Leaves were rustling in the gentle wind. The air was damp and cool. We were in a murky forest. Two people seemed to be prowling around in the undergrowth. It was difficult to make out who they were. When a cloud that had been blocking the moonlight moved away again, its incidence revealed one of the two people. She was young, pretty, red-haired and with a dreamy expression on her face. It was Viktoria who was being presented to us here. The other person now also approached. But then it was already over. The dream ended and Wenzel woke up.
He stared up at the baldachin of his marital bed with his eyes only partially open. "Viktoria in the forest? What does this mean?", he asked himself. He really wanted to just forget about it and go straight back to sleep, but something was bugging him, and he didn't know what. What could it be? As he thought about it in his drowsy state, it finally came to him: His daughter's appearance in the vision matched exactly with how she currently looked. She was even wearing the dress she could often be seen in at the moment. This meant that he had seen something that could only be a few weeks in the past or into the future! Was she sneaking off at night without asking permission? That would not be acceptable. Wenzel would have to get to the bottom of this.
After a few moments of deliberation, he came to the conclusion that this had to be right now. He touched Amalie's shoulder lightly, so as to gently wake her up. Then he spoke to her, "Something very important has come to my mind. So don't be surprised. I'll get up now." Dazed, his sweetheart simply replied, "Uh-huh, all right." Wenzel got out of bed and went to his study. He already had a clear idea of what he wanted to do. It would be child's play to track down his little girl! He reached into the secret compartment in the wall and took out the sceptre. Then he directed his thoughts to his daughter, creating an image of her in his mind. The magical artifact began to glow. Its blue radiance was strongest when he held it towards the west. "Just you wait and see, young lady! You're in for a treat!", he thought to himself. Opening the window, he took off into the sky and after his daughter. Off he went!
Meanwhile, the two youngsters were already together in the forest. Both Viktoria and Achaz were practically lounging in the grass of the clearing directly in front of Lagersdorf. The guy had a straw of grass sticking out of the corner of his mouth, which he had stuck between his teeth for whatever reason. Viktoria leaned to the side and was chatting with him. "Address people with the appropriate titles, always conduct yourself with dignity," she said in a mimicking tone, "walk upright, always be gentle and quiet, and so on and so forth. Do you also have so many rules to follow at home?" - "I have to follow rules too, yes. But certainly not as many as you do." The girl looked over at him with intensity when he gave that back.
"But your parents aren't as bad as you'd have me believe. I'm sure it's all to do with the earlier incidents you told me about," he added. She didn't say anything in response. It annoyed her, but he was right. It was quite an idyllic atmosphere here today. The crickets were chirping and occasionally the usual cry of the owl could be heard in the forest. Achaz looked over at the princess with a slightly dozy expression. At first, she thought he was looking at her lovely green and white dress. However, it quickly became apparent that he was actually captivated by her magical aura, which she simply let out freely and without inhibition. So, she jokingly noted,
"My eyes are up here." The boy shook his head and immediately apologized. He always tried to please her and not provoke her. She now addressed this: "Never mind, it’s not an issue. I know that you were actually just watching my magic, which always fascinates you so much." He froze. "What I'd be much more interested in is why you're always so cautious with me. I don't need special treatment!" Achaz now seemed to be struck in a strangely unexpected way by what had been said. He thought a little. Then he replied, "I just think you're special. I don't mean that in a negative way. You're clever, strong and ....," he hesitated briefly, but then continued, "pretty."
Viktoria was a little abashed by this, but it wasn't obvious from the look on her face. So as not to show it, she went straight for the "counter-strike" and asked, "What do you find pretty about me?" Without thinking twice, her counterpart replied, "Your hair is something very uniquely special. Your eyes, in particular, are truly enchanting. Maybe they are literally enchanting me." Upon hearing this, the girl could no longer completely hide her embarrassment. He looked her in the eyes he had just spoken of. He moved a little closer to get an even better view. The flames in her pupils began to flare up a bit more wildly. To avoid direct eye contact with him, they wandered over and along his medium-length brown hair. But then they fell on his face, which seemed to become more attractive each and every time.
Finally, she allowed their gazes to meet. She, too, was now lost in the young man's eyes. "I think you're good-looking too," she finally admitted to him. She also moved closer to him. Then it happened. The two of them kissed. Well, first the girl pulled the stupid blade of grass out of the corner of his mouth and then it happened. Still, it was their first kiss for both of them. It only lasted a very short time, then they parted their lips again.
