From the shadows, Midnight watched in silence as Lumielle, Lyndoria, and Zephyr staggered to their feet. The walls around them groaned with heat, and the air was thick with the acrid sting of smoke.
"P-Princess, are you hurt?" Lyndoria asked, rushing to her side with wide eyes.
"I'm alright," Lumielle replied, steadying herself. Then her eyes flicked to the girl's brow where blood trickled down from a deep gash. "L-Lynn, you're bleeding."
The girl touched the wound absently. "It's nothing. We don't have time—this place isn't safe."
Zephyr growled in agreement, the fur along his back rising as he faced the stairwell.
"What was that blast?" Lumielle asked, coughing slightly from the smoke. "It sounded like the whole tower shook."
"I don't know," Lyndoria said, scanning the corridor. "But if I had to guess… it was the Mhaledictus. This is retaliation for your speech at the memorial ceremony."
Lumielle exhaled, her expression grim. "I had a feeling."
Zephyr whimpered, ears twitching. Something was moving nearby.
"What do we do?" Lyndoria asked, eyes darting to the blocked stairwell. "The upper floors are cut off. The lower floors are likely a trap. And the window's too high—jumping would be suicide."
"That leaves only one feasible option," Lumielle said, already moving toward the stairs. "The rendezvous point in emergencies is the orphanage. We have no choice but to risk the lower floors and head there."
Lyndoria hesitated, then gave a reluctant nod. "…Do you think Haxks saw the explosion?"
"I'm sure of it," Lumielle replied, a flicker of hope flashing in her eyes.
"Haxks Starfrost," Lyndoria muttered, surprised at herself for bringing up his name. "Can we really trust that infuriating adventurer?"
A faint smile touched Lumielle's lips. "We've trusted him before… and he hasn't failed us yet."
Before Lyndoria could respond, a sharp clang of metal echoed from below. Zephyr snarled. From the stairwell, masked figures surged upward—soldiers clad in armor bearing the royal insignia and robed assassins likely affiliated with the Mhaledictus. Their aura radiated pure, unfiltered bloodlust. No one was here to rescue them.
"Brace yourselves!" Lyndoria hissed, already drawing the twin knives strapped to her thighs.
But just as the tide of enemies poured in, shouts erupted from the opposite end of the corridor and further down the stairs.
"For Her Highness!" a soldier cried.
A band of Lumielle's loyal guards stormed in, blades raised. Steel clashed against steel, fire crackled, and chaos swallowed the tower's innards, buying precious seconds.
"Go!" one guard shouted, locking blades with an attacker.
Refusing to squander the opportunity, the group bolted. Zephyr led the charge, fangs bared and flames spilling from his jaws. Lyndoria spun and slashed without hesitation, cutting down anyone who stepped in range. Lumielle followed tightly, heart thundering as blood sprayed the walls.
The stairwell was a scene from hell—and down its spiraling depths they ran. Smoke curled up the walls. The cries of the dying echoed off the stone. Blood slicked the steps and dripped from the railings.
Flames cast wild shadows across shattered portraits and broken banners. Dead soldiers—friend and foe—lay crumpled on each level, their lifeless faces locked in expressions of agony.
"Keep moving!" Lyndoria yelled, slashing through a man who lunged from the shadows.
A blade swiped inches from Lumielle's face. She ducked, and Lyndoria drove a dagger through the attacker's throat. Zephyr leapt, tore into a masked man, and flung him over the rail. He howled all the way down.
"We're almost there!" Lyndoria gasped.
They twisted down the seemingly endless spiral, slipping on blood, ducking sword swings, dodging fire. Every breath burned. Every step threatened to be their last. And then—finally—they crashed through the final archway and into the main lobby.
The floor was cracked, furnishings destroyed. Bodies lay scattered like broken dolls. The chandelier hung lopsided, swaying gently above a pool of blood. The silence here was eerie—too quiet. Only the distant crackle of fire reminded them that death still hunted.
