Life In Her Hands
Princess Kristel didn’t come home that afternoon, so Frill ended up showing Lady Katherine around Minaveil Town.
She rather enjoyed it; a quiet stroll around the riverbank, a quick break at the plaza, and bountiful groceries for dinner from the market—when the shopkeepers recognized Katherine, they essentially gave twice what they were buying free of charge. The two spent the entire afternoon chatting as well. They discussed a lot of things with the main focus regarding how all of Irista Nation has changed since the Lady’s absence.
Frill also mentioned Monarch Denis’s directive and their confrontation with Royal Guard Tryvinal, but Lady Katherine paid them no mind. She preferred stories about Princess Kristel and her retainers instead; though, she was clearly reminiscing about Minaveil in general.
They approached the bridge on their way back to the manor, discussing various recipes for tonight’s dinner. But before they were able to cross, they felt a presence. Someone was staring at them and their instincts kicked in. Frill stopped and tensed her senses.
“Who’s there?” she called out, hiding the groceries in her Spatiera.
Katherine wasn’t as tensed as her. The Lady was Drawing her Siffera more than its regular output but in a way that Frill couldn’t understand. She turned around and pointed at the path directly behind them.
Frill followed suit. Despite investing more meiyal in her Siffera, she sensed nothing.
Then a yuma pup melded into view, sitting with ears folded down to signal a request. Blessings bestowed on a bonded yuma was rare; it was the first time Frill saw one and it took her breath away. She recognized the pup—one of Fittey’s litter.
“What is it, girl?” Frill crouched daintily and checked the yuma’s collar. The name Enza glowed a yellowish hue with Frein’s name underneath in a weaker light.
“Frein’s pup,” she told Lady Katherine. The little yuma did a strut in place. “She wants us to follow.”
The yuma turned and the two ladies followed her back towards the market.
“She’s so adorable,” Katherine commented on the way.
“And she has Nature’s Favor,” Frill added. The way Enza strutted about, hinting a naughty flare with every step gave the impression of mischief and playfulness. “And yes, adorable.”
Frill had a weakness for little things. Although Enza was beyond the definition of ‘little’, she was still rather small compared to a grown yuma. After a while, Frill figured out where they were headed.
“What are they doing here?” she asked. They had been led just outside of town to an outpost. An old guard stood by the entrance along with two others preparing for their shifts inside the main building. The security seemed light, but Frill didn’t complain. The guard manning the gates saw the yuma approach and stood to meet them. There was immediate recognition in his eyes.
“She’s with me,” Frill said, pointing at her companion. “She’s Lady Katherine, if you must know.”
“Yes, Aria. I recognize the Lady of the Void.” The old guard gave a nod. “It’s been a long time, Lady Katherine. I heard you have returned and I’m extremely delighted to say that you are prettier than you were before you left. Lucky is the man who would someday wed you.” The guard proudly presented his salute and bowed.
“Boldrik!” Katherine exclaimed. “It’s so nice to see you!” She rushed over and gave him a hug. “Why are you still working? You’re over retirement age!”
Boldrik laughed it off. “I’ll only retire once these lads behind me knock me off my feet.”
“You’ll be working for ten more years, then, old man,” said one of the younger knights. “Greetings, Lady of the Void, Aria in Red.”
“You guys better work harder and let this old man rest without worries.” Katherine gave a smile and placed a gentle hand on the younger guard’s pauldron as she entered the gates. The guard smiled, expressing a new light on his face. Katherine’s words could lift anyone’s morale as if she had Monarch’s Law.
Enza led them behind the main building and into the courtyard. Another guard stood carrying a stoic expression like a statue, Kristel had her arms crossed but had a smile on her face, and Frein held the prisoner’s weapons and swung them about from a safe distance. The dark red-haired prisoner looked on with utter disagreement.
“I keep telling you, it’s impossible to match the meiyal signature engraved on the weapon. Whatever you do, it’ll just fling out of balance,” said the prisoner, but his warnings didn’t stop Frein from trying.
