We arrived at the foot of Mount Sept.
“Now, Lune, break the pendant and release the golden cord into the sky. It should seek to join with its counterpart by itself,” Lord Reineke advised.
I hurled the pendant to the ground as hard as I could. The string merrily sprung out, tying itself into a bowknot that resembled a butterfly.
“Mr. Butterfly, please guide us!” I requested.
The golden butterfly grazed Lord Reineke’s snout, then slowly began fluttering up the mountain, toward the peak.
The climb was steep. Liam and I were feeling fine, riding atop the giant Lord Reineke’s back, but it was a struggle for the House Renard knights accompanying us.
We’d done some investigating and discovered that the mountaineers from the capital were related to House Cordier, the queen’s birthplace. However, we still had no proof they were responsible for stealing the merfolk egg. We needed to locate both the culprits and the evidence, so we decided to split with Marcel so each of us could focus on one task.
According to what Liam had heard from asking around, the bearers had been asked to carry a large cask up the mountain. Although the cask had been made to contain alcohol, it had a strange fishy smell, and something seemed to be moving inside of it, which creeped the workers out. Apparently the contents of the cask had been thrown into the pond, but the bearers weren’t sure exactly what had happened as the ones who hired them forbade them from getting too close.
“They did mention a golden light coming from inside the barrel,” Liam said. Sitting directly behind me, it was a pleasant sensation feeling the vibrations of his voice from his chest. “And it continued to shine for a while even after the cask was emptied.”
“That was definitely the egg,” Lord Reineke said, picking up speed.
“Can merfolk eggs survive outside of the sea?” I asked. We had promised we’d search for the egg, but we couldn’t guarantee that it’d be unharmed.
“The eggshells are made from merfolk magic, so as long as it’s still intact, it should be fine. The bigger problem is that it might hatch earlier than intended due to the overabundance of magic.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“The pond in Mount Sept contains magic from the dragon who created it. If the egg absorbs it, it might develop faster.”
“Would that be bad?”
“It may not be safe for a merfolk child to hatch so far from its kin. I’m not too familiar with water monsters, though.”
“Then we need to hurry!”
“Indeed. Let’s get ahead. Butterfly, time to speed up!”
At Lord Reineke’s command, the golden string butterfly sped forward like a bullet. We had been matching speed with the knights, but the fox spirit began racing up the mountain side in pursuit of the butterfly’s trail. The trees moved aside on their own to open up a path. No part of nature could stand in Lord Reineke’s way in this domain.
I frantically clung on to keep from falling off. Liam leaned over me, covering me with protective dark magic. Within, the whipping of the wind became quiet.
Brother’s magic feels so calming...
Reassured, I buried my face in Lord Reineke’s fur.
Eventually, Lord Reineke slowed his pace and came to a halt. Liam dispelled his magic barrier, drawing away from me as I sat up. Before us was a small pond that indeed wasn’t connected to the river.
Without hesitation, the golden butterfly dove toward the water.
I craned my neck to take a look. There were thick plants beneath the surface, and white flowers resembling cherry blossoms grew among them. The pond looked distinctly mystical.
But I didn’t see any eggs.
“Is it below the plants?” I wondered, touching the water. “Eeek! So cold!”
“These plants need clear, cool water to grow,” Lord Reineke said.
“Then diving in to search may not be wise,” Liam said, frowning.
“You can reel the egg in with your magic, Liam.”
“My magic?”
“Yes. Light and dark magic pull one another. Only dark magic can subdue light magic, and vice versa. Together, they create one kind of magic, like two sides of a coin.”
There was no organized documentation about dark magic, as Nott’s name was a taboo, so Lord Reineke’s explanation came as a shock. Liam had only known about his magic through the legends passed down in House Renard, and what Nott had told him directly.
A disgruntled noise emanated from the blade in Liam’s scabbard, where Nott was sealed.
“All right,” Liam agreed, then gulped. With a grim expression, he pulled out the Eclipse Blade. “Lord of Darkness, Nott! Save the light that lies at the bottom of the pond!”
The violet diamond in the hilt gleamed ominously. The purple darkness within the blade seemed to growl.
“Light... My light...”
Nott was trembling with joy. I shuddered too, disturbed by her sorrowful, maddeningly desirous voice.
The darkness formed a thread and shot out into the point, coiling its way past the aquatic plants to reach the bottom. We watched with a sense of unease as the darkness sank deeper and deeper. It might’ve only taken a moment, but to us the wait seemed eternal.
Maybe the egg isn’t there after all?
Right as I thought that, the purple string grew taut and Nott’s voice resounded.
“My light!”
Something below the water forcefully pulled against the thread, causing Liam to stumble.
“Brother!” I shouted, grabbing a hold of his waist.
He held his ground, using the Eclipse Blade like a fishing rod. But the resistance was powerful, making our feet scrape against the ground. The force dragged us closer to the pond until the tips of Liam’s shoes dipped into the water.
“Help! Anyone!”
My scream rang through the air, and suddenly something yanked me back. Lord Reineke had shapeshifted into a human, grabbing both me and Liam.
“Hold on, Lune! Liam, picture you’re reeling the dark cord back in!”
“Right!” Liam responded. “Darkness, return!”
The three of us pulled with all our strength. We pulled and pulled, and right as I thought we couldn’t hold out any longer, we suddenly tumbled back. The dark string flew out from the water, holding onto a golden web wrapped tightly around an orange egg. The golden butterfly flew over, trying to reconnect with the web as though it were healing itself.
“The egg!” Liam shouted.
It slipped free, flying through the air in an arc.
“Ah! It’s gonna fall!!!” I screamed.
Lord Reineke and I used our tails to catch the egg and soften its landing.
“Whew, it didn’t break. Thank goodness,” I sighed.
Lord Reineke said nothing, but his shoulders relaxed as though he were relieved too.
“Well done, Nott,” Liam said, thanking her for her effort while putting the sword back into the scabbard.
Inside of the egg, I saw a merfolk child. She was hitting the inside of the orange membrane, trying to get out. The golden net was digging into the outer layer in a way that looked almost painful. The egg looked on the verge of bursting.
“Stop! Wait until we take off the net!” I told the child, trying to pull the net off.
However, as soon as I touched it, I was hit with an electric shock that repelled me. So that was why the merfolk had sealed the string in the pendant—trying to take the net off or release whatever it was holding triggered the magic.