Buckingham Palace, London, England.
In the grandest and most decorated rooms in the palace, lies a gilded throne and upon it, sat a woman wearing a white military uniform with a white beret on her head and her left breast decorated with many medals that glinted under the chandelier light. The woman sat primly and properly as she faced the rows of soldiers that stood before her a dozen feet away while a sword ensheathed in a gilded silver scabbard leaned beside the backrest of the throne. Its presence despite being simply a conspicuous object, gave the woman an image of a regal and dignified manner as if saying, 'Kneel'. Painting an image that evokes servility upon any who gaze upon her.
Though the regnant is Queen Olivia, there is not a single knight in the room who would dare to speak out of turn in the presence of this particular young woman.
Boasting an impressive military record as both a frontline soldier and a commander, this young woman has been England's greatest protector since the time of Queen Olivia's ascension to the throne and is their strongest fighter and every military in the world acknowledges her as such.
Her name is, Guinnevere, First Princess of England and the adjutant of Queen Olivia who is the supreme commander of the royal army. Though in truth, ever since her mother decided to simply watch over the kingdom as she is getting old, Guinnevere has been performing as the supreme commander for quite a time already.
"Your Highness, the knights have assembled."
A man wearing butler clothes approached from Guinnevere's side and whispered.
"Mm? Ah yes. It seems they have. Thank you for the reminder John.", she thanked the butler, John, before gesturing him to return to his post. Afterwhich, she turned her attention towards the rows of soldiers, "What's the situation?", her tone turned cold and serious.
"The fighting has calmed down a bit your Highness. The insurgents seems to have abstained from pushing further into our defenses. As for the reason, we on the frontline have yet to know.", one of the knights- presumably a high-ranking officer, answered her query.
"Princess, if I may?", a knight stepped suddenly raised his hand.
"What is it, Knight Captain Albert?", Guinnevere put her elbow on the throne's armrest and rested her head upon her propped up hand. Her eyes, seemingly casting a piercing gaze at the apprehensive knight.
"Your Highness, we in the Saint's Guard Assistance Force believe that the reason for the insurgent's sudden retreat is because of the Saint from Lothargien.", Albert answered.
"Ho~? If I recall, a spec ops team was sent to assist the Guards that went there am I correct?", Guinnevere remarked.
"Yes your Highness, 2 Hunters by the names of Kallen and Bartholo went to secure her."
Hearing Kallen's name, Guinnevere felt like something more troublesome had popped out making her inadvertently shrug in exasperation much to the surprise of the surroundings.
"Your Highness?", the butler John worriedly asks Guinnevere but she simply waves her other hand to signal that she was alright.
'Kallen...you went and left again without informing me.', Guinnevere thought in disdain before muttering, "I feel like that little sister of mine caused more trouble than necessary but it cannot be helped. I just hope my other younger sister is not doing something similar somewhere I cannot see her.", she makes another exasperated sigh and just thinks of it as something that cannot be helped.
"In any case, what does that have to do with the recent lull in all the fighting? I assumed that they were here to eliminate her Majesty, Queen Olivia like how they did to the previous rulers a few decades ago.", she then resumes asking the knight, Albert.
Albert somehow stiffened at the question. Giving Guinnevere the impression that something must have happened.
"What is it Knight Captain?", she presses Albert for answers.
"Um...", Albert made a gulping sound, "Your Highness, it seems they had sent quite a number of their skilled fighters to Lothargien. We managed to trace the aircraft they used to leave England more than a week ago and traced them heading for Lothargien.", he answered in an anxious tone.
Finding his reaction rather strange she retorts, "What's so wrong about that? You should not be so anxious by reporting that rather, you should be proud. Though the thought of only 2 Hunters encountering them in Lothargien worries me, I believe they might manage.", then she smiled wryly before jokingly asking, "Or is there something else you have yet to tell me?"
At her question, Albert visibly shivered for a moment before, "Uh...actually, they ran into some trouble and most of the Guard that accompanied them were unable to even locate the Saint if not for...", his words turned into an incomprehensible mumble.
If Guinnevere did not find that strange, she would call herself incompetent and so she raised an eyebrow as she looked at Albert's questionable actions, "You are mumbling again Knight Captain. Speak clearly and repeat what you just said.", she pressures him to speak clearly.
This was one of her problems during these kind of meetings. Though she is aware that she is the Crown Princess, she believed that she has at least earned the proverbial right to act just like any other soldier ever since she decided to fight alongside her soldiers in the battlefield. But for some reason, soldiers still-more often than not, act so reserved and anxious when speaking to her despite her being clearly younger than most of them.
'I believe mother had made it perfectly clear to them that when we are on the battlefield, status does not matter. I wonder why they are still like that after all these years?'
She is completely clueless as to why.
But then, the atmosphere in the room grew even more heavy for some reason and Albert seemed to be even more reluctant to speak as he continued to take an interest in looking at his feet instead of directly facing Guinnevere.
"Speak!"
Guinnevere commanded as she reached the limit of her patience prompting everyone's shoulders to twitch in surprise.
