Episode 17.

Something dire was happening. I felt two strong tremors that hit the castle consecutively. I looked from my window at what was happening outside, and in the distance, dense trails of smoke could be seen in various parts of the town; several buildings and houses were in ruins, destroyed and burned by a mysterious force that struck them without warning. I could observe small groups of people, on a small scale, fleeing as quickly as they could from that devastation, either on foot or with their carriages, leaving towards the west road with too much haste and nervousness.

Soldiers moved everywhere in the front courtyard of the castle, some climbing the towers with various firearms and others placing enormous beams behind the door to keep it closed. It was then that I heard the warning from one of the towers' lookouts, and immediately, a huge rock hit them, making them suddenly fall along with the rubble more than 10 meters, being buried along with many others who were below. The cries of pain of those affected echoed where I was and generated a constant fear that shook my heart.

I moved away from the glass as soon as I saw the scene and left my room quickly to look for help. I descended the tower stairs without much concern and collided with someone who was climbing with the same urgency as me.

Veronica: 『 My lady! 』

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden?! What is−?!』

Veronica: 『 My lady, we must go! 』

Mrs. Aarden had come to look for me in the middle of the emergency. She took my hand tightly and dragged me down the steps. I begged her to go a little slower, but she didn't slow down until another tremor made her stagger and forced her to stop.

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden, what's happening out there?! 』

Veronica: 『 Forgive me, my lady, but I cannot comment on that. 』

Lidia: 『 Why not?! 』

Veronica: 『 It's an order from the king..., I'm sorry. 』

When I heard that, I got very angry; even though we were in the middle of a crisis, I could not help but think about how frustrating it always is to have secrets hidden from you, and even more so if it is your father who does it; and he was doing it again. I was already tired of living surrounded by deceptions and secrets that, supposedly, are to "protect my integrity."

For once, I wanted things to be explained to me as they are, without lies or covers that hide the truth from me, without leaving me excluded from reality. It was then that, for the first time, I took a different stance against Mrs. Aarden, abruptly released her hand with a jerk, and stopped suddenly.

Veronica: 『 Y -Your Highness, what are you-?! 』

Lidia: 『 Tell me! 』

Veronica: 『 Huh? 』

Lidia: 『 I won't move from here until you tell me what's happening outside! 』

Veronica: 『 But−! 』

Lidia: 『 No! I'm tired of people continuing to lie to me and not telling me things as they are!! Even a doll is told secrets and is also spoken to with sincerity and affection, but no one asks me how I feel or if I liked dinner; nobody even knows what soup I like!! So, for once in my life, I deserve to be treated differently and told things straight to my face!!! 』

Veronica: 『 … 』

First Shun and now her mother, I felt a little bad for taking out my anger on her, but I had to say it; I had to make it known that I'm not a simple toy; I'm a human being who also has feelings, who suffers, who gets angry, speaks, and has her own thoughts, who deserves attention and to be spoken to sincerely. I was no longer a mere object, not for the King nor anyone else.

Mrs. Aarden was surprised to see my defiant and stubborn attitude; I stared at her without blinking and determined not to move until I received a frank explanation, whether we were being bombed or not. She said nothing until she saw in my eyes that I was serious. She changed her posture and her brow, prostrating herself as she does with Shun and Max, with a more severe tone than when she normally talks to me, much harsher but without forcing it, as if she were a normal person without any status, like a mother with her daughter.

Veronica: 『 … Alright… I'll tell you what is happening once we get out of here, alright? 』

Lidia: 『 … Alright. 』

She extended her hand to me with said promise to be fulfilled. I felt a little better at that moment, as I was, without more pressure and reprimands, although with the uncertainty of knowing the situation and various other doubts, but with the certainty of having taken the first step, that my voice was finally heard.

I was about to grab Mrs. Aarden's hand as a sign of agreement with her; however, my arm paused when I noticed a strange orange light that covered our side and was getting stronger. I turned to the window of where we were, and in a single second, everything collapsed.

