Amelie led the Warden out of the chapel, and out into a larger hall. This area was in far better condition, clear of dust, and with plenty of sunshine that was coming in from large glass windows. The floor was carpeted, a soft white rug that was probably a devil to keep clean. Along the hall stood small alcoves, with busts, vases, and other bits of art and wealth on stone pedestals. Very posh.
The two walked down the hallway, arm in arm. There were no guards or servants, at least on the inside, but out the windows, she could see a pair of men, rifles against shoulders, on patrol along a cobblestone path that followed the wall of the palace. Beyond was a mass of greenery, shrubs and trees cultivated into all sorts of shapes, from horses to hounds, hexagons to hornets. All sorts of animals and geometric patterns. A legit royal garden. Samantha longed to lose herself out there for a few hours, but Amelie kept her moving.
The palace was quite big, or the chapel was really far away from the throne room, as it took quite a while for the pair of them to make the trek. But at last, they reached a pair of especially ornate doors, above which hung a large stone head, carved in the semblance of a dragon, though, to Samantha, it seemed more wild than the typical dragon. To either side of the door were the first pair of guards she'd seen in the palace proper. These guards wielded ceremonial halberds and wore gilded steel cuirasses, seeming to favor form over function. Still, they crossed their weapons before the door, barring Sam and Amelie's passage. The Princess bowed, then announced herself. "Princess Amelie and a guest to enter the Throne Room."
The guards didn't respond. Instead, the dragon's head blinked, its eyes opening to look down at the two supplicants. Samantha felt something press against her skin, like she had been wrapped in a silk cocoon, but the feeling vanished almost as quickly as it appeared. The dragon's mouth opened, and the guards stepped back. "Be welcome, Princess Amelie."
The doors opened, revealing a massive room, which was filled with nobles and dignitaries of all stripes, and even a few different races, all chatting and mingling amongst themselves. Court was definitely in session. Sam struggled not to stare at all the handsome men and pretty ladies in their incredible clothes, or the big soldiers in their brilliant uniforms, white and blue, with metal breastplates and sabers and pistols. But most interesting were the mixture of races. All were base-line human, or thereabouts, but most bore some form of animal features. Some had wolf ears and tails, others had scales around the eyes and neck, while others still had feathers mixed in with their hair, and these were not decoration. A few were simple humans, without any oddities, but they were uncommon.
The King and Queen were of the 'simply human' category, if royalty could ever be called simple. They were seated on a gold and silver throne, respectively, and watched over the gossiping gathering from a raised dais at the head of the room. Both bore a crown and scepter, again, gold for the King, and silver for the Queen. It made for a colourful contrast, but Sam didn't like how clearly it was being shown that the King was in charge and not the Queen. Gold was for first place, and silver for second. Couldn't get more on the nose than that.
Samantha was fascinated. But the time for gawking was cut short as Amelie led them through the doors. The door dragon's voice echoed from behind them, booming out into the throne room to announce the newcomers. "Presenting Princess Amelie of Austria, first in line to the throne, and her guest, Samantha, Hero of the Royal Trinity."
All noise immediately ceased, and a hundred pairs of eyes immediately honed in on the pair of newcomers. Sam wilted slightly, not really used to being stared at by so many people. Amelie also seemed to wilt, gripping Samantha's arm a bit tighter, as if seeking reassurance. The Warden gave her arm a squeeze, before pushing her forward ever so slightly. The Princess stepped forward, curtsying to the court. "Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness, may I present to you Samantha, Hero of the Royal Trinity." Sam rolled her eyes. The dragon had literally just introduced them, that was why everyone was staring, after all. Royalty were weird.
The King got to his feet, and for some reason, he looked less than pleased. "Pray, tell me, daughter of mine. What need is so dire, that you would risk calling upon the ancient magics, and summon a Hero to our peaceful lands?"
Amelie looked puzzled. "Why? To defeat the Demon Lord Napoleon, of course." The crowd exploded into a frenzy of frantic mutterings and murmurs, while Amelie herself seemed at a bit of a loss.
The King, on the other hand, only looked disappointed. "Oh, my foolish daughter. You are still so young, so naive. You must have mistaken my frustrations with our lord, Emperor Napoleon, as a desire to overthrow him. He may be a harsh master, but as his vassals, it is our duty to serve."
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Looking around her, the Princess searched the crowd for support, but found little. "But your majesty. The Demon Lord takes our wealth and wares, our food and fame. He uses his reputation and army to put fear in our hearts. But with a Hero to rally the people, surely we could—" The King cut her off with a wave of his hand. "Enough. We have fought three wars against Napoleon, and been defeated each time. Our people have lost much, and it may take over a decade to fully recover. No, I will not hear of any plotting against our lord, Emperor Napoleon. Your Hero will serve another purpose. Perhaps he will…" the king got a good look at Samantha, who bow-curtsied in turn. He coughed, before continuing, "ahem, perhaps she will serve to bolster our flagging forces in the Wilds. The monsters have resurged after our losses in the last uprising against our lord in Franc. Now, leave us, there is court business to attend to."
Amelie stood there for a moment, mouth opening and closing. Sam pulled at her arm, giving her a wan smile. The Princess nodded, before bowing to her father. "As you say. I will see that the Hero is properly attended."
The King waved his hand dismissively, before turning his attention back to the gathered court. Head hanging low, the Princess led Sam out of the throne room. The doors closed behind them with a resounding 'thud'. The Warden remained silent as the Princess led her through yet more hallways, and up a series of stairs. Unlike the first floor, the next level had several guards and servants about the place, predominantly those with scales about their eyes, necks, and the occasional clawed hand.
