She's strong, he admits, but very annoying. Then King Richard sighs, thinking about his wasted effort of climbing up a tree.

How did I, a King, just do that without thinking!? Why am I wasting time on something like this!?

Grudgingly, he follows her back down, only to see her gone again upon placing his feet back onto the ground!

Exhausted, he flops down to the grass and decides to have a nap, as they weren’t in any hurry...

One of the guards let out a small laugh to His Majesty's behaviour, as it was like he was trying to catch a cat, they thought. Often, their King had never attempted to do anything like this...He was a business man, a man that you never knew if he slept or not because of how much work he does...

Should they have captured her for him then?

Seeing him sleep so easily, they were quite shocked! Whenever they were to go out venturing like this, they would never see him laze about and sleep anywhere else but his tent or that of the small little palaces that are in each town for him to stay in!

It was a first...For quite a number of knights...But, of course, they continued to do their job and make sure that he was safe, even from female's that made the King...Go up trees...

They were sceptical about who the maiden was and why she was here, but seeing the King try to once again get her attention and have her disappear, they started to think that if someone might be in somebody else’s way…It might be that the King was in the maiden’s way, instead of the other way around! It was yet again...Another first...

The smoke bomb had indeed been scary, and they had become vigilant afterwards…But, it had become obvious to most of the guards, that this young woman looked like she wanted to be left alone and had not wanted to get involved with them at all…Nonetheless, whatever their thoughts, they will always protect His Majesty first, not putting their trust into their thoughts and kept an eye on what was going on. Even if it looked like she wanted nothing to do with the King, it didn't mean that she wasn't a spy...Or that of an assassin!

Giving the King some space, they went a few more metres away from him and half of them leaned up against the trees, while the other half kept an eye out in four different directions.

This was closer to what they usually did, when coming out here to Havlish, and a couple of them started to quietly talk, speaking aimlessly to pass the time…

They all seemed to be still waiting on the leader of the Royal Loyal Knights to arrive, so that they could report to the King on secret journeys that have been made throughout Kralaide. It was only one or two Loyal Royal Knights that travelled to each town, to scout out to see if there was anything wrong. They would meet up back in Havlish, to their leader and King, to report of any misconduct.

Throughout the ages, this had happened many times, as the Loyal Royal Guards continued to be loyal to their King. It wasn't like the governors could not be trusted, it was more so that the King wanted to have another source of information and the knights continued to be used till this day to do exactly that...

This would happen three times a year and the knights rarely reported anything that could be regarded as high priority to fix straight away.

The biggest worry lately, was that of the small skirmishes that was happening between Governor Zachary and Governor Sedric, that happened every couple of years. They could hardly be called ‘small skirmishes’, as it didn’t have an army against another…It was more of a few people on each side that may bring a person to be harmed but no one seems to have been killed, as of yet. The problem was, the 'small skirmishes' were starting to happen outside of the towns as well. So, it has started to happen anywhere from the north town of Bracken all the way down to the Southern town of Bena, including the land in the middle of the two…Knowing such details, made things difficult, as that meant more people to keep an eye on the land and the towns and governors. It also meant that the law in place of stating these small skirmishes being against it, was also not being taken seriously!

…Mahnu sees that the guards were watching the King closely because of the assassination attempts, some in which have already been made on him. There was even an attempt on the heir to the throne, that she could hear in her mind, even seeing it through one person’s point of view, as they had even seen the attack with their own eyes. Luckily, the heir was unharmed, but they never found out who was behind the attempt, due to the assassin killing themselves before any kind of torture could even be started.

Innocent children overcoming assassination attempts was not what she had wanted to save!

She hated the fact that she had saved this...Lot...Just so they could kill each other!

Is that why I think of them as beasts? She wondered. They are territorial and fight for leadership, like that of a pack of wolves!

Then, her thoughts were interrupted by what she saw was the King's dreams…

Watching as his dreams proceeded, Mahnu saw herself with others from the past…Her past…Kralaide’s past!

She recognized the prophets, Royal Knights and King Maximus, surrounding the chest that had become 'The Chest of the God's'.

How is it, she wondered with wide eyes, that the current King is dreaming of something that happened over a thousand years ago!?

It was pictured in her mind, as no time had passed at all, but it was seen by not her eyes but of the eyes of King Maximus…

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Are you sure it will work, Mahnu?" King Maximus had asked her.

Mahnu had replied that she had found out through notes that had said it had worked before and if she had done it properly, it should trap all the God’s inside.

"We have nothing to lose...I am willing to aid you with my strength!" The King had said, nodding at Mahnu.

"Then if you are all ready, place your hand on the chest and chant what I say after me" Mahnu had said.

She had waited till they all had touched the chest, before she had touched it herself and provided the power needed for the chest to work.

"For we could not achieve peace through words or actions, we entrust our power into this chest to protect the future of mankind."

Mahnu waited until the others had finished repeating after her, before continuing, "Each of us are willing to sacrifice, to achieve that peace we could not obtain without this chest."

Then light had overwhelmed the room, also waking up the King up in the present…

Without knowing, she had left her hiding spot and came to stand before him and he opened his eyes to see her shocked face.

As he tried to waken, seeing this, he was wondering what was going on.

