She grinned, slowly regaining consciousness. Her eyes blinked multiple times. As She slowly scanned the room with her eyes, she realized that someone carried her to the infirmary again.

While she was scanning the room. she titled her head to her right. Her eye widened.

Everything became quite clear.

She won't ever forget the unexpected person with his head resting on his arm, sleeping next to her waist.

A man who sleep after a victory when Death failed to collect his life.

"Uncle Alfred ! " the girl was confused "How did...". then she paused herself. Her memory came back to her.

She remembered that messenger who described the second allied army advancing from outside the castle. Before his demise , he mentioned that a one-arm man was leading the charge. Her uncle must have been the leader of those men.

She looked with cute eyes as she touched his black hair head. patting it.

Her thoughts spoke for her. Even after that firing discussion she had with him, he still came for her. Risking his own soul in the process but Alas, liberating the land from those scums for good. She smiled warmly with her small lips.

Afterward, she checked her belly. It was perfectly bandaged, whoever found her did a great first aid procedure. Her nose was in Stable condition.

The broken nose was still hurting her. Though, the pain is equal to null compared to her belly wound. As The bandages was soaked fully red. she wondered how she would eat now with that injured stomach.

YET Another question was teasing her mind. what happened after she passed out? She couldn't hear any battle voices outside, which meant that the battle was long over.

"I need to know what happened"

She tried to slowly squeeze herself to get up from that bed. but with a fresh wound deeply like this. A spiking pain was no surprise to Diana. But She had to endure. There wasn't much choice anyway.

Her shaking feet touched the ground floor. Barely supporting herself. She wanted to sneak away but the floor squeaked causing Diana to froze, she looked at her uncle figure behind her. He was still sleeping.

She breathed relief and smiled. She took another tiptoe steps towards the door before she heard another voice.

"You know, you really suck at sneaking," her awakened uncle said after, lifting his head over his head.

The girl's eyes squeezed in embarrassment. her mouth turns into a childish smile. Thinking about it. Not a single time she tried to Solely sneak out of a place and succeeded. Every time she was busted.

"Guess I inherited the heavy foot of my father" she said sheepishly with a hand behind her head. Deep down she was afraid to turn around and meet her rescuer's gaze.

"Look at me," he said sharply as he stood up to face her. With her heart racing, She dared to turn around to meet her uncle's face. She knew she had to listen to some serious talking especially since their last talk wasn't exactly the 'familiar' one. She still had the sensation of that slap on her face since that day marking her cheek.

After his barbaric reaction. She can't raise a speck of objection towards him. First because her face won't endure another hit and second, she got to give him the credit for saving her...

"What were you thinking when you decided to travel here?" His serious gaze returned.

"Both of us know the answer, it's your brother, at least one of us should think of him, don't you agree?". She challenged once again.

"So you infiltrated the most forbidden fortress existed on this earth and struck a rebellion where dozens of people died, just for the life of one man!"

"Absolutely YES!" She shouted in a most confident voice before she continued...

"I already killed not Once. TWICE. And I will do anything to get my father out of here!"

Alfred blinked with silence. He saw the spear struck in that dead man chest. So he couldn't accuse her of lying.

"Is that really worth it. You were on verge of death!" Alfred spoke.

"Yes, it is and you are wasting my time while he is still waiting for me!"

"What on earth are you saying, No one is waiting for you here, Richard's is not here!"

"What...No, You are lying! They told me he was put in the lower dungeon cell, I just need to get there!" She turned around leaving the room.

"I decended towards those cells. There were two prisoners there and there was no sign of him"

"Nonesense, I_"

"WOULD YOU STOP SWEARING AND LISTEN TO ME FOR A CHANGE!". Alfred bursted out again.

She stopped and looked at him, terrified of the truth that hided behind his high tone shout.

He blowed air from his mouth. As he dug his hand to his pocket as a rolled folded paper emerged.

"Read" he growled, extended his with the paper to her.

She looked at the paper with questioning and nervous look. "What's that?" She asked.

"Read it" he repeated.

She took some steps and took the paper from his hand. She opened it carefully as her mind was preparing for the worst.

Her eyes walked with the sentences written, decoding it's meaning to herself. And With each word she read, her eyes widen more and more.