A fifth projectile had hit, with the difference that this one was engulfed in flames and hit the base of the palace tower. Everything was shaking, and it was difficult for us to stay on our feet. The bricks began to fall and crumble. Mrs. Aarden took my hand, and we ran as best we could until we reached the third floor. However, the rubble continued to fall until the tower gave way completely, collapsing on the roof of the palace level, causing everything to collapse and creating a hole that reached the ground floor and slowly opened due to the damage and the weight.

We ended up being dragged, sliding without any grip along the inclined floor that took us directly to the sinkhole. We desperately tried to hold on to whatever we could; I let go of Mrs. Aarden's hand at one point, but she managed to recapture me before I fell; she held on as tightly as she could to the edge of the hole and tried to pull me up, but to no avail, the remains of the construction continued to fall, I looked at a large fragment of stone that broke off and fell towards us.

Lidia: 『 MRS. AARDEN!!! 』

The piece struck Ms Aarden's arm and broke the floor she was holding onto. We fell to the side of the continuation of the hole on the second floor; it was fortunate that we didn't reach the other floors below. Even so, I was quite sore from the descent, and my head was ringing a little; however, Mrs. Aarden was in a lot of pain. I went to help her immediately and found her left forearm broken; the bone was broken in half and formed an abnormal angle that looked like that of a square.

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden, your arm…! 』

Veronica: 『 Don't worry about me − MMMMGH!!...You must get out of here... 』

Lidia: 『 I won't leave without you. You still owe me an explanation! 』

My healing mana is very simple and elemental; I could still use it without a catalyst, but it was much more difficult. I would have to open my first "door" and use part of my vital energy to heal her, but first, I had to adjust her arm.

Lidia: 『 This will hurt… On the count of three… 1…, 2…, 3! 』

("CRACK!!").

Veronica: 『 AAAAAAAAAH!!! 』

I managed to return it to its original position and used a little more mana to ease the pain. I took two pieces of wood from what had collapsed and tore a piece off my skirt to immobilize her arm.

Lidia: 『 All right. Now *Effort* get up... We will go out through the garden and look for Shun and Max. Once we find a safe place, you will answer all my questions without exception, alright? 』

Veronica: 『 A−Alright. 』

Once the treatment was done, we had to move forward and get away from there; I helped her get up with my shoulder, and we walked along the corridor towards the west and then turned north and went to the garden. There was such a difference between the destroyed part of the palace and the one that was not hit; everything was still intact and without apparent damage.

We reached another hallway and found all the maids gathered at the windows that overlooked the patio, witnessing the soldiers who were holding out at the main entrance door. They seemed completely scared and worried; one of them noticed our presence, and consequently, the others too, surrounding us and rejoicing at our arrival and that we were fine, highlighting our injured state and wounds. The maids continued to cling to us and incessantly asked Mrs. Aarden endless questions.

Veronica: 『 Girls, please give us space! 』

Maid 1: 『 Miss Veronica, what is happening, and where do those rocks come from? We are very worried and don't know what to do. 』

Veronica: 『 Okay, listen to me. It seems that the castle is under attack, and invaders may arrive here soon. 』

Maids: 『 Invaders?!− Are they going to loot the castle?!− Are we at war?!− So, the town...! 』

Everyone was beginning to speculate among themselves, desperately. They became even more restless and scared than before, and they did not expect such a response, neither they nor I. It was difficult to assimilate this was happening. Mrs. Aarden spoke again, and with her authority as the head maid of the castle, she addressed them with a speech to make them remain calm.

