The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)-Chapter 682: As always, you never know where the ball will roll

A beautifully crafted green gem. A deep, rich color that immediately reminded anyone of the vibrant, lush forest. Gentle mana surrounded it carefully like a cradle, giving out a soft, green glow that shone upon the velvet line of the box.

And the moment my eyes laid on it, my heart beat so fast I thought I would get a heart attack.

"Sweetheart?"

Natha’s voice snapped me out of my daze, and only then did I realize I was breathing heavily.

"Amarein..." I took a sharp breath. "I think we need to call Amarein."

I closed the box again, still feeling my heart beating fast. While Natha went out to contact the druid tribe, I hugged my babies to try and calm down. Jade even stroked my back, even though he was very confused about my state.

Honestly, I was confused too. This physical reaction was actually out of my will--not because of shock or anxiety. It was like I had just ingested energy drinks with a high dose of caffeine.

Whether it was because of the children’s power, or because I had closed the box again, my heart gradually returned to its steady beat, and I no longer felt like I would collapse anytime soon. When Amarein finally arrived in the afternoon, I was calm enough to face the box again.

"Valen? Is there something wrong?" she grasped my face and looked at me up and down immediately, bypassing all greetings. "You said it was emergenc--"

Instead of answering, I stepped back and opened the box, showing the content to her.

Her eyes widened, shaking, unblinking. She couldn’t speak for a full minute and even after that, she stuttered. "T-This..."

"It was inside this box all this time," I told her.

She clasped her mouth and clutched her chest in response. "Mother..."

Natha frowned and asked carefully. "What is this, sweetheart?"

Ever since opening it the first time, I hadn’t looked at it again. I was busy calming my increasing heart rate and Natha had no heart to ask me about it, so until Amarein came, we hadn’t talked about it. Honestly, even if he asked, I wouldn’t be able to give any certain answer.

Amarein’s reaction, however, gave me certainty. She even answered Natha’s question for us.

"It’s the Heart of the Forest."

* * *

The Heart of the Forest.

It was something that the druid had been looking for ever since the kingdom fell. It was the root of the kingdom, and its disappearance was the reason why the druid did not establish a new kingdom despite the tribe members still existing.

It was the symbol of the druid race itself. If the kingdom was a living being, then the Heart of the Forest was the mana core.

That was why, I had been telling Tsalinade to locate the Heart of the Forest. I had no knowledge of this gem besides the basic one that everyone knew, but even then, I knew how important this gem was to the druids. Even if I had no intention of building a new kingdom, this gem should never fall into the hands of another race.

But I never thought it would be kept inside a puzzle box.

"You’re certain, right?" I asked once more, just to make sure.

"I’m certain," Amarein nodded. "I had seen it before. Try holding it in your hand."

I was rather reluctant, remembering my body’s initial reaction to this gem. But in the end, the curiosity got the best of me--as always. Carefully, I scoop the quail egg-sized gem shaped like an oval seed, letting it roll on my palm.

Fortunately, my heart did not act like it was drowned in caffeine this time. Perhaps that was a one-time thing? Rather...it felt comfortable. It felt...right. The gentle mana circling inside the gem and surrounding it flew toward me, warm and soothing.

"Oh..." this reminded me of the feeling I got when I awakened Alveitya’s true form--or rather...when I awakened my druid bloodline. "This is...what should we do with this, Auntie?"

"Valen," Amarein took a deep breath and folded my hands over the gem. "I know you don’t like this kind of thing, but you are the heir to the throne."

I couldn’t help but swallow. Yeah, like it or not, I was the direct descendant of the royal family. Even if I didn’t want to be a prince--much less the king--I could not deny the privilege I received because of the blood running through my veins, including the vast mana and thick magic that helped me survive many situations.

"The Heart of the Forest should only be held by the Sil Seahl," Amarein continued. She glanced at the portable bassinet where my son was fast asleep. "Including your son."

My breath stuttered slightly. Ah...the vision was coming back to me. Could I...could I take back the occupied palace with this, I wonder? Could I give my son the comfortable living place he deserved with this?

