Eryk was awake as early as a bird, though not by choice. His dreams had been restless—shadows of the Null Grimoire shifting beneath his skin, whispering in tongues he couldn't understand. He had woken gasping, fingers clawing at his chest as if he could dig the cursed thing out with his nails.
The first sound that shattered the fragile peace of morning was a loud bang outside thr door—sharp, sudden, and entirely unwelcome. He jolted upright, his heart hammering against his ribs, his fingers instinctively curling into fists. Beside him, Ares hissed, his molten-bronze scales flaring as he arched his back, wings half-spread in alarm. Smoke curled from the dragon's nostrils, his golden eyes narrowed into slits.
"Who dares?" Ares growled, the words vibrating through Eryk's bones like the hum of a struck bell.
Before Eryk could even process the noise, the door creaked open, revealing Yavanna standing in the threshold, her silver-blonde hair tousled from sleep but her amber eyes bright with energy. She grinned, wide and unapologetic, as if she hadn't just startled them both into near heart failure.
"Good morning!" she chirped, her voice far too cheerful for the ungodly hour.
Eryk blinked, his mind still fogged with sleep. "What—?"
Sera stumbled in next, her dark hair a tangled mess, her usually sharp eyes bleary and half-lidded. She looked like she'd been dragged backward through a thornbush.
"Why," she growled, voice thick with exhaustion, "are we awake?"
Yavanna clapped her hands together, undeterred. "Breakfast!"
Sera stared at her. Then, slowly, she turned her head toward Eryk, as if silently asking if this was some kind of cruel joke.
Eryk could only shrug.
Sera exhaled through her nose, her fingers twitching like she was imagining throttling Yavanna.
"You woke us up for breakfast?"
Yavanna's grin didn't falter. "Not just any breakfast! A royal breakfast!"
Sera's eye twitched.
"I don't care if it's served by the gods themselves. I'm going back to sleep." She turned on her heel, but Yavanna darted forward, catching her wrist.
"You can't," she said, her tone shifting from playful to serious in an instant. "Because after we eat, you're meeting with the queen. And I won't be there to see you."
That gave Sera pause. She glanced back at Eryk, who was now fully awake, the weight of Yavanna's words settling over him like a cloak.
The queen.
The same woman whose amber eyes had held no warmth, only quiet calculation. The same woman who had looked at Ares like he was a problem to be solved.
Eryk swallowed.
Sera sighed, long and suffering, but she didn't argue further.
~○~
The banquet hall was nothing short of breathtaking in the early morning light. The bioluminescent blossoms that had glowed sapphire the night before now shimmered with gold, their petals drinking in the dawn. The long table was laden with food—steaming bread, fruits so ripe their juices glistened, platters of roasted meats dusted with herbs Eryk didn't recognize. The scent alone was enough to make his stomach growl, though the knot of dread in his chest made the hunger feel distant.
At the head of the table sat the queen, her silver hair cascading over her shoulders like a waterfall frozen in time. Beside her, the king watched them with a quiet intensity, his fingers steepled beneath his chin. Eldrin sat to their right, his expression unreadable.
Yavanna ushered them forward, her earlier exuberance tempered now by the weight of the moment.
Eryk hesitated at the edge of the table, suddenly hyperaware of every flaw in his posture, every speck of dirt on his borrowed clothes. Ares, perched on his shoulder, let out a low, warning rumble.
"Easy," Eryk murmured, though he wasn't sure if the reassurance was for the dragon or himself.
The queen's gaze flicked to the dragon, then back to Eryk.
"Sit," she said, her voice neither warm nor cold. Simply a command.
They obeyed.
For a while, the only sounds were the clinking of silverware and the occasional rustle of fabric as servants moved silently around them. Eryk picked at his food, his appetite suddenly gone. He could feel the weight of the queen's stare, the unspoken questions hanging in the air like blades waiting to fall.
Then the queen spoke.
"It's true, then?" Her voice was measured. "You saved my daughter from those men?"
Eryk opened his mouth, but Sera beat him to it.
"I did," she said with her tone sharp. "Eryk was busy face-planting into the dirt."
Eryk shot her a look, but Sera just shrugged, unrepentant.
The queen's lips twitched—almost a smile, but not quite. "And yet you let him take the credit?"
Sera stabbed a piece of fruit with her knife. "I don't care about credit. I care about not being sold to a circus."
Then the king leaned forward, his voice deep and resonant.
"Why are you here?"
Eryk met his gaze. "We need help."
"With what?"
Sera didn't wait for Eryk to answer. "With the fact that this idiot ate a cursed book, and now it's living inside him like some kind of parasitic worm."
The queen's fork stilled. The king's eyebrows shot up. Even Eldrin, who had been calmly sipping his tea, nearly choked.
"You what?" the queen breathed.
Eryk's fingers tightened around his goblet.
"The Null Grimoire," he said quietly. "It's… part of me now."
The silence that followed was deafening.
The king recovered first.
"You're the Spellbreaker?" he said slowly. "The one Eldrin spoke of."
Eryk nodded.
"And you believe we can help you?" the queen asked, her voice laced with skepticism.
Eryk turned to Eldrin. "Riven said you could."
Eldrin set down his cup, his expression unreadable.
"I don't know what to do with it," he admitted. "It's my first time hearing that kind of… stupidity."
Sera snorted. "Join the club."
Eryk ignored her.
"Please," he said, his voice raw. "If there's any way—"
"They can stay."
The words came from Yavanna, who had been quiet until now. She lifted her chin, her amber eyes blazing with determination.
"For as long as they need. And Grandfather will help them."
The queen's gaze snapped to her daughter. "Yavanna—"
"It's the least we can do," Yavanna insisted. "They saved me. This is how I repay them!"
The king and queen exchanged a long look. Then, finally, the king sighed.
"Very well."
Eryk's breath left him in a rush. A chance. Just one chance.
"So, when do we start removing the cursed book in Eryk's body, huh?" asked Yavanna with a big smile. "We could remove it in his stomach after we ate breakfast, what do you think?"
Sera's head turned red as she looked at Yavanna. "It's not swallowed, you philistine! It's inside his hollow core! It's not like you're going to operate and just remove the cursed book! My God, these people are getting into my nerves!"
Before Eryk could speak, a messenger burst into the hall, his face pale, a scroll clutched in his trembling hands. He hurried to the king's side, whispering urgently.
The king's expression darkened. He stood abruptly, the queen following suit. Without another word, they swept from the room, their robes whispering against the floor.
The silence they left behind was thick with tension.
Yavanna exhaled. "See? I told you we couldn't miss breakfast."
Eryk frowned. "What's going on?"
Eldrin's voice was grim.
"The ogres."
Sera's eyebrows shot up. "The what?"
"The ogres," Eldrin repeated. "They've been gathering at our borders. Testing our defenses. And now, it seems, they've decided to make their move."
Yavanna's fingers tightened around her napkin.
"They'll attack soon. Maybe weeks. Maybe months. Maybe years. But they will come."
Eryk's stomach twisted. "And your parents?"
"Are preparing," Eldrin said simply. "To protect our people."
The weight of the words settled over them all.
Outside, the wind whispered through the trees, carrying with it the scent of rain.
Ares shifted on Eryk's shoulder, his wings rustling.
"We should leave," the dragon murmured, low enough that only Eryk could hear. "This is not our fight."
Eryk clenched his jaw. Maybe it wasn't. But if the ogres came, if the kingdom fell—where would that leave them? Where would that leave him?
The Null Grimoire stirred inside him, a slow, malevolent pulse.
He didn't have an answer.