"Hand Lady Sera over to us, and we'll pretend this encounter never happened!" declared Lord Caspian, seated on horseback accompanied by House Lorelei's heir, Arnold Lorelei.
Arnold was Sera's older brother, a masculine-looking, dark-haired, tall man with eyes as dark blue as the deep sea.
He was skilled enough to lead an army, fought many battles, and won victories for the Lorelei.
To the people of Redfair, Arnold was a promising ruler for the future. They believed Arnold's leadership in House Lorelei would bring peace and prosperity to Lorelei.
"From the beginning, it was Lady Sera who crossed the border. If she is already inside my land, then it is my authority," asserted Lord Edgar Helferich.
He was unaccompanied by anyone, sitting firmly on his steed with his eyes fixed forward. A smirk was written on Edgar's face, trying to intimidate Caspian and Arnold.
"Then war will be inevitable," Caspian complained.
"Try attacking Lanercoast. As far as I remember, not a single Lorelei soldier can touch Calden Castle!" challenged Edgar.
Caspian squinted, turning his head to the side. He looked seriously at Arnold, hoping his son could express his opinion.
"There's no land I cannot conquer," Arnold insisted.
"Really? I doubt that, Lord Conqueror."
Arnold and Caspian fell silent after listening to Edgar's statement, the courageous speech of the leader of Helferich's army of 20,000 soldiers.
"Try to remember. Did you ever conquer Lanercoast? Your last battle with Lanercoast was a year ago, the Battle of Watercier Lake," Edgar revealed.
"Tch!" Arnold clucked his tongue. The Watercier Lake War was between Helferich and Castlebourne's alliance forces.
It was a fierce war at the cost of 10,000 soldiers divided into two sides: 4000 Helferich soldiers and the rest from the alliance forces —Reingard, Lorelei, and Mathilde.
The war's outcome was Helferich's absolute victory, considering Helferich's soldiers knew the terrain well, and the battle took place in winter when the lakes were frozen.
The springs were frozen on the Alliance side, and they had difficulty getting a water supply, dehydrating many Alliance troops. In contrast, Helferich had an adequate water supply.
"We lost because of winter," Arnold complained.
"You finally admitted your defeat!" declared Edgar, laughing loudly with both hands folded over his broad chest, "If we could destroy you in that war, what about now?"
All of Edgar's bluffing and intimidation seemed to be effective. Arnold was speechless on his saddle, as was his father. The two men were not ready to launch an attack if this war was not in Lorelei's favor.
"Leave with your troops. We will take good care of Lady Sera. We will inform you of her return when the time comes," Edgar emphasized.
Although Edgar tried to call off the war, it was undeniable that the soldiers at his side were on full alert.
They had drawn their swords, bows, and arrows ready, spears clutched tightly in the hands of the cavalry soldiers.
Both sides of the army were ready for battle, just waiting for the final command from Edgar and Caspian.
While they were arguing about the potential war that might occur, the galloping of horses could be heard from the north.
The sound of horses neighing attracted the soldiers' attention until they began to widen their eyes. Now, it was Edgar's turn to be surprised, and then smiled widely, realizing the person coming to the place was Quentin with Lady Sera.
"Prince Quentin?" greeted Edgar.
"I thought it would be best to bring her here to prevent a war," Quentin replied, arriving right beside Edgar.
Lady Sera and Quentin dismounted from the saddle. Caspian and Arnold clearly saw their daughter and younger sister near Edgar, especially near the man who looked familiar to both men.
"Wait. Isn't he Prince Quentin?" asked Arnold, shocked, pointing forward.
"What's going on?" asked Caspian, confused.
Lady Sera walked forward to Arlee Bridge, accompanied by Quentin, who stayed beside her.
Caspian and Arnold did the same, walking onto the bridge until they met Lady Sera at a considerable distance.
Prince Quentin stepped forward into Lady Sera's sight, making Caspian and Arnold gasp.
"You can't walk any closer from the center of the bridge," Quentin insisted.
The young man pointed to the center of the Alree bridge, where there were two house flags —the flags of Lorelei and Helferich— mounted on the stone fence.
Caspian and Arnold stopped walking, staring at Lady Sera, who looked like a mess. Her long black hair was messy, and the bruise on her fair white cheek and the wound on her hand were clearly visible.
"What did you do to her?!" raged Caspian, seeing Lady Sera injured.
