–I’m going to leave as well if you excuse me…– Indie announced passively after the dungeon went quiet. She began walking to the stairs as well, hiding all emotion with her straight face, prompting her teammates to share a long, awkward look while the princess condemned the culprits in the cell.
–Well, at least we got them. That will teach the people to never mess with the princess again…– Nitro said with optimism to break the silence, getting a few halfhearted smiles from his teammates, but they all stayed silent as they began heading out, except the criminals tried to get their attention by grouping up at the cell gate.
–Yes, we are so sorry for all the trouble. We will never do anything like this ever again, so… Can we just let this go?– one of the men begged desperately, forcing a friendly and lighthearted smile to persuade the princess. But with the entire squad dismissing him, Priscilla turned around, only to briefly smile back at the culprits with an unsettling stare.
–Sure, no hard feelings…– Priscilla responded with a deceivingly compassionate smile, sparing the men more humiliation and torment, but leaving them completely in the dark as she blew out the only candles in the dungeon before leaving the room with the squad.
Steve broke down in tears, but now that they could not be seen, he and his accomplices sobbed with regret as they were left to rot in their cell. And just like they had nothing else to do, Crisis appeared lost once they were out of the castle, where neither Frost nor Indie were seen around, only EchoForce waiting at the entrance. After the scene at the dungeon, the squad got a chance to forget about any threats and clear their minds, yet they remained on edge since it looked like Priscilla had something else to say as she turned to one of his guards to whisper something.
–Thank you all so very much for your help. I know it might have been too much work, so please take this as a reward. You can enjoy the festival with the rest of my people if you want. Feel free to ask me for anything if you need something in return– Priscilla affirmed with a grateful and cheerful smile as she led the squad through the garden. They ignored her, but they had to stop walking for a moment when a guard handed her a bag full of coins, which she first checked inside before passing to Panda. He hesitated to accept it but had no other option as the rest of the team was already outside with EchoForce. They seemed confused as they just saw Frost and Indie leave, but as Crisis came out of the castle, they remained alert in case the team was still searching for perpetrators.
–Thanks, I doubt we’ll need it. Have a good night, princess…– Panda replied evasively, turning to the road to leave as soon as possible with the rest of the team. But while Crisis was heading back down to the city, Priscilla stepped out of the castle gate for a brief moment to say goodbye to the rookies. The guards stepped back to let them see her up close for the first time, prompting Cookie and Saint to stay as well for a little longer. But with all of them focused on greeting Priscilla, they were caught off guard by the rustle of a bush at the side of the road, where a man ran out shortly after.
–Prix! You won’t get away from me this time!– the man yelled as he rushed towards the gate, stunning the princess and the few guards, who were too slow to react as they didn’t have their weapons in hand. The entire team turned around immediately, but before most of them could realize what was happening, they saw the man charging straight through a direct path at the princess from the right.
–Leon?– Priscilla asked in shock, taking a moment to recognize him before he jumped at her with a sharp knife in his hand. Crisis was already on the move, but since they were too far away, only the rookies could interfere with the actual assassination attempt, although most of them were too distracted to even identify the threat before it was too late.
–This is for breaking my heart!– Leon claimed in fury as he swung his knife directly at the princess’ chest. Saint immediately drew his sword as the attacker flew past him, and while the two guards on her side tried to grab him, Leon slipped right through their hands, aiming his weapon at the princess’ heart. Priscilla froze, so a guard was about to push her out of harm’s way, but with Leon getting dangerously close as his arm was able to extend the full distance to reach the princess, Saint took one step to block the attack with his sword, but in the process, he had to use all of his weight to do so.
Priscilla squealed after she closed her eyes, anticipating her death as the breeze of Leon’s sword blew her hair and everyone gasped. But instead of being murdered, she opened her eyes to find Saint on top of Leon’s back after leaping at him. He had to react quickly to block the initial blow, but he followed right away by pouncing on him and pinning him to the ground, locking Leon’s neck with one arm while pushing down all of his weight on his torso.
Zoey, Ace, and Chappy tried to jump at him as well, but as Leon had already dropped the knife, Cookie and Shade picked him up and held him in place for the guards to get a couple of punches on the gut. The princess covered her mouth in horror, having to look away after processing what had just happened. And with the rest of Crisis barely catching up, they appeared troubled as they stared at the real threat that almost slipped past them, now being dealt with by the guards as they cuffed him.
–Who is this guy?– Tricky asked in dismay, sharing the same expression of disbelief as his speechless teammates. Even though she was the one who almost got killed, Priscilla was able to compose herself rather quickly after seeing Leon on the ground and now begging the guards to not hurt him more.
–Oh, that’s my ex-boyfriend, Leon. He was really upset when we broke up, so I think that’s why he tried to kill me…– Priscilla replied in a surprisingly calm manner, not showing any concern when standing right next to the man who attempted to murder her. The entire team couldn’t make sense of her calm demeanor, but as the guards were already bringing Leon into the castle to take him to the dungeon, Saint stood up and wiped the dirt and leaves that stuck to his clothes off him but hesitated to speak up.
