Page 53 of Mountains of Mist and Magic

“Phillippe, what's wrong? Sion asked my permission, and I thought it was fitting that I gave it to him. I'm sorry if you thought I should have told you—”

“It's not that,” Phillippe said, rubbing his jaw. “It's...the ring.”

“Oh, did you fancy it?” Grayden teased. “I never took you as a fan of rubies—”

Grayden stopped as soon as he saw Phillippe's face.

“I'm sorry. I never thought—I just—is it that serious with Esmeralda?”

“Not yet,” Phillippe said, hanging his head. “I just—when the time comes—”

“There are several pieces left. Selenia already has her fair share of Mother's jewelry, and Renya isn't that big on jewelry at all. If the time comes...the rest is Esmeralda's.”

Phillippe nodded as a lump formed in his throat as Grayden walked away. He wanted to thank his brother, but he had trouble vocalizing his complex thoughts at that moment. He considered himself a relatively simple man. He just did what was required of him, tended not to worry, and went with the flow. He usually preferred actions over thoughts. He despised anything complicated, both in battles and in life. But seeing the joy on Selenia's face as she showed off her ring made him realize that perhaps complicating life wasn't always such a bad thing.

He joined his brother back in the dining hall where they were all continuing to plan their next adventure.

“So we go to this mountain, do a ritual, and bam, magic is back?” Sion asked.

“That's essentially it,” Renya answered. “But we don't know anything about the mountains, how to get there, or anything about a ritual.”

“I do.” Esmeralda's soft voice rang through the room. “I mean, I know some. Triston will know more.”

The room fell into silence. No one spoke. Finally, Cyrus rose. “Is that what your parents were searching for?”

Esmeralda's fingers knotted the fabric of her gown. Phillippe could tell she was nervous, so he laced her fingers in his. She seemed to freeze for a split second, but didn't pull her hand away. “I think so. I wasn't with them. But Triston—he was.”

Everyone began talking at once.

“We must summon Triston immediately—”

“This is huge—”

“...leave at once—”

“We'll need to research...”

“Quiet, everyone,” Cyrus commanded, standing up from his chair. “This is very valuable news indeed. We need to send word to Triston immediately and summon him from the Twilight Kingdom—”

“That won't be necessary.”

Everyone turned towards the new voice in the room. There stood Triston and Julietta, dirty and disheveled.

“Julietta!” Selenia squealed instantly, running over to greet her friend. The pair embraced jovially. Phillippe watched as Selenia showed off her ring proudly. He imagined Esmeralda doing the same and it made him oddly happy.

Triston continued to move into the room, shaking hands with Grayden and Cyrus, then coming over to Phillippe and extending his hand and grabbing Phillippe's upper arm. Triston then moved to an empty seat at the table, and Julietta settled into a spot on the other side of Selenia. Julietta kept giving Triston tiny, fleeting glances, which seemed odd, but it didn't concern him, so Phillippe ignored it.

“So,” Cyrus continued. “Triston, your sister says you have information about the mountains.”

Triston gulped, looking uncomfortable. He glanced around the table, and his gaze lingered a bit on Julietta. Did she know what he was about to say? Perhaps she learned some information from him on their way here? But then she gave him a reassuring nod, and he started.

“When I was eight years old, my parents...my father, really, heard there was a place, almost like a portal, but not—where my magic could be restored. Some kind of mythical mountain, said to be the last place the Gods resided. Full of trials and tribulations, only the most cunning and deserving could ever reach it. Obviously, we didn't make it. My parents were lost, and I was nearly killed as well. That's really all I know. There could be some record of it in our libraries, but I haven't had any desire to find out. I honestly thought it was nothing but a myth.”

“It's hardly a myth,” Renya said, looking around at the table. “Agatha, Libera and I think it's a real place. We've spent some time in the library researching it, and there are records of such a sacred place across all the kingdoms and realms. The only thing that is missing seems to be the exact location—which you might be in possession of.”

Triston frowned. Phillippe couldn't tell what was going on, but whatever Triston was thinking, he didn't like the idea of the mountain.

But Phillippe didn't care. He just wanted to get outside. “Triston, just go to the Tidal Kingdom and get the information. Enough is enough. I'm tired of standing in one place with no directive.”

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