The Dark Fairy King
Chapter 54: Council Meeting of Secrets

Chapter 54: Council Meeting of Secrets

We were still in the dining room as I finished my last boiled lizard egg.

Juniper sat on my shoulder, clearly content after her meal of snakes and poison apples.

"So..." Devran began, leaning back lazily. "We have me, representing the Dark Fairies, and crazy pants here, representing the Light Fairies." He shot a glance at Lumera.

"Hey!" Lumera protested. "I am not crazy."

"Sure," he said, brushing her off. "Whatever helps you sleep at night." He grinned.

"You rude, emo Dark Fairy—" Lumera lunged, but Scarlette quickly pulled her back.

"See?" Devran teased smugly. "Crazy."

I sighed.

"Where is the Love Fairy Elder?" he asked, switching gears. "Isn’t there supposed to be a Fairy Elder representing each Fairy type?"

"You mean Fat Anaconda?" Lumera asked innocently.

Scarlette chuckled.

"Are you sure that’s her name?" Devran asked, skeptical.

"Faragonda," I sighed.

Devran smirked. "Yeah, where is she? Seems like this council’s missing a piece."

Before Scarlette or I could answer, Lumera blurted, "She died."

I closed my eyes, already exhausted.

So much for secrecy.

Devran’s grin widened as he studied our silence. "Well... is that permanent, or just one of those temporary deaths?"

"It’s complicated," I muttered.

"Her death, or her replacement?" he pressed.

Scarlette stepped in, her voice firm. "Council-only discussion."

"So we’re keeping secrets now?" Devran drawled, clearly enjoying himself. "Fascinating, Your Majesties."

"I don’t have any secrets," Lumera said brightly. "I speak only the truth."

I buried my face in my palm. Of course.

"Really?" Devran chuckled. "Seems easy to speak so freely when your mind’s already cracked."

"I did not appreciate that," Lumera growled, light sparking dangerously in her fists.

"Lumera!" Scarlette barked. "Breathe. Stand down."

The light flickered and dimmed as Lumera exhaled, her shoulders tense.

"Ticking time bomb in the palace," Devran shrugged. "Still don’t get why you were made the Light Fairy Elder. What happened to Clarice, anyway?"

"My sister Clarice died too," Lumera said quietly, her voice hardening. "Murdered by Faragonda."

Devran’s grin faltered, his eyes flicking to Lumera’s.

"Clarice was your sister?" he asked, his voice quieter now, the humour draining from his tone.

There was a brief, uncomfortable silence.

Lumera nodded, tears welling in her eyes.

"Just like your brother, Devyn," I added softly.

Devran stiffened. The weight of it—sibling to sibling—hit him.

His bravado slipped.

A flicker of regret crossed his face—regret that maybe, just maybe, he could have done something.

He stared at the table, then finally muttered, "Still want to act coy now?" I asked gently.

Devran sank into his chair, silent.

"Look," Scarlette continued, her tone softening. "We need to learn to work together."

"Or maybe we start sharing secrets—like why you’re hoarding Midnight Orchids in your cart," I pressed.

Devran’s jaw tightened. "Fine. I get it. Maybe I’m a Dark Fairy selling banned goods, but if there’s one thing you can trust—it’s my thirst for vengeance for my brother’s death."

"So you do care," I remarked.

Devran didn’t answer.

His silence said more than a thousand words.

"The Anti-Magic Mages..." I began.

"Faragonda was one of them," Scarlette added. "They’ve infiltrated the palace. They’re after control of the council."

"Which is why we had to reach you both first," I said. "Before they did."

"If they get control," Scarlette warned, "they won’t just dismantle the council. They’ll come for the entire magical system. No fairies. No spells. No enchanted realms. Nothing."

Devran’s expression darkened, his earlier cockiness buried under something else now—anger, maybe even fear.

"What about Faragonda’s replacement?" Lumera asked. "Do we name someone?"

"No. We keep quiet that she’s dead," I answered. "It keeps the Love Fairies compliant. More importantly, it won’t trigger the Anti-Magic Mages just yet."

"But what if they’re expecting a reply from Faragonda?" Devran asked, his brows knitting. "Is someone handling that?"

Scarlette and I exchanged awkward glances.

"Which is exactly why we need to work together," I said quickly.

Scarlette leaned forward. "Tell us—what do you know about the Anti-Magic Mages?"

I added, "And why the Midnight Orchids, Devran?"

"And why the swords?" Lumera chimed in, crossing her arms. "I thought Dark Fairies don’t carry weapons—you have magic."

Devran faced all three of us, narrowing his eyes.

"No answers for free," he smirked.

