A/N.: Good day dear readers! It's been a week, I hope that everyone is doing well! For the people who have read the previous version of my story with the same name and the new readers who just discovered my story, welcome!
Once again, I feel really apologetic for re-editing and eventually ending up deleting and replacing the old version.
Thank you very much for taking your time to give a try to my story, especially to the previous readers, I hope that this new version would please you as much as the previous one, and for the new readers, I hope that you'll enjoy it too! Some scenes may be similar and others different, I hope it won't confuse you too much (also the name of the OC changed).
A special thanks to the readers who have the kindness to favor and follow my story even though I've just updated the prologue, also to merendinoemiliano who had reviewed first, thank you!
I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, and please leave your impression in a review! Have a nice reading time! (^^)
Sorry for the lack of originality in the title, I'm a bit tired of trying to find a fitting one every time...
"...?" A lone figure looked up at the stone ceiling of a dark room in slight confusion at the sound of a voice coming from afar, a distant voice from somewhere.
The figure closed the book on their lap and put it aside before standing up and walked out of the room in silence.
They walked and walked and then eventually reached the destination whose surroundings were more bright.
Slowly the figure who left the shadows became enlightened and more visible, and what was revealed was very long pale-colored hair, a small stature and an elaborated dark dress.
What this one was looking at was another figure, however unlike her who was standing on her legs on the ground, the other party was laying on the ground.
Long silver hair spread like a halo, a dirtied blue dress and a slightly crumpled envelope letter firmly grasped in her hand.
—Now let's go back to a bit before this scene happened...
HOLY KNIGHT SAGA,
INTRODUCTION ARC:
THE PRINCESS AND THE "WITCH".
*BANG, BANG, BANG!*
Loud sounds of door banging were heard through the other side of the door of a one room in the royal castle of the Capital City of Liones Kingdom, cries of warning soon followed after them.
"Please open the door!"
"There is nowhere for you to run anymore!"
"Your Majesty!"
Despite the apparent urgency and menacing words used, their manner of speaking was still filled with politeness and respect, hinting that they are speaking with someone of a higher ranking than theirs and that they are still caring for this person.
If it's the case then why are they actually doing something like this…?
There is no doubt that the people from the other side of the door are soldiers or Holy Knights of the Kingdom, yet why are they trying to turn against the royalty who was governing them?
What are the most powerful knights in Britannia, the heroes who protect their kingdoms are now turning against them?
Was there anything they were unsatisfied with to lead to such an outcome?
"...!" From the other side of the door, a young woman who was sitting on the ground, flinched at the banging sounds and cries against the door that were becoming more and more loud through each passing second.
She has long straight silver hair reaching her waist and a left blue eye, her right eye was covered with her bangs making it impossible to see. She wore a long blue dress made from fine material which showed her position as a member of nobility yet a purple hooded cape was draped over her shoulders as if she was trying to hide her appearance. She was no other than Elizabeth Liones, the third princess of Liones Kingdom.
She trembled upon looking at the locked door in front of her, it would be now only a matter of time before this last barrier between the two sides broke.
But then a large hand was put on her head and gently stroked her hair, as if her nervosity was sensed and it was trying to reassure her. Elizabeth looked up at the other person with whom she was in this room.
It was a fairly tall man with long white hair and groomed beard sitting on the single ornate chair in this room. He adorns a typical king's cloak accessorized with fur on the shoulders and hemline and also wears a pair of armlets and a few rings. It was none other than the 11th king of the Liones Kingdom, Bartra Liones, and Elizabeth's father.
Bartra looked down at her gently as he whispered in a soft voice, quiet enough so that the Holy Knights won't hear but loud enough for her to hear: "Elizabeth… You must flee."
"I won't escape alone! Come with me, Father!" Elizabeth pleaded as she grasped the right armrest of the chair her father was sitting on.
The way he stayed here unmoving, still on his chair and only pressed Elizabeth to escape, it seems that he didn't have the intention to accompany her, instead opting for her to escape alone.