Veronica: 『 Hey, hey, girls, calm down!! There's no point in paniking now!... I know this scares you a lot, and I'm not going to lie; it scares me too! But you must be brave, or your effort and sacrifice would have been in vain! Remember this: We are women who have worked very hard, women who know how difficult it is to sweep, mop, wash, sew, cook three times a day, raise our children, and be mothers and daughters who care for and keep their families afloat, and all this while working harder than anyone else at our job! And you know something?! That has made us brave because many of us had to face the unknown, learn without the help of anyone, and fend for ourselves! And yes, we may all have been afraid at first, but over time we managed to overcome it; and knew how to move forward! And this time will be no exception; we will get out of this situation together! Do you agree?! 』

Maids: 『 It's true! – That's right! − We can do it! 』

From anguish to uncertainty, then to a brief calm that ended in optimism incited by those effusive words. Everyone was completely willing and motivated, including me. Mrs. Aarden managed to lift the girls' spirits and made them all willing to cooperate with her.

For a moment, we had forgotten that a terrible contingency was taking place outside, and like a bucket of cold water, we received another shock. Again, they all screamed. I thought we would experience a sequel to what happened a few minutes ago in the other wing of the palace, but only some vases and hanging pictures fell. One of the girls looked out the window and, with a nervous voice, told us where the sixth projectile landed.

Maid 2: 『 The door… is gone. 』

We corroborated the information, and indeed, the door had been knocked down. The enormous beams of the door were torn apart and were scattered all over the patio. Large, thick chunks were left on top of several soldiers who ended up trapped under them.

Others helped get them off them. There was a lot of blood on the ground, a lot of soldiers were severely injured, and others were crushed by the impact.

Suddenly, a battalion that came from outside began to retreat through the gap that was present, reentering the castle and constantly firing their carbines and pistols, reloading as quickly as they could after each shot. They retreated further and further back until...

Cadet Marco: 『 Shit! GET THE WOUNDED OUT OF HERE, HURRY...!!! 』

("BOOM!!!").

Cadet Marco: 『 GET READY FOR HAND TO HAND...!!! HERE THEY COME!!! SWORDS!!! 』

Castle vigilant soldier: 『 SWORDS!!! 』

Castle vigilant soldiers: 『 ("SHIIING!!") 』

All the soldiers who could stand drew their swords, formed themselves horizontally in front of the extinct door, and waited inside a tense and chilling silence occupied by a gradually increasing noise. Loud footsteps and angry shouts began to be heard, which were getting closer and closer. The expectation was getting bigger and more frightening.

Castle soldiers: 『 … 』

Invading soldiers: 『 …AAAAOOOOOOOOOOOH!!! 』

Like a flash of lightning, a large number of men in gray armor with red details entered through the large opening and occupied the entire space while clashing their swords against those of the castle soldiers.

The defenses were vastly outnumbered; no matter how much they tried to persevere in the attack, one by one, they fell. A sea of bodies and crimson rivers flooded the courtyard. The soldiers desperately tried to impose resistance to the advance of the increasingly larger enemy troops but to no avail.

Cadet Marco: 『 RESIST!!! WE MUST HOLD ON AS LONG AS WE CAN!!! DON'T GIVE UP−AAAGH−!!! 』

The grotesque images of the soldiers being pierced by swords and trampled by the invaders' escarpments brought terror back to the maids, who watched in horror.

As soon as they finished off the platoon, a handful of them approached the palace entrance and tried to open it with a huge battering ram, hitting it over and over. Downstairs, on the main floor, you could hear the exasperated screams of the royal guards and a group of more soldiers guarding the building, leaning on the door to try to keep it sealed, enduring the tremendous shocks that came from the other side. Shields, furniture, tables, boxes, they used anything they could find to form a barricade and prevent them from entering.

Neither side gave up; they continued to push to achieve their cause. However, with the slightest error, the first opportunity appeared. The battering ram knocked down the mountain of objects and opened the entrance to the palace, giving access to the gray soldiers.

The main hall became a battlefield where swords, spears, and bayonets clashed against each other, metal against metal, echoing to where we stood. The combined blood of the warriors from both sides stained the walls of the place; the bodies continued to fall and were replaced by reinforcements arriving from opposite directions.

