As they worked, Sylaris noticed Carmilla shivering beside her. The tiny gray-skinned girl was rubbing her bare arms, her teeth lightly chattering as the chilly night wind blew through her thin clothes. Without a second thought, Sylaris unfastened her thick fur coat and gently wrapped it around the younger girl's shoulders.
Carmilla froze,stunned. She looked down at the fur coat, reaching out with tiny fingers to touch the incredibly soft material. She pulled the collar up to her nose and sniffed, it smelled of sweet winter roses and expensive oils.
"Thank you..." Carmilla whispered softly, her emerald eyes shining with gratitude.
Sylaris's cheeks immediately burned bright red. She looked away quickly, fidgeting nervously with the hem of her dress.
The other kids instantly noticed her reaction and chimed in unison, "Ouuuuuuuu,Sylaris likes Carmillaaaa"
Sylaris pouted, her head snapping toward them as she yelled, "No I don't!"
"Yes you do!" the kids sang back merrily.
"No I don't!" Sylaris spoke loudly, her face turning even redder.
Carmilla smiled warmly, wrapping the fur coat tighter around herself. "It's... it's okay if she likes me. I like her too"
The kids instantly erupted again, clapping their hands together. "Ouuuuuuuuu Carmilla likes Sylaris"
Sylaris bent her head down in embarrassment, hiding her face behind her long white hair, while Carmilla giggled softly beside her.
Eventually, they returned to building the figure. After another ten minutes of pounding snow and shaping frost, they finally finished.
The six children stood back, looking at their creation in awe. However, when Sylaris looked at it, her face fell into profound disappointment.
Carmilla noticed Sylaris's crestfallen expression and moved closer to her, gently tugging her sleeve. "What's wrong? You don't like it?"
Sylaris nodded her head.
Kikimora blinked in confusion. "Why not? It took us forever"
"It looks ugly and fat," Sylaris muttered bluntly.
Damien let out a loud laugh, crossing his arms. "Yeah....It looks just like you"
The entire group of children burst into roaring laughter at Damien's joke.
Sylaris rolled her eyes in irritation, preparing to blast him with a little frost spell, but Carmilla quickly grabbed her hand. "Don't listen to what he's saying," Carmilla tried to console her softly. "It's not ugly."
Sylaris opened her mouth to argue. "No it doesn't—" But she stopped halfway. A sudden brilliant idea made it's way inside her head. She could use this moment to get closer to Carmilla and make Damien feel terrible.
Sylaris pouted her lips, letting her shoulders slump. Then, slowly, she started whimpering.
The kids' laughter abruptly died down. They all looked at her in confusion as the little white-haired girl began to tear up. Suddenly, Sylaris burst into full-blown, dramatic wailing, burying her face in her hands.
High above in the branches of a nearby snow-covered tree, Talha's tiny pink fairy creature covered its mouth, giggling quietly at Sylaris's little manipulative plan.
Carmilla panicked instantly. She wrapped her arms around Sylaris, hugging her tightly. "Don't cry. He didn't mean it.....Please don't cry, elder sister"
Sylaris furrowed her brow beneath her hands, thinking to herself, Huh? Elder sister? Despite her confusion, she seized the opportunity and instantly increased the intensity of her fake crying, letting out loud, pathetic sobs.
Immediately, all the children turned their rage onto Damien.
"Look what you did, Damien!" Kiki yelled, shoving his shoulder hard. "You made her cry"
"You're so mean!" Selene cried out, tears welling in her eyes. "Apologize to her right now"
Damien panicked, raising his hands defensively. "Hey! I was just joking. It was a joke little sister"
"I don't care!" Ruthven yelled, stepping up to him. "If you don't apologize to her right now, we're not playing with you for the rest of the night."
"Yeah! Apologize!" Jaber added sternly.
While all the kids were berating Damien, Sylaris rested her head comfortably on Carmilla's shoulder. A little smile spread across her face,hidden from the others, while Carmilla gently stroked her back to comfort her.
Damien swallowed hard, looking at the angry faces of his friends. Realizing he had no choice, he took a step forward.
Damien stood before the weeping girl, his face twisting in agony as he forced the words out of his mouth. "I...I am... I'm sorry little sister,I didn't mean it! You're not ugly or fat"
The children nodded in approval, turning back to Sylaris.
