The Lotus Of East Palace
Chapter 6 (Elias)

"Find Xavier. If it's hard to find her, find Princess Anastasia, she knows where Xavier is. If you leave now, you might be able to find Princess Anastasia at the Schere Tower. You need to get Xavier to the Main Palace as soon as possible."

Such was the message from Elle before he was put in a dungeon on charges of murdering King Vlad. So that morning, even though the sun had not fully risen above the grey sky of our country, I was with hundreds of my army of serial both adults and trained and still small, young and unruly running to Schiereiland.

I dare not count the casualties. More precisely, I can't. There were too many fatalities both on the battlefield in the strange mystical forest of rose thorns, as well as along the road to the ruins of the Schere tower. What saddens me most is the death of some wolves in that battle. Those killed were young wolves who had not been fully trained. I know them all. I memorized the names and faces of all of them as well as the reason they joined the Winterthur Wolf Army because I was the one who recruited them and accepted their oath. The fourteen-year-old Adrik joined a year ago because he wanted to bring honor to his family who live in the village. Twelve-year-old Dominik wanted to follow in the footsteps of his late father who had also been a member of the Wolf Army. Seventeen-year-old Ivan joins the Wolf Army in order to have enough money to propose to the girl he loves. Maksim, Sergei, Viktor, Aleksei, Edmon, I remember all of them as my sisters that I should be able to protect. They are all my responsibility.

Not only the wolves, I also have to endure the deaths of people I don't know. A new merchant was about to go to the market for Demyan's breakfast when the merchant passed in front of the little wolf. A comforting woman with a pungent perfume that looks like she's just coming home to eat two hungry wolves. A child, an old grandfather, a mother, young and old, male or female, anyone from Schiereiland who happened to be on the street as we passed by had never seen the sunrise that morning. They're all dead. That's what happened when I finally brought the young, hard-to-control wolves down from Mount Elbrus.

We finally managed to find Xavier. Xavier eventually became King. And our King finally managed to save Elle and my parents from the death penalty. Time, rather. We have not fully survived the beheading. But at the very least, our fate was much better than the dozens, perhaps hundreds of people who died that morning.

Whenever I felt guilty for all those 'unintentional' deaths, whenever I thought of how I could not train the wolves or lead them, father would definitely say,

"It's not your fault. But you'll still feel guilty. You must continue to bear the burden of guilt. That way you don't lose your humanity."

As if his words would be able to bring back the lives he had lost, I nodded and stopped thinking about everything. It was my fault. I am responsible for all of those deaths. I will not dodge. But I can't be forever dissolved in that guilt and do nothing. There are many tasks waiting. And the living must live life. I remembered the motto of our family's life, Cold as ice, sharp as a wolf's fang, unbreakable as a sword. We are not allowed to linger dissolved in grief and sorrow.

I live for my duties. One of my duties is to protect my country and my King. And my twin sister and my family. In short, everyone.

Honey Welsh, the key to finding Seo-Hwa's daughter and preventing a war with Orient, disappears. Elle said the girl took a sabbatical for her mother's memorial service. When I protested and asked why he allowed it, he said,

"You alone are asking that the queen's bodyguards have leave that can be taken at any time!"

Damnit. He's correct. That was my request.

So here I am now, in the Wisteria Palace, in Westeria. In front of the young Queen Eugene, I knelt down on her.

I was not born to kneel to anyone. The Winterthur clan was equivalent to the royal family. Nordhalbinsel queens are mostly from our family. Even though we are the 'most loyal King Dog', we do not kneel to our king. My father never knelt before King Vlad as much as I never did and would never kneel before Xavier. Our self-esteem is too high.

But I was willing to throw away that high self-esteem for the safety of my kingdom and the people who live in it if I had to.

"Baginda Queen, I need your help. Please, let me and my troops enter Westeria and look for someone."

Knee hurts. I am tired after many days of not sleeping because of the problems in my country. But fortunately, my request was eventually granted. Not because of my pleading tone in every word I said, not because I was kneeling to Queen Westeria, but because of Prince Jeffrey, Queen Eugene's husband, Xavier's half-brother, asking the Queen to grant my request.

There are requirements, of course. I may bring an army of wolves into Westeria but we may only wander at night and the Queen will impose a curfew so that no one will roam at night. We also cannot hurt the people of Westeria. For every one of the Westerians who die from our fangs, Queen Eugene will sentence one wolf to death. I assured Queen Eugene that I alone would be put to death if only one Westeria citizen was injured.

So tonight I'm just taking the adult wolves. They can control themselves not to mess up or eat carelessly.

Elle managed to do her craft before her capture that night after the death of King Vlad. Now I know the scent of Princess Lee Seo-Hwa. Like a mixture of lavender and vanilla, also a little aroma? I don't know. It smells sweet and feels familiar. Every human has their own unique and different aroma, although usually people who are home or blood have a similar aroma. If we can't find Princess Seo-Hwa by tracking her scent, at least I'm pretty sure we can find the person she lives with or maybe her relatives.

