Fake Princess
CCCLI Chapter
Arata stopped his footsteps in front of me with one hand raised as if asking me not to step forward. I followed his eyes fixed toward an open door that was filled with broken glass with splashes of blood following.
"Retreat, Hime-sama," he whispered softly as a black shadow moved out from the shattered glass door.
"Haru nii-chan," I said as the black shadow stepped forward.
"You've arrived, Sa-chan," he said leisurely with a head in his hand. "Whose head is that?" I asked as he walked closer followed by a trail of blood coming out of the man's head in his grasp.
"Chief Captain of the Tao Kingdom. I lost track of their King because of the rubbish he seemed to be," Haruki said as he threw the head he held firmly on the floor.
"Where is Izumi? Did you see him?" He asked back, Haruki put his palm to the back of his neck and lifted his head slightly up.
"Izu nii-chan said if she wanted to find the Prince who was hiding," I replied. "Is that so? I hope he does it really fast."
"Your shoulders? Are you hurt?" He grabbed my arm, long at the sight of my shoulder. "Just hit by an arrow" I said, glancing at my shoulder.
Haruki turned around without saying any words to me. He stepped his feet near a bed, he exposed the white cloth on the bed with one hand and cut the cloth using a spear that he carried.
Haruki turned back to walk with a slightly reddened piece of white cloth in his left hand. "Hold my spear!" His orders were on Arata as he stopped his steps before me.
"Thank you for a little bit of your hand" Haruki said again stepping closer and closer, I raised my hand following his orders. Haruki wrapped the cloth earlier by slowly bandaging the wound that was on my shoulder.
"How are Luana and Sasithorn?" I asked as Haruki moved both of his hands to tie the white cloth on my body. "I asked them to hide in one of the houses, they would be safe. Is the bond too tight?" He asked a little glance at me.
"The words are fitting," I said, "is that so? Then follow me. We have to finish this as soon as possible" Haruki said, regaining his spear in Arata's hands, I thrust both of my legs in the footsteps that had gone before us.
Haruki continued to step forward without saying a word, "Haru nii-chan, wouldn't we rather split up?" I asked, Haruki remained unmoved, just his footsteps getting faster.
"There is no one else in the Palace, everything in this Palace is dead. We just have to look for them outside" Haruki said without turning his head.
"Everybody dead?" I asked with a slight glance around, we went back past the scattered corpses that I had seen before.
My footsteps moved faster down the stairs, Haruki paused for a moment then turned to the right and left before he resumed his steps. "Master!" A male scream was heard, I bowed my head following the direction the voice appeared.
"You guys are so slow!" Haruki shouted as Gritav and his entourage moved their horses closer to us.
"I'm sorry Mr, but ... When we were about to come here, we found something suspicious" Gritav said, glancing slightly at Eneas riding behind him.
"Nii-san, we found a horde that was sneaking out from inside the gate of this Palace. So we decided to kill everyone in the mob" said Aeneas, who got off on his horse and stepped with a black cloth in his hand.
"When this man was killed, some of the men who were still alive were hysterical and shouted, Your Majesty," said Eneas again, one hand holds the bottom of the package while the other hand opens the bond slowly in the package.
"Did nii-san know her?" Aeneas continued back, lifting the head of a young man wrapped in black cloth earlier towards Haruki.
"Average!" Shouted Haruki, Arata advanced forward a few steps closer to him. "He, the Crown Prince as well as the only Prince of the Tao Kingdom," Arata looked at Haruki as he finished observing the head that was in Eneas' hands.
"Are you sure?"
"Very sure, Your Majesty," Arata replied back to her. "alright. Gritav, order your men to hang their heads where everyone can see" Haruki said, turning to him.
"According to your orders, sir," he said slightly bowing his body from the horse he was riding.
"What are you guys doing there? Is everything finished?!"
Izumi's shout shifted our eyes, "you're so slow Izumi," Haruki said, looking back at her.
"Close your mouth! I spent an awful lot of time just looking for this old man," said Izumi slightly up, looking at his hand that had been clutching the collar of a man's clothes, the collar of the man's clothes was pulled until the man's body was dragged beside him.
"Who is he?" Haruki asked as Izumi lifted up and threw the male body in front of Haruki. "Lux says, if this man is the King of Tao," Izumi answered Haruki's question with her index finger raised to the front of her face.
"Did he die?" Haruki asked back, Haruki raised next to his foot kicking the little face of the middle-aged man. "I just knocked him out, because I thought you might need it" Izumi said back to him.
"You're just wasting Izumi's time" Haruki said, he slightly retreated his footsteps backwards. With the spear he held up using both hands, Haruki's spear swung fiercely slashing the unconscious man's neck until his head slipped from his neck.
"Gritav, take this man's head as well, carry it and hang this head along with the head" Haruki said, releasing the grip of his hand earlier on his spear, "with this, he said, The capital of the Tao Kingdom, officially falls in our hands," Haruki continued, he turned around and stepped back up the stairs to the Palace.
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I looked at Cia who was fast asleep on the bed, her face pale as Arata's men delivered her back to me. I walked and laid down beside her, today it really felt so tiring.
"Sachi," Lux's voice suddenly rang out, so my body sat staring at her as she flew closer.
"You're doing very well Lux," I said smilingly looking at him, "I'm just sprinkling poison in the water sources here at your command," he said fly and then sit on one of the pillows.
"The bed in the palace, is indeed the best bed," said Lux slightly raised his head. "Sachi," he said, I thrust my head slightly glancing at him who had been looking at me.
"I didn't go to war, so explain to me what you're doing" he said slightly yawning and then looking back at me.
"After I ordered you to poison the water that was here, I ordered Arata to have his men steal and hide the food supply here" he said, come along I lean my body on the head of the bed.
"Losing the food and water supply in a besieged city will leave those inside desperate."
"Because that's why chaos happens?" Lux asked, "that's why the mess happened" I repeated.
"Because of that, too, I asked my men to burn the horse meat until the smell spread, I did it solely for their bait," I said, raising both hands rubbing my eyes.
"I also asked Arata's men to build a secret passageway like an underground tunnel for Haruki, Izumi, Sanjiv and some other troops to sneak into the Capital while the rest as a diversion for the enemies. Because if it's done, I can save time for assault. And also, a big advantage for us if Arata puts some of his men as Knights in the Palace," I said back to him.
"You're totally unpredictable to Sachi," Lux said in a soft voice.
"Me, just make use of everything that's available. I, can't do it if Haru nii-chan, or Arata isn't on our side, and also the great help you give really helps me Lux," I smiled back at him.
"I, do nothing," he said leaned back without looking at me, "then, how can you explain about some Knights lying on the doorstep of the Palace?" My friend smiled back at him.
"You realize that?" Asked what I replied with a nod of my head, "when I found out you guys had started the assault, I burned the potion I had made earlier onto the torches that were along the hall of the Palace. The smoke from the potion, making the creatures that inhale it feel what you call a hallucination," Lux said slightly stalled, "so, they're attacking each other?" I asked who nodded his head.
"They attacked each other before Haruki and Izumi came, because that's all I can do to help you," he said, "lucky it all ended very well," connect Lux with a slight sigh.
"It's not over, Lux. This has just begun, the region under Taoist rule will hear the news of the fall of their Capital. Our task now is how to defend this fortress so as not to fall into their hands. If they attack at the same time, all of us are gone" I said with a slight look up, I raised my arm to cover my eyes before sighing strongly.