"Brother Kaelis, this is a surprise!" Aurien exclaims happily the moment Kaelis enters the study. "But you’re just in time, I have been meaning to talk to you."
Kaelis smiles easily at that.
He arrived at Aurien’s palace and requested an audience with him in his study, though honestly, he didn’t even need to ask.
Not when he already knew Aurien wasn’t doing anything important today.
Courtesy of Kaelis’ excellent stalking skills.
He knew Aurien’s schedule disturbingly well at this point.
What time Aurien woke up.
What halls he wandered when anxious.
Who he met with most often.
Kaelis could probably map out Aurien’s entire week from memory alone if he tried hard enough.
And somehow, Aurien still hadn’t noticed.
’Impressive honestly.’ Kaelis thought with amusement.
"Oh?" Kaelis asks casually as he pats Aurien lightly on the back while walking further inside. "What is it?"
"I’ve been hearing rumors," Aurien says teasingly as he gestures dramatically toward one of the lavish couches inside the study.
Kaelis sits down without complaint while Aurien takes the seat beside him.
The study itself was ridiculously extravagant even by royal standards.
Gold details.
Velvet curtains.
Fresh flowers placed carefully near the windows.
It felt very...Aurien.
"What rumors?" Kaelis asks playfully. "That might not be good."
Honestly, rumors involving Kaelis were almost never good.
Aurien smirks knowingly.
"I heard that you’ve been visiting Captain Ezra lately," he says slowly. "And that he hasn’t even been speaking to Helios. I’m curious as to why that is."
Kaelis’ eyes widened slightly before he could stop himself.
Mostly because he genuinely didn’t expect Aurien to ask that.
And unfortunately, hearing Ezra’s name immediately brought back the anxious thought Kaelis had been aggressively avoiding all morning.
The possibility that Ezra might actually be pregnant.
Sure, the chances weren’t extremely high.
Kaelis wasn’t in rut at the time.
Still...
There was a chance.
And now Love’s words had successfully ruined Kaelis’ peace forever.
’Aurethys, I hate thinking about this.’
"Your silence means it’s something," Aurien pokes immediately, clearly noticing Kaelis zoning out. "You’ve been pining over him for years despite everything."
Kaelis immediately narrows his eyes.
"Haven’t you either?" he shoots back.
Aurien bursts into laughter.
"I am a fan," Aurien corrects dramatically. "I don’t adore him as much as you do or obsess over him like Helios."
Then Aurien grins shamelessly.
"Most of the time, I just get close to him to piss Helios off."
Kaelis snorts quietly.
"How cruel of you."
"Oh, you jest," Aurien waves him off. "We both know Helios deserves it. Especially after everything he has done."
That much was true now.
Neither of them even pretended otherwise anymore.
The hatred toward Helios sat openly between them now in ways it never used to.
"Speaking of Helios..." Kaelis says casually as he leans back against the couch. "As you know, I’ve been investigating the Dark Ones and at this point in time everyone’s a suspect—"
"Do you think it’s Helios?" Aurien asks quickly.
A little too quickly.
Kaelis immediately notices it.
He resists the urge to narrow his eyes further.
"I have my doubts," Kaelis says carefully. "Mostly because of the kidnappings."
Aurien visibly tenses.
It was subtle, but not subtle enough for Kaelis to miss.
His shoulders stiffened slightly.
His fingers paused.
"The...kidnappings?" Aurien repeats with a small laugh that sounded just a little strained now. "That’s your main cause for suspecting him? I’m actually confused by that."
Kaelis watches him carefully.
"How are the Dark Ones and kidnappings connected?" Aurien asks.
"Didn’t I explain it?" Kaelis asks mildly, intentionally fishing for more reactions now.
Aurien laughs awkwardly.
"I think you did, but you know..." Aurien rubs the back of his neck. "I tend not to listen much. I was mostly in shock."
’That’s unlike you.’ Kaelis thought immediately.
Because Aurien actually listened very carefully during important discussions.
More than most people realized.
Kaelis tilts his head slightly but forces himself to smile anyway.