"You don’t have to think of it as your responsibility to build the kingdom," Amarein shook her head. "Just...hold on to it well as your rightful seal or authority, okay?"

I took another deep breath before nodding. "Okay," after exhaling slowly, I asked with caution. "Are you...going to tell the others?"

"Not if you don’t want to," she said. "But...I do hope you’ll let me tell the Chiefs, at the very least. The other druids don’t have to know, but the Chiefs need this to strengthen our bond even more."

"Yeah..." I chewed the inside of my cheek in contemplation. "Yeah, I guess so. Okay."

"Thank you," Amarein smiled and took a look at the gem again. Her lips stretched wider and her eyes were sparkling with unshed tears. "Oh..."

If even Amarein had this kind of reaction, I could imagine the kind of tears the grandmas and grandpas would have. Yeah...I would feel guilty if I didn’t let them know. I had already told them that I would share the treasure that I got anyway.

After admiring the gem for a few minutes more, Amarein stood up. "Alright. I better return quickly and gather the Chiefs."

"Wait--"

To our surprise, Natha held her back. He had been quiet during our conversation, but now he had this contemplative look on his face. As if he had been thinking hard about something.

"Yes, Lord Natha?"

"This Heart of the Forest," he glanced at the gem on my palm. "Does it hold the same status as the Drop of the Sun?"

Amarein tilted her head slightly. "Yes, of course. It holds the same status as the Drop of the Sun and the Veil of the Night."

I blinked repeatedly at the sudden mention of these things. Just like the Heart of the Forest, the Drop of the Sun and the Veil of the Night were the core of the elves and the drows. The Drop of the Sun was held by the High Saintess of the elves, who were residing at the tallest mountain of the elvendom. The Veil of the Night, conversely, was placed in the depth of the deepest underground city, locked by several chains while the keys were held by the mayors of each city.

But why did Natha suddenly ask about that?

"If Valen holds onto that, could he be considered the representative of the Realm of Nature?"

Amarein narrowed her eyes. "If the holder of the other two agree, yes."

"Will they?"

What was he on about? I looked at Natha in confusion, but Amarein looked like she caught onto something. "How many keys do you have?"

"Six. I’ll get the last one right away if you can convince them."

"What about the human side?"

"Valen almost completes the Goddess Tears--and they have the Hero."

"I see," Amarein nodded.

I don’t! What the hell were they talking about? I felt like someone arriving at the last minute in a class, and everyone had been discussing a topic I couldn’t follow!

"Very well. I will convince them," Amarein said. "How much time do we have?"

"It’ll be best if you can do it under six."

Amarein exhaled heavily. "I’ll try. Well, then--I must fly."

She held my face and gave me a forehead kiss, before turning into a bird and shooting away like a wind. All I could do was blink in more confusion, and I turned toward Natha, feeling like I wanted to cry in frustration.

"What were you talking about?"

"I’m sorry, sweetheart. I have to go promptly," Natha gave me more confusion instead.

"No! Tell me first!" I frowned and gripped my hand around the Heart of the Forest. "And where are you going?!"

"I need to get the last key from Sloth," Natha smiled wryly.

"What? Didn’t you say you couldn’t have them until summer?"

"I’ll knock," Natha shrugged. "I thought it would be fine as long as I could have them before the summon, but it would be better to have them before we march to the Human Realm."

"Why?!" I wanted to shout, but I didn’t want to wake my children up, so I just hissed. "Tell me so I can understand!"

Only then did Natha pause--perhaps because I looked agitated. "Oh, I’m sorry, sweetheart," he held my face gently and stroked my cheeks. "I was too much in a hurry that I forgot you don’t know about this thing."

Phew...okay. So, it wasn’t intentional.

"What thing?" I asked, calmer this time.

"I’m thinking that we might be able to invoke the Old Covenant."

"The Old...what?"

He smiled helplessly at my ignorance. "The Old Covenant," he repeated. "It was the agreement between the representatives of the three realms made during the Primordial One’s Age, and was broken after the Great Disappearance."

"...and?"

"It’s an agreement of peace between the three races."

...Oh!