Flower Prince - Corpsekkuno

- Chapter 41 -

➼ CW/TW: Blood, Violence and Depictions of Death

I apologize to those who came here for pure romance 😭

Offpire runs while Ambrose and Aquilon are chasing after them. Toast leads the group through shortcuts and rides non-stop. Rae was panting and struggling to keep her eyes open. Sykkuno had told her to stay awake. She can't let herself sleep yet. It was a challenge, but not one she couldn't handle. Although, it was more difficult than expected.

Sykkuno holds onto Corpse's waist tightly. Unlike Rae, his eyes were fully open and alert. They were almost there, just a little further.

They make it to the gates of Offpire, the armies trailing not so far behind them. Everyone hops of the horses, and Toast bustles to help Rae. "Alright, I'm bringing Rae to the mines. You guys come too." The group jog to the opening of the mine. There was a building in front of it which they would have to enter. Toast knocks in a pattern before the locks of the door rattle. The door creaks open, and Yvonne and welcomes them in. She gasps at the sight of Rae and hurries to help carry her in. Inside, a flight of stairs leads down into the mines.

Corpse hears shouting and turns his head to see Offpire has reached the gates and pushes everyone inside. Ambrose and Aquilon have caught up to them and are beginning to accelerate. Sykkuno watches through the window as The King of Offpire flees away from the fight. "Such a coward," Corpse mutters. Sykkuno finds himself unable to look elsewhere, and Corpse stays by his side. Sykkuno notices two cloaked figures on their horses calmly, watching at a safe distance. "Who are they?" he asks aloud. Corpse looks at them and shrugs, "I have no idea."

They continue to fight ruthlessly, and Sykkuno looks at Ambrose's King. He was technically his father. Although, the boy refuses to call him that. But he finds his mind saying the word when he watches his father fall. Soldiers cheer as their willpower is being restored as they kill off more. Sykkuno feels tear well up in his eyes and reaches for the doorknob, but Corpse's hand holds him back.

All the herbalist can do is watch the man from afar as he dies. A father figure that never loved him, has died. But Sykkuno cannot help but feel misery. 

The cloaked figures reveal themselves as they, too, bring out swords. It's Emma and The Queen. His eyes widen as everyone steps back as she holds out her weapon. Her eyes are fuming, and now, she's taken on the role of the leader. The battle continues, and Emma shows remarkable skills in combat, as does her mother. Sykkuno smiles and heads down the mine with Corpse.

They see doctors frantically tending to wounded patients. Sykkuno walks to where Rae is and looks expectantly at the specialist. "I brought all the supplies I could," he said. "It seems she's running a fever. The wound is infected." Sykkuno bites his lip and steps away before laying his eyes upon Dan.

The miner is pacing nervously, biting his nails. Sykkuno walks over to him and places a hand on his shoulder. "Dan, what's wrong?" Dan turns his head around to meet Sykkuno's eyes. "Ah, Sykkuno! It's good to see you." he begins. "I was actually wondering if you could do something for me, something important."

"What's the issue?"

Dan looks down at the ground, "Asher isn't here. He's still stuck in the castle." he says shamefully. "I want to go get him, but no one is letting me leave, telling me it's too dangerous to go out during a war."

"Well, it is dangerous." Sykkuno thinks. "So, how are we going to get Asher back?"

"I was hoping you could sneak past everyone and run to the castle, but don't go through the plaza."

Sykkuno recalls his moments with Asher. He was always rather rude and arrogant, but he never received the attention that he wanted due to his father being famous within the mining industry.

"Everyone is keeping a close eye on me after I tried bolting out of here earlier," Dan admits.

Sykkuno hesitates for a moment, "Alright, I'll get Asher back."

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Sykkuno walks back towards the others to check on Rae before leaving. He notices Lily and Micheal are there, comforting her. "Hey," he greets. The couple looks up, "Sykkuno!" Lily yelps before hugging him. They'd only been in contact a few times, but there were as affectionate as ever. "Thank goodness you're safe."

"It's good to see you guys too," Sykkuno responds. "How did you convince Dan to let people use the mine tunnels?"

"We're rich." Micheal answers. "We offered up money, but that wasn't what convinced him. After we told Dan the entire truth about The Anchors, he accepted without wavering. He didn't even take the money."

Sykkuno hums, "Wow," is all he says. "How's Rae?"

"She hasn't grown better nor worse," Lily reveals. "She's in a steady state, however, she was lucky you were there."

Rae weakly opens her eyes and looks at Sykkuno. Toast walked over as well. "So uh," she begins. "What's happening?"

"I'm sure this will be all over soon," Toast says. "Yeah, hopefully."

"I'm going to the castle," Sykkuno says abruptly. It was an impulsive word that he won't take back. Dan had told him to keep it on the down-low so Sykkuno could sneak past, but he's only telling his friends. Just in case something goes wrong. He hears Corpse sigh and immediately feels a sense of regret. "I know if we try to stop you, you'll go out anyway, so I'll come with you." he smiles. "It is ugly out there after all."

Sykkuno nods and takes Corpse's hand. "We'll be back. I have to go grab a friend."

◈◈◈

Corpse and Sykkuno walk through the town, although they avoid the main streets. They hear the sounds of yelling but pay no mind to it. The gates to the castle are closed, and Sykkuno notices Abe and Peter guarding it along with others. But they can't be seen. Corpse leads him around to the east gate, where it is less heavily guarded. They keep a fair distance away as Corpse helps Sykkuno climb over the fence before he does himself.

Sykkuno drops flat onto his stomach to avoid detection, and Corpse follows. They move into a crouch and move quietly towards the door. Sykkuno decides to sprint over, and Corpse, with silent protest, heads with him.

They make it to the door, but it's locked. "No issue." Corpse says, "I can climb up to windows anyway." Sykkuno watches as Corpse scales the wall, moving his feet quickly and latching on to every loose slab. He makes it to an open window and crawls through while Sykkuno waits, still hunching. He hears the door rattle before it opens, revealing Corpse, who is definitely smirking under his mask.

"Come on," Corpse grabs Sykkuno's wrist. "Let's check the medical wing."

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2/3

keep on going ;)

have a good morning, afternoon or night!

-fai