"Well....what can I say now?", Achaz wondered. His girlfriend simply said, "Just don't say anything. It'll only ruin the moment." A gentle breeze came up and the leaves of the woods began to rustle a little. At the same time, the moon peeked out from behind the clouds again. The boy turned his head up to it and, a little lost in thought, stared at it. Meanwhile, the princess got up from the grass to stretch her limbs. The youngling's heart was still beating frantically. Very slowly it calmed down again, but every throb still reverberated through his entire body. This was something special. He had actually fallen in love with Viktoria. And she returned this love.
None of this eased the fear that had been plaguing him for a while now. Just a couple of rods away from them, a man was hiding in the thicket who embodied all his fears and worries: Lucius. The devious fellow had definitely been watching what had just happened. He would be pleased with the "progress of the plan". Achaz, on the other hand, was now confused and torn. He was attracted to the girl but knew that the more this happened the more he would play into the hands of his mother and especially those of this evil man.
He looked up at the almost full moon. His breath caught in his throat! "What? Who is that?", it flashed through his mind without him being able to say it out loud. At first, the distraught boy just pointed his finger upwards, but then he managed to get over himself and called out to Viktoria, "Watch out!" The young lady turned and saw it as well. The figure of a man had now appeared in front of the bright white disk. His eyes shone a light blue and in his right hand he held a golden staff with a Schwurhand, a hand with three fingers raised for an oath, at the top. On his billowing cloak, the moonlight illuminated a coat of arms, of which the young Vogt was particularly struck by the red diamond and the sun emblazoned above it. Emperor Wenzel had found them!
He spoke to his daughter in a serious voice, "What in the name of God are you doing here?" The girl didn't seem intimidated or afraid at all. Quite the opposite! She answered her father by saying the following in a defiant tone, "I might as well ask the same! How did you even find me?" Only directly afterwards, did she remember what the sceptre could do. She tried to deflect the blame away from herself and now asked her adoptive father a question, "Isn't it a bit strange to stalk your daughter late at night, sir?" His Highness did not answer. He turned his gaze in the direction of Achaz. This immediately elicited a strong reaction from Viktoria, who placed herself demonstratively in front of the boy. Slowly, almost reverently, the Chosen One lowered himself down until he landed on the ground directly in front of the young lady.
"Step aside, Viktoria! There's something I would like to know," he ordered her, but she didn't listen. While the glow in Wenzel's eyes gradually faded, it began to increasingly brighten in those of his adopted daughter. The man knew that this signalled her current strong feelings and irritability. Nevertheless, he simply approached the guy she was trying to protect. He spoke loudly and in an angry tone as he couldn't quite contain his own rage. "Who are you, boy? What's your name?" His girlfriend turned to him and gestured for him not to answer. But the frightened boy responded, "My name is Achaz." The name meant nothing to Wenzel. How could it be otherwise? So, the sovereign asked another question, "How do you know my daughter?" This made the boy shudder, but he tried not to show it. "I'm afraid I cannot give you the answer to that, my lord," he said in an unusually refined tone.
Wenzel didn't seem to care about this one bit. The only thing that influenced his actions in any way at that moment was Viktoria's state of mind, at which he repeatedly cast his glance. Her magical aura emanated from her with such intensity that even a layman could detect it with the naked eye. Therefore, the top priority now was to nip any further "brash" action by the girl in the bud. Wenzel knew from experience that this was more likely to be effective with a poignancy in the manner in which she was approached. He considered the matter briefly. Then he turned his gaze back to Achaz and said, "What is your full name?" The boy's lips were sealed. "I demand that you answer me! Come on!", His Highness prodded vehemently. After several repeated attempts, he finally received a truthful answer. Achaz's reckless blunder would have grave consequences.
When the emperor heard the name "Vogt", he stood motionless for an instant. It took a moment for his brain to truly register the information. Subsequently, Wenzel's face contorted into an angry, hate-filled grimace. "Unbelievable! How dare you! Get the hell out of here! Bugger off! Now!" The sounds that left the emperor's mouth had lost all reverence and restraint. Only pure emotion sounded from his loud cries, an absolute rarity for anyone who knew the man.
