Two hours ago.
"Dad should be out soon…" I mumbled to myself. I looked at the clock, nine O'clock.. one more hour left to go.
*Rumble*
I placed a hand on my stomach as it growled.
"Two for six dollars! Mountain sweet potatoes! Mountain sweet potatoes! Harvested this morning! Two for six dollars!" The vendor called out and the smell of the sweet potatoes caught my attention.
Dad would love some sweet potatoes and I am hungry…
I got up from the bench and walked over to the vendor. The sweet smell of the sweet potatoes lured me here and the rumbling in my tummy agreed to buy them.
"I would like four of your sweet potatoes please!"
"Okay! Coming right up Miss!" The vendor said as she opened a hamper filled with baked sweet potatoes.
She grabbed four sweet potatoes and placed them in a paper bag.
"Careful, they're hot, freshly baked in the oven not long ago."
"Thank you, here." I handed her twelve dollars.
"Have a nice day!"
I smiled and said the same thing back before I brought the goods back to my bench.
I opened the bag and the waft of earthy sweetness accelerated my hunger cravings. I took out one of the potatoes and carefully held it in my hand. It was warm and wasn't unbearable to hold. I peeled off the top half of the skin and the purple interior glistened in my eyes. The steam rose and hits my face with it's scented aroma. I could feel the drool drip from my mouth.
I opened my mouth, blew the steam away and took a bite. The sweetness of the potato hits me first. The fluffy potato coated my mouth as the sweetness overwhelmed my senses.
"Mmmhmm. So good!~" I moaned as the hot deliciousness soothed my stomach.
I was about to take another bite when I heard a voice.
{"Could I have one please?"}
"Who said that?" I looked around but no one was there.
I was about to take another bite when at the corner of my eye, I saw someone sitting next to me. I turned my head and saw a beautiful woman with pointy ears sitting next to me. Her whole body, clothing and all were black and had a hazy black specks floating around her.
{"Hello."}
"He-hel-ooo?" I stammered.
{"I don't mean to frighten you. I smelt those potatoes and I wanted to know if I could have one?"}
I nodded hesitantly and she reached into the bag and took one out but when I noticed the potato it didn't look like the ones in the bag. It looked different.
{"Thank you."}
"Who are you?"
{"My name is Elise Darkrange. And your father asked me to watch over you."}
"Dad?"
{"Yes. My husband is currently with him right now and I was tasked to protect you if needed."}
"I don't understand… how does my dad know you?"
{"Well, you will soon know me and my husband and my family quite well once you join your father's little group. I am a member of a group known as the Shadow Legion. Our master is who you in the future will call and I think I heard your father and his group call him, 'big boss'?"}
My eyes widened.
"You don't mean… Ryan?!" I shouted nearly jumping off the bench.
{"Yes. I do. He's my master."} She nodded in affirmation. {"My whole family is in the shadow legion and Ryan is our master."}
I watched her with astonishment. She peeled the skin of the potato exposing the white flesh, blew on it and took a bite.
{"So good!~"}
"You say that your husband is with my dad, can you tell me how is my dad right now? Are they hurting him? Dad told me the other day that him and the rest of Baihu could communicate with each other using telepathy or something and big boss taught them how. I only assume you could do the same."
{"Yes I can and well… so far they haven't done anything with your father. My husband told me that they are currently sitting in a white room and they have been waiting for a long time."}
"What?! We should go in there and demand them to release him. He did nothing wrong!"
{"Calm down a bit. Most of my family is with him right now. He won't be in any danger."}
"Okay… sorry…."
{"Don't be. You are just a daughter worrying about her father. I understand. You two have a strong and loving bond."}
"Yes we do." I smiled brightly.
I looked at the door of the magic association, hoping that he would come out safe.
{"You'll love our master."}
"Huh?" I felt myself heating up at her words.
{"He's a kind and sweet man."}
"I'm sure he is."
{"Oh?"}
I looked at her and she smiled at me.
{"Good luck."}
I felt my face flush with heat.
"I-I uh…"
{"Just be yourself around him. He's not like any other man. I found my destined one. Maybe you'll find yours."}
I looked down at the ground, my hands covering my face.