Frill knew that, theoretically speaking, matching a meiyal signature was actually possible but impractical. Technically it would become harder as one advanced on their way to becoming a Virtuoso—or whatever rank Vyndivalians used for practitioners of Forged Meiyal. An individual who had spent a long time perfecting their personal signature, much like in writing, would have a hard time copying another’s. At the very least, none of the people present right now would be capable of the contradicting feat.
Still, that was the only explanation she could come up with regarding Liona’s case.
“You seem awfully friendly,” she said, catching their attention.
“I give up.” Frein grunted with disappointment. “The weight distribution is all over the place. I can’t even imagine how you’re supposed to swing these around without hitting yourself.” He returned the swords into their hammer sheaths and left them on the ground. “Oh, hi Frill, Kat.”
Enza almost jumped on Frein but he caught her and playfully rubbed her face. “Of course, I didn’t forget about you, Enza. Good girl.” The ‘little’ yuma happily whipped her tail back and forth while licking his face.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Frill had a sudden urge to scold Frein for calling the Lady, Kat, but thought better of it. “What did you call us for?” she asked instead. Katherine on the other hand, turned her attention to the yuma and her master, asking for introductions.
“Xiv wouldn’t talk to anyone else but you, apparently,” Princess Kristel replied in his stead. She pointed at the prisoner.
Frill noticed he was looking directly at her. She quickly fought off the instinct to turn away and met him eye to eye. “What?” she asked aggressively.
“Do you trust everyone here, right now?” he asked.
Frill immediately glanced at the stoic guard at the back. “Sorry about this, but you can go.”
Even though Frill served as a maid for the Princess and had only recently met all of the members, her authority was not a secret to the Cross Irista and the ranks under them; she was dubbed as the Aria in Red simply because of her prowess. Rumors even ran that she alone could be on par with the Lady; not that she would dare try it.
The guard bowed and quietly marched out of view.
Frill returned to Xiv. “Yes.”
Xiv’s gaze moved to everyone present: from Frill, to Princess Kristel, to Lady Katherine, and to Frein. He even gave Enza a calculative look before returning to the Aria.
“Central and the High Palace are in danger.”
Everyone stopped.
Princess Kristel’s arms fell out of their folds, her eyes widened with doubt. Frill’s eyes flared instead. “How do you know that?”
“Last year, King Urzic had a…guest. They spoke privately. Right after that, he spent his days formulating his strategies. He said, ‘We now have the means to finally bridge the gap and the time is right.’ We were sent for expeditions after that, searching for Nightmares, giants, and other monsters to add to our army.”
Frill had no idea if she should believe what she just heard. This could simply be a sophisticated plan to draw out the defenses of Irista Nation, or cause confusion among themselves. But her theory perfectly matched Xiv’s statement. The mysterious guest could be an agent working for their actual enemy, manipulating the scenes from the shadows. Or they could be the actual enemy. No matter, whether she believed him or not, she’ll find out the truth.
“Tell us about Central,” Frill inquired since, apparently, Xiv only answered to her questions.
“When the siege began, numerous special divisions were deployed for an infiltration mission. They took the route through the Rindea Mountain Range.”
“We met them on the way to Urzic. Dealt with them,” Kristel said.
“Which division, if I may ask?” Xiv asked politely.
“I intercepted every division I could spot east of the mountain range. I sent out another squadron westward. They should have met the other one, but they ended up meeting their deaths.” Kristel bit her lip with controlled anger.
Xiv’s shoulders fell. “A dear friend of mine was sent to the east. If you faced them, surely he will not have survived.”
The Princess sighed and placed both hands on her waist, irritated. “I don’t want to get your hopes up, but we didn’t kill them all. I spared those that I could. It didn’t feel right killing laborers and commoners conscripted into war. I left them incapacitated. If they are strong enough, and if the mountains are merciful, they should still be alive.”
“I see. Thank you, but I don’t like clinging onto hope.” He had a look of defeat underneath his stern face. Frill noticed dark shades underneath his black eyes and a general weariness in his slumped posture. He had not been sleeping well.
Frill wanted to pass her sympathies but held herself back. The way he took the blow was very different from hers.
“They were carrying special containers—”
An arrow pierced through his chest with a force that shoved him to the ground. A blast of shockwave followed.
Within just one second, Kristel had manifested her battle gear and was chasing down the assassin from the top of the wall. Frein followed her without hesitation with Enza close at his heels. They took the path leading towards the exit.