The King saw the knights start to walk towards them, but the King put his hand up to stop them. They had seen her come closer and closer to the King, making them put their hands upon their swords…

He asks if she's alright, but she gives no answer…Just her gaze held him prisoner…For the life of him, he didn’t understand why she was looking at him like that!

King Richard sighs and scratches his head. Did something bad happen while I was sleeping?

He wondered if he had looked ridiculous while sleeping, to try and understand why she was making such an expression on her face.

It seemed sweet, how her eyebrows were furrowed in some type of frustration and how she was directly looking at him like he was very important…It was nice! And it made all that time climbing up a tree a lot more worthwhile!

Suddenly, she stopped something getting close to him, shocking him!

She was bent over him, still standing as he was still sitting on the ground…She was so close!

Even though the sudden closeness had shocked him, he didn’t feel at all impeded upon and already felt himself lost within her eyes…Even her light smell started to cloud his thoughts…

Hearing a sigh of relief, as she was glad she was here to catch it, she pulled something out of her arm.

He was surprised to see that it was a poisonous dart, before she hid it in her clothes, and looked into the bushes. When he looked after her, he saw her following that gaze into the dark.

"Wait!" He yelled. But she was already gone!

He hastily called for the knights to rush and follow…

After some searching, they came across someone that was roped and gagged. King Richard wondered if the maiden had to leave so fast for an antidote, as the knights that were sent out to look for her didn't find her.

After they ungagged the assassin, he was too quick to stop, and before anyone could do anything, the assassin was already dead through poison…

King Richard was upset that the maiden had gone through all of that trouble, only for this to happen and he felt pathetic that her efforts had gone to waste!

They had been looking at obtaining an assassin, to ask them who was behind the attacks, but they have yet to fully capture one that was willing to talk, before they committed suicide…

Silently, the King cursed his knights and their impatience, they should have known that this could have potentially happened!

…But, after those angry thoughts, the King couldn’t believe that the maiden had saved him!

She had taken a poisonous dart for him, making him want to thank her and see her. Perhaps he could offer something to her in return…But he had no idea what he could offer her, as she had not said one word to him and acted like she would prefer to be alone.

Yet…It gave him a reason to talk to her! And that reason made him worried and excited all at the same time!

He was worried that she may not have the antidote and that he’d never see her again…And excited because a reason to talk to her was better than none…For saving the life of a King, it was definitely a good reason!

But, unlike what he thought, where she should be asking for things right in front of him…Why…

Normally a King wouldn’t need a reason to talk to anyone and would be able to do what he wants, yet…She didn’t seem to be someone that would care too much that he was a King, remembering that she had already ignored him earlier…

It had been a while that he had to try and go beyond that of a King to get someone’s attention…And he was looking forward to it!

But…Where in the world was she then!?

…Mahnu sighs at their bad luck, already knowing herself where the assassin had come from.

As there were no other killing thoughts close by, she decides to leave.

What good would come out of telling them that a governor is behind it all, it might break all the government currently in Kralaide…And that’s if they believed her in the first place!

Remembering a certain memory from the past, Mahnu became frustrated and did not want to indulge in staying here any longer, she had done her job of saving his life, now it was time to move on! The King will be safer from now on, as she could hear another’s thoughts coming closer to the King…Making her think that he was the leader who had been held back by those in Havlish…Having arrived earlier then the King, he had visited his maternal town and a few specific people, making sure that things were also in good order while he was here…After all, there was no governor for Havlish…The leader of the Loyal Royal Knights, was also the leader of Havlish and he will report anything he needed to directly to the King himself.

The King's thoughts made Mahnu leave even faster, as they did something to her that made her question what it was.

And Questions want answers, she thought, so best to leave it be and not think about it. It is normal for me to stay away from others, I'm destined to be alone. Alone and not depending on humans to give me answers!

Ha…Why would a human know an answer to my type of question anyway? Isn’t me that has lived far longer than them!?

She walked away, silently saying goodbye, scaring herself as she didn't normally even go that far with humans.

It doesn't matter, she thought, I probably won't see him again and one day he will die, and I will remain here. It's a huge circle that I can never forget. Humans are creatures that die. I am not. The reason I had come here, is to save the King of Kralaide’s life…Why stay longer?

Mahnu knew this, knew that her duty was complete…Yet, not only questions about the dream but…Those eyes of his…And…Some type of feeling she had while being around him…

Mahnu left in more haste, angry and even upset but not knowing why. And she didn't even want to know why.

King Richard didn't see her again, before returning to Conrella, but he thought about her.

Why doesn't she speak? What has she been through? Did she get the antidote in time?

So many questions that he wanted to ask her! It hardly seemed fair that she had disappeared as she had too! Does she truly hate me? Does she really want nothing to do with me?

Never having been in a situation where a woman had literally run away from him…More then once…The King had no idea on how to feel!

He was that distracted to his thoughts, that the knights asked him if he was alright. The King snapped back, saying back to them that he was "Fine!"

The knights only worried more for the King, who they had never seen this angry before! He hardly ever got angry!

Was he that angry that the assassin had died back in Havlish!?

"…Your Majesty, a note from governor Valtac has come."

"Oh...Right." The King said.

That's right, he thought, I'm the King of Kralaide, I have things to do!

***