Princess Iba Algi - We Saved Cute Boy From The Lich

"We saved Cute Boy from the lich!" said Nin.

"Hooray!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"And the werewolf figured it out!" said Nin.

"The werewolf is amazing!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"I think so too!" agreed Nin.

Dozens of ghostly children cheered for the amazing werewolf.

"Who do we save now, Iba Algi?" asked Harlecuin Sols.

"Now you are going to save time for hot chocolate and stories," said Madame Misone.

The enormous woman's sudden manifestation caused delight.

"I love hot chocolate and stories!" said Nin.

Everyone returned to Old Keep Palace. Imojean returned Iba Algi's body to her astral self. Everyone screamed about how handsome he was. Old Keep Palace was big, spooky, and full of wild shadows. Madame Misone served hot chocolate. Monsieur Misone, who was even bigger than his wife, told stories with a hypnotic baritone that made all the little ghosts scream at the scary parts.

The more scary parts, the better. 

Then the little ghosts camped out in Old Keep Palace's central courtyard. Lying on their backs, they stared up at the sky with big, blinking eyes. Most of the children had been too timid to appear while Hell King Hades was present, but now they all had different estimates for how tall the King of Hell stood. Iba Algi refused to correct anyone, saying only that Hell King Hades was tall.

A shooting star streaked across the sky.

"What does it mean, Iba Algi?" asked Harlecuin Sols.

"It means everyone should make a wish," said Iba Algi.

"I wish for my big brother to become a hero," said Nin.

"You silly girl," said Iba Algi. "You already made him a hero."

"You silly girl," said Harlecuin Sols. "You can do your wish over."

"I want to be extra sure," said Nin.

"What should we do tomorrow?" asked Iba Algi.

"I think we should find the God of War!" said Nin.

"I think so too!" said Harlecuin Sols. "We should give Iba Algi's future husband another hint!"

All the children thought that sounded like a fantastic idea.

"Oh my gosh!" said Iba Algi. "Should we really give my future husband another hint?"

The shadow of Madame Misone blotted out the stars.

"You stay right there, young lady," the behemoth instructed. "You can give your future husband another hint after everyone has had a good night's rest."

"Yes, Madame Misone," agreed Iba Algi meekly.

She woke up in the morning wrapped in two warm blankets. The air smelled sweet. In fact, it tasted like raspberries and syrup and… 

"Waffles!" cried Iba Algi.

Her mother had set up a waffle cart nearby. It had a waffle iron and plenty of cupboards for waffle ingredients like sugar, and butter, and more sugar, and raspberries, and sugar. There was a round table by the cart. Iba Algi's father was seated at the table next to Snowblind Tigress. Abigail's father was a short jolly round man with a cute mustache and small beard. 

Second Consort Chen was even shorter. Apart from her eyes, which were snow white, Snowblind Tigress had unremarkable features. If she were dressed in plainer clothes, she could have been mistaken for a seamstress, fortune teller, or landscaping consultant. Like Renjie, Snowblind Tigress's mother was from Warakirikobu. Unlike Renjie, her father was Gargogryeon but also something else.

Exactly what else was difficult for even Iba Algi to say. 

Before becoming Second Consort Chen, Snowblind Tigress lived with the Frost Giant Clan on the northern slopes of the Jormu Mountains. Old Keep was much more comfortable.

"Oh my gosh!" said Iba Algi. "Is Snowblind Tigress going to eat waffles with us?"

"Yes," said Snowblind Tigress. "Is this naughty girl going to tell me what she's up to?"

"Oh my gosh!" said Iba Algi. "If I do that, then I think it would be boring."

"I think so too!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"But I would kind of like to know what Iba Algi is up to, too," said Nin.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," Snowblind Tigress said to Harlecuin Sols. "Good morning, Nin. Will you also be eating waffles?"

"Of course!" said Harlecuin Sols. "Madame Misone is making them now!"

Just like that, more than a dozen ghostly tables appeared around the courtyard.

"I had a feeling," said Snowblind Tigress. "It was a little shiver."

"I didn't know you could get cold," said Iba Algi.

"It wasn't a cold shiver," said Snowblind Tigress. "It was an excited shiver. Something big happened in the mountains. I'm very connected to the mountains, you know."

"I do know!" said Iba Algi. "You're even more connected to the glaciers."

"I am," agreed Snowblind Tigress. "And to the cold wind that blows over them. It was the cold wind that gave me the feeling."

"The excited shiver?" asked Harlecuin Sols.

"Precisely that, Your Majesty," said Snowblind Tigress. "Who, other than me, could have caused such a stir so high in the mountains? Then I realized there was only one person."

"Is it Iba Algi?" asked Nin eagerly.

"It is," said Snowblind Tigress.

Nin proceeded to relate, in detail, what Iba Algi had done in the mountains.

"After three and a half thousand years," said Snowblind Tigress, "that wretch Maginobilius has finally stopped studying his own death."

"We had to stop him," said Nin. "He would have killed Cute Boy!"

"In a way that prevented him from becoming a ghost!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"I understand," said Snowblind Tigress. "You did the right thing for the right reason."

"Hooray!"

"Can I hold Countess Niwa for a while?" asked Snowblind Tigress.

"Promise not to get syrup on her!" said Nin.

The second most lethal person in the world promised not to get syrup on Countess Niwa. Nin unfastened the Countess from her belt and handed her to the Second Consort. As she let go, the doll stopped being a ghost and became a solid object in the consort's hands. Snowblind Tigress held the doll tenderly for several moments, then handed her back. As soon as Countess Niwa left the consort's hands, she became insubstantial once more.

"Passing anything across the astral veil is a remarkable talent," said Snowblind Tigress.

"Well…," said Nin bashfully, "I can only do it with Countess Niwa."

"That doesn't make it any less remarkable, Nin," said Iba Algi.

"Nin is amazing!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"Regarding the other cute boy," said Snowblind Tigress.

"My future husband?" asked Iba Algi.

"Him," agreed Snowblind Tigress. "What's your plan?"

"We're going to give him another hint!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"There was some excitement in the palace last night," said Snowblind Tigress. "It wasn't as exciting as summoning Hell King Hades to destroy one of First Qianqiu Emperor's most malignant minions. As local excitement goes, however, it was kind of a big deal. You know what your future husband is like."

"I do," agreed Iba Algi.

"If you don't give him the hint personally," said Snowblind Tigress, "I worry that he'll make a bigger deal out of what happened, once he learns about it, than he should."

"Where is Renjie now?" asked Iba Algi's father.

"Serendipitously," said Snowblind Tigress, "he's at the bottom of Hell King Hades' Cut."

"No, no, no," said Iba Algi's father. "No. My little princess gets tired from a few steps and there aren't any rickshaws going to the bottom of the Cut. It's my fault. She inherited a poor constitution from me. Her mother is fit as a mountain…."

"As a graceful mountain gazelle!" shouted Iba Algi's mother.

"Yes," agreed dad. "That. And we shouldn't impose on Imojean too much."

"Agreed," said Snowblind Tigress. "I will take the Princess."

"Oh my gosh!" said Iba Algi. "Really? But… now, you be nice."

"Don't worry," said Snowblind Tigress. "I won't hurt the assassin. But I think it's important for me to have a conversation with him."

"I think so too!" said Harlecuin Sols.

"You do?" asked Iba Algi.

Harlecuin Sols nodded emphatically.

"Conversational skills must be developed and nurtured," he said.