And it scared her, not the thought of going somewhere unknown all alone but the thought of what may happen to him if she were to leave him all alone behind. It was obvious that despite the best efforts of their medic, he was becoming more weak and sickly day by day.
"Your father will be alright."
"But…"
"Elizabeth, do you remember the hidden passageway through the walls?"
"..." Elizabeth gave an hesitant silent nod as an answer to his question.
A secret passage through the walls of the castle with an exit through underground that could even lead to outside of the kingdom. A hidden way to the outside that was only known by the two of them whose secrecy was bound by a childish promise to keep quiet about it.
Though she was aware of its existence, she hardly used it so she couldn't affirm it without hesitation. However this seemed to be more plenty than enough for Bartra as he nodded deeply back to her and continued his words.
"Just staying inside that should be enough to hide yourself but even this cannot last forever. Unfortunately I have to make my explanation short so listen to me well, Elizabeth. Heed towards the underground, Elizabeth. Search for her and give her this from me, if it's with her then you'll be safe for the time being and run away from here both of you!"
"F-Father?! But of who are you talking about?!"
"Unfortunately I have no time to give more precision, my child. Here, take it and be sure to not lose it." Bartra took an envelope from his pocket before taking off one of Elizabeth's hands from the armrest and putting the envelope on her palm, then he gently patted her shoulder.
"Now hurry, before the Holy Knights come…"
"...!" Elizabeth's eyes were about to tear up when she heard those words.
She didn't want to leave him behind, she wanted to stay by his side, not only as a form of responsibility for her two other sisters who were currently unavailable but because he is her precious father.
—Still as he said, she couldn't get herself caught, otherwise it would make all their hard work go to waste.
So Elizabeth stood up on her shaky legs, bowed to her father in a hurry (with a certain lack of grace in contrast to what she had learned in her lessons as a royal since time didn't allow it) before running towards the wall on the right side.
After turning the chandelier on the wall, the wall moved horizontally and a dark pathway was silently opened. Though Elizabeth always wondered how such a quick and silent movement was possible for such a stone-like structure, there was no time to dwell into such thoughts.
She quickly entered through the opening, being careful to not get her feets caught in the hem of her dress like she usually does, as precious time would be lost over her usual clumsiness. She wasted no time to close the passage, at least not before locking her eyes with her father's one last time.
His eyes were fixed on her yet even in their current situation, where she was abandoning him, he has nothing but a gentle and fatherly yet a powerful and trusting gaze in his eyes, the one he looked at since she was as old as she could remember.
With that, Elizabeth renewed her determination and the passage closed. Then the sound of an explosion was heard and she held back her breath, aware that the last barrier (door) that protected her father from the Holy Knights fell.
"What do you mean that Princess Elizabeth is nowhere to be found?!"
"We originally thought that she would be together with His Majesty, however when we forced the throne room open His Majesty was alone and there was no one at his side. We even searched through the whole castle!"
"Hurry up and find her! We cannot afford ourselves to lose her, it's an order from the Lord Great Holy Knights!"
Elizabeth was hiding from the other side of the wall where she heard the voices of the Holy Knights that were after her.
'Father, I'm sorry! Please forgive me...!' So she apologized in her mind, as she was now unable to apologize further to her father who pushed her to escape alone while she wanted him to escape together.
However it couldn't be helped, his worsening health and the quick breakthrough of the Holy Knights didn't allow such a thing to happen. So in the end, Elizabeth had no choice but to proceed alone through the hidden passage. There was no worry about her being found here immediately but even so she had to escape as quickly as she could.
'I promise that I will definitely be back with help!' She swore so in her heart and then picked the hems of her long dress before running forward into the dark pathway of the hidden passage as she started to plan her escape.
She hardly thought that any citizen of Liones would be eager to help her because even though they may think the same about the horrible treatment that the Holy Knights are making them go through and force the untrained to become soldiers for a war, they can't oppose them openly due to their fear of them. So in order to search for help, she needed to escape from Liones itself.