"There, see? Stop crying now, Sylaris." Kiki muttered
Sylaris slowly turned her head around to face Damien, sniffing dramatically. As she lifted her head off Carmilla's shoulder, she flashed Damien a vicious, victorious smirk. Damien's eyes widened in disbelief, but before he could call her out, Sylaris hid her face in her hands again.
Carmilla used her long, overflowing sleeves to gently wipe the fake tear trails off Sylaris's cheeks.
"Don't cry anymore, elder sister," Carmilla murmured sweetly. "See? Damien is sorry. Also, you are not fat. Well... maybe a little."
All the children giggled, while Sylaris pouted, folding her arms across her chest.
Carmilla smiled, patting Sylaris's messy white hair. "And you are definitely not ugly, either"
Sylaris's cheeks immediately flushed red once more.
The kids—except for a defeated Damien chimed in unison again, "Someone is so red. She's about to catch on fire"
Carmilla giggled softly as Sylaris bent her head in embarrassment. Reaching down, Carmilla pulled Sylaris by the hand, leading her back to stand directly in front of their ice creation.
The statue was without a doubt fat and ugly. Its body was a lopsided blob of packed snow, its head was lumpy, and its icy arms looked like crooked twigs sticking out at awkward angles.
Sylaris was disgusted just looking at it. She muttered under her breath, "So ugly... It's even uglier than a lowly beast."
Carmilla clapped her hands together happily. "We will name this one after you elder sister!"
Kikimora sighed rolling her eyes. "Huh? Why would we name it after her? And who are you to decide?"
Jaber chimed in, crossing his arms. "Yeah! You barely did any work, Carmilla"
Selene, the shyest of the group, stepped forward, stammering nervously as she raised her hands. "Let's... let's not fight"
Ruthven smirked, looking at Carmilla with a sly grin. "If you want to name our ice figure after your girlfriend, give us some coins!"
The rest of the kids immediately caught on and shouted in agreement, "Yeah! Give us coins!"
Carmilla's face went pale, and she stammered flusteredly, "She... she is not my girlfriend"
Sylaris looked up at her, utterly confused. "But you said you liked me?"
Carmilla bent her head down in embarrassment, unable to look anyone in the eye.
Sylaris tilted her head, "I don't have any coins with me right now. But my dad has a lot. If you follow me home, my dad... my dad would give you coins!" Sylaris offered with a bright smile on her face.
Ruthven sighed waving his hand dismissively. "Forget about it. Come on, let's go steal masks from the vendor stand instead!"
"Yeah!" the kids cheered instantly. Within seconds, the entire group sprinted off down the snowy alley, leaving only Sylaris and Carmilla standing by the ugly ice statue.
"I'm sorry about them," Carmilla said softly, looking at Sylaris.
Sylaris smiled, "It's okay." She looked in the direction the kids had run. "They don't really care about the ice figure anyway. They were just making a fuss."
Carmilla smiled back. "They just wanted to tease you."
Carmilla turned her attention back to the lopsided ice statue. Her bright emerald eyes flashed with a faint hint of green mana. Extending her tiny hand, she began tracing invisible letters in the icy air. As her fingers moved, glowing frost etched itself directly onto the chest of the snow figure.
She was trying to write Sylaris's name. Though, lacking education, she spelled it completely wrong, resulting in a jumble of crooked, nonsensical runes.
Sylaris giggled out loud as she looked at her misspelled name carved into the snow.
Carmilla's ears drooped, looking deeply embarrassed. "You... you don't like it?"
Sylaris coughed quickly, straightening her posture. "No, No, I love it!"
Carmilla beamed with pride. "Okay"
Just then, Kiki's voice echoed from down the street. "What are you waiting for, Carmilla?Come along!"
Carmilla quickly grabbed Sylaris's hand and pulled her along, sprinting to catch up with the rest of the group.
Meanwhile, inside the dimly lit, bustling tavern down the street, atmospheric ambient noise filled the room.
A striking courtesan dressed in red silk robes approached Harun and Talha's table. She tilted a silver pitcher, pouring a dark, spiced liquid into Harun's goblet, offering him a playful wink. Harun simply offered a polite smile in return.
The courtesan then turned to Talha, pouring his drink with equal grace. She flashed him a captivating smile, and Talha smiled back warmly.
However, as she leaned back to leave, her eyes caught sight of Talha's hair. Overridden with sudden fascination by the ethereal, glowing pink strands, the young courtesan impulsively reached out her hand. She lightly touched his hair, watching in awe as the vibrant pink strands slipped through her fingers like sand.