Even Viktoria was shaken by this and even she took a frightened step back from her old man. Jumping at it like that was not what Wenzel had intended, but the realization of who the one who was meeting his little girl was, overwhelmed any self-restraint the emperor had. Meanwhile, a highly tense Lucius was still crouching in his hiding spot near them. He knew how dangerous this situation was but was equally aware that there was nothing he could do to change it. He didn't dare come out and stayed right where he was. The person he hated from the bottom of his heart was standing over there within reach, and yet he was so far away and unreachable to him. He would not be able to destroy the demon emperor by his own hands, that much was certain. No matter how much he wished it were otherwise.
In the meantime, the words literally gushed out of Wenzel, "You and especially your mother were lucky that the empire didn't bother with her any further back then and didn't try to persecute her! Traitors and their kin are not welcome here in my lands!" The ruler's voice almost broke from the loud yelling. All of this came hailing down onto the boy, who just stood there rooted to the spot by the terror. He didn't know what to say, let alone do, or what would happen next. He took the emperor's bluster in silence. "I never want to see you anywhere near my family again, you scoundrel! Is that clear?" - "Yes," it came back in a squeak. The princess stood by and looked thoroughly confused and uncertain. “Quickly, she chipped in, that, “he isn’t a scoundrel”. But His Majesty followed up with a warning, "If I ever see you anywhere near my daughter again, you and your mother, the traitor, will share August's fate!"
This threat was deliberately worded in such a way that Viktoria did not fully understand it. She had no idea who August was. Now Wenzel let himself hover a little above the ground again. At the same time, he rather symbolically held out his left hand to Viktoria and urged her, "Come on. Let's go." His tone was noticeably softer here. The girl looked back at Achaz, who said nothing and was still in a stupor of fear. Then she turned her head back to her custodian. She hesitated. Finally, however, she uttered in a suppressed voice, "I'm sorry." Reluctantly, she took off and flew away with her father. Behind her, she could hear a very faint, "Me too". Then the two of them disappeared into the night sky. "There's a lot we need to talk about, young lady," Wenzel now announced to her. She had never seen him like this before, not even after the incident at his throne jubilee.
Indignation, that’s what the worry lines on the emperor's wife's forehead suggested. However, they quickly gave way to the ire that arose from it. At this point, though, her daughter had already lost some of her previous discouragement. Yet, she still didn't seem particularly confident. "I expressly forbid you to ever see this guy again!", Amalie gave her strict instructions. The noble lady was, therefore, no antithesis to her husband's previous sharpness in tone. Viktoria now had to inquire something, "Why? I thought you wanted me to make friends!" - "But not that kind!", it came back immediately. "But what's so bad about Achaz? Why is he a problem for you? I don't understand." Wenzel cast a quick glance over at his wife, then replied, "It is impossible for us to allow the offspring of traitors to the empire to associate with you. Please, understand that." The lass had heard her father say this before in the forest, but it had slipped her mind again due to the heated situation. However, she could not simply accept this. "No, I don't understand!", she declared. "Why is he so 'awful'? Achaz is a decent guy. He would never mean any harm. Surely this is just about something his parents did, isn't it? What did they do that was so terrible?"
Both parents sighed. Eventually, Amalie answered her, "Something that can't be forgiven. Be that as it may, this isn't about the boy on a personal level anyway. Those to whom he belongs, from whom he descends, are too problematic. We can't allow that. And that's that! You will not contradict me any further!" These words now echoed in the princess's head. "Those from whom he descends are too problematic." This reminded her of the question Achaz had once asked her. He, too, was of the opinion that he was too low class for Viktoria. The girl, who had grown up in great poverty, interpreted her adoptive parents' explanations as a snobbish rejection of a friend of hers who had simply not been born into the right status. Of course, this was not true, but this misunderstanding was the result of the couple not wanting to reveal to their fosterling what had actually happened with August back then. The past disgrace was to be kept under wraps.
The mage snorted defiantly, "You are so unfair and arrogant! You wouldn't be where you are today, if things had been different in the past." At this her mother raised an eyebrow and retorted, "That's a completely different story, young lady." She obviously didn't understand what exactly the girl had said here. "I hate you!", the teenager shouted at them. Then she simply ran off to her room. Amalie didn't say anything further and just let her go. However, her father really struggled with this.
