s not visible, his magic core is unstable.” Kafle kept checking Damien’s pulse.“He is supposed to be resting. The incident in the imperial palace dealt a lot of damage to his magic core. Captain Winward probably used all his mana, and he had not recovered, yet he was forced to use it again during the auction.” Hisila sighed.Pearlie looked up at the merman earlier with a red tail who now stood beside her. “Tiedus, can Gilea meet us today? I need her to look after my friends from the surface.”“I’ll call for her, Princess.” Tiedus let out a whistle, and a huge silver dolphin came. It stayed outside the bubble
SEAWATER splashed out when hundreds of Azurian warriors resurfaced half of their bodies and created a path for their queen. Each warrior held a trident, and their eyes were all white and void of emotion. It was the effect of the water curse that made them follow the queen’s order. “Wilkina, the Queen of Azuria! Welcome aboard!” Admiral Zion spread his arms as the tall and slender lady sprang up gracefully from the water. Although her green tail appeared ordinary, the speck of gold scales made it look like she was royalty. Her tail color matched her long-braided emerald hair, coiled in perfection with a crown atop. There were two mermaids-in-waiting behind her who, just like their queen, instantly transformed their orange fishtails into human feet once they were out of the water. The three of them rode a white magic circle that brought them up to the deck of the largest vermillion ship. “Admiral, what can I do for you?” Queen Wilkina fixed her pearl crown since it slightly moved u
TIEDUS returned after checking Turie’s report. He immediately went back to the cave after confirming the situation.“We are not safe here. I’m sure by now General Lapu has already tracked us,” Tiedus said as soon as he entered the bubble.Pearlie nodded her head and gazed up at Gilea. “I think we should be continuing our journey. If I stay longer, I’ll put everyone in danger.”“I understand. Be careful, Pearlie. Wilkina will do everything to get your head. Especially now that she learned you’re still alive.”“I’m grown up. My power is strongest in the water. We will be fine.” Pearlie sounded confident.Meanwhile, Izora, who had never spoken a single word since their dive into Azuria, maintained her sitting position as if in deep meditation.“They are all over the Azurian waters. There’s no way of resurfacing without getting cau
PEARLIE immediately created a huge water bubble so everyone could stand on a dry surface.Jie gazed at Tiedus upon hearing about his plan. “That’s too harsh. They are still your kind!”“Don’t do this, Tiedus. If only they were not under the queen’s spell, they wouldn’t be doing this.” Pearlie tried to pull Tiedus closer.“You have been away for a long time, Princess. These mermen killed their own, and they all deserve a horrible death!”General Lapu cackled loudly, hearing their disagreements. “Argue all you want; you’ll die here anyway.”Everyone fell silent when Izora spoke, despite the tension. “I don’t think genocide is the answer, General Tiedus. We’ve lost a lot of our kind, enough of the killings.”General Lapu’s eyes narrowed as he heard a child’s voice. “And who is that little gremlin? Why are you hiding behind these adults? Ah, perhaps you’re afraid to die first.”“I’ve experienced a lot more than death!” Izora did not hesitate to grab Xiru and play it. The sound created was
THE hardened bubble broke into pieces, and the rocky shore of Yuva greeted them. When the air swooshed, it gave them a chill down their bones. The night sky was so dark because thick clouds covered the moon. “Wow, I can’t believe we traveled this fast to reach this island. The temperature is so cold! I’m used to the tropical weather in Glana.” Hisila expressed her astonishment, and she added, “And look at the misty border of Hanum. Once we cross it, we'll reach the peninsula and enter Mora. By the way, is there a way for us to go directly to Firth?” Kafle shook his head. “Approaching Firth in this condition is like giving away our lives.” “I understand.” Hisila smiled meekly. She only thought about it because Hanum’s land was a crescent shape, and Firth City was a small island in the center. “That's one hell of a fog. I bet visibility is compromised if we get through it.” Jie studied the long stretch of heavy mist covering the sea, preventing them from seeing the horizon. He ev