"So, a Moonshadow assassin huh?" Ezran muttered despondently after his brother finished his explanation.

They were having a closed-door meeting in his room together with Corvus, Soren, and Opeli. Callum and Rayla agreed to let the three be included in their plans since they were trustworthy enough to keep it as a secret and powerful enough to take some damage control in case there will be a public outcry.

"Do you think this person is from the Silvergrove?"

The mage prince looked at his elven girlfriend briefly before he answered Corvus' question. "Rayla wasn't sure if he's from Silvergrove or not, that's why we're going to send Ethari a copy of our culprit's sketch to see if he can provide us more clues."

"How about other Moonshadow elves' territories? I'm sure the Silvergrove is not the only Moonshadow village in Xadia."

"We don't have any connections with other Moonshadow communities like what we have with Silvergrove," he responded promptly. "And if we inform Queen Zubeia about this, she can disseminate it to other elven territories faster than doing it our own way - which involves tons of paperwork and diplomatic meetups. I don't think Ez will be happy to do those mundane things."

"I don't." was his brother's stern reply.

"I fear that this assassination attempt might cause some rift between humans and elves again." Opeli pinched the bridge of her nose with a deep sigh. "We've managed to unite Xadia and the Pentarchy after we returned the Dragon Prince to his mother, and while we have a peace treaty now, that doesn't mean everyone agrees with it. You can't simply erase prejudices that have been transferred for generations in just a matter of two years."

"But hiding the truth from the public will do us no good," Ezran folded his hands to his lap. "Sooner or later the truth will come out, and I don't want everyone to assume that I'm giving Rayla a preferential treatment by hiding the culprit's race."

"But why a Moonshadow of all elven races?"

"Maybe it's just a coincidence," Callum shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm guessing that someone paid a mercenary to do the job - and who do you think is the best person to hire other than a Moonshadow assassin?"

"What do you think about this, Rayla?"

"We take a life, but we don't take it lightly," the elf answered as she recited the mantra that she learned from Runaan. "Aside from our stealth, we do not take someone's life for nothing. We kill for honor. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."

"But I never killed anyone." the young King scowled as if offended.

"Maybe..." Soren rubbed the bottom of his chin with contemplation. "Maybe this Moonshadow guy was being threatened? You know, like being blackmailed or something?"

All eyes in the room bored into Rayla as she hummed at his implication. "That doesn't sound impossible. I mean, I am willing to bind myself to kill anyone in exchange for Callum's life."

She smiled when a familiar hand reached out to her with a gentle squeeze. "A Moonshadow assassin does not take a life lightly. But if taking an innocent life can save the lives of people you care for, then so be it."

"And then you use one of your limbs as collateral."

"Aye."

The Crownguard grimaced with disgust. "Moonshadow culture is not only morbid, but it also follows a twisted logic."

"Hate to admit it but it is," she chuckled lightly. "That's why my village ghosted me."

Callum clapped his hand. "Okay, that's enough with these depressing stories. Let's go back to our culprit's means."

"We have a mastermind theory where our Moonshadow culprit was hired by coincidence or by force, which explains why he has an assassin's binding on his wrist. Then we have another theory where our Moonshadow culprit was doing it all by himself, like some sort of a personal vendetta against Ez - which doesn't make any sense unless there was a misunderstanding on his part."

"We have yet to establish if our Moonshadow culprit is working alone or with a team." Corvus pointed out.

"Oh yeah, he's definitely working alone," The elf countered with a smirk. "If not, then his teammate should have finished Ez when he fell to the ground. Which tells me that our culprit knows how the people work in this castle."

"Does that mean we have a spy in the royal household?"

"Or the mastermind is one of the royal households," she added, then glanced at the young king. "Hey Ez, how many people in this castle, including your council, have expressed their dislikes towards you these past few days?"

He tapped his chin with his index as if pondering. "Well, Barius doesn't like me or Bait to steal his baked jelly tarts before he served them, but I don't think he would kill us just for that. Other than him...hmmm..."

"Council members Teophel, Waylon and Everleigh," Opeli supplied. "They're the ones who have verbally shown their displeasure with King Ezran's policies recently."

"Waylon? Really, Ez?" Callum jerked his brow with a grimace. "That old man who did nothing but complain about the dragons?"

"He's about to retire this year, Callum. Don't worry," his brother retorted with a shrug. "Teophel has concerns about our ongoing peace talks with the Earthblood region since they insist that Katolis and Duren must issue public apologies on the Magma Titan's fiasco years ago, while Everleigh refused my proposal to include elves as candidates for councilors."

"We have to keep an eye on them, but not obvious enough to raise some flags," Rayla proposed. "And since I was sent out by Queen Zubeia as her representative, I can go around and check with elven communities here and see if I can get some leads about our culprit. Anybody can assume that I'm simply doing my job as a Xadian ambassador."

"I can go with you."