A few minutes later, he knocked gently on her door and entered the girl's room. Sitting on the bed, she pulled away from him and simply said, "Go away!" But the man moved closer anyway. Then he said, "I'm sorry for getting so riled up at that clearing earlier." A little curious, she turned her reddened and tear-stained face towards him. He continued, "I could have been nicer and more thoughtful. It doesn't change the decision that I and your mother have made, but I could have approached the matter differently. Forgive me for that, please!" The little girl said nothing in response. Nevertheless, it was something Wenzel had to do. He felt remorse for having reacted so impulsively and so unacceptably tyrannically. The girl cared little for such an apology, as it showed her that her father had little strength of character.
A full-bearded man was traversing the corridors of the palace at a brisk pace. The red and white check pattern of his uniform clashed with the colourful mosaics over which his sturdy boots were uncaringly trampling. He finally came to a halt in front of the door to the chambers of the Chosen One and banged on it with a force far too great, in order to attract attention. A little later, his old companion, whom he had always addressed as "boss", opened the door for him. Wenzel knew who it was as soon as he heard the knock. It was so very characteristic of his friend. This time, for once, he had come alone. Usually, he was always accompanied by his right-hand man, Balduin. Why he wasn't with him today would soon become clear.
"There is a matter I would need to discuss with you in private, my lord," Ferenc let him know. The wizard waved him in at the door and told him to take a seat on the divan in the reception room. The vice-commander of the Imperial Guard did precisely that. Casually, the hardened veteran eyed the illustrious furnishings while impatiently tapping his soldier's boots on the floor. A minute later, Wenzel was already back. He took one of the armchairs and moved it so that he could position himself directly across from his guest. Then he sat down as well. A serious look sprang from Ferenc's eyes. His already aging arms were still muscular and criss-crossed with thick veins on the surface. He stroked his beard. Only then did he begin to speak:
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"I've been mulling it over for a while now, but it would be close to my heart to be able to return to my old home. I've had visitors from there every now and then over the last few years, but there are important things to do. My parents have now reached an age that makes everyday life difficult for them. It is not the only reason for my request but helping them is one of the bigger factors why I want to return to Aszbereny, where I come from."
The ruler did not immediately know what to say to this and allowed silence to reign for a while. His old bodyguard and comrade had become an almost indispensable part of his guard. In general, Ferenc had taken on more of the role of the actual commander of the new Imperial Guard than the nominal head of it, as Brahm was mostly preoccupied with the personal protection of the emperor. Could Wenzel let him go just like that? He would prefer not to dismiss such an experienced ally just like that. But the feelings of his comrades-in-arms were of importance to him. After considering all this, he addressed the petitioner:
"You are very important to me, old friend. Are you sure there is no other way to handle this? Couldn't your parents just move here into the palace?" - "Unfortunately not, my lord. I have already spoken to them about the matter. They would never want to leave their home again. You don't replant an old tree, as the saying goes." The Chosen One had to agree with him. Before he could say anything else, however, Ferenc took the floor again: "I have served you faithfully all these years. And I would have continued doing that for as long as I could, if circumstances didn't force me into something else. But things are the way they are. There is, however, a suitable substitute. Balduin can certainly take over my duties to an appropriate degree, I'm sure of that."
Balduin. The emperor was always aware that he had been chosen and prepared to replace his superior, Ferenc, one day. He was devoted to the core. But that was exactly what left a nasty tasty in Wenzel's mouth at the thought of him. Submissiveness and blind obedience were what led mankind into slavery. Despite all this, the man sitting opposite him was right that Balduin was the right choice for the post. "You know what," the Sovereign said in a hushed voice, ", I need to weigh things up a bit more. Two days. Give me two days and I'll give you an answer." - "I understand. Thank you, my lord, for taking the time to consider my request!" - "You're welcome," replied Wenzel somewhat uncertainly.
When his visitor had left him again and the door had been closed behind him, he pondered the matter for a while. Could he or would he really want to force his faithful companion to stay? No, he couldn't. But was there any other way out of this? He couldn't find one. In the end, the answer would be that Ferenc would take his leave of the imperial court and be succeeded by Balduin. Soon the first of the old generation would give way to someone of the newer generation. It wasn't a big change overall, but one that upset Wenzel personally. He had already grown very fond of this ever-optimistic character. But farewells were always difficult, and of course the emperor was aware of that. Over the years, he had simply become a tad more sentimental. That was all.
