The Princess and The Bandit

TWENTY EIGHT

* * *

"I . . . I am so sorry, Lucy. I never meant to be the cause of this,"

The elf turned to him, eyes bleary from tears.

"I know," she replies, "And I will not risk any more deaths of my people for you,"

Right then and there, Austin simply cannot argue. He completely understood what those words imply.

Surrounded by the lifeless remains of her fellow elves who went to the commander's rescue, Lucy is now essentially the leader of her group of nomadic elves. She has now inherited her father's position as chief, the responsibility of looking after her people is now hers.

So, if Lucy decides not to help him find the missing princess after this sudden tragic loss, it is not his place to argue otherwise. He couldn't even bring himself to ask where she has been. With his guilt, he cannot bring himself to impose anything on Lucy and her fellow elves anymore.

"I understand," was all commander Austin can say.

"But my father has put his faith on you," Lucy says as she moves away from Austin, "To find the princess of Arcadia, to bring to justice the murderers who killed the emperor and his wife, to do your sworn duty to protect the empire. All I want is to lead a peaceful and carefree life for my kin and for myself, but with the looming threat in the peaceful ways of Arcadia, I doubt if we can ever have that. I know my father was right, but I also know what is at risk right now,"

"Lucy . . . You are under no obligation to help me. And I am grateful to you and your father for the past few days that I have spent with you, but you are grieving. I can't let -"

"I will help you find the princess. And when I say I, meaning it's only me who's going with you to Clifden. My people will continue travelling, following the path the constellations tell them to. None of them will go through this . . . "

She looked around the death that's surrounding them, trying to stifle the sob that's pushing itself out of her at the sight of her father, " . . . this much painful loss,"

"Lucy . . ."

The commander doesn't know how to react. He's well aware that the elf is very emotional right now. Her deciding to leave her people to continue their ways of life without her is a result of the tragic loss of her father. He tries to dissuade her but she cut him off.

"Don't bother trying to stop me, commander. I have made up my mind . . . I'll be going with you to Clifden to gather allies in search and support of princess Lauren,"

Lucy turns away from him and starts gathering the fallen weapons of the fallen elves. Then, she promptly proceeds to dig one massive grave.

Still nauseous and also grieving, Austin opted to not push the issue for now. Instead, he moved to help Lucy bury the dead. They both began working together in solemn silence, one is unsure of everything while the other is very determined . . .

* * *

As Ally and Simona spent their time braiding each other's hair five different ways already, has exchanged more insults than they could ever count, as they wait for the others in the bustling coastal town of Reiham Port, Normani and Dinah overestimates their flight and reaches the northernmost Arcadian kingdom of Oakridge.

Unknowingly, of course, since neither reached this far north.

It is said that the mountainous regions of Oakridge Kingdom was the location where the Arcadian tree of life gave birth to the hero who built the greatest empire in the world. The hero who saved many lives, many creatures other than humans, from centuries of lawlessness and anarchy across and beyond the regions that took up a large part in the world map.