Still on the same day but earlier, the Hero after a frantic race in all the corners of the castle finally landed in front of the royal chamber - not the bridal chamber, which was dusty since the queen still hadn't found a shoe to fit since she had put on the crown of Sylvania - thanks to the help of Sawyer who was called by some maids frightened by the young boy's race. He picked him up at arm's length and carried him to the door of the queen's chamber before dropping him on the floor like an old potato sack.
- You could show a little more kindness to me," complained the Hero.
- It's to maintain the cover, whispered the holy knight.
- I'm sure you enjoy it.
- Bof, I have better things to feel above the others, Sawyer defended himself.
For once, the Hero saw him in a different armor than the one he wore every time he met him or they trained together, he even wore his helmet over his head. It felt strange. It was as if he was a different person.
- Why are you dressed like that?" asked the Hero.
- This is my outdoor armor. It's enchanted to resist the heat of Kano country. I will go further than where the turtle is.
- An expedition.
- That's right.
- I see. I guess it has something to do with our recent discoveries with Talemilia and Lelelitio.
- I have no idea, you have to tell the queen who will put together all the information that everyone is giving her.
- Doesn't she have investigators for that?
- It's... complicated. But anyway, I don't really have time to explain, she'll do it better than me, as I just told you I'm busy so I have to leave you.
He set off, holding the pommel of his sword in his hand, but the Hero stopped him by calling out.
- Should I knock?" he asked shyly.
- Of course! Even if she's waiting for you, you have to show respect, especially in a woman.
However, that was not what he wanted to ask her.
Why was he so shy about telling her?
It would be to admit that the panel of techniques that he possesses was not enough to fight the Nemesis?
Rah!
Let this misplaced pride go!
He just wanted to win against this bastard.
- When will you teach me your special technique?
- Do you really want me to tell you?" said the surprised knight, "I didn't think you'd be interested in her now.
- All things are good..., said the Hero, looking away.
- But you know it's going to be much more complicated for you who doesn't have any magic in him, even more so since your body is almost insensitive to magic.
Oh yes. The doctors at the hospital, after studying his weekly tests, realized that the Hero's body was suppressing magic and rejecting it for some reason unknown to them. This explained why Ymir's Corruption had not invaded his body and mind, but it revealed a real drawback, not only because he could not use magic but because he could not feel it. However, this small phenomenon in the Hero's body showed the power of the Witch of the Empty Mountain who was able to put a curse on his body.
The rejection was not extreme since the Miraculous Bath worked more or less on him, but enough that he found himself employing stratagems to be able to detect the magic like with sound or with Sawyer's technique which was easier to use with magic than without.
- It will be totally technical and it will be even more difficult than for a normal human or Fairy, warned the Fairy Knight, if I teach it to you, you must be able to master a little more than the basics by the end of the tournament otherwise it's useless, we agree?
- Yes !
- Then I will think of teaching it to you if you win your next fight, laughs the knight while leaving, be wary of your future adversaries, they are not tender... nor of...
The Hero did not hear the end of her sentence. He hesitated to call him back, but resigned himself to it, he had already made Audisélia wait long enough. He then knocked on the door, but he had no answer, he knocked again, but still no answer. He grabbed the handle and delicately opened the front door.
The Hero discovered with wonder and... incomprehension the room of Queen Audiselia: it was immensely large, as large as the Fairy's home. On its wooden and leafy walls were inscribed heaps of engravings of which he could only partially distinguish the shapes and... that's the few things he could see since it was filled with parchments that were lying everywhere! They covered the whole room! They were plastered on the walls, dragging on the floor and hanging from the ceiling, wandering on the bed of the queen who was lying there. At her side, she had her two servants Lola and Po who took care of her.
The Hero moved so as not to step on the important-looking documents and approached the queen's bed. The two Sternites noticed the Hero and chirped at him to go back the way he came. The queen stopped them and in a very small voice asked them who her visitor was, the Sternites seemed to explain his presence in their language, in the end, Queen Audiselia told them to leave them alone. The two servants agreed and left through a different door than the one from which the Hero came. The queen gently raised her chest, arranged her leaf comforter and sat on her wicker pillow.
- Come here," said Audisélia.
The Hero obeyed him and came to his right.
