A few minutes after watching Felix disappear in the distance, the rumble of horses galloping was heard approaching. Claire and her group looked unconcerned as the thunderous noise grew closer. They even waited with anticipation, for they knew who the newcomers were.
When they became visible in the distance, their uniforms closely resembled Claire's, indicating they were part of the same knight order. They waited for them to arrive and dismount. Richard busied himself, repairing the carriage with what he could find. The girls, meanwhile, took care of the beasts' wounds sustained during the fight with the shades. Claire's wounds were already taken care of, and the poison had already been purged.
Frantic looks could be seen on the rider's faces. However, when they saw that the trio was safe, most relaxed, and a few looked apologetic. The riders stopped some ten meters away and dismounted. As they touched the ground, they lined up in formation before the trio and knelt in unison.
Contrary to what one might expect, they didn't kneel in front of the princess, choosing instead to face Claire. Even the princess and Richard knelt to her. With no strangers present, she removed the slim bracelet on her wrist, and her hair suddenly changed from fiery red to deep silver. The same thing happened to Christina but in reverse. As her hair returned to its natural colour, the rider chorused, "The Silver Knight Order pays respect to her Highness, the Princess."
"Forgive me, you Highness, for using your name," the former silver-haired girl said while kneeling.
"You have nothing to apologize for, Claire. I chose this plan. Besides, playing your role was interesting."
The princess observed her subordinates closely. Very few of her knights were in good condition. Most were lightly wounded, some had more severe wounds, and a few were missing altogether. Christina knew why very well.
While they had been ambushed by shades, those were but a fraction of their pursuers. The group that stood before her had taken it upon themselves to use a decoy to divert the main enemy force away from them.
In the group stood a young girl with a similar build and the same deep silver hair. Unlike Claire's magically dyed hair, hers was all natural. Seeing the young girl's current state, Christina sprung forth, reaching for her.
"How are you?!" Christina questioned frantically.
"I'm fine, cousin," she responded with a smile. "Those are but superficial wounds."
Hearing her comforting words, Christina relaxed and let out a breath. She forced herself to regain her composure.
Although the silver-haired lady claimed Christina to be her cousin, she was merely a distant relative. Christina, however, insisted on calling her cousin as they had grown up together, which is why it was particularly heart-wrenching for her to see her in this state.
Although she claimed that the wounds weren't deep, her knight uniform was, nevertheless, drenched in blood. Most came from the enemies she cut down, but quite a substantial amount came from herself.
Tears welled up in the corner of Christina's eye as she gazed at the state of her retainers. Words failed her as she wished to express her gratitude, but she could only muster "Thank you" while bowing to them.
She may have looked battle-hardened while fighting for her life, but she was only sixteen. She may think what she could do for them was not worth mentioning, but the same could not be said for her subordinates, as the act of a lord bowing to her retainers was rare. Her frail demeanour was fleeting as she steeled herself once again.
"How many?" she asked.
Hearing the question, her cousin's eyes grew ice cold. She was a knight by nature and felt no pity for her dead comrades. They excelled in exercising their duty, and fighting and dying to protect their lord was expected of them.
"All threats were neutralized," she replied.
"How many?"
Her cousin sighed deeply and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, the coldness had disappeared, replaced with helplessness.
"More than expected. They were more prepared than we thought."
The situation was as Christina expected. While returning from a routine border inspection, their scouts found clues of an ambush brewing. Although time was tight, they formulated a plan and implemented it.
The plan was quite simple since they needed more time for something elaborate. They would simply split up into multiple groups. The first one would engage the enemy up front. Naturally, that group had to bear the brunt of the damage, making it the group with the most casualties.
The second group would use Maria, Christina's cousin, to bait the remaining enemies in another direction, hoping that the third group, Christina's, could simply avoid fighting and flee into the forest.
