The walk back through the forest path was met with overbearing silence, with only the sounds of screeching bats and squeaky giggles from curious red imps hiding in the bushes. The man in green followed their cackles with intense glares, causing their peering yellow eyes to retreat into the darkness.

After what felt like several minutes, a dim spark of light shone in the distance just beyond two broad trees. A beacon of joy amidst the dense atmosphere of the forest and leering imps. The trio hastened towards the exit, but the dull sound of ringing bells caused Eila to stop dead in her tracks. Her eyes darted from tree to bush, gasping as she touched the flower tucked in her hair.

The bells rung once again as Eila gently pulled the flower from her hair and close to her face. Lifting her gaze towards her brother, she gave a sheepish smile, "Um, sorry about that. I thought I heard a weird sound."

As Eila gave a weak, forced chuckle, Tomas shrugged his shoulders and continued following the man. He, in turn, would periodically glance behind his back at the twins, raising his eyebrow at Eila while she clutched the flower.

Just as Tomas sprinted out of the dark woods, taking a deep breath of the sweet aromas from Zephyr Town, the man in green put his hand on Eila.

"Forgive my boldness, but you appear to be curious about the lily you hold. By chance, did you hear a faint sound of a bell recently? If so... perhaps Narciso is attempting to contact you. Such sounds are characteristic of their telepath magic at work."

Eila stared dumb founded at him, slowly turning toward the lily. Recalling Narciso's instructions, she whispered, "I did hear a ringing noise...so, what do I do to hear them?"

Before the man could answer, a soft, otherworldly voice echoed from the lily, its interior giving off a faint metallic glow as they spoke. "Ahem, hello?"

The voice startled Eila, causing her to gasp and swing her face away from the blossom. Narciso's voice lowered as they mumbled, "Gah, did I give them a dud instead? Oh dear, that would be embarrassing." Raising their voice, "Is anyone able to hear me?"

The man groaned and said in an unamused voice, "Yes, we understand you quite clearly, Narciso. Now, whatever is your reason for interrupting our walk back to the town of the sprites?"

Narciso giggled, "Ah, I was merely testing! Yes, that's all it is, my friend. Ha, ha... Do carry on with your travels, saving Eosia and what-not."

The man sighed and began walking towards Tomas, who had stopped ahead of him and Eila sat on a fence bordering Zephyr Town. He mumbled under his breath, "Coming up with excuses to pay attention to them, as usual."

The man caught up to Tomas, engaging in a brief explanation of their conversation with Eila and Narciso. The girl walked toward the two as a gentle breeze swayed the grass beside her feet. Narciso's voice spoke from within the lily, "Is my green-clad partner away, child? I assume one of the mortal children holds my precious spawn at the moment, yes?"

Eila lowered her voice, "Yeah. It's Eila, by the way. My brother's named Tomas, and we're twins, in case it wasn't super obvious!"

"Ah, Eila and Tomas. I admit, I was quite curious as to how my esteemed friend encountered you two. It seems so odd...pray tell, how long have you been acquainted with him?"

Eila briefly lowered her eyebrows, pausing until she answered, "Um, like a year ago? It was during summer vacation, we helped him out when he showed up injured. Then, uh, we didn't see him again until a few days ago. He saved us from freezing up in the mountains! And then he came with us to visit the sprite town. It's been an interesting vacation." She chuckled after the last remark.

A low sigh could be heard from within the lily, after which Narciso said, "Hmm, interesting summary. Say, how much do you know about your friend? We know he is not one to talk about himself, but I wonder..."

As Eila side-glanced at the man and Tomas, where she could hear them talk about the imps and bats in the dark forest, she tilted her head and said, "He's a noble from 'Trusa', he was really close to the oracle there, and he's really focused on his mission. I think he's getting less serious with us though."

She grinned, "But yeah, not much of a talker otherwise."

Narciso took longer than usual to respond, whispering as Eila began walking toward her brother, "When you aided him in his recovery, how long did it take? I'm guessing mere days at most. Did you not question that?"

Eila tucked the lily back into her hair, walking behind Tomas as they made their way into the town. Slowing her pace, she lowered her head and whispered, "It was weird... but I don't know what it means. Um, do you know if he can use magic? I thought he couldn't cuz of what you said about being him jealous of your magic."