Heavy footsteps came up the stairs to the lower floors, which meant they were much closer to us. Mrs. Aarden knew this, and she decided to act immediately.

Veronica: 『 Everyone, follow me! Quickly!! 』

The fighting made it impossible for us to escape through the garden; we could no longer use any of the palace exits in any direction, so I had no idea where we were going. We blindly followed Mrs. Aarden, trusting she would get us out of that place at the sound of the trotting of the invaders who were getting closer and closer.

We went from one side to the other, going through almost all the corridors and turning as many corners as possible; it was as if we were walking through an endless labyrinth with no exit. The more we zigzagged, the further we moved away from the voices that were already heard at that precise level. However, the maids and I were even more confused; I had become completely disoriented and no longer understood what Mrs. Aarden was planning.

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden, where are we going?! 』

Veronica: 『 To the library! I just remembered there is something important there. 』

Lidia: 『 The library?! B-But then how will we get out?! 』

Veronica: 『 Don't worry, trust me! 』

Instead of going to the North of the palace, we turned towards the West to reach the largest room on the floor, full of high shelves filled with books and fat encyclopedias, a couple of long tables, and a desk with drawers filled with small bottles of ink, and feathers, and a strange fireplace that clashed with the place. Mrs. Aarden opened the door with her healthy arm, and we filed in to hide.

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden, we won't be able to hide here for long, we have to find a way out. 』

Verónica: 『 Don't worry, we still have a way left. Jessica, can you help me here? 』

Jessica: 『 O−Oh, sure. 』

Mrs. Aarden approached the desk and took out a kerosene lamp and matches that were hidden in the bottom of the lower drawer of the cabinet. She lightly shook the lamp and the packet to check if they had fuel and matches, respectively. She asked Jessica, one of the younger maids of the group, to help her light the lamp and hold the lit device.

Afterward, she approached that abnormal fireplace. If you think about it carefully, it was illogical for it to be placed there for design reasons when you know that the natural enemy of books is fire. It was incoherent that said danger was so close to a place where so much paper abounds. I have never seen it be used on any occasion. So why is that duct inside a room so sensitive to heat?

She pulled one of the pokers that rested above the fireplace, exactly like a lever, and the wall began to move deeper into the building. Inside, a narrow gap appeared, as if it were an alley.

Veronica: 『 Everyone, come inside, nothing will happen to you. 』

With much hesitation, we entered the mysterious hidden passage. It was too dark and deep to see what lay ahead; only the rough walls and steps leading down into an unnatural and unknown abyss were recognizable.

Veronica: 『 Eva, lower that lever there, please. 』

Eva: 『 This one…? 』

Eva, Jessica's sister, lowered an internal lever, and the fireplace returned to its original position, closing the entrance and darkening the path even more. The only light was from the lamp held by the maid, led by Mrs. Aarden. Like a group of moths, we followed the two of them down the hidden walkway that seemed to be getting tighter and tighter.

Lidia: 『 Mrs. Aarden, what is this place? 』

Veronica: 『 An escape tunnel. The King designed it for you and your mother in case you had to flee the castle. He entrusted me to guide you to it in case of an emergency like this. Thank goodness I was able to remember it. 』

Lidia: 『 My mother and I...? By the way, do you know what happened to her… and to my father!? 』

Veronica: 『 I only saw your father when he gave me the immediate order to look for you; he seemed a little rushed, and then I don't know where he went... As for your mother... 』

She disappeared. Mrs. Aarden also inquired about her whereabouts inside the castle before the second impact that the wall received, but she had no luck finding her; it seemed that she had suddenly vanished without a trace. Being a very scatterbrained and distracted woman, I was worried that she had gone into a crisis over this matter and that she was alone without knowing what to do, surely, she would be petrified with fear.

We continued down those small stairs, which seemed to have no end. We walked straight between very well-cemented walls for several meters, until a pale light was seen; we reached a point where they were replaced by earthy, and irregular walls, it was as if we had entered the tunnel of a mole, with a large row of torches that extended along its entire length.

