Chapter 143:
Journey to the Palace
Groups of soldiers filled the outside forest not far from the countess's mansion. The soldiers, led by Silas and Maeir, were the last of the infantry members sent to aid the palace attack. All the other groups of troops had left, stacking their teams departures by short one hour intervals, allowing them to travel safely without the fear of being wiped out as a whole by the scattered Yursinean Knights.
"There are only hours left until the rest of the troops depart. Are you all prepared?" Eva's eyes were lined with dark circles, but her expression of delight did not fade. She had been hard at work arranging the soldiers and preparing the rest of the war supplies. Her notoriety was far too high for her to step foot on the battlefield, but her presence was enough to keep the soldiers morale high.
"We're more than ready. Things are looking great for the Faelfier border now that all the pesky border patrolmen from the Yursear side have been decommissioned. Bjorn has been a great asset, that's for sure." Adora said, preparing for her own long journey back towards the Faelfier Kingdom with her troops.
Using their extensive network of rebels, Malcolm's search parties had begun to dwindle, starting at the farthest groups as they worked their way closer to the palace. The direct infantry, Silas's group, was held back until the very last round of departures, allowing their troops to finish organizing in place before the true attack could begin, avoiding any battles on the way to the palace.
While Silas and Maeir prepared to attack the palace, Adora's duty had been set to relay information back to Bjorn's troops, meeting them halfway across the Yursear Kingdom in order to allow a swift takeover of the palace once Malcolm was killed. Clarence's family would be allowed amnesty so long as they abandoned the throne and the power they held with it. In place of his family, Clarence and Silas had long discussed the issue together, and the prince was willing to give up nearly everything.
Though, Clarence had not discussed his romantic endeavors and his desire to stay by Silas's side, no matter where that may be. When this war is over, I want to tell Silas how I really feel. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't accept, but- Clarence thought, his eyes darkening with worry, I'll just have to wait for the right time, and act accordingly.
While the final matters were discussed, Maeir turned to Meredith and said directly, "Meredith, are you sure you are well enough to make the trip to the capital? There are enough couriers to keep us updated I'm sure."
Meredith, having healed his grevious wounds, was in good spirits. "I'm feeling much better with everyone's care. Thank you. I would like to play my own part in this war as well before it finally comes to an end." The relationship between him and Eva had deepened, but it did not stop him from departing to help in the war.
With everyone prepared and ready to go, Eva finally repeated the meeting location, making sure all of the important players were aware before they left for the palace, ready to dethrone Malcolm from his faux throne. "Holland's group will be meeting you all before the palace at the set location with a special guest in tow. It seems like Captain Laurent will be joining our cause as a temporary member. I'm not against the idea since Holland proposed it, but-" She paused, placing down the papers in her hand. "-if he steps out of line for even a moment, we'll kill him." Her eyes fell over Clarence, making a chill run down his spine.
"Captain Laurent? He willingly turned himself in?" Clarence asked, his face full of surprise as he spoke, rubbing his arm.
Maeir scoffed, "It seems he knew who the winning team was and jumped ship before he lost. Smart man."
"Enough." Silas let out a small sigh as the group was urged forward, stopping their drawn-out conversation to begin their trek to the palace with their respective troops. Maeir walked to Silas's left, as Clarence stood on his right, acting as if he were someone important to protect. Their troops had already begun their march in front, their numbers scattered into smaller groups across the forest in order to keep them better hidden from the searching Yursinean soldiers that were left after the other troops traveled through.
"If you find any Yursinean soldiers, kill them immediately." Maeir said by Silas's side, her face full of a heavy, murderous smile as she toyed with the scabbard at her side. "Those human scum won't wait a moment to kill us. You all should know that better than anyone." She shot Silas and Clarence a sideways stare.
The prince's expression was sheepish as Silas kept himself quiet, his expression full of fatigue. The cloak covering Clarence's head and face hid part of his expression, but Silas could clearly feel his dampened demeanor. With a lift of his hand, Silas patted his shoulder, nodding his head lightly. "Just focus on finding your family. We'll take care of the rest."
