In the quiet of the palace office, the tension broke for a moment as the trio began to pack.
Kael was practically vibrating with curiosity, his eyes bright as he turned to Ria.
“Since you and Aira lived there until you were eight…
what is it actually like?” Kael asked, leaning in.
“Is it really as grand as the travellers say?”
Ria paused, a soft, distant smile tugging at her lips.
“I don’t remember everything,” she admitted, “but I remember the scale of it.
Cloud Land has these impossibly long towers that look like they’re touching the sky.
The houses are so well-built and beautiful, not like our rough stone here in the North.
And the market…
Kael, you’ve never seen anything like it.
Thousands of people roaming around, buying silks and spices.
It’s loud, colourful, and it never sleeps.”
She laughed, looking over at Aira.
“But the most important part?
The jewellery is stunning, and the sweets…
oh, the sweets are famous for a reason.”
Ria turned fully toward Aira, her eyes sparkling with the memory.
“Aira, do you remember that one corner of the city?
That tiny sweet shop we used to sneak off to?
We’d buy so many treats our pockets were bulging.
And your mother—Madam Nina would always warn us, ‘Don’t eat that many sweets or you’ll get sick!'”
Aira let out a rare, genuine laugh, the weight of the King’s letter momentarily forgotten.
“I remember,” Aira said, nodding.
“No one would agree to take us because they were scared of Mother’s temper.
So we found that old wooden staircase tucked behind the alley.
We’d climb it, heart racing, and run all the way to the shop.”
“And when we came back,” Ria added, giggling, “Madam Nina was always waiting.
She’d be so angry!
We both got the same punishment every time—standing in the corridor the whole day.
Our legs would ache, but we’d just whisper to each other about how good the candy tasted.”
The room felt lighter.
For a second, they weren’t the protectors of the North; they were just three friends standing on the edge of a great adventure.
The Departure
The trio leave the North City immediately after.