She shook her head at her boyfriend's suggestion. "It's better if you stick around with Ez and do your princely affairs. Our culprit is not just a regular Moonshadow assassin, and we don't know if he can use illusion or invisibility even in the daylight or not. Garlath knows if he's a dumb version of Lujanne, and if he is, then you're the best person that can beat him."

Callum hated to admit it but she was right.

"Why me?" Ezran wondered out loud. "Why would someone want to kill me?"

"Permission to express my honest opinion, Your Highness?" He nodded at Opeli to continue. "You may not be aware of this, but you've been considered by many as the most powerful and influential person in the entire continent."

"You have a special bond with the Dragon Prince. You have commanded not only the army of Katolis but also a flight of dragons all by yourself in a battle. The Queen of the Dragons respected you, and the elves bowed down before you. Not to mention that you have a brother who happened to be the first human to connect to an arcanum. You have accomplished great things at a young age that even your father, King Harrow, failed to achieve in his lifetime."

"These connections might not be a big deal for you," she went on. "But for others, it's already something. You're a symbol of unity and peace, but for them, your existence is a threat."

Ezran breathed out heavily with downcast eyes. "I'm still confused about why some people would prefer war over peace."

"Because they can gain more by selling weapons, medical supplies, or even offer services like espionage and assassination." the cleric explained glumly. "Anyway, these are just some of the reasons why your life could be in danger, aside from jealousy being the King of Katolis."

.

.

.

After they finished their dinner, Callum went to the courtyard to seek out Rubdillium.

It wasn't a problem for him to track down a hidden storm dragon since they both share the same arcanum, but Rubdillium made it easier for him by dropping her camouflage at his approach. Unfortunately, her action caused a bit of commotion when the night guards, who weren't briefed about her presence before their shifts, gasped in horror.

"It's alright everyone!" the mage prince placated as he flailed his arms in the air. "She's harmless!"

Rubdillium puffed air from her nostrils as if insulted by his words.

"I have a message that you need to relay to Queen Zubeia, and another to Ethari from the Silvergrove," Callum muttered as he passed her two scrolls stamped with his royal seal - a blue wax with two overlapping diamonds above the uneven towers of Katolis, and wing runes on the sides. "Make sure nobody knows about this unless the Queen said otherwise."

The dragon plucked the rolled parchments from his hand with her claws then clenched it with her left front paw. He could have sent those using a shadowhawk but he was worried that someone might intercept it just like what Nyx did to Ethari's message to the Queen before.

But if Rubdillium carries the letters, they will have no choice but to defeat the storm dragon first before they could steal it, which is obviously not an easy feat even for a Moonshadow assassin.

"Thank you for giving us a ride, Rubdillium," he grinned, distancing himself to give her a room to spread her broad wings. "And hope that you'll have a safe journey."

She huffed as an acknowledgment then beat her wings twice as she took off, leaving a cloud of dust on its wake.

Callum stared at the dark sky, looking at the spot where the dragon vanished like a twinkling star before he averted his gaze towards the crescent moon.

Tonight would be the first night after Ezran's failed assassination.

His jaw clenched at the thought that this could've been the first night of mourning if his brother didn't survive the fall.

Shoving his dark thoughts in the back burner, the mage prince went back to the room that he shared with Rayla.

Opeli was against their sleeping arrangements at first believing two unwed teens living in close quarters might cause a scandal, but after the pair explained their panic attacks and recurring nightmares from war trauma, she decided to assign them a joint bedroom with two separate beds so that the two can still look out for each other while avoiding physical intimacy.

Of course, the two broke those rules.

After all, what happened inside the bedroom stays in the bedroom.

"I thought you were tired," said Callum as he saw the elf sitting near the window, her head resting between her folded arms on the sill.

She was wearing his long-sleeved orange tunic and pale trousers, a pair of outgrown clothes that he owned back when he was thirteen. Despite her own set of a wardrobe full of Katolian and Moonshadow clothes that were made for her liking, she still preferred to wear his old garments that were supposed to be disposed of and recycled for better use.

"These are comfier than mine," she told him once. "And I love to wear your smell."

He wasn't sure if she was doing it just to tease him or she wanted to brand him as her own.

Little did she know that everyone in Katolis assumed the other way around.

As if I'm going to tell her, he thought with a smirk, only to feign it with a cough when she popped her head up and gave him a questioned look.

"Are you okay?

"I-I'm fine. How about you?" he asked. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"I was thinking about Ez," she answered, turning her gaze back to the moon. "And the Moonshadow assassin's next attack."

Callum began to undress, leaving him in his brown trousers as he entered the washroom. "Do you think he'll make an attempt tonight?"

"I'm not sure...but he's on a time limit. The longer he waits, the tighter the binding will become. I know firsthand how hellish it was on the third day. Pain and numbness will give you sleepless nights. He'll be lucky if he can still grip his sword before the end of the week."