Narciso's voice rung close to her left ear, "That was in jest, dear! Well, most of it. He can't use magic...not as he is."

Their last words caused Eila to jolt her head up, her wide eyes focused on the man ahead of her. Distracted, she slowly uttered, "What do you mean?"

The flower demon's voice became louder, as if he were leaning closer to her ear, "I see he has not disclosed that yet. Oh well, you two are bound to find out one way or another. All I will say on the manner is this: Appearances are often not what they seem, dear. Hmm-hmm! I am a good example of that, if I do say so. His deception wasn't by choice, but..." He gave a low, nefarious chuckle, "He's done a fine job at it."

Eila's lower lip quivered, her body near paralyzed at their words. Taking a deep breath, she forced a small grin and caught up to her brother, walking beside him. As the trio went quiet, they listened to the busy chatter of the sprites as they walked up and down the dirt roads. Eila kept her head low to the ground, her eyebrows arched in a mild frown. Tomas side-glanced at her, his mouth contorted with concern.

"Sis is way too quiet now..." thought Tomas.

The inn was mere blocks away from the trio, its roof looming over the smaller rustic houses surrounding it. To their right were some tourists lined up near the sprite boy's kiosk from yesterday. Some younger tourists stood on the very tips of their toes, lifting their heads to catch a glimpse of the boy carefully taking fresh Lotus Delights from a tiny cobblestone oven. His wings fluttered as he smiled and waved at them, small dimples forming on the sides of his mouth. Tomas returned the wave, while Eila was jolted back to reality as her brother raised his arm. She raised her hand and moved it briefly, mustering a tiny grin.

As they turned the corner, the inn within their sights, Eila tugged at Tomas's short sleeve. The two locked eyes, Eila's tightened lips whispering, "Hey, Tommy, Narciso said something a while ago. I don't fully get it, but... it freaked me out."

Seeing his sister's concerned eyes glancing at their green-clad friend ahead of them, she said, "They told me Mr. Green-"

The man's head perked up and swiftly turned to his left, his hair swaying with it. A familiar screech greeted them as Ari flew over to their side, her frills vibrating as she vocalized. Upon landing in front of the trio, she emitted short huffs while turning her neck towards the inn in the distance. Her constricted pupils added to her frantic, restless attempts to communicate with her masters.

Tomas stepped forward, murmuring, "Um, tell me later, Eila." In a low, concerned tone, he stuck his hand towards Ari and said, "W-what's wrong, Ari?"

Eila raised her head to look behind Ari, the inn's front door wide open. She felt something sink in her stomach, tightening her breath as she shifted her eyes and scanned the cars parked near the building.

Her parents' compact, metallic blue car was absent from where her father parked it, replaced by a grey pickup truck.

The man in green narrowed his eyes at Ari, locking eyes with her. She immediately froze, her slit pupils dilating as she gave a low growl, her frills stretching with her laborious breathing. Once her attention was on him, the man kneeled before Ari and said in a monotone voice, "It is clear you require urgent assistance, blue one. Make haste, then!"

Eila sprinted off to the inn before Ari, her legs moving by sheer instinct and fear. Tomas hesitated before following Ari, a similar feeling creeping upon his body. Though the man was last to follow, he caught up to Ari in a blur. A few onlooking sprites carefully fled towards the building as well, attracted to the commotion of the group.

Upon closer inspection, the inn's door showed signs of being torn open. The doorknob was broken off the wooden frame, lying on the floor beside it. A few deep scratches adorned the white paint, containing a few stray blue scales on its borders.

Eila, Ari, and Tomas ran past the lobby and up the stairs, speeding through the hallway. The man in green slowed his pace, intrigued by the lack of a receptionist. Only the sound of the twins stomping on the floor above echoed through the lobby. He took a deep breath and steadily walked toward the reception table, placing one hand on the desk, and leaning over it.

A young sprite, dressed in a bright blue flowy dress, lay slumped over on the floor. A deep cut on the side of her neck still leaked a bright crimson fluid, staining the planks of wood in front of her face. Her eyes were blank, eternally frozen in an expression of fear and confusion. The man's hand tightened into a fist and slammed the desk, hissing and cursing through clenched teeth.

"They made it here... I must warn the children!" he murmured.