"She fell off the horse, rolled on the ground, then fainted. We came to give her treatment," Quentin explained.
"He's right, Father. The Helferichs helped me when I was injured," Lady Sera replied.
"But they are wicked men. They would sell you to the slave market and make your life miserable," Arnold interjected.
"Would those people you call wicked allow Lady Sera to come here to stop the war?!" growled Quentin.
"What's wrong with you?! Why are you taking their side?! You're Reingard, not Helferich," Caspian pointed harshly at Quentin.
"STOP!" shouted Lady Sera.
The woman's shout stopped the argument between Quentin, Caspian, and Arnold. The three men turned to Lady Sera, seeing the serious look on the First Daughter of Lorelei's face.
"Father," called Lady Sera.
Caspian remained silent as he nodded, changing his eyes from looking at Quentin to Sera.
"What is your decision on Howard Hildemar's demand?" asked Sera.
"I haven't decided yet," Caspian replied.
"Now, Prince Alexander is missing, and there is no response from Castlebourne. Am I to put my future on your decision?" asked Sera sternly.
"What are you talking about, Sera? I don't understand."
"Until you have decided on a solution to this problem. I will remain at Calden Castle. The longer you resolve this, the longer I will stay there," Sera retorted.
Quentin smiled. What Sera said was in line with what Quentin wanted. Caspian was a type of father who loved his children, especially his daughter.
He would not let Sera stay at Calden Castle for too long. Caspian was pressured. He had to decide whether to accept Howard's proposal or leave the Reingard alliance.
'He is unlikely to accept Howard's proposal. I won't let Alexander leave before the time arrives,' Quentin thought.
Quentin was quite pleased and satisfied to realize the chaos he had created began to emerge. Over time, Quentin would ensure that House Reingard's alliance would crumble, with the other Houses losing trust in Reingard.
"Did you plan this, Edgar?!" shouted Caspian, pointing harshly at Edgar.
"This was my suggestion. I don't want you all to keep fighting each other over this!" Sera insisted.
"If you can't come up with a solution, then I will live in Calden Castle forever," Sera retorted.
Arnold clucked his tongue, turned around, and left Alree Bridge, leaving Caspian alone. The Lord of Lorelei, Caspian Lorelei, nodded slowly to Lady Sera, Quentin, and Edgar with his sharp eyes fixed ahead.
"Make sure you take good care of her, or I'll raze Calden Castle in one single night," Caspian commanded.
Quentin smiled, nodding his understanding of what Caspian wanted. The middle-aged man waltzed away from Alree Bridge, mounted his saddle, and left the forest.
Caspian and Arnold's departure from that place signaled that the potential war at Alree Bridge was over. Thousands of Lorelei troops left the place following their leader.
Lady Sera shed tears, watching her father leave with the thoughts raging in his head. However, Sera's decision was for the best.
If she returned to Avolire, it would not solve any problems. With Lady Sera being 'imprisoned' in Calden Castle, the burden on Caspian to decide would be even greater.
Quentin tapped Sera lightly on the shoulder, causing the woman's attention to be diverted to the side.
"You did the right thing," Quentin praised.
Lady Sera fell silent, then walked away from Alree Bridge towards the horse she had been riding. Quentin did the same, returning to the north side of the bridge and catching up with Edgar.
"I don't know what you're planning, but bringing Sera here and persuading her to stay was brilliant," Edgar stated.
"Our intentions are different anyway, but there is a common path between the two of us to reach our purpose," countered Quentin, glancing sideways to watch Sera closely.
The woman was already mounted on the saddle, glancing at Quentin with seriousness, "Do you not mind if I ride alone to Calden Castle?"
"You are Helferich's in charge at the moment. There will be soldiers with you wherever you go," Quentin emphasized.
The prince's eyes glanced at the cavalrymen. The cavalry commander nodded, ordering three soldiers to escort Lady Sera back to Calden Castle.
After the situation became more conducive, Edgar ordered his troops to withdraw and return to Calden. The war alert was suspended, and all the city folk were allowed to return to normal activities.
Only Edgar and Quentin remained in that place, staring at the Avarde River ahead of them.
"With Alexander on our side, they will have no choice but to end the alliance with Reingard," said Edgar.
"That's exactly what I was waiting for. I hope Lord Caspian will make his decision soon."