"Over the past five years, the men of Ridudia have randomly been transforming into wolves every full moon, and staying that way permanently after the twelfth moon. Some men started immediately after both spells were cast, while others were spared for a few years before beginning to change. Lars was one of the first to turn, while it didn't start for me until this past year."
Tolys listened closely as Eric described what the people of Coit knew about the strange spell that was affecting them all this time. It was now the following morning, and they had all regrouped in the pub to talk things over with Laura, Eric and their elder brother Lars. They had already shared how Arthur wasn't from their world, and how they were tracking this mysterious spell in the hopes of breaking it.
He briefly glanced up at the ceiling above them, wondering if Madeline had awoken yet. Reversing Francis's spell had knocked her unconscious, so he had to carry her in his arms back to the inn. Lovino was quick to determine that she merely needed to rest, and Tolys was hard-pressed to go sleep in his own bed after the eventful evening. All he wanted to do was to stay at her side, and be there for when she woke up.
"Was the spell age-based then?" Arthur asked, "It started with the older men at the start, then took others as time went on?"
"No, it definitely wasn't age-based," Laura answered, "The ages were scattered across the board, there was no rhyme or reason to who transformed first, who shifted later and who never got affected at all."
"You're wrong, Laura," Lars interrupted, "There was a trend."
"What was the trend?" Lovino pried, "What do you know?"
"When the civil war was declared in the South, the Dukes in the North supported the King," Lars narrated, "While our Duke was more than happy to ride for the King, the citizens of Ridudia ranged from loyal followers to uncaring bystanders. This land once belonged to Ixaidel long ago, and we still do a lot of trade in Acecaria, so loyalty to the King of Prathage can be a mixed bag. It was those of us who were still loyal to the King that succumbed first."
"The loyalists turned into wolves first?" Feliciano checked, "Can such a transformation spell really have such a specific range of targets?"
"All I know for sure is that those who were loyal to the King were turned first," Lars replied, "and those who didn't care for him never joined us."
"The view of the King started turning foul quickly when this started happening," Eric noted, "There has been an increase in men becoming wolves this past year, though. With the civil war resolving itself in the South, many were coming around to the idea of Prince Alfred regaining control in Prathage. That can't be a coincidence, can it?"
"Has there been nothing done to figure this out before now?" Arthur investigated, "Surely your Duke would've been told of this, and reported the situation to the Crown?"
"The Duke died early in the war, all three Northern dukes did," Tolys corrected, "Alfred took over as temporary leader of the duchies, even though he was always too busy fighting for his life in the South to pay any attention to the North. Without a new Duke in there as the intermediary, we never knew there was something happening here."
"So my family has been neglecting the North all these years?"
Everyone turned to see Madeline standing in the door, now awake and moving around.
"Your Highness, please come have a seat," Laura offered, "I can make you some tea and breakfast immediately."
"That is very kind, thank you," Madeline accepted, "Tolys, is it true what you just said? Alfred never designated anyone to help him rule the Northern duchies?"
"That is indeed what I said," Tolys confirmed, "We've already told Laura, Eric and Lars about Arthur's unusual presence in this realm, as well as about our endeavours to lift your eternal winter spell. Lars was just describing how the werewolf spell seemed to specifically affect those loyal to your father and your brother."
"Yes, I did hear that part before I revealed my presence," Madeline stated, "I can confirm that I felt such an influence when lifting the spell. I am more troubled by how Alfred has apparently done nothing to resolve this in the past five years, or at least put someone in place to help him lead the Northern duchies. On behalf of my brother, please allow me to apologize to the three of you, as representatives of Ridudia, for this horrendous negligence."
"On the contrary, Your Highness, perhaps all of Prathage should be thanking you," Laura responded as she brought Madeline a cup of tea, "Although we were inconvenienced by the endless winter, you might have saved the entire kingdom from becoming werewolves by casting your spell. You single-handedly prevented the civil war from destroying Prathage entirely. Now that you were able to lift both spells, the story of how you protected us should be what everyone speaks of."
"If only it were that easy," Madeline sighed, "There is much to be decided yet in Primgate."
"Why don't we move on to the discussion of the spell itself?" Arthur redirected, "Madeline, do you remember what happened before you fainted last night, and the French words you mumbled?"
"Yes, I still remember all of it," Madeline confirmed, "The spell allowed my mind to connect to the man who cast that spell, it was as if I could see his memories and thoughts."
"We heard you mutter 'Francis' before you fainted," Tolys recalled, "Is that his name?"
"Yes, the man we are looking for is named Francis Bonnefoy," Madeline revealed, "He is a powerful sorcerer in this realm, and was once banished from Prathage by my father, the King, while Alfred and I were infants. Francis has sworn to get vengeance on my family."
"How do you know this for sure?" Lars asked.
"There's no other way she could've known his last name," Arthur defended, "While I've been in this realm, I have mentioned Francis a few times in conversation, but never did I say that his human last name was Bonnefoy. Come to think of it, having France as a powerful sorcerer would explain why French is somehow a magical language."
"I still remember those French words I muttered, they're each connected to a vision," Madeline continued, "Vengeance was the first word, I've already elaborated on that. Next was 'duchesse volée', which translates to 'stolen duchess'. With these words, I saw Francis whisking a newborn child from a crib, many years ago."
"A stolen duchess, taken from a crib years ago?" Lovino repeated, "I don't recall any stories about long-missing duchesses in Prathage. Perhaps one from Ixaidel or Stulikya?"
"Perhaps it's tied to the next words," Arthur suggested, "The translation of 'fausse reine' is 'false queen'. Could it be that this stolen duchess was replaced with a fraud who has now taken a crown?"