"No..."

"After all of this..."

"I was too late..."

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"I was already late before even I reach the castle, All this time, I was chasing a ghost of a man," she thought to herself.

"Where did you find this paper?" She said. She was about to have a stroke..

"After I found no lead to your dad in the lower dungeon, the men led me to the commander's room. I found that paper during my search.

The girl crashed to her knees. Giving her a stinging flow of pain all over her abdomen. She clutched her belly with both arms. While engaging in loud crying.

The paper was a deed. A contract that shows that her father was already sold in an auction as a slave to a wealthy woman for 3500 gold coins. According to the date shown on this paper, it happened a day before Diana reached the castle.

"V-Vivian, that's the name of that woman" she stated. Then her eyes spotted the most important thing in the paper. "Shan!" Her eyes and mouth were wide open.

Shan, also called "The holy city" was the large town next to her Town which was about a day or two far from Endora.

"That's our next stop," he said. pointing for the paper.

The girl's face fades and turned into a big question mark. "Wait, 'our' ?"

"Yea, I am coming with you. A'int no way I am leaving you to-". The man was cut off by the infirmary doors opened by a brute push. It was Sebastian...

"Alfred, it's..." The frightened man halted himself when he noticed that Diana recovered partially from her belly wound.

"Diana, it's Gunnora!"

The group ran towards another room. There was Gunnora still holding to her life somehow. A pool of blood is covering the bed, she was resting on a bunk bed surrounded by 5 girls of different ages. When she saw the injury, Diana's brain couldn't take in how a human being would inflict such harm to a woman. or worse how anyone could still be a life after losing so much blood!

"Diana..." she said so quietly. her voice was broken from the pain. She reached her hands to the air towards Diana.

" I am right here," Diana said holding Gunnora's hand to her checks. unwillingly she looked a the wounds.

Dark bloody bandages were all over her body. "She was bleeding all night, We tried to seal the scars but we lack Equipment and a surgeon". One of the girls said.

Accordingly, Gunnora's face was so pale and tired. She noticed Diana's staring at her bloody bandages.

"Is it that bad, ha?" she said with a chuckle.

Diana turned around to Sebastian and Alfred with tension in her eyes. "She is still bleeding, is there no doctor among the prisoners to attend to her wounds?!" Diana shouted.

One of the girls around the bed stepped forwards, "We searched among them all and found no person with the profession. We attended nursing school before we were captured, and we tried all night to stop the bleeding but without alcohol and strong medicine that only professional doctors have knowledge of. Her big wounds will just keep opening no matter how many times we bandage 'em. that's of course if we neglected the internal bleeding, that needs a hurry surgery"

The girl's teeth clenched, angered with a crying look. "WHO DID THIS?!" she shouted.

"The Former owner of the castle, the commander". Sebastian stated.

"Diana..calm down". Gunnora began, coughing. "It really doesn't matter anymore. I am happy that I was given this chance to leave like this. A person who led the charge of men to freedom with you at my side, little cheeky girl"

She paused to grin her pain.

"My life was already useless as it is and that hug of yours. It changed me. It mend something that broke long time ago"

She looked at Diana's eyes and continued. "For the rest of my miserable life, no one ever gave me love and care as you did. Not a single girl cared for me as much as you did and you didn't even know me. All the other girls hated me when they knew I was his erotic puppet. You, however. Just offered help. A thing that only fool would give to me at this time..."

Diana's eyes were fraught with sorrow and sadness. she squeezed her two hands on Gunnora's hand. While she was masking a smile.

Gunnora coughed again. This time blood came out from her mouth. "I know you should be going now. but I want a last favor from you and your uncle". She paused for a moment.

Her tears were no longer in check as she nodded with haste. "Anything, you desire".

"Please, promise me to take my body on your way back, and bury me beside my mother's grave. at my hometown ontoga. That's... if it's ok?

Diana nodded, her mouth was making lines, she knew previously that gunnora was once a citizen of Ontoga. Before she was taken here.

"Of course" she nodded. She couldn't prevent tears from marching down her strained eyeballs.