"Come on! I'm not planning on doing anything bad. Can't you turn a blind eye for once?" Ylva shook her head without saying a word. Viktoria then continued her attempts to badger her. "You don't even have to do anything. If you don't notice anything, Father won't notice anything either! The window doesn't make much noise. No one would know, if you don't tell on me. Please Ylva, I'm begging you! Is our friendship not worth anything to you?" This question rattled the lady a little. The princess's bodyguard practically radiated anger and indignation in response. She retorted, "Excuse me? This has absolutely nothing to do with our relationship! I have my orders from His Majesty, and I must obey them unconditionally, without any ifs or buts. You have defied the rules and now you will bear the consequences." This wasn't quite right, because Ylva and everyone else now had to bear the consequences too, as they were now tasked with monitoring the young mage even more strictly. "I see it as an insult that you would question our friendship based on the fulfilment of my duties."
As a result, the girl huffed, "Hmph! Well, I guess, then you're just not my friend anymore!" There was a brief glimpse of sadness on the brown-haired woman's face before it disappeared again. Ylva instantly gathered that the teenager didn't really mean what she was saying, and that it was just an expression of her annoyance at not being able to get her way in this matter. It was fairly typical behaviour for the stubborn teenager, which her bodyguard was already familiar with.
Emphatically, she reiterated to Viktoria that there was nothing to shake or make her budge in her position. But she didn't realize what kind of beast she was dealing with here! As the tough lady was about to leave the room, the one she had just spoken to threw one of her typical temper tantrums. The lady paused for a moment, but then stepped out. She listened to the youngster's rage from the other side, standing in the corridor, fully tensed and ready to intervene if things escalated too much. Fortunately, this was not necessary in the end. She threw a few of her belongings and writing materials against the wall in a frenzy but didn't resort to anything more. Slowly, the wizard's fury subsided again. Nevertheless, it would turn out that Ylva had massively underestimated the girl.
Leutold was scurrying through a side street of the Duhn metropolis as unnoticed as possible. He was wearing clothes that were customary for the common people. He did not normally do this. After all, he was a valet at the imperial court. But for this smaller task, it was necessary to remain unrecognized in public. The man roved over the pavement, then paused briefly for him to listen, if he could hear other people nearby. Nothing. It was an almost eerie silence that prevailed here. He turned into Dyer’s Row and hurried as quickly as possible to where he needed to go. House number 13 was his destination. An unlucky number, as he only now discovered. In any case, it didn't change the fact that he was going to deliver the message. He took another quick look to the left and right, far too conspicuously, as some would think, and then took the letter out of the side pocket of his outer garment, which was plain grey. There was no letterbox, so he simply slipped the item through the door slot as quickly as possible.
"That's it! My work here is done," he rejoiced in his thoughts and almost symbolically wanted to rub his hands together. Then he was on his way again. He knew that the letter was addressed to a certain "Achaz“, but had not read the message it contained. Her Highness, the princess, had paid him handsomely to deliver the letter. This was done contrary to the emperor's wishes. If anyone found out that a simple servant at court had taken a bribe to subvert the sovereign's will in this way, he would probably be thrown out immediately, in the best-case scenario. However, an additional penalty would probably be imposed to deter anyone from imitating him. Nevertheless, Leutold simply convinced himself that nobody would find out. All he had seen was the glint of the gold coins, and all the things he could buy with them were dominating his thoughts.
This man had made it possible for Viktoria to contact her boyfriend again. She had during their previous dates found out from him what address he had in Meglarsbruck. However, the house at Dyer’s Row 13 was not the residence of the young man she was looking for. The property in question belonged to an ally of Etzel's who was in constant contact with the Vogts. This meant that the document sent would definitely reach the person addressed. In it, Achaz would then be informed of the time of their next meeting. The mage had also decided on a slightly different meeting place this time. Although, it would still be in the Karantian Forests. She would see him again soon. Meanwhile, the girl sat at her window and was staring out with a vacant look. She could hardly wait to see him again.
Then came the long-awaited night. Viktoria took to the skies above Ordania. The waning moon was enthroned above her in the middle of a cloudless canopy of stars, which meant that it would probably be much cooler tonight. For a brief moment, she looked back behind her at the palace she had left, then flew off to meet her heartthrob.