Remember that! Do not do unnecessary things. We're looking for someone who's gonna help us, so don't let him hurt a finger. Treat him well and don't show your fangs. Don't scare him. Control yourself.

I gave the command before we started wandering around Westeria as the sun started to set and it was dark.

Nightfall. We only have one night to find Princess Seo-Hwa. When the sun rises tomorrow, either we will find Princess Seo-Hwa or we will go home empty-handed. Xavier wouldn't be happy if we failed, but he usually always has a backup plan. I hope so.

We split up to facilitate the search. I can trust them. They've been trained enough, even most of my father's associates. They will definitely not hurt anyone. Hope so. Because otherwise, at sunrise, even if I could avoid beheading in Nordhalbinsel, I would not have been able to avoid what kind of death sentence was in Westeria.

...****************...

The dawn is almost gone. But not yet. We still have an hour before sunrise to find Princess Seo-Hwa. And I think I'll make it. From the smell, I knew we were close.

Me and the five wolves that came with me went to the territory of the Ortiz Clan, the mind reader. We have arrived in Pueblo Azul. Blue Village. But since the sky is still dark and the sun has not yet shone, I am not sure this village is called blue because what, everything looks gray.

I felt that smell close. The scent of Seo-Hwa's daughter. Lavender, vanilla and cakes are delicious as they are made from milk and cheese. Or maybe I'm just really hungry?

General, there's a human. Said Erik, one of the wolves who has served our family since my father was in charge.

I accelerated my run forward. When I was next to Erik, I saw him. A human. Female. I couldn't see his face from this distance. Her long black hair up to her hips peeked out from behind the cloth she used to cover her head. She was walking alone in the middle of the flower collection—I don't know the name of the flower because in Nordhalbinsel there are no flowers other than crystal Tulips.

Didn't Queen Eugene warn all her citizens not to come out before sunrise?

Maybe he didn't hear the warning.

Maybe he heard, but he ignored it.

Don't go near him. We cannot be seen by him. I said.

But, General... The aroma...

I get the point. The aroma... Just as I inhaled even deeper, the wind blew, blowing away the cloth that covered his head until it fell onto his shoulders, and flying its scent at me. The woman, whoever she is, has the exact same scent as Princess Seo-Hwa's scent.

It's insane! The smell is delicious!

I don't know how the others feel, but my serious instincts rise up and almost defeat my wits.

I was just about to give the order to approach the woman slowly so that she would not be surprised and keep an eye on the surroundings, until I saw from the opposite direction, a wolf was running towards the woman. Wolves smaller than me. It's golden cream. The run is very fast.

Demyans!

I quickly ran towards Demyan while constantly warning her to stop running and not to approach the woman. But Demyan's different from the adult wolves I'm driving tonight. He's still hard to control. He's always hungry. And the smell of the woman on the blue hill was indeed tempting.

Demyans! Just stop!

I increased my speed as I climbed up the hill to where the woman was still walking slowly to meet death at the tip of the young wolf's fangs. Why is Demyan here? I don't think I brought any young wolves. He must have infiltrated among the pack of adult wolves. I should have known the boy wouldn't follow my words.

I won't have time to chase him. The distance between them was too close while I was too far away from them. I could only continue to shout out orders to Demyan who didn't seem to be listening.

Until I finally saw her from a distance, there was a man running after her. The man held a sword. I thought he might hurt the woman. Tragically true, surviving a wolf's fang he would instead be killed by the attack of a sword man.

Allegedly wrong. The man ran past the woman. The man ran towards Demyan with a drawn sword.

"Gee!" I heard the woman yelling for the man. What language is that? The orient?

Just as Demyan did not hear me, the man also did not hear the woman and continued to run forward. The run is very fast.

It happened very quickly. By the time I almost got near Demyan, the man's sword had already torn Demyan's body apart. The little wolf fell down with a howling sound that broke my heart. I can feel a very painful death just by hearing it. Blood flooded out staining her fine feathers, splashing the flowers of— which I now know is blue— that surrounds her. His eyes were surprised. But the light in his eyes was gone. The little wolf was dead.

Demyans!

I don't care anymore. I ran over to the vile man who had killed the youngest wolf in my army. My protege. My little sister. My tarry is ready to avenge his death. I hit him until he fell under my four feet. As I growled at him, the look in his empty, hollow eyes trembled in fear. The man was old, visible from the wrinkles around under his eyes, but he was not yet as old as my father. Her hair was black without gray hair. From his eyes, I knew he was an Orient.

I opened my mouth, revealing a row of my fangs that was the most terrifying manifestation of death anyone could imagine. The death that the Orient man will soon meet. A worthy death for a vile murderer like him.