Clarence turned towards Silas, his cheeks slightly red as he nodded in response, savoring the touch of Silas's hand on his shoulder. Maeir's eyes, meanwhile, bore through the cloaked figure with the eyes of an angry mother, prepared to keep him in check during the rest of their long journey.
The few knights with them were still well unaware of Clarence's identity, but soon, there would be little to hide who Clarence was.
The arduous journey had not been long before trouble erupted at the forefront of the marching soldiers. Nearly two days into the long journey, Silas's group had encountered a large group of Yursinean soldiers on the outskirts of a small village. With the small group of six, Maeir split the group into two and moved into the foliage not far away with Clarence and Silas.
"What's going on?" Silas turned to Maeir, tucked away in the bush with Clarence attached at his hip, narrowing his eyes as he attempted to identify the soldiers.
Maeir frowned, "It seems like they're looking for someone. Look at that parchment in their hand. Do you see it?"
Clarence, moving forward slightly, moved to look over Silas's shoulder, his chin nearly resting on the other man's shoulder in a natural fashion. "It's a wanted poster for a person." Clarence muttered, squinting his eyes the best he could to make out the drawing. "It looks to be a man, but I can't tell from here."
"Do you think it's for you?" Silas asked, curious if Malcolm would send out soldiers this far to hunt the other man.
Maeir and Clarence turned to Silas, their eyes both weary and interested, but the more they only had a short moment to stare at the poster before it was stowed away by the nearby soldier, who had moved to speak with the other knights by him after interrogating a nearby villager. The villager stumbled away in a hurry, terrified.
On the other side of the foliage, the group of rebel soldiers stared over to Maeir, motioning with their hands in preparation to attack, but Maeir sent the counter signal, motioning for them to wait until the soldiers moved farther away from the village in order to avoid being spotted by any of the villagers outside the town.
The three soldiers moved to a farther position to the side, ready to ambush the moment the Yursinean soldiers moved to leave the town through the main path, while Maeir, Silas, and Clarence began to move closer on their own, following the group of enemy soldiers as they prepared to leave.
It seemed as though they were still unsuccessful. The captain of the team of soldiers crumpled the wanted poster in his hand, nearly ready to toss the paper before he loosened his grip, appearing far more annoyed than before.
"We'll have to try the next town, then. I doubt they got very far." Another soldier spoke up, his voice low.
The guard captain smashed his lips together. "I doubt it. Those damn princesses and that stupid duke's son are far too pampered to make it out here long. If they aren't found dead in their carriage, they'll most likely be traded off in one of these villages." The man hissed under his breath. "That damn Duke Godfreed. This work better be worth the reward."
"What are they-" Clarence said, panic setting in on his face.
"Don't move!" Maeir harshly whispered, nearly throwing Clarence back by the scruff of his neck.
"But, that's Alywin… he escaped the palace! I need to know-"
"Stop!" Silas whispered, throwing his arm out in front of Clarence, his palm resting in the center of his chest. "I know you want to find out what's happened to them, but now is not the time! We'll know later! Don't risk our mission."
"This can't wait." Clarence pushed Silas's hand aside with little warning and stepped forward, wanting to hear more, but just as Silas grabbed his arm, preparing to tug him back, the fabric of his cloak lowered, exposing his head and face to the soldiers with a whooshing sound.
The three rebel soldiers watched Clarence step forward, and they hurried to move from their positions, flanking the side of the soldiers as they were distracted by Clarence's sudden figure emerging from the bushes. Silas and Maeir were quick to mobilize, standing on either side of the prince to protect the fool from doing something else stupid.
"Prince Clarence-!" The tall soldier yelled, pointing his finger in Clarence's direction. "It can't be!"
"How are you still alive!?"
