"Over there!"
"Capture her!"
"I've got it!"
A chorus of voices bellowed out through the courtyard of the royal palace as the Royal Knights and Royal Guard had finally apprehended a female intruder.
The crowd had long gathered the attention of the royal family, and more specifically Princess Lecca had appeared on the grounds during the pursuit. She was flanked by the same butler that had been watching her during her previous visit to Vice Count Mororcos and behind him was three members of the Royal Guard.
"You damn witch! Think you can cast your spells on royal grounds huh?"
In the late evening sun, Lecca and her escorts walked down the steps that led to the front courtyard of the palace. Her black dress was swept in the growing wind, and her steps grew graceful as the distance between her and the witch fell ever short.
"Your highness if I may..." Lecca's butler spoke softly as he stopped her by the shoulder, "It is wise to be here? I believe you have other duties to attend to..."
Lecca provided a genuinely soft smile to the frail old man as she ignored his warning, "It's okay. I believe this is something I should participate in. After all this is a matter of security is it not?" She questioned which gained a defeated look from her butler.
"Of course. Please proceed at your leisure." He said while slightly stepping backwards and lightly bowing at the same time.
Reaching the end of the staircase, Lecca stepped onto the stone flooring spread amongst the gardens that hosted a plentiful amount of colors ranging from brilliant blues, to hazing reds of the lycoris radiata flowers. The guards dressed in their more pristine and prestigious uniforms waited for the Princess to approach. Each one on edge, for what was about to happen to the intruder.
Five guards kept their weapons trained on the intruder, while another two kept her on her knees by holding her by the arms. Each one gave of sweat as it had been only two weeks since the last encounter with a witch.
"Ah Princess!"
Calling out to Lecca was none other than that of Knight Captain Maximus Orwell. The Knight Captain had been the one responsible for executing the infamous "Orwell's Charge" where he and 200 calvary rode into battle against a horde of 400 monsters with minimal casualties.
"Captain, it is good to see you and your men are up to par." She said boldly gaining several whistles from the other guards.
"You wound me, Princess!" Orwell said in return as he feigned holding a wound above his heart, "Either way it seems we are up to par, as we've successfully captured this intruder, a witch to be exact." He said while guiding Lecca to the intruder.
The sun burned fiercely as it revealed the colors adorning the witch. Brown trousers, a black tunic, and green over-cloak with an accompanying mask, Lecca knelt in front of the intruder who swiftly looked away, until forced to look at the First-Born Princess.
The witch had long brunette hair that was in a bun and green eyes. She looked directly into Lecca's brown eyes.
"I already know that you will refuse to say anything to protect whomever you served or whomever hired you." Lecca began as the knights around her watched with interest, "This interrogation will not go far even with torture. Yet, there is something I can offer you if cooperation is something you consider."
"What would that be?" The woman asked with venom.
"You are a witch. You are someone that can rival most of the kingdom's mages. You are capable of destroying most backwater towns solo, yet no one said that destruction couldn't be applied to a more populated or sophisticated region." The woman froze and her face scrunched in frustration as the Silver-Haired Princess continued, "You perhaps had the mission of drawing out a member of the royal family, but I suppose I am not the one you are looking for? Tell me what is your mission? Assassination, bribery, capture of another member such as myself?"
"You God damned royalty!" The woman yelled gaining a swift strike from one of the guards making her go into a coughing fit.
"Watch your tongue intruder!" The guard said.
"You knew this would happen. Your capture was paramount to your mission. So, I will be kind enough to provide a single opportunity for you to confess before other methods are used." Lecca threatened.
"Princess you are right! Torture won't work!" She wailed and laughed.
Tired of this game, Lecca stood up and approached Orwell who was waiting patiently. "Captain, I request your blade." She ordered, making the captain's eyes shrink about the action she was about to perform.
"Your majesty?" He questioned drawing his blade and presenting it to the Princess.
"There is no other choice. We must do it." She said with a solemn look.
Taking the sword, Lecca approached the intruder and aligned the end of the sword with the witch's chest. The woman fell silent as she misinterpreted her fate, and without another word, Lecca stepped forward and plunged the blade through the chest of the witch.
Crimson blood shimmered in the red hue of the sun as it dripped onto the ground. The witch looked up with tearful eyes as Lecca moved her hand to the head.
"W-what?" The witch murmured out confused on what was about to happen.
"Like the others before you I would prefer mercy, but there is only one way to get what I want." Lecca said in a reassuring, yet cold voice. "You must understand that there are those that still know the nullification arts. The First-Born Princess is one of three hundred that remember."
The witch's eyes grew in shock as a stream of energy began to exit her body and into Lecca's hand. The guards surrounding Lecca watched both in horror and interest as the life was being drained out of the intruder.
Once complete, the woman dropped to the floor dead. A pool of black liquid exited from her eyes, nostrils, and mouth. Lecca whipped her hand as she removed the excess energy that she couldn't absorb.
"Princess you truly are a demon." Captain Orwell complemented with a smile as he turned around to the sounds of someone running towards the group gathered.
"Princess!" A maid called out, "The King is ready to proceed with the summoning ritual!"
Princess Lecca stood up from the ground and carefully wiped off the blood on Orwell's sword before answering the maid, "So, One Final Effort?"
Publicly Available Information: Nullification Magic:
Among the powers of typical magic spells, the power of Nullification is a forgotten art that is practiced by those only of royal blood. Due to this ability being limited, it has become a status of power, and is believed to possess the power to alter basic human understanding of magic well beyond any ancient records.