"That would be hard to say," Madeline assessed, "The false queen I saw was sitting on a throne, she had brown hair and green eyes. Her hands were glowing around a sceptre, as if she was using magic."
"There's only one queen right now, Queen Erzsébet in Stulikya," Feliciano reminded, "Arthur, you said you recognized her name, as well as those of the King and Princesses, right?"
"Yes, that all lines up," Arthur agreed, "Francis must have had some hand in getting Erzsébet the crown. With the mysterious deaths of Katerina and Ivan that you've told me about, perhaps there is foul play to be investigated in Stulikya. Prince Ludwig is in Tark right now, as far as I know, perhaps we need his help. We should also ask the Ixaidellians about any missing duchesses."
"What was the next word?" Tolys moved on, "It sounded like 'catalyst', but that could have been misleading."
"You're correct, the word is almost the same in both languages," Madeline explained, "Francis had been annoyed at the slow pace of recent events, with nothing exciting happening in either Ixaidel or Stulikya. There was also the civil war simmering down in Prathage, and on the path to reconciliation. He pushed the limits of his magic to cast a spell, creating a catalyst that would make things happen in the three kingdoms."
"Do you know what the catalyst is?" Lovino asked, "Did you see if it's already having effects?"
"You should be asking me who, not what, the catalyst is," Madeline amended, "I just happen to be staring at the catalyst right now."
Tolys quickly followed her gaze across the room to where Arthur was sitting, shock forming on the man's face.
"I'm the catalyst?" Arthur recognized, "That's the spell Francis cast to bring me here?"
"After he cast the catalyst spell, Francis quickly realized that he would have to search the realm for whatever it brought here," Madeline carried on, "He tracked the spell to Inasdiff, where the otherworldly visitor had already been found by someone else first."
"Prince Ludwig and Kiku," Arthur caught on, "I was then welcomed as King Gilbert's honoured guest, which led to my introduction to Antonio and my journey here to Prathage."
"The spell had unintended side effects that Francis was not prepared for," Madeline continued, "If he had been the first to find you, perhaps you'd be helping him track me down to get rid of me, or to incite rebellion against Alfred and Antonio. Instead, you're here helping us break Francis's spells, and uncovering the misdeeds he has committed over the years."
"The butterfly effect, that's what we call it in my world," Arthur elaborated, "One single choice can change the course of all events thereafter. Feliciano did say that I am meant to solve problems and set things right for all three kingdoms, before the catalyst spell allows me to leave this realm. It remains to be seen whether I've been taking the right actions so far, but if I have been, then perhaps I was never meant to help Francis."
"There were only two more things I saw after that," Madeline digressed, "The first was a stone castle, at the side of a secluded lake. For some reason, the word 'Virside' means something, perhaps it's the name of the place."
"Virside is one of the Krizoris Lakes in north-eastern Ixaidel," Lars identified, "Eric, do we still have that old map of the north?"
"We sure do," Eric confirmed, "I can go get it."
"The last thing I saw was quite ominous," Madeline cringed as Eric left the room, "The vision is that of a frozen heart, stabbed by a dagger, surrounded in flames. Francis has seen this vision himself many times, and he has interpreted it as representing his fate. Considering that I have ice magic, and Alfred has fire magic, it's possible that we both have a part to play in how Francis will die."
"That is quite the vision," Lovino remarked, "Are you certain it means that specifically?"
"That's how Francis interprets it," Madeline disclaimed, "Ice magic and fire magic both have a role to play, although he's not sure where the dagger comes from. I hope that's not the case, I've already frozen a heart before and I'd rather not do it again."
As Madeline finished speaking, Tolys noticed how she glanced at the ground, trying to compose herself. It was clear that, even seven years later, her defensive action of freezing that courtier's heart still troubled her.
Before Tolys could ask her if she was alright, Eric marched back into the room with a map rolled up in his hands. He immediately brought it to the centre table and rolled it out, prompting Feliciano and Lovino to assist in placing their cups on the corners to keep it flat. Tolys left his seat at the bar to approach, standing beside Lars as they observed the map.
"Acecaria and Krizoris," Lovino described, "The two Ixaidellian duchies we need to travel through."
"Virside will be this lake here," Lars pointed out on the map, "You do have to circle around other lakes to get to it, no matter what direction you're coming from, and it can take about a day to fully circle each lake. Going all the way east past the lakes gets you into Stulikya, with Bueswood Forest surrounding the capital city of Tark."
"Looks like we should enter the lakes from Lomore," Tolys suggested, pointing to the village, "RIding straight east across Acecaria to the laketown."
"That is your best option, although you'll have to cross Lake Westsoll first," Lars judged, "Riding around the lake to get from Paidale to Drudale takes a full three days. However, there should still be a ferry that goes between the two laketowns on a regular basis."
"It's still there," Eric confirmed, "They added a second ship the other year, they can now cross the lake in both directions every day."
"That works perfectly then," Lars concluded, "I can guide your group as far as Paidale on the Prathage side of the lake, it will only take two days to do that part. From there, you can cross the lake to the Ixaidellian side, landing in Drudale. Five days or so of riding will get you to Lomore, then a few days to figure out where along Lake Virside you need to be."
"And what if we need to go to Tark after that?" Arthur inquired, "How long would that take?"
"Two days or so, depending where you start," Lars answered, "Once you're at the southeastern edge of Virside, you have easy access there to Bueswood, and it should only be a day or two to Tark."
"That's a long way to travel," Laura reminded, "Considering the busy night you all just had, I'd recommend you rest today, and wait until tomorrow to leave."
"I agree with Laura," Madeline decided, "We'll rest well here, before we ride out tomorrow. We also need to write to Alfred, and tell him everything that has happened here."