The route was slightly winding due to the topography of the ground. We walked, walked, and walked until we ran into another obstacle: a large number of stones and bricks blocked the way; it seemed that we were at the low point where the East wing tower collapsed.

Jessica: 『 It's blocked... What do we do now, Miss Veronica? 』

Veronica: 『 I'm not sure; I don't know this tunnel very well... 』

Marta: 『 U−Umm, Miss Veronica. I−I think there is a way through here. 』

The shyest of the Jakob sisters, Marta, seemed to find an opening in the wall of the corridor in which she could see an alternate path, with more torches, that (I think) led north. The entrance was too narrow, barely fitting one person with effort. With no other better option, we passed one by one through the narrow hole and continued our advance toward an unknown port.

We wandered for many more meters in the same direction. Some of the maids were beginning to complain about the fatigue on their feet. It seemed that we would remain forever wandering underground for all eternity without finding a way out. Fortunately, the panorama changed again, we found other stairs that could take us to the surface and perhaps to the outside of the castle, or so it seemed to be.

We all wanted to get out once and for all of the earthy and isolated path that put us in constant despair. We ascended the spiral staircase that became wider the higher up. I looked down out of curiosity, and vertigo warned me how dangerous the climb was, added to the fact that there were no handrails. It seemed like we went up the same five levels as the palace; we had no idea how deep we were for a long time.

Jessica found the end of the ladder and a rusty metal grate ajar. When opening it, there was not much difference. Long, thick bars of rusty steel covered gloomy and empty spaces full of incomprehensible scribbles, covered with strange dried brown stains and populated by whitish fragments covered with immense fluff and grime (I'm sure those were not worn pieces of quicklime); all lined up in a short hallway.

Lidia: 『 M−Mrs. Aarden, is this…? 』

There was no doubt, we were in the dungeon. We accidentally entered the military zone of the castle, that is, we had not yet escaped; we found ourselves on one of the edges of the enormous complex, near the perimeter wall, and very close to leaving this nightmare that lasted too long with the unfortunate intrusion into the dreadful place.

Veronica: 『 We have to keep going up. 』

Lidia: 『 W−Wait a moment! We are in the military zone, and it could be very dangerous even if we leave this way. 』

Veronica: 『 I am aware of it, but we have no choice but to−』

"CRASH!!", in the background, was the crystalline sound of an object breaking. The girls got scared, and Mrs. Aarden hushed them to be quiet. We advanced cautiously until we came across a somewhat dirty and worn wooden door that clashed with the gloomy place. Again, Mrs. Aarden asked for silence, and very calmly, she turned the knob and opened the door with a very cautious touch.

All the other maids stood by the door frame, watching from afar while the two of us checked the room. A bookcase complete with logbooks, an empty gun rack, a couple of old and dusty portraits, and a lit candle on a small unvarnished desk with a chair made of the same wood was all there was in that small room that seemed to be the prison warden's office.

The space was very empty. I expected to see something much more disordered; however, everything was neat, except for some pieces of glass under the chair, all stained with a black substance. I bent down to take a closer look at what it was and found a feather floating on top of the semi-thick liquid, which meant that it was an inkwell that had fallen, but... how? It was probably moved by the tremors of the attack; however, it was very strange for it to fall until, coincidentally, we arrived at this place.

Unexpectedly, I felt the gaze of a shadow lying under the desk pointing one of those glass pieces at me. It extended one arm and waved it desperately multiple times, shouting relentlessly: 『 NO, GO AWAY!! 』The tip almost pricked my right eye; fortunately, I was able to react in time to push my body backward, falling flat and staining myself with ink.

Mrs. Aarden helped me get off the board and took the candle to illuminate the space where that limb came from, which kept shaking to protect the body from which it came. The agitated voice that emphasized the warning not to approach seemed familiar. I switched the candle with Mrs. Aarden and crouched again (now at a distance) to see who it was.