–I guess there might be a relation with the other guys…– Saint commented thoughtfully, choosing to ignore Leon’s muttered curses as he was taken away. But as he sparked intrigue in the team, they all began thinking until the attacker himself turned around and denied any of their theories.
–What? Those guys? No, they just ruined my plan to murder her in the parade. They got in the way and forced me to come here, I don’t even know them…– Leon admitted in a nonchalant and prideful manner, changing his attitude to show no remorse for his action, even when he ended up failing.
The team was taken aback by the sudden disappearance of his fury, and while he sounded somewhat malicious, they couldn’t take him seriously anymore after how things played out for him. And while Priscilla reconsidered his offense, she didn’t show much forgiveness, as she brushed him off like everyone else. But with the guards taking him to the dungeon to lock him up with the rest, the team was left to deal with another awkward silence, which was somehow even more confusing than the last one.
–Well… So that’s that…– Nitro quipped once again to get some reactions, but as each of his teammates looked at one another without anything to say, Saint turned to the princess to smile awkwardly at her. Although she smiled back, she didn’t show any gratitude after he saved her life, leading to him becoming nervous and stepping away with the rest of the team. The rookies didn’t know what to do but follow Crisis, but as they all hesitated to leave so abruptly after the incident, Candy decided to leave first after the sight of the road behind her lingered in her mind for a while.
–I have to go…– Candy said politely to hide her distress, as she was seemingly preoccupied with an urgent matter. She ran down the main road in a hurry, and after watching her leave, the entire team began walking as well. With only the empty road ahead to take, they pretended to be in a hurry as well to leave right away.
–Yea, me too…– Panda followed up as he handed the coin bag to Cookie and left, then Tricky, then Nitro, and Kiwy. Only EchoForce stayed behind for a moment, but as they were bored and uncomfortable being around the castle, they just followed Cookie as he headed to the commercial zone to celebrate and spend some of the money given as a reward.
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–Thank you again, my heroes! I will forever owe you for saving my life…– Priscilla shouted with a big, cheery smile as the team ran away. She kept waving at them, but none of them ever turned back, so as soon as they turned the corner, she just walked back to the castle, with the guards closing the gate and the door to her home before joining her inside.
With the night just starting, the entire city celebrating, and all the shops open and offering all sorts of deals for the special occasion, the team had the freedom to do anything they wanted, except half of them didn’t even know what they actually wanted. They stayed together and first looked around the restaurants to eat something as a group, but since they weren’t sure of how to celebrate the night, they soon split the money for everyone to enjoy themselves however they wanted.
But while they got to have some fun, Candy frantically searched for Frost on the busiest night in the city. She first ran back to the house, but since Indie wasn’t there, nobody could enter. In fact, Indie also seemed to have disappeared completely, but Candy remained focused on finding Frost. She then circled the two main streets, which were tough to navigate since they were fuller than ever. Everyone was gathering outside the many shops, forming huge lines that reached the main road to enter some of the exclusive buildings. Due to this, Candy was lost after a couple of minutes of searching, and she almost gave up, but then she saw Cookie, Bones, and Groovy walking to a brothel in the second street, which was right next to the one the former tried to get into yesterday.
Despite being the one of the biggest, “Heartsworth’s” wasn’t as full as the buildings yet, and apparently, Groovy and Bones had arrived early to secure a spot, so they were already at the front of the line. However, Candy couldn’t even reach them with the numver of people waiting in line. She tried to get closer, squeezing through all the lustful men trying to get a glimpse of the inside, with some blocking her way or even trying to grab her. But after avoiding all the potential predators, she got to the front, only to see that the three superior soldiers were already inside.
With a large, menacing guard blocking the entrance, Candy backed out and started panicking. She looked around in hopes of finding another teammate, but as the team had dispersed, they were found all over the streets. It was impossible to spot any of them except Panda, whose head was poking out of a large crowd next to the park at the end. But as he was also entering what seemed like a theater, Candy lost all traces of finding Frost. Overwhelmed by everyone being so close to her, she hid in one of the alleys between the two brothels to think, but instead, she noticed a door for employees hidden deep at the back.
Since she didn’t have other options, she trusted her gut and sneaked into the brothel through that door. Walking into the building, the first thing she saw was a backstage area with dozens of semi-naked elven girls getting prepared for work. They were putting on provocative outfits, or just taking them off to reveal as much of their bodies as possible, covering their private parts only with thin underwear, or even just using small flowers over their nipples. Either way, their lack of clothing made Candy a bit uncomfortable right away, and after seeing one of these girls get yelled at and slapped by a man, she quickly found a way out of the backstage rooms to step into the main area.