The queen's bed was unlike any he had seen since arriving in Sylvania, it looked like a gigantic water lily with a dazzling yellow lotus flower in the middle and in the center of said flower was a bed of what looked like pink pollen - it was only a step away for the Hero to say that the queen was really a butterfly.
He didn't notice it at first, but the queen looked sick, her eyes and cheeks were red. The hero touched her forehead and confirmed that she had a fever, she was extremely hot.
- Why did you call me in if you are sick?
- You still call me sir, son of Elena, she grumbled with a tired voice, I did not tell you that there was no need.
- I don't know, I'm not used to being on first-name terms with adults... except for my brother, of course.
- Say right away that I am an old person, sulked the queen and put a small punch in the stomach.
Then she started coughing heavily, the Hero wanted to help her but she pushed him away.
- I wouldn't want you to run into something when your fight is tomorrow.
- The day after tomorrow.
- You're probably right.
- You who... You who are so neat, you forgot the date of my fight.
He quickly changed his level of language at the sight of the queen's dark look.
She's going to kill me!" said the Hero.
- As you said earlier I am not in a state of full concentration, so excuse me if I forget some things.
- And you want me to give you a report on the days I spent in the Nether when you're in no condition to listen to me?
- That's why I have a tape recorder.
She took out a real human tape recorder and hid it under her pillow.
- How come you have this?
- I just asked Helmir. It allows me to correct my singing generally, but now it's going to be for you to record yourself giving me a report.
- Don't you have that in a... fairy-tale way?
- Too complicated to use, I don't have the strength to do all those stupid tricks or talk to a snail or whatever hideous beast. This one just has a button and it's recorded! Unfortunately, I forgot to ask her to get me some wireless headphones, and since she's not going back to a human city right now... Luckily, she gave me a... case... is that what they call it?
- I don't know," the hero admitted, "but why can't Helmir go back?
- Unless you stay and become my son permanently, she'll always have to be on your case, she told him, pinching his nose, even though I know you won't do anything wrong, in truth, she's chaperoning you instead of me.
Sick, the queen seemed to break all social barriers. Although she wanted to be close to the Hero, she would not have been so familiar with him in her normal state.
- You still want me to be your son I see. You know you don't need that to be close to my mother...
- And you, you're so fond of being polite," grumbled the queen, "but it's true. You are right...
She admitted it. Strangely enough, this made the Hero's heart ache a little. Nothing too crazy, he knew about it anyway, he guessed, but he would have liked, still, not to be a tool for mourning a person - like people who seek a relationship to forget their exes.
- But it's not really just for that anymore, she continued.
- Really?" said the Hero.
- I owe your mother a debt that I must pay, in a way, I must protect you from yourself as she did for me, so yes, your presence comforts me but I was also doing it for you. It's hard to lose your mother figure at such a young age. You know, I never knew my mother well. From what I remember, she was always busy with her experiments, testing things... I felt more like a lab rat than a real child to her. I would like the love that I didn't get from her, I would like to give it to you. I understand that it must be hard for you, at such an advanced age, to think of me as your new mom, but... I don't know... it could be nice... I guess?
- Okay, "mommy", said the Hero, I have... I have already told you that I will make an effort. But in reality, if I accept to become the son of the queen Sélia, it means that I will be prince of Sylvania.
- For a short time, but yes," confirmed the queen.
- So I will weigh more than the princesses, nobles and champions of this country?
- Yes, but after I'm gone, you'll be below the princesses, the queen reminded her.
- So my complete installation here, as the prince of Sylvania, in exchange for wireless headphones? concluded the Hero.
- That's right.
The Hero looked towards the window and laughed as he closed his eyes.
- You already know the answer. I am the hero of the legend and I must face the Nemesis so that the world is no longer in danger. In itself, it suits me for my revenge, that's why I continue, but in another context, I would surely have accepted. It would have been nice, even if I would have preferred that you were not a queen to live a simpler life.
- You forget that after the tournament, I won't be, she reminded him.
- But it's true! So I would have accepted without constraint.
- Thank you for making me at least imagine it for a few seconds. Come on, sit on one of the petals of my bed and report back to me on what you learned about the Marryneia Miriati Grave cult.
He nodded and sat down facing her. He looked at her and saw her staring at him with a softness in her eyes that could have made him blush, he even discreetly dodged her glance for a moment. She was indeed not like the other days.
- Basically... it's already going to be long and we've screwed up a bit...