Juniper stirred on my shoulder, growling at him.

Devran raised his hands in surrender. "Fine! I’ll speak."

Scarlette and I grinned.

Devran sighed deeply, leaning his elbows on the table.

"Where do I even start?"

"Start with what you know about the Anti-Magic Mages," I replied.

"It all began with the prophecy," he started. "A scroll written by a Dark Fairy scholar from a distant land."

He paused.

"I heard it was found in the middle of a forest, outside the edge of the United Fairy Kingdom by Dark Fairies who wandered too far," he continued.

"Then what?" Lumera asked, curious.

"Then it disappeared," he added.

Of course it disappeared—I had confiscated it and hidden it in my library.

Scarlette gave me a knowing look of accusation.. The memory of sealing it away, deep beneath the palace, twisted in my gut.

The prophecy was a relic I hadn’t expected to attract so much attention. I hesitated. Should I tell them I had it? Should I admit I’d kept it all along?

Scarlette’s sharp glance flicked toward me—she caught it. But she didn’t press.

Not yet.

"Here’s the thing," Devran continued. "It sparked interest among the Fairy community when it vanished."

"What questions did they ask?" Scarlette interrupted.

’"What are the King and Queen hiding from us?"’ Devran mimicked sarcastically.

’"Oh no! I knew it! Mixing Dark Fairies and Love Fairies is unnatural!"’ He raised his voice in forced panic. "Unnatural!"

Lumera was laughing now, her shoulders relaxing.

"Then what?" Scarlette asked.

"With Love Fairies worried about extinction, Light Fairies worried about impurities, and Dark Fairies obsessed with forbidden knowledge, they banded together," he explained.

"Wait... how do you know so much?" Lumera asked.

"I am but a stall keeper. In a very noisy marketplace," Devran said flatly. "I see everything from my pushcart, moving from one place to another."

"What did the scroll say again?" Lumera asked.

"A Love Fairy will marry a Dark Fairy and give birth. Something born not of natural magic, but of strife, pain, and greatness.

A hybrid with a dual nature, great power, walking the line of Light and Dark.

He will be a force of change, a harbinger of doom, a destroyer, a venomous spider in the cosmos, and a threat to all who wouldn’t bend to his will," Scarlette recited.

"Wait... you’ve seen it?" Devran asked.

"I am aware," Scarlette replied smoothly. "They’ve come after us before with their theories."

"I’m sure they did. Even after the scroll disappeared," Devran replied. "They are merciless. These extremists."

"But if they’re just extremists, how did they even get the broken wand tattoo and start calling themselves the Anti-Magic Mages?" I asked.

Devran’s voice lowered. "Now I’m getting to the juicy part."

"A human entered this world. I don’t know how he did it, but he came," Devran explained. "He showed them all sorts of unnatural magic made from what they called chemicals and spells made from a thing they called science."

Scarlette and I exchanged a look—one we had come to know well. Quiet dread.

"What’s his name? Where is he?" Scarlette asked quickly.

"He’s the one leading the cult. The group of extremists. They are everywhere," Devran said. "His name is Nathaniel."

The weight of the name hit the table like a stone.

Nathaniel.

It wasn’t just a name—it was a problem that had slipped through the cracks for far too long.

Silence wrapped around us, but at least we were finally getting answers.

"I normally wouldn’t divulge so much," Devran continued. "I thought they were a joke when they first approached me years ago. But these extremists actually got to my brother. I had so much I wanted to say to him, but now I can’t."

Devran looked down at the floor, his voice trailing off.

Lumera gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Then let’s work together, so our siblings’ deaths won’t be in vain."

Suddenly, a sharp rap echoed against the window.

A raven, black as ink, perched there—its eyes glinting with unnerving intelligence. Clutched in its beak was a sealed letter, bound in dark parchment.

I approached slowly, peeling the letter from its beak.

The wax stamp.

A broken wand.

The same symbol etched into the Anti-Magic Mages’ skin.

Was this... from Nathaniel?

Scarlette stepped closer. "Ver... what is it?"

I hesitated.

For a brief second, I almost said something else. I almost confessed I still had the scroll.

But not yet.

I slipped the letter into my coat.

"Let’s go. We’ll read it together in the council chamber."

Juniper hopped off and wandered away, like she always did. Oh well. You can’t put a leash on a Kitsune anyway.

Lumera and Devran fell silent, their earlier banter forgotten.

Scarlette’s brows furrowed. "Was it from him?"

I gave a tight nod. "Nathaniel."

The weight of the name lingered in the room like a curse.

Whatever this letter said...

It wasn’t going to be good.