[7]

The large meeting room table was nearly filled with papers, all four brothers silently gritting their teeth as the two princes from neighboring kingdoms and their head knights argued with each other, and with the Solstice Kingdoms head Knight, and of course the leader of the adventurers guild, the wife of Prince Roland. The door opened silently, the bickering men falling silent as River entered, a map held under his arm. His hair was down, only two thin braids pulled back to keep his hair from falling in his face, the head chain worn as his only jewelry. "His Grace, Duke Vida," A woman announced, then she hurried to leave the room, doors shutting behind her. "Apologies, Your Majesty," He gave a small bow, a soft smile on his face. "But i have come baring the map i had mentioned, the one i created of the monster infested forest," All four brothers stood to greet him, Geordo took the map from him, fingers brushing the back of his hands. "Thank you, River, your expertise and experience with the forest will prove a great deal of help," Philo said as Geordo laid out the map, He then turned to the table. "Prince Palace of the Peace Kingdom, Prince Falcon of the Mountain Kingdom, this is Duke River Vida, he will be lending us his knowledge of the Monster infested Forest," River bowed as he told them it was an honor to meet them, Geordo held in a deep growl as he spotted the poorly hidden smirk the Falco Prince wore. "Now, the Peace Kingdom and the Mountain Kingdom have been seeing an increase in monsters inside their forests, while few are normal to see, these numbers are roughly eight times the amount, their land borders the forest here, and here, what can you teel us about this section?" He asked after placing stone markers onto the map, River hummed as he thought.

"Ah, the weather is falling to cooler temperatures, the season before the winter, i have a good idea as to what could be causing the monsters to flee... and their isn't much we can do," He said as he placed a stone on a body of water, a small frown on his face. "This body of water, it is saltwater, nearly land locked but still has a small river to attached it to the sea," He said as he drug his finger along the river, he pointed at the body of water again. "Breeding season for the Kelpie that live here, it happens every forty years, according to the records of monster attacks on the village i used to live near, the males show off for the females by how long they can last outside the water killing things, and providing the largest meal as a mating gift, so weaker monsters tend to run, and if this is in act what is happening then you can only wait until mating season is over," Philo sighed, but Prince Palace slammed his fists down. "Bull! everything has it's weakness, we cannot keep fighting off monsters, they are destroying our fields!" Falcon huffed, his arms crossed. "How long can we expect this to last?" River glanced at the brothers, then faced them again. "If it is the Kelpie breeding that has caused this, then we should expect one additional turn, a total of a fortnight, you cannot kill the Kelpie, we could try but we will fail," He said before taking a seat, Philo nodded his head as he gestured for the head knight to take notes. "We, the Kingdom of Solstice, shall send aid to the Kingdoms of Peace and Mountains, deterrent potions, shield runes to replace ones you have lost to keep your fields protected, and a few men we can spare, just until the end of the Kelpie breeding, we will also have some of our most experienced adventurers to monitor them to keep us updated on the timeline,"

Prince Falcon stopped just in the doorway, turning back to run his gaze over River. "You, join my harem, become one of my mates and i will give you all that you desire, my heir would be strong and gorgeous if you were to birth him," He said with a smirk, confidant that he would swoon. River kept a cool head, turning to give the man a slight bow. "Thank you, your highness, but i have all i want, and i do not wish to be one of many jewels in your treasury," The Prince look shocked, River carefully scrolled across a piece of paper the directions needed to find the Kelpie loch, and how to avoid being their prey. "How dare you, you little-" he had began to step forward, feathered wings becoming ruffled as he had a snarl on his face. A deep growl made him freeze, his Knight hurried to pull him out of the room as smoke fell from Geordo's slightly opened mouth. River felt a wave of heat wash over him, eyes widening slightly as he staired at the mans strong back that had two leathery black wings protruding out of it, torn fabric surrounding the base of them. He shifted in his seat as he hurried to finish his directions, an uncomfortable warmth settling in his belly as the smell of arousal filled the room to his embarrassment. "I- I must be going now," He said before rushing past the man and out of the door, face flushed as he practically sprinted down the hall to the room reserved for him. "Damn, Geordo had him sopping, most would not find such aggression attractive, but he has spent most his life around monsters," Roland shrugged his shoulders, Theodor silently placed a rag over the wet spot left in the seat cushion that River had sat on. "Well, Mer do have a heat, and he has never, as far as we know, never had one or felt lustful, Geordo may have just triggered it," He said calmly, Philo slapped a hand to his face with an exasperated sigh. "Geordo, you and your jealousy, the poor man has to deal with his first heat and your relationship hasn't been set in stone,"