Fast forward nine hours.
The representatives of the three main races were already present in the nearby village. Seeing the strange phenomena that were the lightning bolts ceaselessly striking the ground within a diameter of 300 meters around the cocoon, they quickly gathered their forces and converged on the same spot.
The first to arrive were the Demihuman princesses. After that came the entire Barbarian tribe, led by the brother and sister duo Burak and Na'im respectively. They nodded towards the lone princesses, Burak's gaze lingering for just a moment too long on the younger Princess Inara.
As inconspicuous as Burak was trying to be, with his massive stature even the smallest movement was caught by almost everyone nearby, mainly Inara herself who ignored him altogether.
Princess Helena returned the greetings in her usual relaxed and composed manner, not reacting to Burak's some what rude behavior.
After that arrived the rest of the Demihumans being led by Elder Iya, along with the human tribes.
But seeing who was leading the human tribes, both the barbarians and the Demihumans had deep scowls and expressions of disbelief, especially the barbarians much more so than the demihumans.
All the tribes stood in a line next to one another, the distance between them showcasing how good their relations were to one another.
The Demihumans were to the right and the Barbarians next to them on the left. The humans were the furthest apart on the extreme left side. They also had the most people here, close to fifty.
While the majority of the individuals in the other two tribes were from the younger generation, the human side had several people from the older generation, not to mention the old man who was leading them.
The old man with the white beard was smiling affably as if he was on a picnic, enjoying the scenery around him.
"Hohoho, it has been a long time since I last came here. What tasteful air this place has," he said taking in a deep breath.
The barbarians who were closest to the humans all looked like they had eaten something extremely sour. Burak even took a step towards them but was stopped by his sister's glare.
Princess Inara noticed their strange interaction and leaned in closer towards Helena, "Who is that old man? I thought this was supposed to be a gathering for the younger generation only," she asked in a low voice.
Princess Helana chuckled, maintaining her smile, "You should really stop skipping grandmother's lectures, little sister. That man is 'Eurig the Viper'."
Princess Inara's eyes opened wide hearing the title. A title like this was given to someone only after they had done something notable. She peeked towards the old man once again who suddenly looked towards her and bowed lightly, startling her.
She looked away instantly.
"What is he doing here? Isn't he wanted by the current Barbarian chief??"
Princess Helena nodded, "Of course he is. He called for a truce and then poisoned and killed all the barbarians including the last chief that had gone to meet him out of goodwill. The previous chief was Burak and Na'im's father and the husband of the current chief so how could they not hold a grudge? Not to mention he was a vicious and vile character even before he did that."
"So...why is he here then? Is he not afraid of the barbarian's retaliation?"
"Of course he is. He was in hiding for over a decade, disappearing completely from even grandmother's radar. The only reason he came today is probably because of him," Princess Helena glanced towards the expressionless teenage boy standing behind Eurig.
"That boy is his last living relative. A great-grandson if I remember correctly. The barbarians have killed off everyone else by now in retaliation since they couldn't find him."
She lowered her voice enough so that only Princess Inara could hear her, "I actually thought he died too. Last I heard, the barbarians had burned that kid and his entire family alive. I don't understand how he even survived..."
The teenager in question turned towards them as if he could hear what they were saying. Both the princesses were caught off guard and nodded back awkwardly. The teenager stared in their direction for a few seconds before letting out a 'toothy' grin that sent chills down their spine.
He had no teeth to speak off. His gums were a color of dark green, colored in with ruptured blisters and boils making them look like rotting vegetables even from afar.
"W-What is wrong with him?!" Princess Inara quickly looked away, her face ashen.