"Why don't we stall him instead?" his voice was almost drowned by the sound of the running water. "Make sure that he'll never get Ez alone within two weeks. He's at his disadvantage already, with that prolonged wrist pain while trying to finish his job under time pressure."

"He might have lost his dominant hand but at what cost? Our two weeks' worth of anxiety and lack of sleep?" the elf scoffed indignantly. "No thanks."

"So...what do you suggest?"

"Well, I have an idea," Rayla glanced at her boyfriend who just exited their washroom in fresh pajamas and a damp towel draped on his shoulder. "But Ez might not like it."

.

.

.

"I don't like it."

"C'mon Ez, it's for the old times' sake!" Callum responded cheerfully as he pushed one of the spare cots against Ezran's left. "You, me, Rayla, and Bait traveling to Xadia with Zym as an egg. But instead of sleeping outside, we're sleeping inside!"

"In the infirmary, you mean." he deadpanned.

"It's gonna be like what you humans call a 'sleepover'," the elf grinned toothily, settling beside the young king's right side after she pulled her own cot. "We can have some jelly tarts in bed, share gossips, paint our nails - "

"Ooh, I love painting," the mage prince interjected.

"- braid our hairs, and pillow fights!"

"Seriously?" Ezran's brow jerked up, his hands gesticulating at his frail condition. "Guys, can't you see I have injuries here?"

If he wasn't wired by his nightly dose of pain medicine, he probably went over the moon at his best friend's suggestions. He loved engaging in pillow fights, but not at that moment.

"Well duh, obviously pillow fights are out," Rayla rolled her eyes indignantly. "As well as other sleepover traditions - sorry Callum, no painting this time. But we're going to compromise by guarding you to sleep instead."

"That's why I doubled my guards, Rayla."

"But they're guarding you outside your room." she retorted. "Not inside your room."

"We'll be your personal bodyguards and cuddle buddies for two weeks or until we capture our culprit. Two birds in one stone," Callum plopped on his side with a grin. "So, what do you think Ez?"

Ezran shook his head with a resigned sigh.

He assumed that the reason behind why the two dropped by in his room in the middle of the night was to see him sleeping.

Not to sleep beside him.

He was elated at first until he realized how their flirty banters were giving him second-hand embarrassment.

He'd rather choose two pinning idiots who insist they were just friends as his sleeping buddies than two idiots in a relationship.

"No funny business, okay?" the young king muttered as he adjusted his blanket. "And no sandwiches."

"Sandwiches?"

"Uhm..." Callum trailed off as he remembered Rayla's limited knowledge about Katolian's euphemisms. "You know that kind of food where you put something in between slices of bread?"

She scrunched her nose in disbelief. "Ugh, you humans and your obsessions with bread."

The mage prince flashed a beady glare when his brother snorted, "You two are insufferable."

"Shut up, Ez," the elf countered with a smug. "You love us anyway."

I do, the young king thought, closing his eyes with a wistful smile. "You have no idea the miseries that Bait and I had gone through during our journey to Xadia. All the nonsense bickering and endless complaints, right Bait?"

The glow toad who was nestling on the bassinet nearby croaked to agree.

"You even mocked us by calling us an old married couple." his brother chuckled with endearment laced in his voice.

"And you get back to me by throwing snow on my back," Ezran quipped. "Especially when I picked on you after I saw you sketching Rayla - "

"Wait, what?" the elf sat up, hovering above the boys as she gauged their expressions under the candlelight. "What sketch are we talking about?"

Ezran peered at his brother who was burrowing himself under his own blanket. "Really, Callum? You never told your girlfriend for almost two years about your secret drawings?"

"D-drawings?"

Callum was mumbling something incoherent, but the elf was able to pick up everything. "Don't tell me all those times I caught you on guard... wait a minute, you've been sketching me before we went to the Banther Lodge?"

"I always draw when I want to clear my head!" the mage reasoned out with a whine.

"And you've been on his head all those times," the young king winked at Rayla who flushed in an instant.

"Ez! That was supposed to be our secret!"

"Oh yeah?" the elf sassed as she reclined on her side with a propped up elbow, her hand supporting her head. "I thought we're not supposed to hide anything in our relationship?"

He wanted to facepalm himself as the two laughed at his embarrassment. "If only I knew that this sleeping arrangement will make you two make fun of my agony, I should've stayed in my room in peace."

"C'mon, Callum. Don't be a spoilsport," his brother snickered as he poked his side with his elbow. "You love us anyway."

.

.

.

Unbeknownst to the trio, a shadow figure was observing their exchanges from afar, his wrist binding glinted under the moonlight.

He wasn't informed that the king's brother had arrived today, and with his Moonshadow companion in tow, their presence would complicate everything.

They have to change their plans.

He may not like it but what can he do about it? Torture him? Kill him? Chop him to pieces and sell his parts to the public?

He was nothing to him anyway.

"A Moonshadow does not take a life lightly," he muttered under his breath as he turned his back away from the scene and headed back to his safe house.