Ball of Nothing

Chapter 466 Meeting Fae King Vivian

It was probably one of the most uncomfortable lunches that Zero had ever joined for. Fae King Vivian was perfect from head to toe and Zero felt lacking in comparison despite Freya’s lessons about etiquette. There was just something about Vivian that made Zero feel less clean and sparkly. However, he could finally understand Dorothy’s obsession with this widowed man. He was the closest creature to perfection and Zero sneaked another peek at his direction while munching on his peas.

He had to admit, the dwarven cooks outdid themselves. Even if the recipe was originally given to them by Zero, the doctor never imagined that they could transform it into actual gourmet standard meals fit for royalty. It tasted too good despite using the ingredients that Zero recommended. There was also nothing wrong with the nutritional value and Zero was slightly envious of their talent.

While Zero fidgeted with many thoughts in his mind, Fae King Vivian didn’t seem very bothered. If anything, he was curious about the chosen one.

As the Fae King, he didn’t often hear Gaia’s voice. Maybe once every few hundred years? However, he received word that his duty was about to be fulfilled soon. The time has come or the chosen one called Zero. Vivian spent his entire life guarding the portal to another world created by the Divine Entity Nel. The keys were scattered around Earth in various territories to avoid anyone abusing its power. Mystic Meadows protected it without knowing if it would ever be used but the waiting finally paid off.

"I heard from Gaia that the one who needs a portal to find Divine Entity Nel has awakened," Vivian started and took Zero by surprise.

"You know about Nel?" he leaned forward, and almost fell from the chair. After so long, there was finally someone who knew about Nel!

Zero heart thundered in his chest and he forgot all about his etiquette. Shittomi wasn’t able to tell him much about Nel other than the fact that her last activity traces were on a planet called Whiskeria. Maybe Vivian knew something more?

Vivian nodded. "I don’t know Nel but we Faes have been entrusted a duty to protect something that the chosen one requires to meet Nel. I assume that you’ve already met Axel the spriggan?"

"Yes, I have."

"That’s good," Vivian smiled. "I suppose you’ve given him the desert poppy seeds at last?"

Zero laughed. "Yes. It’s about time. The poor spriggan has lost his home tree for so many years and nobody managed to find the last ingredient he needed. Is that related to Nel’s location?"

The fae king paused. "Yes and no. Axel might not have the key needed to open the portal to Whiskeria but he knows a fellow spriggan who does. I’ll get straight to the point. There are four keys that you must collect in order to activate the portal in Mystic Meadows. One of the keys is already in your possession, the Red Phoenix Pearl from Gnaway. The other three keys are still waiting to be found."

Zero quickly noted this down somewhere because Mind’s Eye system and Mii were still not online. There were four keys representing four elements that were required to unlock the portal gate to Whiskeria. The Red Phoenix Pearl in Zero’s possession from Gnaway was the fire key. There was the Earth key with the spriggan guarding the Weeping Willow that Zero had to find in Altear. One more key was with the Queen of Indra Seagloo and the last was rumoured to be in the United Nation of the Uncanny.

Zero looked at the names of the people he should be looking for and raised his brow. "Are they really all faes?"

King Vivian chortled. "Yes. Although they call Sylvia the Silver Witch, she’s actually not human. Somewhat similar to Raju, she’s taken an interest in mortal activities and participated in research of some strange science for the last few hundred years. She’s actually a Great Sylph."

That was useful to know. While it didn’t change Zero’s initial impression about Sylvia, he was slightly more open to the idea of negotiation instead of confrontation at first sight. He still couldn’t forget how reluctant Xvyal and Yxaan were summoned back to U.N.U. with reluctant faces and smiles. As the village leader, he hoped that he could do something to help the magician twins.

"King Vivian, I have a favour to ask of you seeing as you know Sylvia. Two of my villagers from Half Moon Village were summoned back to the United Nation of the Uncanny and I worry for their well being because they haven’t sent word back even after I returned from Derby Desert."

The Fae King didn’t reject Zero. If anything, he seemed deep in thoughts. "Are they chimaeras?"

Zero paused. "They’re magicians...?"

King Vivian made a sour expression. "If they received a summon from Sylvia, it must mean that they are chimaeras. There is no other explanation. I’m sorry, Zero. However, this is currently out of my jurisdiction. Sylvia knows what she is doing so if they pass the test, no harm would befall them. However, should they fail... I can only hope they find peace in a new life."

Zero was sad and confused but King Vivian didn’t leave Zero hanging. Instead, he gave the doctor a communication stone that could be used to send messages to faes.

"This is a soul stone," he explained. "It helps faes reach out to each other despite terrains and distances. However, the tricky thing is to always require a part of the fae you wish to contact like the bark that Axel gave you. as it is, I have a feather from Sylvia that I normally use to contact her even though I don’t use it often. You can return it to me when you visit Mystic Meadows."

Zero received the soul stone and Sylvia’s feather carefully, thanking King Vivian. The Fae King watched Zero with a complicated expression. As a fae, he was extremely sensitive to the life energy and mana in every living creature. Strangely, Zero did not emit any sort of energy even if he could tell that the young boy radiated powerful magic traces left behind by various Gods including Gaia. If it wasn’t for those blessings, he would never have believed such a person was the chosen one in the prophecy.

Zero excused himself and King Vivian didn’t stop him. If anything, he looked relieved as Zero hurried away to make contact with the difficult Great Sylph. It wasn’t easy being the Fae King with four difficult key holders and King Vivian hoped that the chosen one from the prophecy would be able to overcome the other three obstacles in his way to obtain the remaining keys without much bloodshed. Unlike Raju, Sylvia and Leah were more difficult to handle.