Both Talha and Harun froze instantly.
Talha paused mid-breath, his smile vanishing as his piercing hazel eyes snapped up to lock onto the courtesan.
The sudden, terrifying intensity in his gaze sent a wave of icy dread through the woman. She broke into a cold sweat, her heart hammering against her ribs. Terrified that she had offended a dangerous noble, she tightly shut her eyes and bowed.
"Pardon my childishness, My Lord" she stammered out, her voice trembling as she spoke, "Please forgive my unspeakable insolence! I did not mean to touch you!I....I was just---"
Talha stared at her for a moment, remembering how he used to be in this exact position, apologising for the most basic mistakes...now he couldn't believe he was the one being addressed as "My lord" He gazed down at the expensive furs and silks that he was currently drapped in, how fast things change? He thought.
His cold expression melted back into a gentle smile. He looked up at the courtesan "It is fine," he said softly. "You may go."
The courtesan bowed her head once more before turning and rushing away, her silver tray clattering loudly against her hip as she fled toward the kitchen.
The moment she was out of earshot, Harun turned to Talha, his eyes narrowed.
"Does this happen to you often?" Harun asked calmly, raising his goblet.
"No," Talha replied, leaning back in his wooden chair.
"It doesn't seem so," Harun remarked, examining the atmosphere around them.
Harun had noticed it from the very moment they stepped foot inside the tavern: Talha stood out like a sore thumb. His radiant appearance and extravagant attire made it impossible for him to blend in. While the other patrons were clad in rugged, simple wool robes paired with dark fur cloaks suited for the harsh winter, Talha was draped in vibrant, exquisite pink garments that practically glowed under the dim lanterns.
Harun scanned the entire parlor. Nearly half the eyes in the room were secretly locked onto Talha, whispering among themselves.
The tavern itself was a classic demon establishment. low wooden ceilings with iron beams, oak tables sticky with spilled ale, a roaring stone hearth in the center throwing off intense heat, and the scent of roasted meats, hot spiced wine, and pipe smoke hanging thick in the air.
Harun hated this kind of attention. Between going out with his highness and this pink head, I don't know which is worse, he thought to himself. Definitely His Highness. At least with this one, people know he is a man. As for His Highness...
Harun couldn't help but smile at his own internal joke.
Talha caught the subtle shift in Harun's expression and blinked in utter confusion. Huh? Is he crazy? Why is he smiling at nothing? Talha thought.
Clearing his throat, Talha shattered the silence between them. "Why didn't Iruna join us? I can see how much she cares about that little girl."
"She has a name," Harun corrected, taking a slow sip of his drink. "Address her by her proper name."
Talha internally rolled his eyes. Yeah, right. "Fine. Why didn't Iruna join us? Sylaris was sad."
Harun set his silver goblet down softly on the wooden table. "She doesn't have to be everywhere."
Talha glared at him silently. Asshole. He thought.
Harun placed his forearms on the table, leaning forward slightly. His icy-blue eyes locked onto Talha with intensity. "What are you doing here?"
"To drink?," Talha muttered casually, leaning his head on his hand.
Harun furrowed his brows, his lips hovering just above his cup. "Pardon me, I should have properly phrased my words. I meant what you are doing in this realm."
Talha quickly turned his head, scanning the parlor to see if anyone was listening. But the patrons around them were wrapped up in their own revelry—a burly demon man was carelessly laughing with his companion, while a group of mercenary regulars were boisterously clinking their wooden tankards in a loud toast.
Satisfied they weren't being overheard, Talha turned back to Harun, "You don't trust me?"
"You have not given me a reason to," Harun replied smoothly.
Talha sat in complete silence, his jaw clenching. This is gonna be harder than I thought, he thought.
Harun leaned in closer, his massive shadow enveloping the table. When he spoke again, his voice dropped to a bone-chilling register
"Your intentions are unclear at the moment so I would advise you to thread carefully,If his highness is harmed because of you or If a single hair on Sylaris's head is touched because of your presence here... I will personally drag you into the deepest abyss of this realm and peel the skin from your bones."
Harun smiled at him taking another sip of his wine.
The sheer aura radiating off Harun made the air around their table grow instantly freezing cold. Talha shivered as he felt a spike of pure terror shoot through his spine. He shrank back into his seat, his throat going dry under Harun's "smiling" gaze.