Once Ard and Eva had regained their composure, they stepped out of the family room. They saw Pyria sitting at the dining table, tears streaming down her face, while Eledar stood behind her with a hand on her shoulder. When Eledar saw Ard and Eva emerge with weary, hollow expressions, he flinched in surprise. However, his face quickly settled back to normal; he had already guessed what had happened, though he remained silent and offered only a sad smile.

Ard turned to look at Eva. When their eyes met, Eva gave a small nod. Ard sat down next to Pyria and took her hand as it rested on the table.

"The Elder has gone home. He told you those things because he had to, so please don't be angry with him, and don't let yourself feel guilty," Ard said, gently stroking Pyria's hair.

"Prince Ard is right, Pyria. You aren't to blame at all. Fayeth would be heartbroken to see you like this," Eledar added from behind her.

"But... my mother died because of me, didn't she? And then... Velvet too... I should never have been born," Pyria sobbed, her head hanging low.

"I will tell you what really happened to Fayeth, and why her grave isn't here in this village," Eledar said.

Eva sat down across from Pyria as Eledar began to recount the truth about his wife. While Fayeth was pregnant with Pyria and walking through the forest, she spotted someone attempting to break the seal that imprisoned Qoaldriog. She fought the intruder immediately. It was a fierce battle; Fayeth was mortally wounded, but she managed to drive the person away.

She then moved to close the seal because the sword Exelion had already been inserted into the lock. Since an ordinary person cannot touch Exelion while it is in the lock, Fayeth's body began to disintegrate. It was at that exact moment that Velvet—who had arrived with Elidyr and Eledar—transferred Pyria into her own womb.

Only after that did Velvet reveal the real reason she had come to the elven village. The person Fayeth had driven away, the one who possessed the forged Exelion, was one of Velvet's own vampire descendants. To this day, that traitor has never been caught.

Ard and Eva were stunned. They locked eyes, the realization hitting them both at once.

"Wait a second... Zorax's seal was almost broken recently, and the location... is that just a coincidence?" Ard asked.

"Forgive me, village chief, but is the person Velvet was trying to catch... Dimitri?" Eva asked.

The room went deathly quiet. Everyone fell silent as Eva's question hung in the air. But in that silence, Ard and Eva found their answer. Pyria turned to look at her father.

"Is it true, Papa? Was it Count Dimitri? Answer me," Pyria demanded.

"Sigh... yes, it's true. But after learning his true motives, I can't simply say he is evil or purely malicious. Velvet told me that Dimitri's wife was a human... she was a princess of the Orthus Empire who was executed because her marriage to Dimitri was considered a forbidden taboo," Eledar said.

"What? Wait a minute... could it be Princess Esther? The princess whose name is never allowed to be mentioned in the palace?" Eva asked.

"Princess Esther?" Ard asked.

"She would have been my grandfather's aunt," Eva answered.

"Oh... I see," Ard replied.

"That's right. Ever since then, Dimitri has been looking for a way to get revenge and destroy the Orthus Empire. He forged his own versions of the legendary Exgrandal and Exelion. He intends to break every remaining dragon seal to wipe out the Empire—and perhaps the entire world," Eledar answered.

"I see. And that's why Velvet wanted to capture him. Not to kill him, but to talk him down," Ard noted.

"Yes. In the end, he did come to this village. He actually helped Velvet while she was carrying Pyria for that full year. He realized that his actions would only end up destroying everything, and he knew his wife, Esther, wouldn't have wanted him to go through with it. Ultimately, he decided to wait for Ashton and Esmeralda to return. He even took Velvet back to his estate when she entered her eternal sleep after giving birth," Eledar said.

"So that's it. There was such a tragic story behind Count Dimitri all along," Eva said softly.

"No wonder... when I was there... he spoke to me, and it seemed like he already knew me. Now I understand why he looked at me that way," Pyria said.

"That's why you shouldn't feel regret. None of this happened because of you. It happened because the world is broken and needs to be fixed. So, don't blame yourself anymore, okay?" Eledar said, placing his hand on Pyria's head.

"I... okay, Papa," Pyria replied, bowing her head.

"Then what was his goal in opening Zorax's seal?" Ard asked.

"As for that, see for yourselves in the letter he sent me," Eledar answered, pulling a letter from beneath his cloak and placing it on the table in front of Ard and Eva.

The two of them read it immediately. In the letter, Dimitri explained that he had opened Zorax's seal on purpose to test them. He wanted to be certain that they truly were the Ashton and Esmeralda—or the Azroth and Evelina from a thousand years ago—who had returned to finish their work.