The three accompanying rebel soldiers stopped momentarily, staring over towards Clarence, who stood near Silas, his sword drawn just the same as the other soldiers. The air was stagnant, and it was difficult to determine the lines between friend and foe.
Clarence gulped aloud, his hand reaching for his sword, preparing to fight for his life, and for Silas.
…
After the incident in the sewers, Jasmine bathed in the cool spring air for some time, attempting to ease some of her stress before returning to the cabin. Her hair was damp as she wore a new set of clothes, shivering, while Beau spoke to Holland inside the small cabin, Holland's nose plugged with his fingers on either side of his nose bridge. Vaan, on the other hand, stood and mediated the impending altercation with little interest.
"Why did you let yourself get caught like this? Wouldn't it have been better to stay at the palace?" Holland asked curiously, staring at the respected captain with interest.
Beau, still stinking of the rotten contents of the sewers, curled his nose. "I'm sure you understand what it's like to climb up the power ladder, Holland Joey. Some of us are destined to reach the top, while others fall. If you felt yourself falling, would you try to grab on to what you had left, or would you rather start anew?"
"I'd crush those ahead of me and force my way forward, no matter what." Holland replied, his voice full of conviction.
"That's why you would never make it as a Yursinean knight. There's a certain loss of morals every knight has to commit to, and you lose yourself in the process of climbing up the rankings." Beau started, staring forward with a bitter expression. "I am trying to renew myself. There is no more forcing my way forward on a path that is destined to fail. That's why I approached you all in the first place, to follow my morals."
"You really think you're doing this to be moral?" Holland stared towards Beau with a heavy gaze. "Besides that, how can I trust that you're being honest?" He continued with, "You could very well be saying all of this to save your hide like a dumbass."
"We've had this conversation before, Holland Joey." Beau said directly, his eyes falling on Holland. "I have nothing to lose at this point. I'm willing to share what I know with you all provided I am assured my life. You were given a second chance by Eva, so I hope you have the capacity to do the same.
Hearing about second chances, Holland's face turned black, and he stood up abruptly, opening some of his newly-healed wounds again, causing him to nearly fall to the ground again. Under his breath, he gritted his teeth, hissing out, "Don't say another fucking word, you hound."
"I'm only asking for forgiveness, just like you." Beau smiled testily in response, shrugging his shoulders. "Did I set out Charon's infamous temper?"
The two men's eyes were transfixed on the other, their movements stilled, as if they were waiting for the other to pounce, starting a battle that could very well toe the line between life and death. Before the fight could continue, Vaan stepped forward and opened the door to the cabin with a swing of his arm, exposing Jasmine, who had been standing outside the door, listening to the impending battle with interest.
"I guess I missed the fun in here. What a shame." She muttered with little enthusiasm, her sarcasm thick. With Jasmine returning inside, washed and fragrance-free, she turned to Holland and Vaan with a bitter grimace. "Vaan, do you mind taking him outside now?"
Having already heard enough of the violent affair between the two men, Vaan was quick to agree, standing up as he motioned for the captain to follow him, avoiding touching the other man as much as possible other than to help him loosen his clothes to allow him an easy way to take them off later, speeding along their trip outside. The laces on Beau's tunic were unknotted, and part of his dirty chest was exposed, eliciting only a hungry gaze from Jasmine, who felt she could appreciate good bodies when she saw them.
While Holland, watching Beau remove his shirt in such a casual fashion around his tied hands, could not help but say. "You're pretty well built." Holland uttered with a frown, sizing the man up with undisguised scrutiny. Nearly all the muscle I had gained is now lost because of you, you fucker.
Beau, having just been lifted off the ground by Vaan, said with a sarcastic smile. "Are you implying something, Holland Joey?" He raised a brow, his eyes dim with laughter.
Holland was well aware of Beau's mixed interests, and with that thought in mind, Holland's expression fell immediately, his lips twisting in disgust. Vaan, standing just far enough to monitor Holland, slowly turned to look between the two men, shooting them looks of murderous impatience. "Stop."
