Enigma : The End Of Oblivion Era 🔞

2. A Murder and A Sleepless Night

It was dinner time when Inn heard the rumors.. Some men were talking about it... Inn got to eat at the dining table with the guards in the castle, and there were talks.. Although none of them were talking with Inn, she heard some talking, about something that she didn't expect to hear, a murder or something...

There were some ragged men eating like they haven't eaten for days... And beside them, there were some girls who were talking.. It looked like the blood rushed out of their faces.. Inn didn't want to interfere with anything outside of the exams.. She only needs to clear the exams, so that she can go to state and even maybe to the capital.. Her life will be safe and secure.. Any kind of job would be great for her.. Maybe she could get a job of being a healer, she learned some of the healing from her father, that may somehow come to help her...

Inn gulped down a spoonful of soup when she heard some giggles... And when looking up she saw that girl in a blue dress entering the room, with some of the other girls with her.. Inn wasn't interested in her.. These girls were never a topic of interest to her.. She wasn't born like them.. Never looking good or having the desire to have friends and giggling around was never an option for her.. But the strike came when Leonard entered the room, straightening clothes just after the girl.. And Inn's eyes stopped on him, he looked in the gate and looked around to find something.. His eyes were moving when they caught with Inn's...

The captain gave a small smile to her, to which she didn't reply.. She didn't even show any kind of expression on her face.. There were two reasons behind that.. One was she knew perfectly well that the captain was with the girl a few moments ago, and she was too absorbed in the rumors of the murder coming to her.. She wasn't entirely clear about why the 1st reason mattered to her.. She didn't understand many of her feelings.. But she did know one thing for sure.. The need for survival.. And she knew that was the most important thing to her now.. She needed to survive.. She didn't have anything, not anymore.. She didn't have a family and no home, no money, not even an identity.. And the only thing that could save her was this exam, giving her new recognition.. She doesn't need to win the exam, she just has to go to a good enough position, so that she can move away from this area, and establish her new identity..

Being in her thoughts inn didn't notice when Leonard came and sat beside her, with a big plate of food with him.. There were sweet potato, bread, and vegetables with soup..

"What are you thinking about?" he murmured while chewing the bread..

"What about the murder?" She was directly asking what she needed to know.. And it would be fair to say that Leonard was shocked, as he stopped chewing for a second and paused.. But he quickly regained his composure and started chewing again..

"What about it?" He spoke as unbothered as he could..

"Everything... Who is murdered and by whom?? Where?? When??" Inn paused looking at him chewing his bread and gulping it down with some wine.. He took a spoonful of vegetables and started chewing again..

"That is none of your business.. You are here as a participant and you should only focus on that.." He spoke calmly as if the murder doesn't matter or it happened somewhere far away from the country..

"It does.. As it seems like one of the participants was murdered.."

This time Leonard stopped.. And gulping down the wine, he looked at her.. Studying her face..

"A participant is murdered this evening, after the meeting.." He waited for any kind of expression on her face, and she knew what he wanted to see.. She knew that he didn't believe her and that he wanted to know if she was behind the murder.. She is well accustomed to faking her expression and controlling her emotions, toward the killers.. She had seen enough in her life, at least for the last year or so... Who came to her to dispose of the bodies of the kills they made..

"And?? Where the thing happened?? And who got murdered?? And how??"

"You wouldn't know.. One of the participants.. How many of them do you know?? Seems like none, so, you need to ask me about the thing that other participants are talking about so openly.. And the murder happened in the castle.. Don't ask me anything more.. I don't know or cannot share with you..." The captain took his eyes off her and focused again on his plate..

Inn chuckled hearing him.. She couldn't believe what he said.. "That is true, I don't know any of them, but same as you... After being a top-ranking captain, you came here to have dinner with me.. And you know me for two days.. Such a pathetic life.."

Inn chuckled again.. And she saw the captain grinding his teeth hearing her.. But she wasn't done.. "What happened to your beauty in the blue?? Slept with her?? Wasn't enough?? I guess it wasn't... There there... It would be alright.. "

Inn patted his shoulder and taking her almost empty plate left the table.. She knew she said something to the soldier that she shouldn't have said, but god, it felt really good to her.. It was really freeing...

*****

At night, Inn was lying in her bed, the bed was warm and comfy, so much better than the one she slept in before.. And also the nightgown was really comfortable.. Although after being tired for the whole day she wasn't sleepy, rather she was sleepy but she couldn't sleep.. She was scared, for her life.. All night she didn't want to sleep... Someone was murdered.. And she couldn't fathom the reason for killing one of the participants.. These people have nothing, no money or nothing.. But what could be the reason...

The only reason Inn came to understand was that some other participant killed the one, just to clear their own path.. And that was scary.. She couldn't die, and at this moment in time, she wasn't strong enough...

She got up from the bed and checked the lock on her door... And it was locked. She sighed... And came and sat on the bed... Her eyes went to the windows, and she went to the glass window, which was grilled with an iron net, so nobody can enter or exit through them...

The moon was light, and the field was lit with faint moonlight... Also, the torches were lit, on the wall... It was at least a castle, and castles are well protected, she felt relief opening the window, and breathing fresh air in her lungs...

Suddenly she noticed a movement in the field... There were people walking in the field.. It was tough to see in the dark, they didn't have a torch with them.. But Inn could notice that there were more than one people, most probably two or three, but not more than that...

Trying her best, by scrunching her eyes, what she could see was a bald head and a blue gown.. Her heart sank.. The senator.. and the blue gown.. What is her name.. Inn didn't even know that... Why they are together?? It was tough for Inn to understand...

The senator can search for the murderer but with that girl... The golden blonde hair was clearly visible in the moonlight... And there was someone else with them.. Their clothes were black or dark, Inn couldn't see him.. But she knew someone was there...

She was scared, and she wanted to close the window, but she couldn't... Closing the window suddenly may attract any eyes to her, which she cannot afford... So she stayed standing there, silent, until the figures crossed the field, and disappear into the small alleyway to the main building...

Inn noticed she was holding her breath, and finally, she exhaled, before spending a sleepless night under her blanket...