She had already taken all the necessary precautions. With the help of cushions, blankets and a wig, she had made a doll that would imitate the shape of her sleeping body as closely as possible. She had carefully placed it in her bed so that when Ylva came to take an unannounced look into the princess's room, she would be under the impression that everything was as it should be. Furthermore, after levitating out the window, the girl had closed said window from the outside with her telekinesis again, so that there was no obvious indication of her absence. Of course, she had to be back before her wake-up time, but that was obvious anyway. It was a good plan, especially from the girl's point of view. And it would work. Ylva would fall for the trick with the doll, at least for now.
But then there was another factor that would have been fatal to ignore: the sceptre. It was capable of tracking the girl. If her father used it, he would instantly find out that she was not at home. So how would she solve this problem? The answer was through sorcery. In the days before, Viktoria had practiced creating a shield of magic that would prevent the inherent magical power of the Holy Artifact from reaching her. She would be practically invisible to it. She knew that this worked, as she had been able to convince Silke, when she had visited the emperor’s private library, where that woman was very busy at work again, to quickly hand over the Holy Artifacts and let her “examine” them. This way, she had created an opportunity to test her resistance to the effect of the artifact. The test had been successful. So, the young lady had again cast off her shackles and escaped once more.
On Figaro's back, Achaz was trotting through the partially impermeable forest, closely followed by the grim-looking Lucius. They would soon arrive at the agreed place. There was no anticipation on the boy's face. On the contrary, there only were uncertainty, fear and anxiety to be seen. The reason for this was not just the usual. His mother, Petra, had recently returned from her trip to Camenia. As a result, the supervisor of Achaz had reported to her on everything that had happened. This had delighted the lady immensely and she had then proclaimed, “Excellent! The time has come to reap the fruits of our labour! I will also inform Etzel and the Baron immediately.”
She had made up her mind that it was time to manipulate Viktoria in order to steer their fortunes and those of the realm in a new direction. “I agree. The relationship between the girl and her father seems to have been affected enough for us to be able to sow more discord and finally exert influence,” Lucius had stated at the time. Together, they had then begun to vehemently work on the unwilling Achaz so that he would play his intended role in this. The young man had quickly given in.
This was the reason why he felt so sick, nauseatingly sick, to be precise. They wanted him to get Viktoria on their side and make her do the unspeakable. Something suddenly rustled in the bushes next to him. The lad almost jumped in panic and almost let his own horse bolt. “Pull yourself together!”, his guard squawked from behind. “That was just a boar. There are other, more dangerous animals here, such as mountain lions, but we don't even need to be afraid of them. After all, I'm here.” The last sentence was exactly what worried the teenager more than it gave him peace of mind.
On they went. The two of them made a short reversal to circumvent a thicket of thorns that was too dense for their horses. Then it was just one last little downhill stretch. They had finally made it! A steep cliff now jutted out in front of them. It was a famous cliff that had formed at the confluence of two smaller rivers. Directly above the rock face was a chapel dedicated to St. Balthasar. It was, therefore, an easy place to find, especially if you were coming from the air.
The sun was already setting and Lucius and his “protégé” settled down on the forest floor covered in soft leaves. As they were munching on their snacks, the guilt-ridden Achaz was literally consumed by nervousness. What could he do to get himself out of this jam? The suspicious man next to him repeatedly looked over at the boy with a sharp glare. He knew exactly what was going through Achaz's mind at the moment. In a warning tone, he cautioned him: “Don't think you can screw things up for us here! You will do what we tell you or I will punish you in your mother's stead!” Intimidated, the young man did not object. He simply submitted quietly.
After the last light of day had faded, Cornel, still scowling, sought out his hiding place in the nearby bushes. In the meantime, the young Vogt was abiding by the recently lit campfire. He would have to wait quite a while longer. Well over an hour had already passed when the girl finally found her way here, guided by the “beacon’s” light. She decelerated and gingerly set down on the slightly damp ground. Full of joyful anticipation, she approached her friend. But then she immediately stopped in her tracks. The expression he gave her was completely different from what she had expected.
“What's going on?”, she asked him straight away. The light from the crackling fire was dancing in his face, which was marked by uncertainty. He took a step closer to Viktoria and looked directly into her oh-so unique eyes. “There's something I need to tell you.” His voice was trembling. His obvious emotion now rubbed off a little on the princess and she responded to him with a tense, serious expression. She said nothing, however, letting her counterpart continue.
