Chapter Ten

Predictably, preparing for the travel took long. The sun was high up in the sky when Lyn finally stepped out of the castle gates. The simple blue dress she wore took hours to find, and she had to firmly go against Amely's suggestion of wearing a thick cloak.

'It's clearly hot outside, does she want me to faint due to heat stroke or something.' She complained in her head. The only thing they agreed on was the gloves, which Lyn instantly fell in love with due to their embroidery, and the travel boots.

Cladius and Eros waited for her by the carriage. They both bowed as she drew near, but she had seen the momentary shock on Eros' face. Like yesterday, Lyn opted for a light look. He's probably used to the queen's heavy makeup, just like everybody else.

"You look beautiful, your highness." Eros complimented with his fake smile in place.

She returned the gesture with a smile of her own. "Thank you."

Cladius offered a hand to help her climb the carriage, and Lyn quickly took it. She saw Eros lift his hand to do the same just a split second before Cladius, but thankfully he retracted it the moment he saw Cladius already had his hand out. She really didn't want to hold his hand.

The carriage was bigger on the inside; It even looks cozy, with soft-looking cushions on the seats. She was looking forward to a comfortable journey but quickly diminished that thought when she saw Eros climb in and sit right in front of her. She had hoped that maybe Cladius would be there too, but the carriage door closed as soon as Eros was in.

'Ah, crap.' She smiled.

Like breakfast, the travel was extremely awkward. It was probably even worse considering that Cladius wasn't there to disperse some of the tension. She wanted to look out the carriage window to see if maybe he was following them, but the glass was too opaque and she didn't want to look undignified.

"This is a new look for you, your highness." Eros spoke after a long bout of uncomfortable silence.

"It probably is." She nodded. "I have seen portraits and I have to say, my previous looks weren't exactly my taste."

"Oh? I wasn't aware memory loss changes a person's taste." He commented.

She broke into a cold sweat. "Perhaps I was thinking of changing my style before the incident."

"Perhaps." He agreed, making her mentally sigh in relief. "Though, I have to say, it is drastically different."

"It is indeed." She agreed.

'What would they do if they found out I wasn't really the queen? Would they execute me?' She really didn't want to know.

"How long until we reach the High Order?" She asked.

"Normally, it would take weeks, but the teleportation station is just about an hour away, so not long." He explained.

'Teleportation station? There's a station for teleportation here?' A term like that would fit in a science-y world, but here? It seemed out of place. She simply nodded her head to tell him she understood, and the next hour was spent in polite conversation and long periods of silence.

Finally, the carriage stopped and the door opened. Cladius stood at the other end ('thank heavens!' She mentally celebrated) and waited for her to climb out with his hand outstretched.

It took a lot of will to climb out without hurrying her steps. She didn't want to look too eager in leaving Eros' company. Now that she was out, she noticed she had only two of them to accompany her. She looked around.

The station looked...normal, by this world's standard. One story-buildings with carriages lined up outside filled her view, though there wasn't a single carriage near where they parked. It was probably a VIP space. Cladius took the lead and started walking towards one of the fancier-looking buildings. This one was more polished and cleanly painted.

The interior was a bit underwhelming, Lyn thought. It was bare except for a huge marking on the floor. It covered almost all the space. On the ceiling was a lone floating crystal. Lyn tried hard not to stare at it for too long, even though she was really tempted to just gawk and figure out how it floats.

"Your highness." One of the few people in the building greeted her. She was too focused on the marking to offer him a reply.

The marking was a large group of circles and lines, with a few symbols written in between. She can sense some sort of vibration emanating from it.

'Is this what strong magic feels like?' She wondered.

"After you, your highness." Eros said, gesturing towards the middle of the marking.

She nodded as she marched forward, Cladius shadowing her. Eros followed after. When they were finally in the middle, the man that greeted her earlier lifted both his hands. Like the others with him, he wore simple brown robes.

'It must be their uniforms.' She mused.

The vibration she felt from the marking grew in intensity. After a few heartbeats, the marking glowed in several pulses and light blinded her vision.

It lasted for a few seconds, before it finally died down like a flickering lightbulb. Lyn blinked her eyes, trying accustom her sight to the dimmed surroundings.

'That hurt.' She complained in her head. Maybe she should've closed her eyes.

When her vision was finally clear, she found herself in a giant platform in the middle of a forest. Large pillars surrounded this platform, with large ornate crystals on top. She can see a building a few miles away, and upon seeing the stairs starting from the platform and leading to that place, she knew they were really high up. She looked at the trees.

'They're even taller than the platform.' She noticed.

"The way down may take a while, your highness." Cladius warned her. She stared at the stairs. Her legs ached just from the sight.

'It definitely will.' She mentally agreed.