Agatha finally opened her eyes and realized they were no longer on the battlefield. They were still running, but all she saw around her were trees and rain. She had subconsciously closed her eyes when they left the carriage, trying to avoid seeing the events around her. It truly was not the smartest thing to do in a life-or-death situation, but she was just so terrified.

“How were we able to leave so easily?”

The young girl believed that they would get crushed by one of the wolves at the very least but somehow, they were fine.

“Daliyah…”

Agatha felt the pain in her legs and knew she could not run further. She opened her mouth to tell Daliyah she could not run anymore but…

(Agatha…You do not have a choice in these situations. Know your place as the vessel).

The words that had come out of her friend came back to her. She bit her lower lip and held back. If she were the Daliyah she knew, she would have told her right away but the person in front of her had somehow become a stranger.

Agatha felt her lungs burning and her heart beating faster and faster. She was wet from head to toe and felt cold. Her throat was hurting from her effort to regulate her breaths.

“How much longer are we going to run?”

As she thought about this, Agatha didn’t see the rock on the ground and like an answer to her prayers, she tripped and fell on the ground, finally coming to a stop.

“Ah!”

“My lady! Are you all right?”

Daliyah almost losing her balance finally looked behind her just to see her master on the ground. She kneeled to check on Agatha and noticed her struggle to breathe. The young girl looked exhausted and pale. Her lips trembled and locks of her hair covered her face. Her dress was now muddy with some parts of it ripped.

“Dresses are truly inconvenient in these situations…”

Daliyah looked down at her dress which was in a similar condition.

“I probably look like a mess as well.”

She gently grabbed Agatha’s hands and checked them. They were a bit scratched but nothing too serious. She wiped the dirt from Agatha’s hands and face. The young girl just looked at her without saying a word. Her eyes were blank. She opened her shaking lips but no words came out. Daliyah lowered her gaze for a moment.

“Your hands…don’t worry, it’s just a scratch. Does it hurt anywhere else though?”

Agatha just looked at her and said nothing.

“I don’t like seeing her like this but I had no choice.”

Daliyah stood up and offered her hand.

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“Come, my lady, we must continue. We are still not far enough to have the luxury of resting for too long.”

Agatha looked at the hand that was offering to help her get up. She studied it for a few seconds, uncertain of why that hand wanted to help her. She lifted her face and made eye contact with Daliyah.

“My lady, please, we don’t have time for this.”

Her voice sounded desperate. She furrowed her brow. It was hard to know if the battle was over yet. It was very likely that a wolf or a soldier could be after them this very minute. They had not managed to get too far because of the rain and because Agatha was not the quickest runner.

“Excuse me, my lady.”

Daliyah reached out to grab Agatha by the arm to lift her to her feet when she stopped herself. In a matter of seconds, Daliyah reached under the right side of her cloak and spun her body. At that moment…

*clang!*

A figure had jumped out of the trees and with a blade in his hand, aimed at Daliyah’s neck. She had managed to react last minute and with what seemed to be a dagger of her own, blocked the attack. The figure was still in midair. She held her feet in place and with all her force, she pushed him away. He managed to land on his two feet and quickly took a fighting stance. He pointed his blade at the two young women. Whoever this person was. He was not there to chat.

“My lady, please stay behind me.”

Daliyah stood in front of Agatha who was still sitting on the ground. She firmly held her blade and placed it in front of herself.

“Who is this person? I couldn’t feel his presence at all. I know it’s raining but still…”

Daliyah gave the person in front of her a threatening look.

“It doesn’t matter who he is. It’s obvious he was aiming to kill me. That means that there is a high possibility that he is after my lady.”

The man took a step forward. Daliyah stood her ground and didn’t move.

“Not bad. You didn’t recklessly go for the attack even though I moved first. You’re a cautious one aren’t you.”

The man had a deep, nonchalant voice. Looking at him more closely, Daliyah noticed he had a cloth mask that covered his face from the nose down. His blue eyes gave such an intense gaze that Daliyah thought he was reading her deepest thoughts. They sent a chill down her spine. She had felt gazes like that before.

“Those are the eyes of someone who isn’t afraid to kill or be killed.”

“Who are you?”

Daliyah kept her composure and tried to buy herself time to think of a way to get away.

“If I was on my own it would be a bit easier, but with my lady behind me…things will be trickier.”

“I don’t know why you attacked me but know that we don’t want any trouble, sir. I would like to ask that you let us through.”

The man smiled taking another step.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that. You see, that girl behind you is too important to lose. I don’t even understand how you and she got out here without me noticing until it was a bit late.”

His smile faded.

“It seems like you are not just a normal servant now, are you? You ask me who I am, but I am sure the young lady behind you would like to know the same thing about the one standing in front of her holding that dagger.”

“This jerk!”

Daliyah clenched her teeth. This man was not just waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike, but he was also trying to get into Agatha’s head. He could see that Agatha was in a vulnerable position, especially after the shock she received from Daliyah’s change in behavior and the witnessing of people getting slaughtered in front of her.

“I’m just here to return the vessel to the carriage. Don’t make this so difficult for either of us.”

“You say you are here to take her back. Does that mean you have other plans for me?”

“Oh forgive me for forgetting you for a second there. Now that you mention it yes, I do indeed have other plans for you if you refuse to give up…”

He lifted his blade and pointed right at Daliyah’s head.

“I plan to cut that head of yours and leave your body to the wild animals to feast upon. I can’t risk taking you back with me based on the little trick you just pulled.”

Daliyah could tell he was being serious. Still, based on what was saying, he was working with the empire. At least that’s what he was succeeding in showing.

“Whether he is with the empire or not, I can’t trust him. Why is he hiding among the shadows? Why did it seem like the other soldiers were not aware of him even being here? Are there more around here?”

“I see you have a lot of questions little maiden. Too bad I do not have time to answer them. So choose, give up, and leave by yourself, or risk meeting your end under this annoying rain.”

Daliyah looked back for a second at Agatha. She was frozen in place, processing what was happening.

“*Sigh* I don’t have much of a choice now do I, my lady? Not with the state you’re in right now.”

Daliyah looked back at her opponent.

“It’s funny for me that you think I will be the one who will meet my end here.”

She removed her cloak and threw it to the side.

“I should show you some level of respect and also give you the option to leave ‘little sir.’”

Daliyah gently removed her dress from her waist down. Underneath her dress, she revealed a whole other outfit made up of black pants and leather pockets. The man noticed the belt that held her daggers. Daliyah reached with her left hand for her second dagger and held it firmly.

“Well sir, shall we begin our dance?”