Riona let out a dramatic groan. "Ngh…"
Her head throbbed as if it had been cracked open like a walnut. Coldness seeped into her bones.
Painful and cold.
The memory flooded back. She had unleashed her level two-and-a-half before everything went dark. In hindsight, it may be a bit excessive, but it was urgent.
Well, if Lisbeth caught a piece of Riona's vampiric fury, it was totally worth it.
A voice that was annoyingly familiar interrupted her internal lamentations. "You're awake! How are you feeling?"
Sir Kai's voice was like a dull knife—neither pleasant nor unpleasant, just irritatingly there.
"Great. Like I took a detour through the torture chamber and boiled myself in a pot lit by the dragon's fire. You know, the usual."
She narrated her condition perfectly, although she was unsure whether Sir Kai could decode her sarcasm because he had the perceptiveness of a doorknob.
Riona looked around and found herself in the unfamiliar space. "What happened? Where am I? This isn't my room."
It was bigger than her cramped servant's quarters but smaller than her luxurious chambers in the main tower. A moderately sized room, which only added to her confusion.
Her mind spun with dramatic scenarios. Did she, perhaps, die? Utilizing the level two-and-a-half was unprecedented, even when she was alone. She heard that dying from a magical experiment had become a trend.
Maybe Sir Orlo actually treasured her despite always scolding her for everything she did. Perhaps he was genuinely saddened by her death. Then, he went to a witch to resurrect her.
But, well, she's a vampire, not a Tusshia's descendant, so there was no way she could return to life after death.
Sir Kai's matter-of-fact tone cut through her musings. "You destroyed the Umbra Grounds to pieces. It's a wreck now, utterly useless for the Nightwarden Trials."
The accusations in his words, even though said with a stoic face, should be enough to make a saint feel guilty.
If one chose to look at it through a lens of brutal honesty, Riona was indeed the culprit. And sure, the Nightwarden losing its sacred spot for the oh-so-sacred trials was also, technically, her fault.
She sighed. The guilt was slowly creeping in. "Is it really that bad?"
"You burned everything to ashes." He paused for effect before continuing, "In case it slipped your mind, Umbra Grounds was already an icy paradise, but you managed to even torch the ice."
Right. So it was bad. He could have just said so without taking the roundabout way to the guilt-trip town. The apology was in her throat, but her pride just had to block the way. So she gulped it down altogether.
"Um, where exactly am I? And why?" Riona repeated the questions because Sir Kai's answer to these questions was totally unrelated.
Turned out, they weren't so unrelated after all. As Sir Kai put it, he feared that after everything that Riona had done, she would be in danger.
Yup, that's the word he used. Danger. Like she was a helpless kitten. Come on, she just casually blew up a scenic vale.
And so, like a knight in shining armor swooping in to save a damsel in distress—without the faintest clue of what exactly had her distressed—Sir Kai gallantly took charge.
"I brought you to the Nightwarden compound," he announced.
Riona released a weary, frustrated sigh. It was her dream to sleep in the Nightwarden compound, but not for this reason.
Sir Kai carefully chose his next words. "There's also the matter of the princess. If you were to return to the royal palace, who knows what chaos might ensue once you wake up."
"Oh, I'll tell you what'll happen. I'll track down your precious princess and level the playing field because I've never lost to her fair and square. If she didn't resort to her bag of tricks, I'd be undefeated," Riona spat, her anger reigniting at the mere mention of Lisbeth.
The headache magically disappeared and it was replaced by a burning fury. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed, ready to storm off, but Sir Kai's outstretched hand halted her in her tracks.
"Wait! Where do you think you're going? A doctor's supposed to be visiting soon. He should've been here ages ago, but where is he? Why hasn't he shown up yet?" His words tumbled out in a frantic rush.
"Listen, Sir Kai, I appreciate the concern, but I assure you, I need no doctor."
If stubbornness was a requirement for Nightwatch duty, Sir Kai was certainly overqualified.
"But you collapsed after using your power. You're injured. Let the doctor check you over before you leave. Alright?"
"What I need for my 'injury' and 'loss of consciousness'—I didn't faint, okay? I blacked out. There's a colossal difference. But regardless, the only cure I need is a hefty dose of revenge, so I can reclaim my spotless winning streak against that barbie doll," Riona ground out through clenched teeth.
Sir Kai looked like he had more to say, but Riona wasted no time in making her exit. She brushed past him with determined strides.
Lisbeth wouldn't evade her wrath for long.
What about the Nightwarden Trials? What about escaping the palace? Revenge took precedence. Her pride was on the line, after all.
Yeah, everything else could wait.
***
"Where is she?" Riona's voice thundered through the palace hallway as she stomped her way forward.
"Lisbeth! Come out, come out, wherever you are! Aren't we done with this game of hide-and-seek?"
Her words reverberated off the walls, sending servants scurrying. They whispered ill words behind her, but they would have to deal with the consequences later.
Guards who tried to stop her were thrown to the walls.
"What do you think Daddy will say when he finds out you resorted to cheating to beat me? I'm sure he'll be just thrilled."
No one could stop her.
Riona flung open doors, threatening every soul she encountered to reveal Lisbeth's location.
"Where is she? Speak now or forever hold your peace!"
Eventually, one particular servant surrender to her fear. "S-she's in the banquet hall," she stuttered.
"Banquet hall, huh? Alright. Let's see if she still has an appetite after getting a taste of defeat."
She marched towards the banquet hall, feeling confident because this time, she wouldn't allow Lisbeth to use an underhanded method to claim victory.
Riona slammed the door open with her crimson aura and then pushed her fiery energy into the hall.
Her grand entrance was as spectacular as she had hoped. The air crackled with a dense red fog.
As the fog gradually dissipated, revealing the crowded banquet hall, Riona's heart sank. The servant had conveniently forgotten to mention that Lisbeth was attending a grand banquet hosted by King Valentin to welcome Thorin to Eira.