Immediately, she noticed a huge contrast in ambiance with the outside, as the building was dimly lit with dark colors, mainly shades of purple and violet, making it hard to see around as the atmosphere was almost smoky. The brothel also served more as a strip club since Candy noticed the wide, long runway with poles coming out of the backstage as she walked past it. On both sides of the runway, there were many different colored couches and tables full of men who were either watching the girls modeling, or talking to the ones serving them drinks. Candy looked in front to see the entrance of the building, but she noticed that some men were walking to each side of the club, making their way to some private rooms found at the ends.
She walked closer to some of the rooms on her left, noticing some people inside, and after checking if anyone was watching her, she peeked through the thin, red curtains that blocked her view. But after seeing an elf girl giving a fat, shirtless man a lap dance, she quickly turned back with a restrained squeal and started looking for Frost around the walkway. Since it was also a club, there was a large bar in the middle of the room facing her, right after the entrance, with a curved wall behind that blocked a good portion of Candy’s view of the entrance. So, after looking around the runway and finding nothing, she decided to walk over to the bar.
As soon as she approached the bar, men tried calling for service, asking specifically for Candy, but she just ignored them as she walked past tables and looked behind the wall of the bar. There, she saw another section with only a few rounded couches at both corners of the wall, facing another smaller bar. It looked like an exclusive area next to the entrance of the club, and while Candy stayed away as she came across another guard, she noticed a few familiar faces among the different groups sitting on the couches in the corner.
The tables were big enough for up to ten people, and in one of them, Candy found Cookie, Groovy, and Bones talking with other men as elven girls started approaching them. In a brief moment of hope, Candy quickly walked over to them, but on the way, she bumped into an elf girl who gave her a strange look as she walked by. Candy stared at her for a moment with a forced smile to not draw much attention, but as her eyes followed the girl, it led her to look in the exact direction of what she was looking for.
A few meters to the right side of the private bar, there was another table in the middle of the room, behind a row of couches that connected the main area with the runway. While it was isolated from the rest of the tables, it was right in the middle of a corridor, which is why Candy was surprised to see Frost sitting all by himself on a small couch. Even though some elven girls walked past him to get to the private rooms, he completely ignored their suggestive gestures as they greeted him, rejecting their offers as he only stared at the table with a bottle in front of him. And it was such a gloomy sight to behold that Candy didn’t hesitate to run over to him, though she tried not to startle him as she reached the couch.
–Finn? What is wrong? I’m really worried about you…– Candy asked with extreme concern, waited with bated breath as she sat next to him, and tried to get a good look at him. She hesitated to touch him, as he completely ignored her at first, letting out a disheartened sigh before slowly turning to face her. She tried to remain optimistic by smiling, but even when he looked at her, he showed little to no emotion in his expression, remaining silent until he noticed her anguished stare.
–When are you not? Just give me some space…– Frost replied indifferently, putting enough effort into using sarcasm, but no more than that, almost whispering his words as he was dozing off on the couch, prompting Candy to get closer. She ignored the stares from the girls walking by and judging her, as if she was doing a poor job of entertaining Frost. But as she realized that he didn’t even want to be talked to, Candy took a moment to think and reached for his hand to comfort him.
–No, I’m done leaving you on your own… If you keep drinking and isolating yourself like this, you eventually will succumb to your sorrow, and I can’t let you do that. I can’t stand watching you destroy yourself like this, Finn…– Candy replied adamantly, though still caring, warm, and compassionate as usual, voice, which unfortunately didn’t draw much attention from him. He kept looking straight at the table, trying to reach for the bottle before Candy grabbed his other hand as it rested motionless on the couch, almost pulling him to get him to focus on her. But as he wasn’t pleased by her action, he yanked his hand out of the way as soon as she tried to hold it before grabbing the bottle regardless.
–Then don’t watch… Leave me be, worry about yourself…– Frost replied bitterly, with a slightly aggressive tone as he looked at her, but only showing disdain, to which Candy couldn’t help but be discouraged. Despite having an awkward moment and growing a little timid due to their surroundings, she kept insisting despite being affected by his pessimism. But after watching him take a sip of the bottle, she gathered the courage to stop him from drinking more by placing it down on the table for him and pushing it away.
–You know I can’t do that. I can’t be happy knowing you are going through this alone, and it hurts me even more when you refuse to let me help you…– Candy assured with devotion, her voice cracking with heartache as she desperately begged Frost to look back at her and listen for once. His focus remained on the bottle, but as he didn’t bother moving to reach for it anymore, he began considering her idea for a while, visibly arguing with himself until he started getting frustrated by thinking too hard.
–What can you do? It’s not even in your power to change it…– Frost asked in a subdued, hostile manner, restraining himself from not yelling at Candy, and still being dismissive as he looked away once again, leaving her intrigued but more determined. In spite of his evasive reactions, Candy saw his response as an opportunity to change her approach. So, even with his disparaging tone, she tried to stay optimistic and persistent, remaining considerate as she was willing to listen and help in any way possible, hoping to find a cause behind Frost’s misery.
| I’LL START LETTING GO OF LITTLE THINGS
‘TIL I’M SO FAR AWAY FROM YOU |