Empress Natsume ✓

XXVII

This feeling.... It's the same feeling when the Dark Cultists captured me. My body feels so heavy, I can't even open my eyes and lift my finger.

"Natsume... are you awake?"

That raspy voice. Lord Ryuu?

I tried to open my eyes with all my might but to no avail.

"It's okay, don't try to open your eyes if you can't. I know that you're awake"

This time, I tried to open my mouth and say something but no words came out.

'What happened?' I want to ask him that and he seems to understand what I'm trying to say.

"I found you at the hut alone when I return in the forest. You passed out"

There was a moment of silence before he speak again.

"I'm sorry..... It's my fault for leaving you alone there. You're a girl and yet--"

"I'm sorry I've lost my mind"

He said again. I felt him hold my hand

"You're so small and frail. I did lost my mind, this is the second time. Damn, I'm turning stupid now a days, I even made you hungry. I'm sorry..."

Why does he keep on saying sorry? I feel a large rough hand on my head. He's combing my hair with his fingers.

"Don't worry... I won't make you go through that again. I promise"

It feels like my consciousness is drifting away again, my head is aching so much and the last thing I heard from him was.

"I will end it here Natsume. I will kill those cultists bastards. I'll cut their limbs and beheaded every single one of them"

His words give me goose bumps. He sounds dead serious while gripping my hand.

I don't know how long I've been unconscious and the moment I regain my consciousness, I heard voices. Sounds like they're having a heated argument.

"How dare you do something so careless? Do you know how much power he has now?"

The first voice belongs to a woman.

"There's no need to remind me of it. I know how much power he has, he owns half of the Sang's states but what can we do about it? We can't bring back the time"

And the second one belongs to a man.

The woman spoke again.

"Your spies in his palace are completely useless. Their reports are always false, they said that the conquest of Keito by another warlord was successful and that Lord Ryuu doesn't have a wife yet!"

Who are these people? It sounds like they're against Lord Ryuu. Does that mean that I'm in an enemy territory? Now that I thought about it. I don't know where I'm but I'm sleeping here comfortably. I'am not tied or anything and I feel better than before, It feels like I can move now.

We are on our way to the seventh province and I don't know how long I've been unconscious but I know that it's been a long time. So it only means that we have arrived at the seventh province.

I don't know what they are planning so I didn't open my eyes to inform them that I'm awake. I have to eavesdrop to their conversation to know what's going on, whether Lord Ryuu's relatives are enemies or not.

"It's not that their reports are false, it's just that Raiden is unpredictable and fast to turn the tide. It is true that Keito was conquered by another warlord and he did it to march his army to Lord Ryuu's States. That warlord easily conquered it because he's taking the advantage of Lord Ryuu's absence who's personally guarding that area while his other generals were defending the Northern border where a large armies of Kang are expected to appear"