Ard and Eva simply smiled as they read the letter. They felt no anger toward Dimitri, even though he had been prepared to let himself be destroyed—and the world along with him—if they had failed his test. He had clearly been playing a dangerous game with the fate of existence. Ard folded the letter back up and handed it to Eledar.

"We understand. There's no need to discuss this further," Ard said with a smile.

"Thank you. At his core, Dimitri isn't a bad man. He's just a man who is deeply grieving and wounded by his wife's death at the hands of the Orthus Empire," Eledar replied.

"Yeah. I can feel his pain. Because I've felt the same way," Ard said, turning to look at Eva and taking her hand.

"Alright. Tonight we will hold a ceremony and a festival to honor the passing of Elder Elidyr," Eledar said. "I'd like you all to take part. For now, please go and get some rest with the others. Pyria, can you show them the way?"

"Yes, Papa. Come on, Ard, Eva," Pyria replied, standing up and wiping away her tears.

"Rest well, Prince Ard, Princess Eva. I'm placing Pyria in your hands," Eledar said with a respectful bow.

"Understood, village chief," Ard replied.

"We will look after her together," Eva added.

After saying their goodbyes, they left the headman's house and headed toward the guest quarters located one level above. But as they were walking along the narrow path, a voice called out.

"Pyria!"

Pyria, Ard, and Eva all turned around. A handsome young elf with long hair tied back approached them with a dead-serious expression. He glared at Ard with a look of pure resentment, leaving Ard a bit confused. When the young man reached Pyria, he reached out to hug her, but she instinctively jumped back toward Ard and grabbed his arm. The young man's face instantly twisted with rage.

"Lhoris, what are you doing?" Pyria shouted.

"You... why are you acting so close to that guy?" Lhoris asked, pointing an accusing finger at Ard's face.

"Hey, don't be disrespectful to him!" Pyria yelled, slapping Lhoris's hand away.

"Who is he, Pyria?" Eva asked.

"Uh... a childhood friend," Pyria muttered.

"You promised... when we were kids, we promised to get married! Why did you bring this man here?" Lhoris shouted.

"Ugh... when did I ever promise to marry you? Even if I did, that was just a childhood thing. Get over it," Pyria snapped.

Lhoris froze, stunned by her words. He quickly shifted his sharp gaze back to Ard. His hand went up again, finger inches from Ard's face, while Ard just stood there with a casual smile.

"I don't care if you're a Prince of Fredonia. Pyria belongs to me. Don't you dare try to take her, or you'll have to deal with me—the strongest warrior in this village," Lhoris declared.

"The strongest, huh?" Ard hummed, gently moving Lhoris's finger aside.

Ard eased his arms out of Pyria's and Eva's grip. He took a step forward, stopping right in front of Lhoris while scratching the back of his head. Lhoris looked confused as Ard approached, but suddenly, Ard turned and threw a friendly arm around the elf's shoulders.

"Hey now, let's not be like that. I'm not looking for trouble with the village's strongest warrior," Ard said with a grin, leaning in to whisper in his ear. "But when it comes to the heart, it's not really my fault if Pyria prefers me over you, right?"

Lhoris tried to pull away, but he found he couldn't budge. Ard's grip was effortless, his expression relaxed as he held the elf in place. Lhoris glanced over at Eva and Pyria, who were both watching him with cynical smirks.

"L-let go," Lhoris stammered, a hint of fear finally creeping into his voice.

"Please don't bother Pyria anymore. I know you're her childhood friend, so let's keep it that way. I have a promise to keep to your Elder, Elidyr. You understand, right?" Ard's voice was steady and firm, despite the smile.

"Y-yeah, okay. Just let me go," Lhoris muttered.

Ard lifted his arm, and the sudden release caused Lhoris to stumble sideways. Snapping out of his embarrassment, the elf drew his bow and aimed an arrow directly at Ard. Eva stepped forward to intervene, but Ard held out a hand to stop her. Suddenly—thwack—Pyria delivered a side-kick that sent Lhoris sprawling to the ground in shock.

"Pyria!" Lhoris gasped, looking up.

"What is wrong with you, pointing an arrow at Ard and Eva? They are precious to me! I hate you! Now get out of my sight!" Pyria screamed.

Lhoris looked as if he'd been struck by lightning. He clenched his jaw, stood up slowly, and walked away without another word. Once he was gone, Pyria took a deep breath and led Ard and Eva the rest of the way to the quarters where their other friends were waiting.

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