"Get your ass outside, now. You better pray I don't shove you down that well tonight." Holland's voice was nearly a growl.
Vaan's eyebrows furrowed in irritation. "I've got the clothes already. Let's go." He was already irritated at having to help Beau remove his clothes. If he had to listen anymore, he was tempted to tie up the two men together all night.
Finally, while Beau was led away by Vaan, Neema and Saoirse had already gone to rest for the night.Jasmine remained in the room, her eyes falling over Holland with a heavy frown. Her displeasure weighed on the room, bringing a sense of dysfunction to the empty space.
"What are we going to do with him, Holland? Neema and Saorise want to at least interrogate the useful information out of him while waiting for word from Eva. Vaan hasn't said anything yet, but I think he'd agree. What are your thoughts?" Now that there was time to talk, Jasmine, the unofficial captain of the team, spoke to Holland as an equal.
Holland chose to follow Eva's orders, putting him in a unique position in the group with an even more unique power imbalance between him and the other members. Jasmine valued his thoughts, but she was curious to know his thoughts on Captain Laurent's usefulness.
"The captain's far more useful alive." He didn't like Captain Laurent in the least, but he had immense value. "I say we take him back to Eva's. Killing him now would be a shot to the foot, Jasmine."
Jasmine's lips hung open in surprise. "You, keeping him alive? Tell me you're not joking."
"I'm serious." Holland shook his head. "I may think he's the biggest asshole I've ever laid eyes on, but he's in our field now. The castle is already in a weak position. It's easy enough just to use him for what he knows and then kill him after we take over. Maybe we can use him in the palace for all we know."
"You've got to be kidding me. You don't really trust him to waltz into the palace and help us just like that? Really, Holland, I thought you were smarter than that." Jasmine spat with some irritation. "Did you forget he tried to kill you? Nearly tortured you to death in that very palace?"
"Don't forget I act on my own orders. I choose to listen to Eva, but I don't have to." Holland spoke, adjusting the bandages wrapped around his arm. "Besides that, Beau is in no position to fight either way. Either he fully commits to defecting from the palace away from Malcolm, or he dies in our hands. He's made his choice obvious, and I would rather gain a strong arm to help than alienate them, but don't mistake this decision for forgiveness, Jasmine. We both have things to gain in this situation."
Jasmine's gaze fell. "You'd better not regret this decision, Holland. I mean it."
"I won't." Holland rebutted, his expression full of fatigue as Jasmine stepped out of the room, her fists balled at her sides as the door to the main room was slammed shut behind her.
Hearing the man's response, Jasmine could only scoff, feeling the man she considered a good friend had fallen stupid after one single conversation with Captain Laurent. If she could do as she wished, she would have already killed the captain and shoved his body in the sewers to rot in the shit he belonged in, but she knew Eva would never allow her to do so.
It was frustrating, but she knew she could only follow the orders she had been given for the better of the rebel army. She still had family to protect, and killing one important man could jeopardize their safety. Holland understood it well.
At least her family was still alive to protect.
"I hope you know this conversation isn't over. We still need to discuss this with the twins too." Holland refuted, laughing lightly. "Vaan and I already started the conversation."
"Goodnight, Holland." Jasmine responded simply, stepping out of the room towards the bedrooms, all but ready to lay her head on the bed and sleep the rest of the day away.
…
On the north-eastern path, nearly two days away from reaching the Vartien Kingdom, Cordelia and Kivah ran into a group of unexpected enemies, and they were forced to lay in wait, watching as the all but familiar people stepped past them down the main road, long abandoned by travelers just short of the northern border.
"What is going on?" Cordelia asked with alarm as she and Kivah hid in the bushes, watching a group of soldiers moving through the path. Their faces were weary, and their armor was dirty with dirt and dust.