"Do you think we can trust that man?" I heard a woman's voice and my heart began to thump hard in my chest.
I instantly sat up and looked over. Three fancy looking people walked passed my bench to the magic association building.
"Of course honey. He told me that they have your ex husband in custody. Faron will help us make him give us your daughter."
"That's wonderful. We would be one big happy family and that loser will soon have nothing." The woman said and laughed.
"All I have to do is make a deal with Faron and she's all ours. You'll have a wife soon, son." The older man patted the younger man on the shoulder.
"I hope she's beautiful… I don't mind if she's ugly as long as she's good with her mouth."
I felt my insides drown with disgust. This is the man that woman wants me to marry? I felt sick to my stomach…
{"We should move."}
"What?" I whispered to her. "My dad and your husband is in there…"
{"I know but they are after you. My job is to protect you. My husband's job is to protect your dad. So far they don't know your here, we need to move before they notice."}
I felt my heart raced. I -I can't leave my dad, they'll hurt him.
She noticed my hesitation.
{"If they don't find us, your father will have a better chance of survival."}
"Okay… let's go."
I watched them enter the building before I hopped out of my seat, grabbed my bag of sweet potatoes and slowly walked away from the building.
I didn't look back and kept on walking. I had tears streaming down my face, so I raised my hand to wipe them away.
{"Turn left and keep on moving straight until you reach the palace's gate. I will go on ahead and scout out the place."}
"Okay…" I did as she had instructed and turned left before moving forward back to the palace. She had disappeared already and I couldn't see her anywhere.
I hope dad is alright. I believe in you dad. My heart will always be with you even if we're not together right now.
I glanced around as I walked through the busy streets. There were all sorts of people out today. Adventurers, guild members, patrol officers, families, children playing, shop owners advertising their goods, hooded men, couples holding hands, street cleaners… wait hooded men?! I turned my gaze back to the spot where I've seen them but they were gone.
My heart raced faster as I gazed around the street block I was in, searching for them. Are they bad people? I mean how many hooded men are there that's actually dangerous or working for an organisation that wants to catch me and make me marry a man I don't want to.
{"Move into the crowd."} Elise commanded in my mind.
Without even thinking too much about it, I took off. I moved into a crowd in front of me. There was a big sale going on at one of the shops which caused a huge crowd to form. I couldn't see what the sale was as I weaved myself through the crowd. Once I managed to navigate out of the crowd, I ran as fast as I could back to the palace.
{"Change of plans, run right pass the next street, out of the city and into the forest."}
"What?!" I chocked as I tried to talk and breathe whilst running.
{"Turn right now and run out of the city and into the forest."}
"Okay… okay…" I turned right and headed for the eastern gate.
{"Keep running and don't stop."}
"But the guards!"
{"Don't worry they won't see you."}
I ran straight through the gate and the guards didn't even blink twice as they just stood there, as if they haven't even seen a girl wearing amour and a sword, just ran past them.
I was nearly out of breath as I ran into the forest. I collapsed onto a tree out of exhaustion.
"I-I can't breathe… that was way more running than I had anticipated…"
"We finally found you! Come back with us to the magic association." A tall hooded man said above me.
I looked up but then all around me.
Five hooded men surrounded me. Two men were sitting on branches whilst the other three were walking closer to me in a three man formation.
As the men came closer, the ground began to shack as a large magic circle appeared beneath them. The leaves started rustling and a breeze swept through sending a chill down my spine.
"Where did this magic circle come from? Little girl, did you create this?" A more stout hooded man said as he knelt down and examined the circle.
"Did leader ever said that the girl knew magic?" Another hooded man said, walking to the stout hooded man.
"Nope." The stout hooded man replied.
"Let's get her! This magic circle might just be a fake, just to scare us!" Said the third hooded man on the ground.
It was then the magic circle glow brighter.
{"Spirits of the forest, come to my aide! Relinquish these intruders!"}
Suddenly I heard laughter as the wind started to pick up. The wind blew all around me and then entered the magic circle.
"Leave!" A wispy voice echoed all around.
"You people don't belong here!" Another wispy voice echoed.
"Who are you! Show yourselves!" The stout hooded man screamed against a gust of wind.
