When Alto turned towards the voice to locate it, she saw nothing. She soon learned that the voice was a person who claimed to be aiding them, but Alto was short on trust in general, and even less for invisible people.
To her surprise, the voice freely admitted to being human, despite knowing she'd trust the voice less, and even insisted it knew Princess Ilina. Then, it pleaded to break the slave contract that was forced on her. Alto did not trust the voice, but even a ruse that broke her contract would be helpful.
She was surprised to find that, upon her cooperation, the voice again freely shared information that should make her trust it less. It revealed how it would try to break her contract, and how it might be painful or even deadly, but it knew of no other way. Somehow, this was reassuring to Alto, freedom or a quick death, and she agreed to cooperate.
Much to her surprise, after a tiring treatment, the voice broke open her cage and she was able to leave without issue – she was free. She realized that the voice had been given human form, an adolescent male with earnest features – Mizuki.
He initially looked at her concerned, but it quickly shifted to excitement when she was able to fully stand up. Looking at him, Alto felt the conflicting emotions of disgust for his being human, and gratitude for being freed.
When he pleaded with her to once again cooperate, long enough for him to release the others, she complied. It was then she thought that he'd showed his true colors. He went between the cages doing something that made the children pass out, but he didn't free them.
Alto was deciding how to intervene when he began making a second round to break open their cages. When questioned, he freely revealed that he didn't trust Alto and the others to not do something foolish with freedom so desperately close.
Mizuki seemed deeply committed to Alto knowing that she could get truthful information from him any time she wanted. Somehow, this balance made Alto calm around Mizuki early on. He didn't ask her to trust him so much as to not worry, but he instead prioritized her feeling like she always had all the information she wanted about their situation, good or bad. This way, she at least wouldn't be pressured to act unpredictably.
Alto banished any thought of trying to betray Mizuki when he led them upstairs to the warehouse, not because of trust, but because she feared him. Every guard had vanished, like the entire warehouse was instantly abandoned, but she knew better. Her estimation of his abilities was further cemented when he instantly moved them between countries.
Learning they were isolated in a forest, and having a good appreciation for Mizuki's abilities, Alto sought him out to learn of their situation. Mizuki's apparent servant had been kindly helping with all the freed slaves and preparing shelter for them. Alto nearly fainted from the realization that this woman was an Elder Dragon and lived with Mizuki, and her apprehension over Mizuki intensified.
When she asked Mizuki what he wanted from them, he seemed confused, and listed ways to help the elves and wolf-kin. Moreover, he insisted that they owed him nothing at all. He seemed remorseful that something unsavory might have already been done to them before he could free them, and he asked if there was anything more that he could do for them.
She couldn't contain her surprise when he even offered trying to arrange hot baths for them, and the absurdity made her chuckle.
Alto had also assumed that him knowing Princess Ilina was a lie borne of good intentions. To her shock, though, he brought Alto before the princess very soon after, directly into her room. More to her surprise, the Elder Dragon seemed to confirm Ilina's and Mizuki's familiarity, and this was soon substantiated when the princess hugged Mizuki unexpectedly.
It was then that Alto began to suspect that Mizuki, regardless of what else he may be or do, genuinely would not lie to her. This was the first time she began to trust him in some regard.
When the princess questioned her about him, it was clear that she wanted to learn about Mizuki in secret. Reflecting on how much he'd prioritized honesty with her, she found that she couldn't condone doing this, even for the princess.
To her surprise, Mizuki told her that his promise to help her was not conditional on this discretion. He swore that, if she wanted to tell the princess everything about him, he'd even prepare some privacy for it, and would not hold it against her in the slightest. Hearing this only made Alto more adamant that she wouldn't be discussing him with the princess behind his back.
She was pleased when Mizuki appeared to deeply value her commitment to reciprocating his honesty. She was shocked when he proposed, not for the first time that night, that he'd happily be her friend if she wanted. She agreed mostly out of amusement, thinking that he didn't consider it a serious commitment to Alto. She also saw no real reason to distrust him to the degree of refusing that characterization.
However, Alto reconsidered what he was promising her when his relationship with the princess was discussed. To everyone's shock, he offered to reveal every secret he had about himself to the princess, if there was the chance that he'd earn her trust.
To Alto, this spoke volumes about how much trust he promised to give someone with his friendship, and how much he valued theirs in return. Alto wondered…if she was supposedly his friend now, would he just answer any question she had about him?
Alto learned from Klaus that, contrary to what she assumed, he hadn't saved Alto because of the princess. Instead, he'd been told by chance about them, and he was only asked to learn of their location and numbers.
This had apparently happened just earlier that day, and yet without hesitation he ignored those directions and saved Alto and the others, even against the princess's advice. Amazingly, where the princess had failed to even locate them in a week, he'd rescued them in hours.
Alto was in awe of Mizuki after speaking to Klaus. Not just his capabilities, but his sense of justice that drew no lines between races. At this point, she not only welcomed his talk of friendship, but she also desperately hoped that he'd been serious.
If he was willing and able to change Alto's fate so drastically on barely a notice, she daydreamed about what the world could be if his ideals were realized on a regular basis. She began to wonder…would Mizuki welcome her company and her support on his journey?
Soon after, Alto was shocked to learn of the princess's intention to bring Mizuki to the Elven Kingdom as a guest. Alto's heart sank at the news, not out of fear for the elves, but fear for Mizuki. She'd seen how he treated other elves so far, even those that were cold to him.
She knew he'd want to see the best in the elves of her country on his visit, but she also knew that they'd only bring Mizuki harm if they could. Under no circumstances could she allow that to happen.
Resolved to protect him, his kindness to all races, and the better Azura that his influence might bring, Alto made a plea to him to join his group. Though he seemed concerned for her, he eventually relented to her request.
Remembering the events of last night, and the path to her current relationship with Mizuki, an earnest smile spreads across Alto's face. As she looks over at Mizuki, soaring through the air, she feels herself burning with purpose.
No matter the personal cost, she'll help him build the brighter future that she so desperately wants.