Kivah's expression was dark as he watched the soldiers storm past, their identifying marks strangely hidden on their uniforms. From the state of their figures and their equipment, it was obvious they had been attacked and had barely managed to finish the fight. One group of strong bandits would be enough to do away with them, however Kivah could not handle them by himself. By their accents, it was obvious they were Yursinean, and of some standing at that.
"They're a group of Yursinean knights. I don't know what they're doing, but they're patrolling much farther than their usual jurisdiction. I wonder what's going on?" Kivah whispered, moving closer to Cordelia as he stared out a hole in the bush, his eyes fixated on the moving guards, monitoring their swift departure with unease.
Watching the knights depart, Cordelia fell into some panic. It had been so long since she and Kivah disappeared. Would they think the carriage coach had killed her and himself? Or were they somehow still searching for her, getting some inkling she was alive? The very thoughts of being hunted by those knights made her freeze in place on the grounds, tears pooling in her eyes.
"Cordelia?" Kivah asked, kneeling slightly to face Cordelia, whose eyes had already turned red. "Are you okay?"
"Kivah, I'm afraid." Cordelia asked, kneeling on the ground as she wiped the tears in her eyes with the back of her sleeve. "What if we get all this far just to get caught by some knights? Or what if we get across the border, and then we get caught?" Cordelia choked back a sob. "Dammit, Kivah, I'm sick of hiding like this."
Kivah wanted to lift his hand and stroke Cordelia's hair, but he stopped himself, gently resting his hand at his side as he said in a gentle voice, "How do you know your family doesn't miss you, Cordelia? All of these things that have happened, we've been working through them. We're so close, you can't give up now."
"I'm just afraid, Kivah." Cordelia finally expressed. "I'm afraid when I get there, they'll either send me away again, or they won't accept me back. It's terrifying. I-I've never been without the support of my family. I don't know what to do."
Kivah's hand finally rested on Cordelia's in a gentle manner. He squeezed the top of her hand and said. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there. Who knows? Maybe you'll return to your kingdom in a better position than before." He jokingly raised a brow, smiling sweetly.
"I hope so." She said, wiping away the tears that sprinkled from her eyes with her free hand, unconsciously moving closer to Kivah. "At least I can go back with you by my side."
The pair was close, nearly too close for Cordelia to bear. In all her years, she had never been this close to another man, other than when she danced with Clarence at the bridal selection ball. Unlike the placid atmosphere with Clarence, however, she felt her heart fluttering every time she drew closer to Kivah. Like a moth to a flame, she was attracted to the warmth radiating from that person.
"L-let's get up." Cordelia stuttered as she attempted to stand, but she felt her legs tingle from kneeling too long, and her upper body fell into Kivah's open arms. Kivah swept the duchess up in his embrace, keeping her from touching the ground as the two faced each other, only a short distance away from brushing noses.
The two quickly separated, but the sweet atmosphere hung in the air, causing the tips of Kivah's ears to flush red as he stood up, offering his hand to Cordelia as the pair moved out of the bushes and back onto the main path, preparing to enter the Vartien Kingdom.
…
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Currently 10:30 in my timezone... still posting Sunday! Woo! Almost sent out a delay announcement, but I was able to power through this one! Ah, so many POVs and drama... I miss Hunny's editing. She hasn't really been with me since the ~110's, so if you think the writing changed, it's because it's been just me ;; I'm terrified of quality drops, but I also want to make sure the story keeps moving, so I will keep trying my best!
YMtK will definitely be touched up once it's finished, but maybe after a year of letting it lie finished. I will say, if only I was paid to write YMtK, I could dedicate more time to it. But, posting it online is something I enjoy, and I greatly appreciate all your feedback!! If there are any points of confusion/ plot holes, I'm sorry :( If you ignore them, they don't exist (ahaha)
My weeks have been with little rest, so I'm hoping to edit this again later :D Very much love y'all readers. Thank you >y<
Edit: Updated some of the writing diction since it was too close to my real speaking style. God, I'm too tired for this ahaha