"Get out of my father!" That's a female voice. I'm looking. That woman, who has the scent of Princess Seo-Hwa. Surprisingly, he used Nordhalbinsel language eloquently and I recognized the haughty voice. "Say, move! I'm the one you're looking for. Not him."

I took a few steps back, away from the Orient man. I did it not because of orders from the woman, but because I was too surprised at what I saw. Standing before me, with the sword drawn and eyes as determined as I have ever seen, not Princess Seo-Hwa. The woman, who has the scent of Princess Seo-Hwa, turns out to be Honey Welsh.

I was foolish to be too surprised at his presence. I'm breathless. That was purely my stupidity. When I was still digesting all of this, the man had already stood up and attacked me first. I managed to dodge, but I was less quick. His sword managed to scratch one of my front legs.

There's no point in me fighting back if Honey Welsh is the person I've been looking for all along. If she turns out to be Princess Seo-Hwa, I'd better be nice to her and not hurt her. Xavier wants her awake and safe, with no injuries or threats.

But he's too young. I'm not sure she's reached adulthood. The girl, Honey Welsh, looks very young. According to my data, Seo-Hwa's daughter should have been fifty or at least nearly fifty years old.

I immediately changed my form back to being human. Honey Welsh looked surprised.

"General? Why—“

I raised my hand to stop the barrage of questions that might come out of his mouth. Damnit. It turned out that this hand was the one that had been scratched by his father's sword. I grimaced. "Before you ask any further, I want you to answer my question first. Are you Princess Seo-Hwa of the Orient?"

Honey Welsh did not answer my question immediately. Instead, the Orient man who killed Demyan, the one who seemed to be his father, asked him something in the Orient language. I only understand a few words. There's a chance he's asking who I am.

They talked fluently and quickly in Orient so I couldn't really listen to their conversation. But the atmosphere is tense. The man looked angry. No, not angry. He's worried.

"Appa! Keumanhae!" Honey yells at her father. But her father ignored her and advanced until it was right in front of me.

"You..." He said in a very stiff Nordhalbinsel language. "Dueling. Can you?"

"I'm not going to fight you. I've only got business with your daughter."

"Can't!"

"I'm not going to hurt your daughter. I'll just take him. Need it. Our country needs it."

"I'm not going with you, General." Honey Welsh said. "Why are you looking for me up here?"

"I'm looking for Princess Seo-Hwa."

"You won't be able to find it wherever you go."

"You are so stubborn! Is it hard to help a country that has given you a place to live and a good job? If you keep resisting, I'll make sure you can't go back to Nordhalbinsel and you'll lose your job."

"Whatever you say. You better get out of here."

"I'll go if you're willing to come."

"I'm not Princess Seo-Hwa!"

"Then why do I smell it on you?"

Welsh Honey frowned confusedly. He looked at his father who was still staring straight ahead sharply. Not looking at me, I just realized. He just looked straight ahead. He blind.

He was blind, but managed to kill Demyan and even attack me. The movement is quick and precise. It was so fast that I had trouble avoiding it. His strength was incredible even though he was no longer young. This time I focused my attention on the man. Matching her age with one more person I can look for to find Princess Seo-Hwa. The one who might have saved Princess Seo-Hwa when the family of the previous Emperor was killed by Qin.

If Princess Anastasia of Schiereiland has General Leon protecting her all along, then Princess Seo-Hwa of the Orient has...

"Wu Yi-Xing's? Commander Wu?" I asked the man. "You are the Lightning God who disappeared with Princess Seo-Hwa that night?" I took out Princess Seo-Hwa's hairpin and gave it to the blind man. He fumbled a hairpin that he must have recognized.

But the man didn't answer me. He only looked surprised when I mentioned his real name. And even more surprised to recognize the hairpin I gave him. Surprisingly, Honey Welsh also looked surprised. Maybe he doesn't know who his father really is.

"Then, then..." I said, still half pensive. Meanwhile, the sun began to rise. A reddish tinge adorned the blue sky of Westeria. Showing colors I didn't see before. This hill is full of blue. Especially the blue flowers around us. The blue flower that surrounded the little golden beige-haired wolf was lifeless. I stared at Honey Welsh and her father in turn. "If you're not Seo-Hwa's daughter, this man you call your father is Wu Yi-Xing... You're... You are his son. You are their daughter. You are the son of Commander Wu and Princess Seo-Hwa."

I don't need an answer to confirm my assumptions. The expressions of the two of them were already quite answered. Now things are starting to make sense to me. Why Honey Welsh refused to help me find Princess Seo-Hwa. Why is Seo-Hwa's daughter's scent on her. Why did he avoid me from the beginning.

"Where's your mother?" I asked Honey Welsh. "Where is Princess Seo-Hwa? Say it! My kingdom needs his help."

But I shouldn't need an answer from him. I remember what Elle said. Honey Welsh takes a sabbatical for her mother's memorial service. That means, his mother is dead. Princess Seo-Hwa is dead. Our last hope has long since passed.

...****************...