Song recommendation for this chapter: https://open.spotify.com/track/4YIW54P4WOI4p6KTUJce9R?si=3113fbbc1e794c62
--
The two days ride passed by quickly. Amelia kept her mind busy with the details of her plan.
As Aurora she would need to know the cultures of the kingdoms and understand their customs, so she was trying to remember what she had learned about Zeles and Lavia in class.
To her knowledge, Lavia was a prosperous, large, and self-sufficient kingdom. Their winters were much cooler and summers much warmer than the ones in Rodea. Most of the land was surrounded by the ocean, and it was said that the people of Lavia had a deep relation to it. The two nations still had some connection to nature, while Teon, Creus, and Rodea had lost most of it.
Since the 500-year war had ended, enchanters hid their identities out of fear to be abused for their powers. People rarely spoke of magic and feared it. According to rumors though it was different in Lavia and Zeles.
Zeles was tiny compared to Lavia and depended on the trades they did with them, so they developed a certain dislike towards Lavia. They wanted to be independent but were incapable to do so due to their infertile soils.
If her memories were correct, Zeles tried to gain more fertile land by waging war with Lavia twice but failed both times. Amelia knew she had to be careful in Zeles.
Lucky for Amelia, Aurora had been in Lavia only for one month. This means Prince Nathaniel didn't have the chance to know her well enough to recognize that Amelia wasn't Aurora. Also, one year had passed since, giving some room for changes in her habits or looks.
'Oh god, what if it takes longer than expected to find the murderers and I have to marry the prince?... No, I have one year until the wedding, plus I can always find reasons to extend the period… Yes, there is no way for me to marry the prince.' Doubt still lingered in the back of Amelia's head but she had no choice but to trust the process.
Suddenly something caught her eye. She led her horse towards the red dot of color standing out in the grey, colorless, dried-out environment. Standing right in front of a blooming red wild rose, Amelia couldn't believe her eyes. She started to feel the warmth within her heart and thought 'Maybe there is hope after all.'
--
Finally, Amelia had left Helveda behind her and entered Zeles territory. Her surroundings had changed to more trees, a lot of birds chirping and some cattle grassing here and there. She reached a little village and got shelter for one night from one of the inhabitants.
While she was resting in her room, Aurora came to her mind. She had oppressed her grief the past two days so that she could focus on her scheme. But now alone in the dark room she couldn't ignore the pain in her chest anymore and tears welled up in her eyes.
There was still denial about Aurora's death and Amelia couldn't believe the fact that she would never see her again or hear her beautiful laugh. It all hit her hard and Amelia cried herself to sleep that night.
The next morning, she continued her journey until she felt as if someone was following her. She stopped in the woods and pretended as if she didn't suspect anything when all of a sudden three men jumped out of the bushes and aimed their swords at her.
They all were dressed the same and in black. Although they were thieves, they looked well-fed and groomed.
"What is a young girl like you doing here alone?" said the chubby guy with blonde hair and brown eyes, standing in the middle with a smirk. "Let's not make a mess guys and get to business right away…" commented the guy on the right who appeared to be the leader and looked fitter as he was leaner, taller, and quite handsome with his amber-colored eyes and dark brown hair.
The chubby man rolled his eyes at that remark and was ready to pounce on Amelia, who had pulled out her sword in the meantime and was prepared to defend herself. Another second later the fight broke loose and Amelia fought off all three men at the same time. Her movements were precise and elegant. It didn't take her very long until two of them lay on the floor panting and grunting in pain.
The last one standing was the handsome one. He became fiercer in his attacks and was very skilled with his sword. Nevertheless, Amelia was a knight of the first order, and defeating him was more challenging than she had initially anticipated but in the end, he dropped his sword and retreated.
The other two stood up and brushed off the leaves on their clothes, which had stuck on their pants and shirt because of their fall. They all stared at her surprised and annoyed.
"Who on earth are you?" the handsome one asked amusedly. Even though he had lost, he was more in awe of her rather than angry about losing the fight. His two companions didn't share his admiration and were embarrassed about their situation.
Amelia wasn't sure what to do with them. She was not fond of killing people if not necessary, so if the three men were to leave her alone she would let them live.
"That does not concern you. Just leave me be how about that? I promise I won't hold a grudge."
"You won't hold a grudge, haha aren't you a funny young lady? We are the ones who got hurt, so if anyone holds a grudge it would be us now wouldn't it?" the chubby guy was incredibly displeased.
"You are the ones who attacked me. If you prefer to have another round, I don't mind." Amelia said a little overconfident and with a charming smile.
"Who the f*** do you-" the leader interrupted the chubby guy saying "Torres calm down, there is no reason for this kind of hostility. - The skills you have dearest are impressive. It seems you were about to take a break here in the woods. Why don't we all relax, sit down and have a chat? We were looking for another member of our crew. Why don't we discuss you joining us."
Amelia was surprised by the turn of events and before she could come up with an answer, the chubby guy started to scream in anger with a disgusted expression on his face "Boss what are you saying, I will not work with this dumb -" The punch on his face stopped him from speaking any further.
It all went by so fast that it took a minute for Amelia to gather what just happened. The leader had hit the guy called Torres right on the left side of his face, making his jaw crack. It was an awful sound and Amelia knew that must have hurt quite a bit.
Torres was now holding his face with both hands bending over in pain. He couldn't say another word and realized he had overstepped his boundaries.
"I think you are mistaken about who has the last word in our group Torres. You better hold your tongue before I slid your throat and let you bleed out here." the leader said in a condescending tone and an evil smile on his face.
He turned to look at Amelia and introduced his crew. "This fool to my right is Torres. He can be very charming when he is not being an idiot. The quiet fella next to him is Julius my brother and is mute. My name is Lucius, and I am the leader of this sad bunch. We just lost two of our crew members during one of our missions, which is why we are currently looking for people like you."