I waited patiently behind the trees and bushes for the perfect time to strike.Before we took off, James gave us one final instruction: that the griffins would only arrive once the front guards were removed.I already sent five guards to move closer towards the front gates. As for the rest of the soldiers, I assigned them to the back gates. My specific instructions was to wait for them to drop their defences. And though our position was uncomfortable, we couldn’t be reckless with our actions.One mistake could cost the whole mission.Finally, the three guards at the front gates sat in front of the entrance. They put their spears aside. They yawned as they shared bread with one another.I nodded at my men. Immediately, they shot their sleeping darts. In no time, the drowsy liquid took effect and put the guards to sleep.It was an incredible surprise and blessing that the captain brought some sleep syrup with him. Before we completely made our journey to the front entrance, we made dart

She groaned as she slowly regained consciousness. Darkness welcomed her vision. She then sat up from the unfamiliar bed and looked around.Everything looked strange.The faint moonlight was the only thing that illuminated the room. But it was enough to help her distinguish that she was somewhere she didn’t know.From the unfamiliar furniture and different room arrangement. She knew she was brought somewhere that wasn’t in Western Wind.Once again, fear filled her mind.It was the same fear that she felt when she was abducted. It was the same fear that haunted her when she was locked in a room with no windows. It was the same fear that became her companion for all the time that she was alone.In a panic, she hurried towards the headboard. She hugged her knees tightly as she examined her room frantically.The door suddenly opened, which made her jump. Two unfamiliar men entered, one of them carried a tray. After the tray was settled on the table, both turned towards the bed. They grinne

We finally arrived in Bethilda’s dungeon, which was located in one of her castle towers.Unlike in our castle, hers was spacious. There were windows where the sun would shine its light through. At the same time, it served as a way of proper ventilation for her prisoners. As we passed by the prison cells, I noticed that they were still in pristine conditions. As if not many prisoners were kept here before.Most likely, her servants were the few of the first ones to be kept here.“James, did you imprison all of your servants?” I whispered as I walked closely behind James.“Each one of them had to be questioned. I only released a few after they were interrogated and proven to be innocent,” James explained.We were then led to an open door through the wall.~*~*~*~As we stepped inside, it revealed a staircase that led down to the side of the tower.As we ventured down, the light from the upper part of the tower slowly disappeared. There were no windows as we ventured further down the hid

“For all my life, I lived in absolute caution.“My parents were once loyal servants of the duchess when she was only a teenager. My mother was chosen as one of her ladies-in-waiting. My father was chosen as her page.“For the longest time, the duchess never treated her household with hostility. Most especially, her favourites. And when time came for my parents to ask for her blessing, the duchess happily allowed their marriage.“But that harmonious relationship with the duchess was destroyed because of a false allegation.“One of the guards accused my parents of stealing the duchess’ crown, which was a family heirloom. Because of that, they ran away from the castle and lived in the mountains in secret.“Day after day, they lived in fear for their lives. It only worsened when Mother became pregnant. Although they did everything to give me a proper, normal childhood, I was never allowed to visit the nearby city. They would make one excuse after another, just to prevent me from leaving t

“You don’t remember anything?” James asked.I reopened my eyes and replied, “All I can recall is that… we arrived in the throne room and I screamed. The next thing I know, I was on the ground and coughed out blood.”James’ brows furrowed. He looked to the healer and I did the same.“It is quite expected that an immortal will forget the first explosion of their powers. Although the prince has been using his powers for a long time, I believe there is more that he hasn’t discovered yet,” the healer explained. He added, “His body went into shock when it happened. So, it’s understandable that he doesn’t remember anything.”“My body went into shock?” I interrupted, which made the healer turn to me. “Wait, what happened-AH!” My attempt to sit up was immediately thwarted by an agonising headache.“Calm yourself, Your Highness,” the healer assisted my head as I laid back down. “You need to rest. Your body needs to recuperate.”I took a moment for the pain to subside. I then continued my questi