"We are the spirits of this forest. You are intruding our forest."
"What about the girl?! She's intruding too! We just want the girl and will be out of your forest!"
"No! The girl is under our protection. Leave."
"Boss! I have finished analysing the circle, we can break it!" The stout hooded man said with a smile.
"Good, do it."
The stout hooded man placed a hand on the circle and red sparks erupted from his hand.
"Break!"
The magic circle underneath them shattered. The wind that swirled within the circle dissipated and the voices never said another word.
"Ha! Such parlour trick." The stout hooded man said triumphantly.
"Good job brother!"
I gripped the pommel of my sword with the intention of unsheathing my sword. It's a magical
sword given to me by my dad when I entered the academy to train to become a guard. He said it was a twin sword to his and was forged in the Halland snow fields by a master craftsman. Dad said he can only forge the blade in a snow storm. I don't know if what he said was true but the sword itself was certainly magical.
I slid my hand to the handle and felt coldness seeping into my hand.
As the man prepared their next move, I unsheathed my sword and the blade glimmered with a light blue hue from the sunlight that shorn through the trees.
I stuck my blade into the ground.
"Enchanted blade no.2: Ice field!"
The ground around the blade started to freeze, inch by inch until the ground froze over. As the ground underneath the hooded men froze, the ice climbed up their legs. Not only that but once the ice reached the trees, the trees began to freeze. The two hooded men that sat on the branches noticed this and leaped away from the area.
"I can't move my legs!"
"Both of my legs feel numb!"
"Girl! Release us this minute!"
{"Nice one. Now it's my turn. Spirits of the forest! Heed my call. Two have escaped, bring them back!"}
"I warned you, you didn't leave, now you will stay!" A wispy voice echoed as a gust of wind blew through the trees in the direction of where the two hooded had gone.
Not a minute later, I heard a shout.
"What is this magic! Let me go!" A voice shouted as two hooded men floated their way back to the frozen area. The two men were then dropped onto the frozen area and as they touched the icy ground, their bottoms and legs started to freeze.
All five men struggled to pry themselves off the ground but couldn't.
I pulled the sword out of the ground and swiped my fingers over the blade and then placed my fingers to my lips. The coldness made my teeth chatter. I blew a cold kiss to the hooded men.
"Enchanted blade no.1 Devour!"
"Ah!" All the men screamed as their bodies was ripped to shreds by the sharp cold harsh winds. Each breeze felt like knife cuts as if all cuts were made by my blade.
Every time a cut had been made on one of the hooded men, my blade would glow a deep hue of blue. And each cut made on the body of the hooded men froze, so no blood came out of the wounds.
I dropped down onto the ground and took in deep breaths. I've never used the skill before and it exhausted me. I tried to lift myself back up but my arms and legs felt numb.
{Hide.} said a voice in my mind. It wasn't Elise.
"Elise?!"
{"Yes?"}
"Did you just say something?"
{"No? But I witnessed that move you just did, gruesome yet effective. Good work."}
"Thanks…"
{Miss O'Connor. It's me Miss Winters. I need you to hide now before we arrive.}
Miss Winters?
{Please hide now.}
I pushed myself slowly back until my backside felt a tree trunk. I skirted around the trunk until I faced the other side and held my sword close as I heard voices behind me.
"What happened here?" Asked a young man.
"Must be the little girl." The voice sounded familiar. He sounded old and snarky. He sounded like the old man I saw this morning, the detective. La-Lance Holmes I think?…
"She did all this?" Asked another young man.
"She is Tavish O'Connor's daughter." Said someone who sounded a lot like Miss Winters.
I shifted my head a bit around the trunk to take a peek. 1, 2, 3… I counted 10 people in total. Mr Holmes and Miss Winters were standing to the side, near my tree whilst the others were on the frozen area, examining their frozen teammates.
"Do we bring her back dead or alive?" Asked one of the man examining the stout hooded man's body.
"She slaughtered these men, she's a murderer!" Shouted another man lifting up an arm exposing the cuts that was a deep shade of blue.
"Are you guys sure you want to discuss this?" Miss Winters asked sternly. "She will be safe and alive, do you guys hear me?"