Eventually, they reached an ornate door, flanked by a single guard. The guard, a scaled woman armed with carbine, broadsword, and buckler, bowed to the Princess, who nodded in response. "My Lady. I hope your day has been pleasant."
Amelie gave the guard a half-smile. "There is still time in the day, so it may yet be so, Jennifer. Have I had any visitors?" The guard, Jennifer, shook her head. "Just the maids, my Lady." The Princess nodded, before gesturing to the woman at her side. "Jennifer, this is Samantha, Hero of the Royal Trinity. Samantha, this is my personal guard, Jennifer."
The guard's eyes went wide, and she gaped. "H-Hero? Here, now? A-and a woman? Ah, p-pardon me, ma'am. It is an honor to meet you." The guard bowed at the waist, no cute curtsy-bow to show off her legs, which were well worthy of showing off, from what little Samantha could see.
The young Hero gave the guard a smile. "It's nice to meet you, Jennifer." The woman beamed, before pushing open the door. "Will you be needing anything, my lady?" Amelie nodded. "Send for some tea, if you would."
The room Amelie led Samantha inside was large, and extra posh compared to the halls outside. A sitting room, if she knew her terminology, with plenty of silk sofas, gilded chairs, and even marble-topped tables, all illuminated brilliantly from both a candelabra and several tall windows. There were rooms both to the left and right, both doors hanging open slightly. To the right was a bedroom, with one massive bed, the kind Sam only ever saw in movies. To the left was what looked like some sort of studio, with a painting easel and several works in progress, as well as a desk covered in letters and the like.
The two settled down on a couch, Sam taking Amelie's hands in hers. "Are you okay, Amelie?"
Only then did the Princess show the first signs of her emotional distress. Her eyes started to water, and her body quivered slightly. "Oh, Samantha, I think I've made a terrible mistake! I thought… the way my father always spoke of the Demon Lord in private, and the courtiers too. I thought we were going to rebel, or at least wanted to, and that there was just some hesitation. That maybe if a Hero arrived, everyone would band together and we could fight back, and finally be rid of that terrible monster!"
The Warden squeezed Amelie's hands, prompting her to continue. "But the King didn't want to fight, even with a Hero?" Silent tears began to fall down the Princess's face. "No! After all I gave up, after all our people have given up, he wants you to go protect our frontiers from some silly little monsters, when the real monster takes away the hard labor of our people for his personal glory and conquest!"
Samantha nodded, squeezing Amelie's hand again. "Tell me about this monster, Demon Lord Napoleon."
It didn't take much for the Princess to turn from tearful sorrow to tearful fury, as she expounded on the 'horrible wretch' of an Emperor, Napoleon, and his brutal occupations of the nations of the continent. Much of what Amelie said lined up with what Sam knew of the Napoleon from her time. A general first, a man second, and a king last, who led his armies with brutal efficiency and incredible speed, dismantling one country after another, pillaging and plundering wherever he went. Even his own country was not safe, with young men drafted into the army at incredible rates, leaving fields untended, shops closed, and streets unguarded. Back in her old world, it had taken eight whole coalitions to finally bring him down, eight conflicts of incredible scale that spanned all of Europe, leaving the entire land in tatters for decades. So far, this ‘Europa’ that she now found herself in had just gotten through the Third Coalition, another staggering loss for the Austrian Lowlands, the Swedish Warrens, and the Russian Tribes. Only the Isles of Britannia remained in conflict with the Franc Empire, and only because Napoleon couldn't reach them, Britannia ruling the waves with her navy.
Honestly, if Sam didn't know from her own history that Napoleon would eventually be beaten, she would have felt like the situation was hopeless. Three consecutive defeats, with the victor taking away swathes of land as new vassal states or direct puppets. Franc was just getting stronger, while her enemies were getting weaker. No wonder Amelie wanted a Hero. And no wonder the King wanted peace.
Amelie looked into Sam's eyes, her tears slowing to a trickle. "I'm so sorry, Samantha. I summoned you here to fulfill an impossible task. It was a mistake to call for a Hero, and now you’ll pay the price." Samantha pulled the Princess in for a hug, which Amelie gladly accepted, hugging the Hero close.
"It's okay, Amelie. I'm glad you summoned me." The Warden broke the embrace, before helping the Princess wipe away her tears. Then, she gently placed her hands on Amelie's shoulders, and looked her in the eyes. "Princess Amelie. You've told me of the cruelties of this Demon Lord, and the suffering of your people. Do not give up just because one ruler says no. There are others who may yet fight. And we can still do something, even without the King."
The Princess's eyes went wide. "Y-you don't mean… d-defy the King?" Samantha smiled, shaking her head. "Not… exactly. The King said your people aren't willing to fight another war, that they aren't strong enough. What if they were to get stronger? What if they had allies? In the last war, the Prussian Highlands didn't make an appearance, and the Britannians only stayed on their islands, sending money, not men. You're a princess, and I'm a Hero. Think of what we could do!" Slowly, Amelie began to nod, her face pinched in thought. "I guess there are things we could do… but what about—"
A knock at the door cut off the conversation. A moment later, the Queen strode through, followed by a well-armed guard pushing a tea cart. Amelie rose, urging Sam to her feet as well. The two curtsied in unison, which the Queen responded to with a curt nod. "Daughter. I've come to speak with you and your… guest."