A crouching woman wearing a burgundy dress and a pearl necklace was hiding from the light as if she were a vampire, covering her frightened face and trembling body, remaining in that small space without intending to show herself. There was only one person so fearful who would wear those fine clothes and accessories in the entire kingdom.

Lidia: 『 Mother?! 』

Queen Mireya: 『 Ah…? Lidia? Is it you? 』

Lidia: 『 What are you doing here?! 』

Queen Mireya: 『 Oh, Lidia, it is you!! It is you!! Sorry about that, I'm sorry! I was so frightened, sorry! 』

I didn't think I would meet my mother in that place. She put that dangerous sharp piece aside and leaned against me to hug me. I felt like I was being squeezed by a nutcracker. She clung to me incessantly and did not give me any space to even reciprocate.

Lidia: 『 M−Mother, wait a bit. You squeeze me too much. 』

Queen Mireya: 『 Excuse me, but I can't help it. Your father stopped me from going to look for you, so I was very worried about you. 』

Lidia: 『 Wait, you were looking for me? 』

Queen Mireya: 『 I wanted to, but I couldn't. Your father told me not to worry about you, and he ordered me to come to this place. Please forgive me for having done nothing. 』

Lidia: 『 I−It's okay, Mother, but please, calm down! 』

The girls spoke in murmurs upon learning that the queen was present and safe, getting rid of some of their agitation caused by the previous shock.

Queen Mireya: 『 D−Did you come with someone else? 』

Veronica: 『 Yes, Madam, with all the palace maids. 』

Queen Mireya: 『 I see. I'm glad to see that everyone is ok. 』

Mrs. Aarden asked her how she had gotten to the chamber and where the king was, to which she replied:

Queen Mireya: 『 He brought me here. Before the first tremor, he seemed in a hurry and told me he had to leave the castle. I didn't understand why until the first tremor hit the castle. Then he took me to his study, opened a passage hidden behind his bookshelf, and ordered me to leave. 』

Lidia: 『 So he left you alone? 』

Queen Mireia: 『 *Deny* He had instructed me which path I should follow, but while I was down there, the tremors continued to shake and collapsed part of the route, blocking it completely. At that point, I didn't know what to do or where to go until your father showed up again along with Mr. Ruffus and Mr. Rask. 』

Lidia: 『 Mr. Ruffus? 』

Veronica: 『 Luvric too? But he's supposed to be a brigade leader; what was he doing accompanying the king? 』

Queen Mireya: 『 I don't know. As soon as they found me and saw the state of the passage, the king then decided that I would accompany them here, and he told me to wait for him here until he returned. But this place is so quiet that I can hear the screams of the soldiers saying that they were invading us and that they would arrive here at any moment. I started to get very worried, and shortly after, I heard a gate opening; I thought someone evil had entered, and I accidentally knocked over the inkwell. I got too scared and ended up hiding under the desk. Thank goodness it was you. You don't know how happy I am to see you! 』

Maybe I was not as good as Shun with mysteries and riddles, however, I could understand my father's intentions. He had already foreseen this situation, and that is why he didn't worry about my safety; when really, I was almost crushed by a burning projectile; since he had already predicted that Mrs. Aarden would evacuate me from the castle.

Still, I think his plan changed unexpectedly without him realizing it. My mother was alone for a long time with the anxiety that the enemy would find her at any moment, and by the coincidence of faith, we were the ones who found her when, surely, it should not have been that way.

Veronica: 『 Your Highness. I think you know that the place is not safe, so we should hurry before— 』

"BOOM!!" another strong tremor shook the earth and knocked down the books from the shelf and the paintings from the room. The maids screamed once more, and some fell like dominoes to the floor. The impact was felt even stronger than on previous occasions.

After the warning, Mrs. Aarden got to the point and consulted with my mother about an escape route or if she knew of any other way. She commented that, on the outskirts of the building, she thought she had seen a small checkpoint where new prisoners were admitted. However, to get there, we had to go to the surface, and who knows what we would find up there.