"Why?" Shouted a man pacing around the bodies.
"Watch your tone young man," said Mr Holmes. "You won't touch a single hair on her head."
"What side are you two on? She killed our men!"
"I'm on the side of justice."
"This is justice to you?" A man pointed to the bodies.
"They were supposed to monitor the girl but they made a move and this was the consequence for their action."
"Why are you defending this girl?"
"Do you hear yourself right now? kid."
"What did you just call me? You wash up detective!"
"A kid."
{"Are they helping us?"}
"I'm not sure…" I whispered.
{Stay calm we're here to protect you.}
Why? Both of you are from the magic association who's right now are holding my dad. Why are you helping me?
{The magic association will accuse your father for treason. Faron has it set in his mind to ruin your father's reputation. I joined the magic association to better myself and the world by understanding magic but in the end, I ended up as their tool. Mr Holmes feels the same way. Both of us are on your side, so don't be afraid and stay behind that tree. We will try to discourage them from taking any further actions.}
I-I… Thank you.
"You're talking to the girl aren't you? Say hi to her for me!" I heard Mr Holmes whisper to Miss Winters.
{Oh and Mr Holmes says his hello to you.}
That brought a smile to my face.
"You have a lot of nerve old man. I will tell leader and the both of you will be trialed for treason."
"Oh? And what makes you so sure you can just go back and tell him hm?"
"Are you threatening me?"
"No but you're making it so hard not to."
All the men who were examining the bodies stood up and faced Mr Holmes and Miss Winters.
"I'm starting to believe you two know where she is. Miss Winters is talking to her right now via telepathy isn't she?" The young man said in an arrogant tone, like a thug from the streets.
{Prepare yourself. It seems that they may have caught on.}
I adjusted my posture on the trunk a bit and felt the aches and pains all over my body.
"Both of you aren't saying anything so I will take it as I am right, this means she's somewhere around here isn't she?"
"They awfully close to that tree," said the man standing to the young man's right.
"Do you think the girl is hiding behind that tree?" Asked a man to the young man's left.
My heart raced as I clenched the handle of my sword. The coldness of the blade pressed against my body soothed the tension in my heart. Can I use the blade one more time? I'm so tired right now.
{"I've set multiple magic circles around us, it will buy us some time. I think we should make a run for it."}
"What about those two?"
{"The spirits of the forest will protect them for as long as possible but those guys are after you right now. We must go!"}
I pushed myself up using the trunk of the tree and the sword as my crutch. I willed my legs to move and slowly, step by step, I began to moved forward. I moved at a jogging pace and ran through the trees, deeper into the forest. I don't think they saw me.
I looked behind me and all I could see was the darkness made by the enclosed canopy from above.
Only glimmer of sunlight that managed to seep through the canopy, illuminated my surroundings. I could barely see anything. I kept jogging until I saw light in the distance. It must be a clearing.
As I broke through the darkness and into the light, I noticed that the clearing wasn't must of a clearing but just a small opened area where there was a large hole in the canopy. What do I do now? Do I go further into the forest? What if once I go further, I would never come back out?
It was then as I stood in the middle of the small clearing, fire erupted all around me. The fire spread around the whole perimeter and encircled me. I was trapped.
"You have caused me a lot of trouble girl!"
"What do you want from me?!" I screamed at the fire.
"Don't talk back! You will soon be my wife!"
"Your wife? Fuck off! I don't even know who you are!"
"You don't?"
Through the flames, a young man walked out and behind him was a much older man and…
My insides turned when I caught the sight of the woman. I felt hatred seep out from my soul.
"What's with that look? Why haven't you greeted me yet? I'm your mother or have your father brainwashed you into thinking I was dead?"
"Your not my mother! I don't have one! My only family is my father!"
"My you have been brainwashed. Come to us dear, we will put you right. You won't have to see that man ever again. We will be a family and you'll marry this fine young man. You will have everything, a family, money, prestige. What more could you ask for?"
"Ha! You think I want all that? Firstly I already got a family and his currently held hostage in that magic association building! Secondly, I don't need money, I am happy with how much I have now and prestige? Why would I want some else to give me that? I want to earn it like my father. By my own power!"
