Seeing Lady Tyra's behaviour, Drayce could guess that this shapeshifter was not lying. In fact, judging from the way Lady Tyra reacted, he could guess he was someone important to her, someone like family and not just a simple 'friend'.
Just like what she did with Seren, Lady Tyra also made sure that Aureus' body was clear of black magic as well.
She looked at Drayce with moist eyes, her gaze filled with gratitude towards the young king. "Thank you so much for saving him, Your Majesty."
Lady Tyra could not help but be thankful to Drayce. She had raised Aureus for the past twenty or so years, and he was like a real son to her. As much as she cared for Drayce, she cared for Aureus the same way.
Drayce didn't even know Aureus but he still chose to save him despite being suspicious of him.
"He claimed to have been saved by my mother in the past," Drayce said as an explanation.
Lady Tyra nodded. "Thank you for believing in him. His name is Aureus, a shapeshifter who has divine power in his bloodline. Queen Esther had saved him when he was young, and since then, he had been staying here in this kingdom," she told him vaguely, aware that Drayce was yet to recognize Aureus' other identity. For a while, she was tempted to tell Drayce the truth, but she hesitated because this wasn't her secret to tell--she should let Aureus make a decision about it.
Drayce frowned. "If he's someone on our side, how come you never introduced him to me? I would have recalled him if I had seen him or sensed his powers even once, but that is not the case."
"That only proves how powerful Queen Esther was, Your Majesty," she answered. "Your mother has put a powerful spell around Aureus to suppress his aura and his divine powers. Even his scent had been hidden. This was done in order for his existence to not be traced by anyone weaker than Queen Esther. It was to protect him from the ones who were after him."
"The ones who were after him?" Drayce questioned.
"Years back, your mother found the young shapeshifter in the forest outside of the capital city. From what she understood of the remnants of the battle, the shapeshifter's mother was killed by those people and they were after Aureus too. Those people seemed to be powerful practitioners of black magic. After finding out about his situation, Her Majesty had reached out to save the orphaned Aureus and took him in to protect him."
Drayce thought for a bit. "From what Aureus said, the robed figures wanted to abduct him as well when he arrived to save Seren. Chances are high that the ones who killed his mother and those who targeted my wife are the same people, or at least belong to the same group," Drayce concluded.
"That can be the case. Her Majesty Queen Seren has strong powers inside her that these mysterious people might be coveting, and it is the same with Aureus. From what Queen Esther told me, compared to the other Divine Eagles she had met before, Aureus was the one with the purest bloodline. That meant that his powers are unparalleled in his generation. It would not be a surprise if they are after Aureus for his divine powers."
Drayce felt that made complete sense. With this newfound information, he was able to at least determine the goal of the enemies. "Once he and Seren are awake, we can get to know more details. If those hooded figures are truly the same people, then both my wife and this shapeshifter will be in constant danger unless we get rid of those people."
"Indeed, Your Majesty. It would be better if we get rid of them before they try something else again," Lady Tyra added.
Drayce had a look of deep thought. Lady Tyra didn't disturb him and patiently waited for him to organize his thoughts.
"Where does he live?" Drayce asked. "I think it should be best if he stays inside the royal palace for now."
Lady Tyra paused for a moment as she could not lie to the King upfront and then answered, "He lives within the capital, Your Majesty. As he is of the feathered race, he puts a lot of value on his personal freedom and prefers to be on the move."
Drayce looked at Aureus for a few moments as if he was thinking about something while Lady Tyra's heart started to feel anxious. Drayce was someone smart. Though he looked calm, there was always something going on in his mind. The old woman was sure Drayce would find out about Aureus' other identity--the only question was how long it would take.
The young king walked towards the bed with his gaze pinned on the unconscious man with golden hair. He reached out his hand and moved the cape decorated with small feather-like ornaments on it that were covering his shoulder from the base of his neck to a little below his shoulder. Just as Drayce moved those puffs of feathers away, he got the answer to the question that lingered in his mind after he confirmed his identity from Lady Tyra.
Aureus was wearing a small red pendant around his neck, the very same one he had given to his precious eagle, Dusk, and along with that, there was a purple stone which Seren had given to him back in Abetha.
Lady Tyra felt like her breath stuck in her chest as she understood Drayce finally found out the truth.
"Your Majesty, I can explain..."
Drayce looked at her with an unfathomable gaze.
"Do not tell him," was what Drayce said and turned to leave. "You can stay by his side."
Lady Tyra didn't know what to say as she saw the King leaving. She didn't know what would happen now. Would he blame them for deceiving him for so many years? What would happen to Aureus?
Would the man Aureus had considered to be his younger brother ask him to leave?
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Reader Peaches, thank you for the gift and for always supporting the novel. ^_^