Lumielle stopped, gasping for breath. Her eyes welled with unshed tears as she glanced back at the stairwell behind them. "They stayed behind," she whispered, her voice trembling. "They fought so we could make it."
Lyndoria lowered her weapons, face pale and stained with blood. Zephyr stood between them, teeth bared, ever watchful.
CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.
Suddenly, the sound of glass and rubble shattering underfoot arrested the atmosphere. Each step drew nearer—slow, ominous. Zephyr's ears perked. Lyndoria's muscles tensed. Lumielle's blood ran cold.
A shadow loomed.
Then, into the chamber strolled a humanoid fiend, deformed and evidently powerful. Within its possession was a horrifying sight. Clutched tightly by the skull and dangling like a discarded puppet, fingers twitching, blood dripping down his brow, was a barely conscious captain.
I-Is that… Hynes?! Lumielle's thoughts screamed.
Is he still alive? Lyndoria's stomach twisted.
Neither of them dared speak. One wrong breath, one misplaced sound, and the fiend might fly into a frenzy and rip them apart.
The creature halted. With casual cruelty, it hurled its nearly expired captive across the room. Hyne's body slammed into the far wall with a sickening crunch before crumpling to the floor, slumped upright.
Then the fiend turned to them.
Lyndoria swallowed hard and brandished her knives, her hands trembling slightly. Zephyr's body dipped low, a growl building in his throat as fire glowed between his teeth. A droplet of sweat fell from Lumielle's chin.
Suddenly, the monster let out a strangled, agonized shriek. Its body jerked violently like it was having a seizure.
Then—shlick!
A familiar blade burst through its neck from behind, ripping through its spinal column in a brutal fashion. The creature's knees buckled and it collapsed, its eyeballs rolling back.
Behind it stood Daisuke. His expression was cold, eyes narrowed. Blood dripped from his dagger. "We need to move," he said. "Now."
"H-Haxks!" Lumielle finally breathed, her chest tightening in relief. "You actually came…"
"Starfrost!" Lyndoria blurted, then quickly caught herself, straightening and clearing her throat.
Zephyr barked, tail wagging in excitement. In the same beat, Midnight leapt out from Lumielle's shadow and gracefully perched on Daisuke's shoulder.
But the moment of calm didn't last.
A single soldier clattered awkwardly down the stairwell, his sword drawn. He froze at the sight of the silver-haired youth who came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, evidently seeking to obstruct him.
The man's eyes narrowed, confused—then widened in disbelief when he realized something. "W-Wait… You're that woman from before—Sophia Everwinter!"
PAJIK!
A vein popped in Daisuke's temple as he, too, came to a sudden realization. This bastard—it was the same soldier who'd frisked him back at the ballroom. The annoying pervert who couldn't keep his grimy hands to himself.
"So… you like groping helpless women, huh?" Daisuke said, voice low and seething.
The man paled.
In a flash, Daisuke closed the distance. His fist slammed into the man's torso. The breastplate dented inward as the bastard was launched backward, smashing into the wall at the top of the stairwell before slumping motionlessly to the floor.
While the others looked on, Lumielle rushed to Hynes's side. She dropped to her knees, then pressed two trembling fingers to his neck.
There was a pulse.
It was faint, but steady. Relief washed over her face, but there was no time to tend his wounds. Carefully, she placed a potion vial in his hand and wrapped his fingers around it.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice thick with guilt. "If we had trusted you from the start… maybe you wouldn't have been hurt. Please, forgive me."
She stood slowly.
Behind her, the others were already waiting.
Daisuke stepped forward, extending a hand. "Let's go."
Lumielle pursed her lips, her eyes glum as she glanced from Hynes to the stairs.
"I know it hurts," Daisuke said gently. "But their sacrifices won't be in vain—we'll take back the kingdom. For now, though, we need to regroup and figure out our next move."
Lumielle looked at him for a moment, then she nodded and reached forward to take his hand.