“My mother also found out that I was sneaking off at night to meet you.” He paused briefly, but his listener showed no reaction to what he had uttered. Briefly, the sound of the river was all that could be heard. He swallowed once, then continued, “I don't know how exactly, but she also knows that you are the princess. She doesn't believe that I should see you anymore.” Something seemed to have slipped his mind. But he quickly amended, “My mother is an Alethic. That's why she hates the current emperor. She will never be able to accept him, that much is clear.”
For a moment, he gave the impression of wanting to look behind him, but then stopped himself and turned back towards Viktoria. His face began to turn redder and his eyes started to glaze over. “She insisted that I should never meet you again. I begged her to allow it after all. After a lot of back and forth, I finally managed to wrest a permission from her. But there was a condition.” At first, Viktoria was still taken by surprise and stood there petrified, not knowing how to deal with the situation. Now she slowly began to mentally process the boy's words. She frowned. Something wasn't right here. Achaz was under such strain that not even these circumstances right here could explain it. When the first tears began to run down his cheeks, her suspicion only grew further.
Finally, he delivered the key sentence: “She thinks that your father is standing in the way of our love. If you could...”, he struggled for a moment with what he was going to say, but then continued. “If only you could get rid of him, our relationship would be made possible.” At this point, he actually wanted to add something else, but couldn't manage it. This scene now set alarm bells ringing aloud in Viktoria's head. She may have been naïve, but not that naïve. Something about this stank to high heaven. Of course, she knew nothing of Petra's plans for revenge, which were primarily aimed at Wenzel. That lady knew about the difficulties, that had arisen for the heiress to the throne in her relationship with her adoptive father after he had caught her in the forest with Achaz. And Viktoria was indeed a very rebellious brat. However, the assumption, that she could be persuaded to commit deeds of such sinister nature as those that had just been suggested to her, was a mistake.
A deeply sorrowful, shivering Achaz was now standing in front of her, avoiding eye contact out of feeling shame. “Don't be afraid! Even if you can't speak freely, your thoughts are free,” Viktoria's voice now seemed to emanate from an ethereal plane. Achaz's mouth hung open for a moment until he realized what this meant. He, just like Lucius and Petra, had by no means factored the possibilities offered by the girl's magical powers into the plan. They weren't aware of them either. Only the boy had witnessed her telepathy so far, but fortunately, as it turned out, he had forgotten to inform those, who had used him as bait, about them.
“Are you being watched?” his girlfriend now asked via thought transfer. Only in his mind, did he immediately reply, “Yes. Lucius, my watchdog, is hiding nearby and is spying on us. He's checking on whether I'm following the plan.” - “And the plan is to dupe me and use me as a tool for their purposes.” - “Pretty much, yes.” Now that it had slowly filtered through to him that a way out of his impasse had just opened up for him, the teenager was about to start smiling with relief. “No, don't do that,” she told him. “You have to keep looking sad and full of despair. Otherwise, he won't buy it!” Achaz nodded his head in the slightest possible gesture to signal his agreement. Now the drama the two of them performed began.
“You know what, I think you really are more important to me than my so-called father, who isn't even my real father at all!”, blurted out the young lady with her rather mediocre acting skills. Her counterpart tried not to appear too enthusiastic but couldn't hide the visible brightening of his mood. He replied, “Wow! Now, that really does surprise me. I would have expected you to think something of your old man.” His expression sounded somewhat exaggerated and contrived. To this, the mage then returned, “Well, I do think something of him. But it's not quite enough to call it love.” It was an unusually well-formulated, convincing statement that the princess was able to come up with here. Only her stilted delivery somewhat thwarted it a little.
“All right then,” Achaz said,” let’s see to it that the matter is done. Let's arrange a new date for us to meet again.” - “Agreed! I'll think about a course of action until next time and then we'll discuss how to go about it.” In closing, the boy then said, “Once this matter is behind us, nothing can stand in the way of our relationship.” - “Exactly!” Viktoria simply gave back.
That was the end of their performance to try and trick Lucius. Achaz would only find out whether it had worked after she had left. It was a good attempt by both of them, even if they were bad improvisers and even worse actors. By the time she departed, however, Viktoria was convinced that the two lovers had succeeded in their endeavour. She left the crackling of the campfire, which by now had burned down quite a bit, behind her and returned home. Under no circumstances was she to come back too late.