Arthur despised waking up early in the morning. But that didn't mean he hated mornings.

The splendid aspect about mornings was the fact that no one actually enjoyed waking up early, except the Aurelians, of course. Because of that, dawn was the perfect moment to take a brisk walk around the streets. Exteriors of homes were spick and span. Cool daybreak air glistened your cheeks. Everyone was still sound asleep so every corner in Albion was pin-drop silent.

A stroll alone in this very moment was an experience Octavia enjoyed. She relished being alone. Yet, it didn't make her feel the least bit lonely. She knew quiet buildings had snoring occupants. She knew unmoving trees had birds nestled on them. She was never alone. Sometimes, she wondered whether anyone understood how she perceived loneliness.

At this thought, Arthur wondered where Octavia was. The last time their gazes met was right after she had a small tantrum with Antony. She was annoyed about something. Arthur knew. If she had a problem, she was definitely not one to immediately seek help and whine about it. That was her cousin, Nero. He found Octavia the type that would keep a straight face to fool you into thinking that she was completely fine, when she was absolutely not. So when she hurled her book at Antony with an infuriated look, Arthur's stomach knotted. She had a problem. And it was grim.

"Would you happen to know where my niece is?" Atia asked when she reached the final step of the staircase. She looked back to the King who was deep in thought, her sword clanking against the stone rail in the process. She gripped it away, glaring.

"I was wondering about the same thing…" Arthur sputtered after a long pause. When he reached the final step, he noticed Atia staring at him with an inquisitive look. "Atia?"

"Ah," she uttered quietly and averted her eyes. She then opened her mouth, as though to question something before deciding to purse her lips instead.

"Is something the-"

"So the Grand Library," she cut in as a polite hand gestured outwards. "Where is it, sir, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Ah! Right," Arthur stammered shamefully. He was supposed to lead her towards it and he totally forgot about it for a moment. He rushed to make his way and nodded his head apologetically towards the blonde woman. "I am sorry. I had something bothering me in my mind,"

"Or rather someone…" Atia whispered to herself.

"Pardon?"

"A lovely place here, isn't it?" she spoke in turn again. She snickered at herself. This young King might think that she was deaf but she couldn't care less. "Albion is so beautiful. If I was banished from the empire, I know where to go now,"

Arthur gave a courteous chuckle. "Thank you, Atia. Still, there is so much more to improve in Albion. So, I hope this alliance will benefit in that issue,"

"Certainly," she said as she waited for Arthur to open the doors to the Grand Library. She looked around to gush at the architecture in awe. She certainly did not expect this book-full room to have vines and flowers of all colours to sprout from every corner. They weren't on the lowest floor of the building. So, she was utterly impressed to imagine how much soil they brought to keep the little gardens in the library alive. Astonished, she sighed. "I am definitely considering banishing myself and coming here,"

Arthur gave a hefty laugh again. They entered to find a set of tables filled with scrolls, books and parchment. Ink spilled on the chair. Atia tried to hide a frown. "Oh dear," she said.

"Forgive me," the brunet voiced in bewilderment. "It seems that someone has been very inconsiderate. What a mess,"

Atia nodded as she ambled around the shelves to see if anyone else was in the library. Reading each and every title, Arthur studied the massacre of records and manuscripts. They were compilations of myths and fairy tales- all done by either anonymous writers or famous theorists. He blinked towards the abundant amount of torn paper. Scraps after scraps with cursive writing were spread across the vanity. Suddenly, a loud gasp alerted Arthur.

He quickly took out his sword and ran to Atia. "What's wrong?" he yelled and halted in front her. She had her hands covering her mouth in a haste. Arthur looked in her line of vision to find Octavia in a pile of scrolls. "Octavia!"

She jerked awake. Blue eyes squinted at the blurred figures. Slowly rubbing her eyes, she curled herself into a ball when she discovered a tower of scrolls on top of her.

Atia rushed towards her. "Are you alright?" she swiftly queried and placed her hands on her niece's shoulders. "Are you hurt? What happened?"

"What do you mean?" Octavia grumbled, softly pushing Atia away. She was way too close. "I… I fell asleep in the library, of course," She shrugged and went back to studying the scrolls. Behind them, the silhouette of the King shifted back to the tables. Atia was speechless for a moment. This was definitely her niece. No, this was definitely her youngest sister's daughter.

Scolding wouldn't do any good on this young blonde, Atia thought. She sat down with a thump and ran through the scrolls intriguingly. "Nero and I checked on the villages near the borders of this kingdom yesterday," she started. Octavia stopped reading to look up with fatigued eyes. "Quite a lot of them mentioned about the Black Being. Many told stories about them. So I asked them why they didn't report it to anyone and they said that it was normal to find such beings," Octavia tilted her head in confusion. "Is it weird?"

"No," Octavia mumbled. "I believe Albion is very used to mythical beings and strange forces such as witches and elves. So they may have found it normal. What is weird is that they're alive, don't you think?"

"Mm," Atia responded. "Well, they said that to get to the East side of the Divine Empire, it's better to use Dean Forest as a shortcut,"

"Why East?"

"New port and trading market,"

"Uh huh,"

"Anyway," Atia exhaled and scrunched her brows. For that split second, wrinkles formed to reveal her withering youth. "It takes a day to pass through the forest before reaching the borders of the empire's territory. But with horses, the duration can be halved, they said. When we asked the merchants and traders, almost all of them said to go in the day. T'said that you won't 'counter the creature unless it's night time,"

Octavia's eyes widened, gripping on to the scrolls. "I see," she said. Atia sighed.

"Alright," she said and stood up. "I have to go check on more people. Need to get to the bottom of this fast. I have to say that Nero may consistently be on my nerves but his looks help with the merchants, especially the ladies," She raised her brows with a smirk before offering a hand. Octavia shook her head silently. She wanted to stay put. "Get some rest, dear. There's a dinner tonight, did Antony tell you?" Her niece nodded and continued to read in the dark.

With a mute wave of goodbye, she left, having a small chat with Arthur in the process. "Good luck," Arthur said as he neatly stacked the scrolls and books at one side of the table. Pleased, he smiled when there was nothing but the ink left to be cleaned up. Jogging to the anonymous section of the library, a light giggle escaped him. "Did a mess, didn't you, Oc-"

To his pleasant surprise, a toppled Octavia in a flood of scrolls was what he saw. A laugh was in dire need to escape him but he held it in with watering eyes and shaking cheeks. How hopeless, he thought. Approaching her quietly, he noticed a candlelight at one corner that has died out a long while ago. 'She had been here the whole night.'

His knees bent into a crouch and saw the blonde in deep sleep. "If you need help," he whispered. With an instant heave, he lifted the young woman up with no effort. He mouthed in awe at how light she was. "You can just ask,"

A light whine was her only response.