There was not much time left; the earthy roof of the cavern was slowly crumbling above us and could fall any time another projectile was launched toward the castle. We didn't want to take the risk of staying there any longer, so we prepared to escape at any cost. We went quickly up the stairs, crossing a couple more galleries, and ending up on the main floor of the prison, where there was already a little sunlight.

Now we followed the queen who was figuring in her mind where she had seen that exit. We exited the building through the back, and on the perimeter wall was a wide, tall door of solid steel, hidden at the end of an alley and beneath the imposing guard tower of the jail. There was no latch, handle, button, or lever on it whatsoever; it was a blank canvas with no clue as to how to open it.

Veronica: 『 Do you know how to open it? 』

Queen Mireya: 『 It seems to be with a spell. 』

Veronica: 『 With mana? 』

Queen Mireya: 『 That's right, but I think only those with authorization can open it. I'm sorry, but that's all I know. 』

When I saw the door, I figured that might be what it was about. Codes and authorizations were required to invoke a command; I learned them in my private classes, which I disliked so much to a certain extent, but they helped me get interested in and take them more seriously.

In reality, it was simpler than it seemed. It was nothing more than a safe implanted with the mana of a person who determined beforehand who could open it. The question was knowing who conjugated it. Generally, those who come from the same bloodline are the ones who can use them, although sometimes there are exceptions.

I didn't know if my father was capable of manipulating mana, so I tried to check. I touched the cold sheet, and a protective circle appeared over my five fingers. Intuitively, I twisted my wrist to my left to rotate said pictogram until the sound of a heavy lock opening echoed. The door slid inside the wall and gave way to the exit we so desperately needed.

Jessica: 『 Princess, you are incredible! 』

Lidia: 『 Huh? 』

The maids praised my discovery, overflowing with compliments that I thought I didn't deserve. They called me the smartest girl in the castle, but such a designation was not valid for someone like me who received an education tutored solely by her social status.

Lidia: 『 I'm sorry, but… I think you overestimate me… In any case, let's hurry. 』

In disorganized rows, the group began to leave the castle, starting with the queen who was followed by her subjects, while Mrs. Aarden and I stayed at the side of the passage. Once everyone was out, it was our turn.

Lidia: 『 Ok, come on!... AAAH!! 』

Invading Soldier: 『 Oh, my! 』

Veronica: 『 Lidia! 』

Invading soldier: 『 Going somewhere, miss? 』

Just when we were the last to leave, a strong tug on the collar of my dress prevented me from moving forward, and I felt the strong grip of metal arms imprisoning me. It was one of those soldiers we saw entering through the main entrance of the castle, tall and dressed in his hard gray armor with red details and with his head covered by a pointed helmet with a short tail.

Invading soldier: 『 Oooh! You're so restless. Did I scare you? Ha, ha, don't worry, I assure you that you and I will have a good time. 』

Veronica: 『 Let go of her!! 』

I tried to get away by pulling and kicking, but the metal man was so strong that he lifted me off the ground. I couldn't escape from his tight grip. Mrs. Aarden pushed against him with her good arm, trying to get him off of me. It didn't bother the soldier much, and he pushed her to the ground like a feather.

Invading Soldier: 『 Seriously, the women here are cute but very annoying. I think I'll have to teach you a little discipline. 』

He squeezed me even harder, this time with only one arm. He took out the sword he carried at his waist and approached Mrs. Aarden, who was prostrate on the floor in pain.

Time became slow as he raised his sword to the sky, and without hesitation, he swung it down against the poor woman who could do nothing. My gaze remained fixed on that scene; as much as I wanted to close my eyes, fear left me stunned.

A jet of blood scattered through the air, and a dark crimson color was reflected in my pupils. I never thought I would see such a grotesque and chilling image, much less that it would come from someone close to me. Without a doubt, it was the most traumatic moment of my life.