Gunnora brushed Diana's cheeks wiping her falling tears. "And if you wouldn't mind. Could you please provide me with that warm hug of yours again one last time, I want to experience it again"

Diana nodded delightfully.

The girls helped the dying woman up to sitting position as Diana wrapped her arms around gunnora's waist resting them on her back. while gunnora wrapped her own arms around the child's face resting her head upon Diana's head.

She looked away to an empty space as she smiled . "Mother..." she whispered. gasping her final breath. then...

Silence

Her breathing sound stopped hitting Diana's ears. her hands slipped away. She peacefully rested for the last time in her life, resting her head on the person she trusted the most.

The 5 girls put their hands on their mouths in surprise, and some sobbed.

Diana drew her lips closer to her ears as she wisphered. "May you find Peace wherever your soul go". Diana pressed on her sad self so not to cry out loud. Gently, she lowered gunnora's body on the bed, resting her head on the pillow. It took her some small amount of courage to stick down the lifeless eyes out of respect. Her tears fell on the woman's lifeless face. She knew gunnora for a small time but the friendship bond formed between them was undeniably strong to the very end.

A hand touched Diana's shoulder, her uncle behind her. "She was braver than the boldest of my men. She would have been a dauntless pioneer."

"Uncle"

"yeah?"

"Get me out of this castle, uncle. I can't stand this cursed place anymore"

He nodded. both of them turned to leave the room. Giving space for the young nurses to washes Gunnora's body before getting her ready for the final journey ahead.

On her exit, The fellow girls that were previously imprisoned greeted her with heroic welcoming,

The Blonde girl that saved 300 person while trying to save One man

She spent some hours with the girls saying goodbye to each one before they leave for thier homes.

After that, Sebastian came back with gunnora's body which was wrapped in clean whitle blankets to preserve her body.

"Your uncle is waiting outside, ready to leave?"

"As I'll ever be..."

They reached the parade, she saw the remaining evidence of the chaos of bodies and blood spread all over the place. And there...far at one corner. Some men were digging holes outside the castle.

Graves.

Burying their comrades in arms. Their fellow prisoners and those who fell dead from that second army who came to save them, and......the soldiers.

After a lot of arguing, the female servants somehow managed to convince the men to bury them as well as any human being should be.

However, The commander's corpse was burned in the middle of the parade. His head was fixed on a spear at the front of the gate. A signal for every citizen and land nearby.

THE RED CASTLE HAS FALLEN

"Aren't your people coming back with us?" Diana asked her uncle as she was heading up to the carriage to leave. The same carriage that got her inside. In secret. Was departing in victor, in the public

"They know the way back on their own" he assured her. "They all had people here as well you know, give them their time"

What about Maria, I didn't see her anywhere and she wasn't with the girls. Where she has gone to?!" she thought sadly. She raised her eyesight to meet another face.

"Maria !" She gasped. She was sitting on the ground waiting for her along with a carriage.

Maria smiled letting her cheeks show again. They hugged silently, "I knew you would pull it through, girl," Maria said with motivational way.

"I was there right by your side the whole time while you were sleeping. but your uncle told me to prepare the carriage and wait here, and let me tell how proud am I with you!". She said as they backed away a bit

"Thanks, I guess" Diana smiled. But deep inside Diana, she felt emptiness, her whole journey to the Red Castle and days preparing for that journey. Only ended in getting a folded paper.

"What's the matter, and where's mister Richard?" She said noticing that Diana came out alone.

"Sold and Gunnora's dead, Maria"

"I see" Maria nodded. She knew long before anyone how Gunnora didn't have much time left when she saw her injury during the battle. To that end, she wasn't that close to Gunnora as much as Diana was.

As both girls, got up on the carriage along with Gunnora"s body in the back. Her uncle and Sebastian took the front as they handled the reins of the two horses, pulling The carriage along the road.

"Hey, you ok?" Maria noticed how her friend face staring to the non-existence.

Diana answered with a simple nod, without giving a gaze. Maria blinked "Stop feeling sorry for yourself, you are much braver than that Diana, now with that deed in your hand, you know exactly where to find him, right? Chin up woman!" she said.

Diana eyed her with a faint but tired smile, finding a little condolence in her talk.

She looked back to the castle, one grieving ending time...