While the first and second groups were mainly successful, the third encountered a small ambush party on their way toward the forest. The remaining guards, except for the trio, had broken off to engage, giving the carriage time to go deeper and blend into the forest.
Although it didn't go as well as hoped, and some casualties were inevitable, the operation could still be considered a success until the carriage was surrounded. If not for Felix's intervention, Christina may have been taken away. She debated whether or not to tell her subordinate when Claire stood forward and decided for her, as Maria had finished her exposition.
Claire recalled the trio's side of the story, including all the details, for all her subordinates to hear. When it came to Felix, Maria couldn't help but frown.
"Was it truly a coincidence?" she wondered aloud.
Christina had the same doubts, but she still let it go. Maria did the same after she saw Christina's expression. Such matters had to be put off for later, as they were still stuck in a forest, and night was quickly falling.
"Do we leave or stay?" Maria asked.
Christina pondered for a moment. Neither choice was devoid of risk.
"We stay," she replied. "Make camp for the night."
The knights saluted, acknowledging her order before scattering. The group busied themselves tending to the wounded and pitching tents.
Once alone, Maria came to her, "Are you sure?"
"That my choice is the best? Who can say, really? Any choice is better than indecision."
Maria ruminated her words before joining the rest.
A while later, Christina stood in her private tent with Maria and Claire, her bodyguards, discussing their next action plan.
"Should we go back to the capital," Claire asked.
"And disgrace ourselves before the Queen? I'd rather die." Maria replied
"Don't forget, we must keep Her Highness safe."
"What about the task entrusted to us."
"Her life takes precedence."
"I'm sure her Majesty would understand."
"I'm sure she would," Christina interrupted. "But, what about the Prime Minister?"
The girls frowned. This was a headache, and neither choice was perfect. Maria and Claire debated further while Christina listened. In the end, she would make the final choice. She sighed before saying, "We are all tired and need rest. This trip was more eventful than anticipated. Making a choice now would be counterproductive."
"A path is needed," Maria said. "The men need something to rely on."
"Aren't I enough?"
"You are, of course. The order would follow you through fire and flames, whatever the cost. But we can't just go along blindly. We need something tangible."
"I seem to recall there's a fortress to the west."
"The one near Redwaters?"
"We'll regroup there and rest while planning our next move. Any objections?"
The girls saluted. They knew that look. Nothing could change her mind at this point. With their next course chosen, Christina had her meal with all her subordinates. Royalty would never usually eat with their knights, but Christina had made it a point to do so. At first, her subordinates were quite awkward with it, but after multiple times, they had gotten used to it and even enjoyed her presence.
Afterwards, she cleaned herself thoroughly, removing the mud and blood from her skin. Although the maids that went with them wanted her cleaned much earlier, she refused at the time, as she still had so much to do.
With the day ending, she finally went to bed, thinking of all the events that had taken place that day.
Just before she drifted off to sleep due to the fatigue that pilled up, Christina's mind was still stuck on the figure of the young man who had saved her, wondering when she would see him again.
She then fell asleep.
She had a pleasant dream that night.
* * *
Although the sun had just set an hour ago, the night was pitch black as rain clouds covered the sky. Felix walked along the road briskly, eager to find shelter for the night.
Just as he exited the dense forest, rain started falling. Meagre at first, then more and more, until it blanketed the earth. The sound it made was deafening. He wondered if it would be better to wait it out under a tree, but as the minutes passed, the rain only deepened. While his misery intensified by the second, he finally saw hope ahead. He saw light cut through the dark night.
"Finally," he sighed. "Signs of civilization."
He approached the light eagerly. After a while, he could finally see its origin, a small town. Unsurprisingly, the streets were deserted. He meandered for a while until he finally saw what he was hoping for, an inn.
He checked his waist for the small pouch hanging off of it, counting the coins inside. Satisfied, he entered, only for all the patrons to stop what they were doing and turn to face him. Their stares bore through his skin.
Here we go again, he thought.