Aravel

Chapter 47

Sakuya brought Kaze over to one of the smaller rooms at the side of the corridor they were in and threw him in there, literally. She still had the same glare on her face as she watched him retreating nervously, as if she was watching an insect covered in dirt trying to get close to her. It was terrifying, to say the least.

Kaze felt like he was going to get tortured by Sakuya from the way she stared at him. Glancing from her sword to her tail, he readied himself to submit to whatever Sakuya was going to do to him.

"... What are you doing?" Sakuya asked, feeling baffled by him staring at her. "Get your stuff. We have to leave before the guards come."

"H-Huh?" Kaze stammered, looking around him.

When he turned to face the wall, he noticed his outfit and sword were hanging on one of the hooks. It was likely a room to store the confiscated items from the prisoners, which explained a lot about how Kaze found the room he was in to be so secured.

Grabbing his stuff, Kaze immediately followed behind Sakuya, careful not to get too close to her in the event she really didn't like him. It was weird, thinking about how Sakuya's words didn't match her actions. On the outside, it reminded Kaze a lot like Lucentia when they first met. If anything, Sakuya and her twin sister, Shiina, would be the true ice queen from their appearance alone.

It was a stressful walk from where they were back up to the palace. When they emerged from one of the hallways, Sakuya stopped walking and closed her eyes. She was using her senses to tell if there was anyone nearby such as sound and magical perception. Being one of the royal guards of Aravel meant that she must be capable enough to do something like this.

"... Move," Sakuya muttered to him without turning around.

After a few more repeated actions, Kaze was convinced that she was actually a spy. While that was partly true, it helped that the sky was still dark and there was a lack of guards in the palace that helped them to progress quicker than expected.

It didn't take long before they arrived at one of the more heavily guarded areas. On both sides of a entrance stood two dragonkin guards. When they saw Sakuya with Kaze, they didn't react and simply allowed them to pass. Kaze didn't feel surprised seeing this, knowing that Sakuya must have been someone equivalent to their commander for them to not question her bringing a human wearing drags around.

"Oh, Kaze!" Lunatea's face brightened up when she saw him with Sakuya.

Sakuya brought Kaze over to where the Rentaria family were residing in the palace. Kaze felt a little more relieved knowing that it was under their order, likely by the Emperor Reginsleif.

"You trust me," Kaze hugged Lunatea tightly. "What did you...?"

"It was father's orders," Lunatea quickly explained. "He didn't want us to talk about bringing you out under the assumption that we might be monitored."

"Monitored? You mean they can hear our conversation?" Kaze asked.

"Yes, but it is not going to happen here," Lunatea nodded, looking at him up and down. "Mother had already casted an anti-sound barrier around us so even if there were magical devices hooked up to record our conversation, it wouldn't function."

"Kaze," Lucentia was the next one to approach him, giving him a quick hug too. "Thank god you are alright. I'm sorry I had to abandon you when the guards arrived."

"It's alright. You didn't have a choice," Kaze smiled wryly at the third princess. "I am sorry I couldn't make use of the advantage you have given me..."

"I didn't know there was more than one of them since the second didn't show up," Lucentia sighed. "It was my fault too. I should have foreseen that."