"Right, well..." Kaelis exhales. "The Cultists tried to kidnap Lior and kidnapped the children of Fleur De Lys. That’s the gist of it."
His gaze sharpens slightly.
"All the parents of the kidnapped children haven’t even tried contacting us for updates."
Aurien blinks slowly.
"Is it possible they simply...thought they died?"
"All of them?" Kaelis raises an eyebrow immediately. "Every single parent? I highly doubt most parents would just accept that their children are dead without proof."
Aurien goes quiet for a second.
Then unexpectedly, his tone changes completely.
"What if most of them are just terrible?"
The seriousness in his voice catches Kaelis off guard slightly.
Because Aurien suddenly sounded almost bitter.
Personal.
’Oh?’ Kaelis thought immediately, growing even more curious now. ’He’s way too obvious.’
And strangely enough, it was suspicious while also somehow not suspicious at the same time.
Aurien was definitely hiding something.
That much was becoming painfully clear.
But Kaelis was beginning to suspect it might not actually be related to the Cultists themselves.
At least...not directly.
Still, that was exactly why Kaelis came here today.
To gather information.
Any information.
And honestly?
Compared to Ezra pretending to reconcile with Helios, Kaelis felt like his own task was significantly easier.
At least Kaelis didn’t have to fake affection toward someone he used to love.
"So you personally think the kidnappings don’t have anything to do with the Cult? And the Dark Ones?" Kaelis asks casually as he runs a hand through his long hair.
Aurien nods after a moment.
"No, I don’t think so."
Kaelis studies him carefully.
Because the answer itself wasn’t strange.
What was strange was how focused Aurien seemed on separating the kidnappings from the Dark Ones entirely.
"Why would they take the Fleur De Lys children then?" Kaelis asks calmly. "And Lior?"
Aurien goes quiet.
"For me, it doesn’t feel like a coincidence at all."
And that part was true.
None of it felt random anymore.
The kidnappings were deliberate. Targeted.
But the question Kaelis kept running into was still the same.
Why children?
Most Dark Ones were adults.
The kidnappings only started around five years ago.
Which meant the Cultists never needed children before in order to create Dark Ones.
So why now?
What changed?
Children were being used somehow.
Kaelis was sure of it.
He just didn’t know for what purpose yet.
’Unless we’re missing something entirely...’
Still, now that he was sitting here with Aurien, Kaelis found himself hesitating slightly.
Because Aurien genuinely didn’t seem interested in the Dark Ones investigation itself.
Every reaction Aurien gave circled back toward the kidnappings specifically.
Not the monsters.
Not the Cult.
Just the children.
"Well, it might not be a coincidence, maybe uh..." Aurien trails off awkwardly before looking down like he was trying to quickly think of an explanation.
Kaelis watches him silently.
’Don’t think too hard, you’re going to become even more suspicious.’
But before Aurien could continue, a knock suddenly interrupts them.
Both princes immediately look toward the door.
A young maid carefully peeks her head inside.
"Uhm, Your Highness?" she calls hesitantly.
"Yes, Catalina?" Aurien answers quickly.
"Captain Aamon is here to see you. He says it’s urgent."
Aurien visibly tenses.
Even worse than earlier.
His shoulders stiffen immediately, and for the briefest second, Kaelis catches a genuine panic flash across his face.
And this time, Kaelis doesn’t even bother hiding the fact that he narrowed his eyes slightly.
’Aamon again?’
At this point, it was becoming impossible to ignore.
Aurien and Aamon were meeting far too often for it to simply be coincidence.
And more importantly—
Why did Aurien suddenly look even more nervous now as he glances at Kaelis.
Aurien quickly forces a smile back onto his face, but Kaelis notices the delay.
Too late.
He already saw it.
"Should I send him away?" Catalina asks uncertainly, clearly noticing the strange atmosphere inside the study now.
"No," Aurien answers a little too fast.
Then he clears his throat awkwardly.
"I mean...no, it’s fine. Let him in."
Kaelis leans back slightly against the couch, watching quietly now.
Because suddenly, this conversation became much more interesting.