"You think too highly of yourself girl!" Spat Carma.
"Now now, don't be like that dear," soothed Morion. "Valah, I am your stepfather, Morion Tarok. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. My family can provide you with anything you want! Any girl would jump at that! Don't you want to be a wealth woman? Living a life without a worry? To leave a life free of the lower class?"
"Are all rich people like this? Self-centred pricks? To make one thing clear, I don't know what you see but I'm not like the girls you see in your world. I have a goal, I have a dream, I'm just an ordinary girl who's proud of my dad and I want to follow in his foot steps!"
"Don't make us laugh, with out money and power, how will you achieve that?" Morion looked me over, unimpressed.
"By how normal people do it, through life experiences. I may be a novice now but I will be someone great in the future."
"A peasant's dream."
"Father, is this girl a fool? Am I marrying a peasant?"
"No son, your not." Morion faced his son before turning his attention back to me. "One last chance, do you want throw this opportunity away?"
"Without a doubt."
"It's your life?" Morion shrugged. Morion brought out his sword and I responded by bringing out mine. "Nice sword, where did you get it?"
"My dad gave it to me," I said with a large bright smile on my face.
"Did he now?" He asked sarcastically. "I don't believe you."
"Believe what you want. Now are we going to fight?"
I raised my sword high. I still felt the tiredness inside me.
"Son, fight with her. She was your bride, take responsibility."
"Yes father."
Lanson walked forward with his sword and I took the initiative by charging forward.
"Enchanted blade no.5: Instant Flash Strike!"
Within a second I was now on the opposite side of where Lanson was facing.
"Father, I feel cold." Lanson said as he's teeth chattered.
"What did you do to my son!" Morion screamed.
It was then Lanson fell to the ground.
"My son!"
Morion lashed out and I tried to dodge his strikes to the best of my ability and parry whenever possible.
"Elise?" I called out but she didn't answer.
Why isn't she responding? Did something happened to her? The tiredness within my body grew and I became sloppy with every move.
"All that talk, with no effort shown. Pathetic." Morion growled as he swung with powerful strikes.
I could barely hold on when one of the strikes caught me off guard and I tried to parry but the force was too great and I was thrown backwards towards the wall of fire. Oh no am I going to die? If I am, I hope I can see my dad once more to say thank you for all that he has done for me. I love you dad!
I closed my eyes and thought of him. It was then I felt someone holding me. Dad? Has he gotten out of that building to save me? I slowly opened my eyes to see someone else. My heart started to race as my face slowly turned a dark shade of red. Why am I feeling like this? And then I blinked a few times before I finally recognised who this was.
"Big boss?" I barely made out the words.
"It's nice to finally meet you. Sorry we have to meet like this. I only just gotten word from Elise and she escorted me here. It looked like I made it just in time."
"Who are you and why are you interfering?"Morion shouted with a raised sword.
"I'm not. I'm just giving her a helping hand." Suddenly out of nowhere, I felt myself feeling much better and my fatigue slowly fading.
"Here." Big boss placed something in my hand. "This will help boost your power."
I opened my hand and my eyes widened. In my hand was a ring, it looked beautiful.
"It's a power ring, put it on."
I picked the ring up with my right hand and tread the ring onto the finger next to my pinkie. I then lifted my hand up high to see the ring on my finger but as soon as I lifted my hand, I felt a surge of power flow through me.
"So you won't accept us but you'll accept this stranger? okay… Okay!"
Morion rushed forward with his sword raised but as soon as he got closer, I raised mine.
"Enchanted blade no.8: Extended spike!"
My blade glowed radiantly with a blue hue, when Morion came close enough, my sword shot out and struck Morion in the chest.
Morion fell to the ground when my sword receded.
"No! My husband!" Carma rushed over to the fallen man. "What have you done!"
"Both of them aren't dead. Take good care of them, after all they are your family now."
The woman who I once known as my mother cried for a family that was not us. I felt a weight lifted off of me and I finally get to start my new life, free from this person.
"Come on." Big boss said as he brought me back onto my feet.
"Where we going?" I asked in confusion.
"To save your father." He smiled.