A moment of silence passed once more and finally, after taking a deep breath as if he was resolved to endure whatever consequence may happen, Albert faced Guinnevere resolutely and answered, "Most of the Guard along with spec ops team that was sent as support were unable to find the Saint. They were about to decide to just hunt down the insurgents when an unexpected person appeared with the Saint in tow a few days later.", his voice trembled slightly but he remain steadfast.
"Is that it? Why are you so nervous just saying that? But I am quite intrigued. Who is this unexpected person and who managed to make contact with that person?"
Albert was obviously apprehensive for a second after Guinnevere insisted for further details, but he answered quickly nonetheless, "Yes. The unexpected person was reported to have left a scene of carnage in the Lothargien Highway which left more than a dozen insurgents dead. Afterwhich, the person made contact with Hunters Kallen and Bartholo in the city of Lothargien before finally exiting through the Galandre-Lothargien expressway where the person caused another massacre of the insurgents completely annihilating the force that they sent to take out the Saint."
The other knights started to murmur amongst themselves and even Guinnevere was surprised to hear such a report.
"John.", Guinnevere then calls John forward and asks, "The reports from the spec ops team. I do not remember them including such a person. Are you sure you got all the reports and sent it to me?"
"Yes, your Highness I did. All 14 pages of it."
"Eh? 14?", Guinnevere was startled by John's answer, "There were 14 pages?"
"Yes, your Highness. 14."
"But I remember only reading 12...", she felt troubled by the fact and was trying to recall the memory of having read the report.
For her, it was quite the blunder as she had always read every report given to her and even remember the contents to the dot. It was unlikely for her to even make such a simple mistake.
"I believe when you were reading it, Lady Evaline grabbed it from your hands while asking you to play with her.", John then adds another crucial tidbit in Guinnevere's memory.
'That time?!', Guinnevere sputtered as the finally the pieces started falling into place in her mind, 'Evaline who was sulking since a few years ago made a request of me for the first time in ages...then I remember her grabbing the report from out of my hands and started reading the last 2 pages and then she smiled happily and was in a good mood since!', she finally recalled the memory completely.
"John, head to Evaline and retrieve the last 2 pages of the report immediately.", recomposing herself and fixing her posture on the throne, she ordered John to fetch the aforementioned pages which he happily obeyed and with a smug expression, briskly left the throne room much to the disdain and disappointment of the knights and maids on standby and the bewilderment of Guinnevere who followed his figure with her gaze.
"Wonder what has gotten into him? Anyways, Captain Albert, continue.", she then resumed talking with Albert who was strangely disappointed that she did.
"Eh...uh...your Highness...", once again his voice trembled, "The thing is, Hunter Kallen had reported that the person was a young man with ash-white hair who calls himself by the name of 'Ashen'-"
*Whooooossh!*
A sudden gust of wind passes by his cheek. Viciously blowing his hair backwards for a good couple of seconds. His-and all the other's heads slowly turned to look behind them and there-stuck on the wall, was a large golden lance 3-meters in length. Then they slowly turned their faces towards Guinnevere who had her left hand stretched forward as if she had just thrown something.
"Heh...hehehehe...Is that so?", Guinnevere chuckled as she felt something indescribably unpleasant fill her body enough to cause her body to reflexively throw the lance she grabbed from behind the throne at the mere mention of the name, "So he has finally...shown himself?", she was chuckling and smiling. Yet she was aware that she was not feeling the least bit joyful, "Alright Kallen. I suppose I should be grateful for your willfulness this time.", she then grabs the silver sword beside her and draws it out; revealing the beautiful silvery blade as she addresses everyone in the room with an imposing voice,
"All Knights! To battle stations! We resume battle right this instant! Before the Saint arrives, we will end the siege of London!"
"Your Highness?! Would that not be too rash?!", one knight interjected but Guinnnevere simply scoffed at him and replied,
"I will hear no complaints knight! Know that you are before the throne and whoever sits upon it is your supreme commander! Now, rally the troops! I will personally lead the front!"
Everyone was silenced by her declaration but that was something she expected.
'Whenever I say I will lead them, they will all just fall silent. Not that its bad or anything. Afterall, I like the faces they make when they do so.', Guinnevere smiles as she surveys the faces of the knights before her; they were not faces of fear or anxiousness like from before, they were no doubt, the faces of courageous men who will fight beside her in the battlefield.
"BY YOUR WILL!!", the knights all shouted their assent and soon, all of them hastily rushed out the throne room to prepare.
Guinnevere then approaches the lance she had previously thrown and easily pulls it out, "Servants, you are to prepare the Forbidden Room at the far end of the Royal Suite. Also, prepare the lodgings for the Saint.", she then addresses the maids and butlers who stood by.
After hearing her command, they all exited the throne room in haste and soon left Guinnevere all alone as she returned to the throne in apparent melancholy.
Countless emotions swirled within her heart as soon as she heard the name 'Ashen' but since she could not show such turbulent emotions before others, she had to keep it to herself but it backfired and she almost killed a subordinate in shock.
"Ahahaha...not good. I am so pathetic.", she mocked herself as she ensheathed the sword and let go of the lance before sitting back down on the throne with a sigh, "Ah...to think you were 'there'...I guess I should be there to welcome you back huh? You idiot, Ashen..."
She makes a seemingly expectant sigh filled with longing as she leaned back on the throne's backrest, imagining how their reunion would turn out.