After strongly reassuring Broddy that he was going to put in a good word with Erica and try his very best to convince her to give him another chance, Broddy happily resumed his exit from the throne room.

At this point, everyone was already pulling through the exit: the ministers, the heroes, the grand vizier whose murderous gaze never left Zorat, and finally the princess, who also retreated into the royal wing.

Zorat had been expecting a summons from a particular someone....

which would play perfectly into his plans this day, but seeing as that’s not happening, he turned around towards the exit, ready to retreat and improvise a new plan when he heard a call from behind which caused a large grin to spread across his face....

"Hero of Item box. Her highness requests your presence!"

Turning to see one of the princess’s loyal guards, who instantly began walking in the direction of the royal wing, Zorat said nothing and followed along behind him.

The royal wing is restricted to all, but under a summons from one of the royals, granting access is not surprising....

And considering the importance of the situation, Zorat already expected all this, and it plays directly into his plans.

Walking through the passage behind those large, regal double doors, Zorat was met with an immaculate marble corridor veined with liquid gold designs.

Crystal chandeliers hung from impossibly high arcs in the ceiling, spilling warm light over velvet, luxurious carpets.

Murals of past monarchs, the ancestors of the starfalls watched in silence, Zorat could immediately make out the stark resemblance in these images to Helion and Elowen.

The air through these glorious halls tasted different, more special. You could feel the rich history of the Starfalls the more you move from one hallway to another....

With some locations in particular being completely off limits, and every hallway having multiple royal guards positioned on every part, all being at a minimum of the master-realm.

They arrived in an open area that looked both like a garden and a relaxation spot with a beautiful fountain and special domestic life, small spirit animals running around....

And amidst these gentle creatures, a beautiful young lady with purple hair and sharp hazel eyes was bent over watching them play....

But these spirit animals seem to be acting quite unusually for animals and were actually performing quite some complex tricks with one another.

Is that her skill ?.... would be nice to have. Zorat mused as they arrived a few meters from the young lady.

The accompanying guard bowed in the direction of the young lady who was exuding a subtle imperial aura in her beautiful cream dress that perfectly complements her generously proportioned and glistening cleavages, down into a seductive hourglass figure.

Not saying a word more, the guard turned and left the area completely, leaving just Zorat and the young lady in the garden, with a few acrobatic spirit animals.

"Do you like animals, Hero of item box ?" Elowen muttered in a calm tone without standing up or looking back.

"Not really, Your Highness," Zorat responded, amused at the princess’s conversation opener.

"Hmm...I had assumed you would..... "

"Tell me....Hero of item box.... How did you do it ?" Elowen remarked slowly as she stood straight and turned to look at Zorat, but as her eyes directly met his own, she felt deeply that something had changed inside her.

"Do what, your highness ?"

"Don’t play games ....Caleb. How did you get my best friend to do all that ?" She walked up to Zorat with an accusatory tone, but the stern edge of her words seemed to be getting duller the more she held his gaze.

Elowen was now only a few feet away from Zorat. A sweet scent of soft vanilla caressed Zorat’s senses as she looked sternly at him with her hands crossed over her chest, gently boosting her large and glistening cleavages, heaving gently in relaxed authority.

Zorat didn’t fail to notice that Elowen had lost her previous condescending manner of speech toward him.

Now, even though she’s clearly fishing for Zorat’s secrets with the obvious curiosity on her face and in her voice, her tone was cautiously respectful but still holding that royal arrogance.

As Elowen stared intently at this Hero of item box, she still couldn’t understand how this person was able to convince her childhood friend of something she had never been able to do for years, in just over two weeks of arriving in their world.

It made no sense.

Strangely, her friend had now become so bright and happy all the time that she seemed almost like a completely different person from who she knew.

There was also the look she gets when this hero’s name is brought up, which seems completely abnormal.

Elowen needed to know what secrets this hero was hiding and if he was actually a friend or a new threat greater than even the Grand Vizier.

She had also received a message from her friend that now was the time to make a move on Victor with all the evidence she had been provided.

The hero also gave no details about his plans; a lot of things just aren’t adding up.

That’s why she’s brought him here; she will grill him for all the answers she needs using her pressure as a royal to force his hand.

But the more Elowen looked into Zorat’s eyes, the more her thoughts seemed to deviate from her earlier plans...

’Hmm... up close, he does seem quite handsome....’

’I see what K must have seen...’

’Are they perhaps.... Maybe... since K’s been behaving so strangely..’

’He does look trustworthy.... Why was I even suspicious of him in the first place ?’

’No, what are you doing, Elowen ?. stand your ground.’ Elowen chided herself, ready to follow up with another question, but Zorat beat her to it, as he spoke in his calm velvet voice.

"Your highness...." Zorat stepped a few paces forward and stood directly in front of Elowen, causing her heart to flutter as she raced through various complicated thoughts, cheeks flushed pink.

"You...what do you think you are..." she mumbled in an attempt to speak, but Zorat’s voice came first beside her flushed ears.

"Rather than worrying about how I got your friend to join our team...."

"It would serve your highness well to be more concerned with what the grand vizier has planned for the palace tonight."

"What ?... what do you mean ?" Elowen blurted in shock. Whenever the grand vizier is mentioned, she knows she needs to be cautious.

"It’s as I’ve just said..." Zorat remarked as he walked past the princess in the direction he had come from.

"I received word that Victor Malverin has something big planned for tonight... I would suggest you involve the enforcers just in case." Zorat added, still walking away slowly.

"The enforcers ?!. That.... What if you are wrong ?" Elowen uttered, flustered, both from the recent tense closeness with Caleb and the fact that Victor might actually have something nefarious planned. But the enforcers couldn’t be disturbed whenever one feels like it.

"You’ve seen what I am capable of, Your Highness.... Instead of asking what if I am wrong, you should be asking, what if I am right."

"If I am wrong, you have nothing to lose and would just annoy your father and the enforcers a little.... If I am right, you would have caused your kingdom great harm when you could have resolved the situation before it’s too late."

Elowen looked contemplative as she watched Zorat’s retreating back, then she asked in a more serious tone.... "How do you know all this ?"

Zorat turned towards her, smiling warmly.... he responded....

"I saw it in a dream."