68_The King Is dead

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Evie's POV

I couldn't help but feel anxious, the handmaidens and some guards who were protecting me, were all in a safe place in the storage room.

The handmaidens were panicking while the two guards stood alert with their swords pointed at the door, in case the assassin got in.

My Father, I can't just leave him out there, although he might be a dick sometimes, he was still my Father.

"Please I need to get out there, my father!" I begged.

"No Princess, it's too dangerous!" A guard said.

"We have to protect you, That assassin has killed all the soldiers!" The other said, panicking.

"No, I can't just stay here and do nothing while an assassin is terrorizing my kingdom," Evie said, pushing them aside as she found her way out of the closet.

She ran out of the storage while the maids and soldiers called out her name also following her.

Evie got to the courtyard, and only dead bodies and blood could be seen, it was eerily quiet and the only thing that could be heard was the clanging of metals not far from the main castle.

When she got there, her hands flew to her mouth in shock as she saw General Epirius on the floor with chains around his neck and lying in his pool of blood.

His head was red and his eyes were open, she didn't know what to feel at that moment, whether joy for finally being free or sadness that their Kingdom's great general was dead Father was next.

She quickly ran to the cottage and before she could get there an explosion caused her to be thrown backward, landing on the cold body of General Sam.

Coming from the flaming ruins, it was the assassin, the hood covered her face and she walked towards me as I crawled back.

"St--stay away from me!" She yelled, but the Raven didn't stop. When Raven reached her she crouched down to meet Evie's height while Evie jolted in fear, turning her face away.

"I promised you I wouldn't let you get married to that bastard, and I fulfilled my promise," Raven whispered, looking at the dead body of General Sam.

She stood up and looked down at Evie who was raking her mind in confusion.

"You should evacuate while you still can Princess, that fire will spread and burn this Kingdom to the ground," Raven said and walked past her.

Evie quickly turned to take a look at the assassin but just like that she was nowhere to be seen, it was like she vanished into thin air.

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Finally, after traveling for days, Prince Xavier, accompanied by his friends reached the Stones Kingdom but was shocked to see the place in such a mess.

It was dawn and the sun was about to set. The subjects roamed around the ruins of the kingdom. Almost everything was destroyed, except for their powerful metals.

The walls were crumbled, the wooden shops were broken and some goods were scattered on the floor as if a war had broken out in the kingdom, there was blood everywhere, but no sign of bodies.

"What happened here?" Sarah asked as her hand flew to her mouth.

"Athena," Xavier called, running to the main castle while his friends ran after him.

When they got to the main castle, it was even worse than the outside, everything was burnt down to the ground, and the castle which was built with stone now had black taint on it because of the smoke.

The grasses and trees were scanty and even withering, the walls of the castle were broken down and there was blood everywhere.

It was much worse than what they saw outside, even their gates were hanging.

They saw a group of people at the farthest corner of the castle, which led to a dark forest, but they were standing in front of a graveyard, a few steps away from the forest.

"What are you doing here?!" Two guards said, blocking their path so they couldn't go forward.

Alex and Zeke drew out their swords too and took a stance, ready for any inappropriate welcoming.

Xavier raised his hand, telling them to stand down and they withdrew their swords, putting them back in their sheaths and the guards did the same.

"We are here to see the King of this Kingdom, we are tourists from the Cranes Kingdom," Xavier said.

"Well you came a bit late, the king Is dead,"

"What, what do you mean by the King is dead?" Alex asked in disbelief, if the King was dead, how were they going to buy Athena and Rose back?

"You heard us, now leave and never return,"

"What is going on?" They heard a tiny voice, coming from behind the guards, the guards stepped aside and bowed slightly.

Upon seeing Xavier, Evie recognized him instantly.

"These tourists are here, demanding to see the King, we told them to leave but they refuse to..."

"...Prince Xavier!" Evie called and upon hearing the name, the guard's eyes widened and they fell to their feet.

"Prince Xavier, forgive our insolence, your highness," They begged in unison.

"What brings you here?" Evie asked, smiling.

"Oh, forgive my manners, let's head inside," Evie said and walked towards the Castle's entrance, her black dress, sweeping the burnt earth of the castle.

When they walked through the passageway, they couldn't help but gape at how messed up the place looked, the walls were cracked and lots of vases were shattered, even the carpets were burnt.

The huge doors that led to the hall opened up and they went in, it looked like, the fire didn't reach there because it was still sparking, with pebbles and marbles.

There was a huge wooden plateau at the center of the hall and Evie took her seat, also motioning for them to sit.

"I guess you don't remember me, Xavier," Evie said and Xavier shook his head, ransacking through his memories of where he might have seen her.

"I'm sorry Your Highness, but I do not think we've met before," Xavier said.

"My Father used to bring me to your castle back then when King Aaron and he were allies. You were so rude back then," Evie said with a pout.

"No way...Evelyn?!" Xavier asked in surprise, he had completely forgotten about her, they were never close because of how rude he was but she never failed to trouble him.

"Oh, so now you remember?" Evie asked, giving him a playful slap on his shoulder.

"Sorry to interrupt your reunion, but Your Highness, may I ask what happened here?" Alex asked and Evie glanced at him.

"An assassin," Evie said with a serious gaze.