Morning came so peaceful and bright.
It was especially bright because the Argentum Estate, which had been empty for months after Eli's going to the capital, was now filled with the warm giggles of Little Han.
The butler and the servants watched as Kayden and the family of three took their breakfast with delight on their faces.
Just Little Han's presence alone could change everything in this seemingly empty estate.
However, too bad, they'll be going back right after taking a look at the Silver Dew Village.
With that in mind, they could not help but sigh in their hearts because the seemingly bright scenery in front of them was just short-lived.
After taking their breakfast, it is time to go to the teleport station and wait for Azayn. She arrived right on time and happily greeted everyone.
"You guys were looking fine as ever!" Azayn looked at Leon, Eli, and Kayden playfully.
But the trio knew that Azayn was teasing them because they could tell that she was pertaining to the dark shadows that were resting under their eyes.
"What can we do? We have a lot of work to do, you know…" Eli only chuckled and replied back.
"Well at least still remember to get rest when you can afford." Azayn smiled, her voice was tinged with worry.
"Aunchieee! Hugsss!" Little Han was also fond of Azayn, most probably because he could recognize that he was the closest one to Eli before and even after he was born. There's also the time that he almost stayed under Azayn's care if not for the guardians offering their care.
"Ah, you little one! You know how to capture your auntie's heart do you?!" Azayn was so happy that Little Han was showing affection to her and she could not be any prouder.
"Eli, my dear, you raised your son well!" She squealed in happiness as she carefully stretched her hand and carried Little Han.
After the quick banter, they did not linger that long and immediately went to the heart of the Silver Dew Forest.
In a blink of an eye, Eli found herself back in the village which up until now was strange and mysterious for her.
"Welcome back to Silver Dew Village, Your Highness Third Prince, Lady Eli, and Kayden… of course, welcome back once again, Little One~" Chief Eirllon was accompanied by Koehthar and the rest of the elders of the village.
While his voice seemed to be stern and serious due to his status as the chief of the elven village, his voice could not help but become gentler in the part where he was greeting Little Han.
"It is nice to meet you and the village once again, Chief. It is my greatest honor to be allowed to be in your village once again." Leon bowed and greeted the Chief in a diplomatic way.
Eli and Kayden also said their respective greetings, then finally Little Han.
"Hewwoo Gwampa Chief." He said with a smile.
Two crescent moons formed in Chief Eirllon's eyes as he heard Little Han's greetings. Too bad he needed to deal with the adults or else, he would ask Eli and Leon to allow the little one to stay in his lounge and play.
"I heard from the Emperor about the matter you are concerned with today. Let's go to the village hall so we can comfortably talk about the matter." Chief Eirllon said as she gestured to them to follow him into the village.
"As for the two of us, your aunt Azayn will look after you today! Is that alright with you Little Charmer?" Azayn on the other hand looked at the obedient Little Han in her arms and talked.
"Okiee aunchieee…" Little Han seemed to be used to having someone look after him whenever his mommy and daddy were busy and so he only smiled with understanding.
"Can Johann call Baobao?" If it was the Crimson Blade office or the Forgeworn or Farauld Estates, Little Han was sure that Baobao is allowed to go, however, he only went into the silver dew village two times so he did not know if Baobao is allowed to appear in here.
"Of course! No one will be angry if you call him here. In fact, we will be happy to see him once again!" Azayn smiled and replied to the little one.
She was surprised that an almost two-year-old toddler like him was able to be this sensitive.
If it was any other two-year-olds, forget about asking for permission, some of them might not even be able to hold a conversation as Little Han could!
"Thaykuuu Aunchy!" Little Han smiled and clapped his hands happily. Then after that, he turned his head in a specific direction, and there at that same spot he started a summoning circle with Baobao appearing right after!
Azayn's eyes flickered in wonder. She had known that Little Han can summon Baobao on one of her letters, but she didn't know that it was to the extent that Little Han could summon him at will.
As a person who liked research, this piqued her interest a lot. According to Eli, it was somehow possible because she made the contract while she was pregnant with Little Han.
It seems like she had to conduct a study about the possibility of female summoners being able to share their contracts if they made it at the time they were pregnant too and see if it is feasible!
Baobao was not surprised about the sudden summons, instead, he bowed respectfully toward Azayn and immediately stood behind them, guarding the two as they walked toward Azayn and Koehthar's home.
"Woah…" Little Han was amazed to see that they were instantly transported to the balcony of a large tree house in an instant. From their view, he was able to see the large flower field at the center of the village where colorful flowers bloom proudly.
"You like to go there, dear?" Azayn saw that Little Han was attracted to the colorful flower field and so he asked.
"Yesh, aunchiee!" Little Han blinked his round crystal blue eyes with interest.
"Alright, we'll go there in a few minutes. Aunty will just have to do something inside then we will go, okay?" Azayn gently coaxed the excited child.
–
Back in the chief's hall.
Chief Eirllon led Leon, Eli, and Kayden not really in the hall, but somewhere beyond it.
They descended a wooden staircase. Eli tried to figure out in her mind how it works.
She knew that the chief's hall, just like any other structure in the village, was sitting on top of a tree, and so seeing that they were descending on a circular staircase, she wondered if the trunk of such a massive tree had been hollowed from the inside.
'How could it still hold such a massive structure like the Chief's hall then?' She asked herself.
However, the seriousness of the men around her prevented her from asking, besides they have an even more compelling mystery to uncover.
When they reached the bottom of the staircase, they came across a very secluded room, which only opened through Chief Eirllon's mana.
"This is the place where I store the ceremonial staff that was a relic left by the rested guardian Asa." Chief Eirllon explained to everyone.
Leon, Eli, and Kayden then saw the staff, carefully placed on a wooden rectangle box with a glass covering. The storage box was sitting at the center of a complicated-looking circle, most probably to prevent any intruder from stealing the relic.
"We placed some spells in here not only as security but to also alert us if something triggered the staff. Recently there's been something strange going on with it, and so we opted to strengthen the protection placed around it." Chief Eirllon continued to explain.
Thump! Thump!
Suddenly, Eli once again felt something strange, three times she saw this staff, and three times she experienced something strange. Whether when she sees it face to face, or through her dreams, the staff seemed to have an influence on her that she could not figure out.
Leon and Kayden looked at Eli in alarm, seeing that she suddenly became stiff and her expression changed.
"Are you alright?" Leon asked but Eli's dark obsidian eyes seemed to be mindlessly locked on the staff behind the glass cover.
Chief Eirllon, seemed to have expected this to happen and so he kept calm and asked the two young men,
"Guard her, never leave your eyes off her. Remember what happened during the renewal of the treaty? That might happen again. Just allow her to see what the staff wanted her to see. As for me, I'll ensure that the array won't hurt her, should she move towards the staff."
Leon and Kayden were puzzled at first, but they remembered something happened to Eli that was also related to the staff during the renewal of the treaty.
And so they nodded at the Chief's advice, keeping calm and collected while they watched Eli stare dazedly at the staff.