The stoic soldier—not so stoic anymore—came running with Boldrik and the other guards behind him.
“What happened?” Boldrik asked.
“Get the medics, we need him alive,” Frill commanded.
“I’ll handle it,” Lady Katherine said, kneeling beside the prisoner. She lifted him on his knees and ripped open his clothes while Drawing Samesia to stop the bleeding. “You guys make sure no one else comes near.” There were four soldiers in total, who all Drew their battle gears with meiyal-plating along with a variety of meiyal weapons. They formed a circle around them.
“How can I help?” Frill asked, struggling to hide her panic.
“Hold on, I can’t stabilize him.” Katherine used all one-hundred marks but even with all the meiyal she could muster, she was barely keeping him from the hands of death. “I need you to pull the arrow out. Xiv, take a deep breath.”
Xiv was in shock, but he did as he was told, almost suffocating the moment he tried to breathe. Frill didn’t wait nor ask if he was ready and quickly yanked the whole arrow out of his chest. Xiv’s screams filled the arena as he lost consciousness completely, but blood didn’t flow out of his wounds. Lady Katherine handled it with extreme precision as she eased the Vyndivalian on the ground.
“Dai-Samesia.” Katherine opened her Display and performed a stronger healing Meiyal Art. Frill had forgotten how the Lady’s display looked before she went out Seeking but it had been certainly larger than the current one.
“Frill, I need you to make a decision. The arrow shattered his meiyal core.” The Lady pointed at his back.
Frill knew even Vyndivalians possessed a meiyal system with a meiyal core but without marks. Instead, their cores were larger and tougher and was the very source of their resistance to hostile meiyal. Especially for Xiv, who survived her Diferenfra, his core should have been able to handle a simple arrow. Xiv’s back bore a diamond-shaped mark, now cracked by the arrow that pierced it.
The arrow looked like it was made of glass. Just as she began to study the weapon, it started to evaporate. Meiyal. By the amount dispersing from it, it looked extremely deadly. Frill felt a hint of Nightmare imbedded in it before it completely disappeared.
“My Samesia isn’t working. At this rate, we’ll eventually lose him. I can’t maintain this for long, Frill.” Lady Katherine called back her attention. “You’re the only one who has a spare. The marks will stay, Frill. He only needs a core.”
She meant Liona’s core. Her core was special, nurtured by the previous owner to adapt smoothly when fused. Frill struggled whether to give it away, or have a precious informant slip out of their hands. Why would she entrust her sister’s core to a complete stranger? And it wasn’t even tested on a Vyndivalian in the first place.
“He’s fading, Frill,” Katherine repeated, her voice neutral.
Frill clenched her fist with firm determination.
“We’ll save him, but if he sheds even the slightest hint of betrayal, I’m taking it back.” She placed a hand over her left eye, pulling out a ball of lightning. Small sparks flew from it. Her meiyal surrounded the ball, threading scarlet patterns around it. Her signature. “This way, I can keep track of him.”
“Since when did you and Liona became so versed with fusion arts?” Katherine asked out of curiosity. She didn’t let herself get distracted by the question.
“We’ve been training once a week for the past year. All three of us could merge together, but we need at least a couple of hours to optimize the fusion.” Frill finished the signature sealing the core and passed it to Katherine. “I guess there’s no need for that anymore.”
“You have the Mercurial Liquid to work on for now.”
“I suppose so.” Frill couldn’t help but feel like she had lost something precious again.
“You’re a kind person, Frill.” Katherine smiled, noticing the Aria’s dilemma. She infused the core into the Vyndivalian, forcing a fuse through a complex manipulation of Meiyal Arts that Frill couldn’t follow.
Xiv’s wounds began to heal as Liona’s core was placed at the center of the diamond, allowing it to mend the cracks.
“My sister would’ve done the same. I’m doing it for her—”
“You may not admit it,” the Lady interrupted. “But it’s best for you to know yourself and be more honest.” She gave her another warm, soothing smile. “You know, ever since I got here, I’ve been healing a lot. Don’t you think it’s ironic?”
Frill gave up. “Yes, very much.”
----------------------------------------