[Meanwhile…]
"What do you think is taking them so long?"
Ater's eyes were closed as he heard the feminine voice of Esme echo right beside him. He kept his legs crossed and didn't even respond to her concerned words.
This wasn't the first time she was asking him the question, and after he answered her the first time, he had taken a vow of silence. There was no utility in furthering a meaningless conversation, after all.
Still, her query made him think about a few things.
'We've been waiting outside the Royal Court for quite some time now…' His thoughts trailed. 'I don't know how Time Dilation works here, or if it is a thing at all in this realm, so it's impossible for me to know just how much time has passed in the outside world.'
Since they were in the Forest of the Fairies, which was practically unknown territory for him, there was a lot of information that he lacked.