She tore off a piece of her clothing and bandaged her bleeding arm, then hurried towards the obstacle course.
She jumped up onto the slim plank and took a long deep breath. 'You can do it.' she told herself as she leaped into the first pole, landing perfectly on both feet.
She gazed intensely at the pendulum and took a slight bend, then the instant she felt it was the right time, she jumped, landing successfully on the second pole, but on one leg.
She quickly stiffened herself to get her balance, and finally, when she did, she slowly brought her right leg down.
She inhaled and exhaled deeply, then looked up ahead to see that the people leading were Mishak and a very slim-looking girl who seemed to have no tinge of fear in her eyes.
Her brows furrowed and now filled with sudden willpower, she monitored the pendulum and quickly jumped the moment it was time, carefully landing on both feet.
She breathed heavily and a slight smile ensued on her face as she proceeded to jump onto the third pole before the last one.
'Just two more to go, Layah.' She said to herself, and once it was time, she hopped onto the next pole, and fortunately for her, she landed on both feet.
Now, only the last pole remains. Once she crosses it, she will be one of those behind Mishak and the girl.
Still intently watching her, Damien shook his head in irritation.
"How is she doing?" A voice suddenly sounded behind him, and he stood up from the chair, then turned to bow respectfully to none other than Dorian, who was clad in his royal-fitting clothing, which was a blue silk shirt and white pants.
"Your highness," he greeted, but Dorian clicked his tongue at him in a bit of displeasure. "Damien, I have told you several times to call me by my name. We are best friends after all, aren't we? Even if you don't want to sound disrespectful, then address me by my name when we are alone, like this." He clarified and Damien nodded in understanding. "I will."
"Great! So how is your little captive doing?" He asked with a smile on his face, and Damien turned to look at Layah, who was still getting ready to avoid the last pendulum. "Uh..oka-"
"Ohh... ouch, that's bad!" Dorian abruptly exclaimed, and Damien quickly turned his head to see her mercilessly knocked off, the instant she proceeded to jump onto the next pole.
"Arghhhh!" A loud, painful groan exited Layah's throat, and she rolled on the ground in pain.
Dorian, who witnessed the pain she was in, quickly hurried toward her, knowing she must be deeply hurt.
He grabbed her by her arms and sat her up on the ground, only to see that she was injured on her chest. "You... okay?" he asked with a bit of concern in his blue eyes, and Leia nodded as she snatched her arms from him.
"Thanks," she murmured and stood up on her feet, then turned to glance at Damien, who was walking towards her.
He stood in front of her and looked at the wound on her chest, then grabbed her by the arm and began to pull her along with him.
"What are you doing?" She asked in annoyance, but Damien answered not and continued to pull her along with him.
"Where are you taking me to? Let me go? Take your hands off-"
"Keep quiet!" He yelled at her when he couldn't take all the noise and glared at her with irritation in his eyes. "I have warned you not to be talkative around me! I hate women that talk too much!" He breathed heavily and Layah, who was scared to death from his bright eyes that were glaring at her, stayed immobile in his grip.
A deep breath exited his nose and he pinched between his brows. "If you don't want to get on my nerves, just keep quiet." He said to her in a calm tone, and wanting to be less harsh on her, he released his grip on her arm and ordered her to follow him.
Layah followed behind him, and throughout the whole walk, she uttered not a single word until they arrived in front of his chambers.
The guards pushed the door open for him, and he grabbed her by the wrist, then dragged her inside and had the guards shut the door behind them.
He turned to her and reached out his pale hand. "Where is it?" he asked, and quite confused, Layah darted her eyes around. "Where is what?"