She heard that her father had good relations with the king of Camelot however it seems that since his death, a new king took over his role and she didn't even know if he would help her. Wait, her father's acquaintance...?
'...! I remember what Father told me in the past! The Seven Deadly Sins...'
The Seven Deadly Sins, apparently they were the strongest and cruelest chivalric order in the kingdom, formed by seven brutal criminals who carved symbols of seven beasts into their bodies who were acting under the direct orders of the King of Liones.
However 10 years ago, they were accused of murdering the former Great Holy Knight Zaratras and were branded as traitors after plotting to overthrow the kingdom and disintegrating all the Holy Knights launched a general offensive against them.
However even until now, they were still there wanting posters that were going through all Britannia... Could it be that they were actually alive?
Of course the idea of asking help to such criminals scared her, however even after they were framed as wanted criminals, her father always spoke of them with respect and fond remembrance... could it be that the rumors were actually false?
Her elder sister Margaret also seemed to think the same, while her second older sister Veronica was believing those rumors... knowing her if she knew what she was about to do here and now, she would have definitely stopped her.
'But even so... wait, how am I going to find them in the first place?! It's not like I would successfully find them just by wandering around and hiding! Isn't there a way to locate them somehow? But it's not like I could do that alone in the first place...'
Then her hand softly brushed the paper that was held inside. Elizabeth gave it a glance as she was reminded of her father's last advice. And unfortunately there was no other information besides the said person's gender and the fact that she lives somewhere underground.
To say the truth, she wasn't aware of who she should give this letter to or where that person is actually situated underground but her father seems to trust this person, so she should go to her as quickly as possible—
"Waah?!" She yelped in surprise as she suddenly lost her footing and started to fall forward... and before she realized it, Elizabeth tripped and fell face forward, her body rolling a few times against the ground before finally stopping with her face against the ground.
"It hurts...!" She slowly raised up from a lying position to a sitting one and rubbed her red and bruised nose with her hand as she groaned in pain. She then suddenly remembered her situation and covered her mouth with both hands as she silently looked around her, nobody just heard her, right...?
After waiting one minute, and two, she didn't hear any sound approaching her, she sighed in relief and stood up, wincing a bit. Mud and dirt were staining her dress and her knees and elbows were starting to sting with pain from the sudden shock.
And then she realized that she was sweating and panting. Now that she looked around her, she realized that she was no longer in a place she could recognize. She could hardly see anything in this darkness but did she just miss a step when descending the stairs... wait, stairs?
The pathway she was supposed to take, did it lead downward towards stairs again...?
...
'Don't tell me... I got myself lost...?' Elizabeth thought so incredulously as she sweatdropped, seriously depressed at the display of her usual clumsiness that didn't change even when faced at the seriousness of the situation.
Did she end up getting herself into some kind of unknown place? And compared to earlier, she could hardly see any light... and also she could hear the sound of some footsteps upward... wait, upward?
Could it be that she actually ended up underground?
But it didn't seem like the dungeon of the castle, to the view, touch and feeling it seemed like a place she had never seen before. Elizabeth starts to wonder as she puts her hand on the wall, wanting to use it as a support to push herself up, and...
*Click*
"..." She felt her hand sinken deeper on the part of the wall she just pushed, before she could utter any words, the ground where she was stepping one split itself into two different parts, leaving a large hole under her. Elizabeth stayed on the 'invisible' ground with her feets, and...!
"KYAAAAAAAAHHH!" She fell in it at high speed and her consciousness blackened.
"...Mm...?" Elizabeth groaned in her sleep before tiredly opening her eyes before quickly closing her eyes in response to the blinding white light in front of her. After blinking a few times, she managed to adjust her view before realizing that it was a dark ceiling illuminated by faint lamps on the walls.
...Wait, 'ceiling'?
'Wasn't I in the underground just a while ago?' Elizabeth was confused as she tried to recall what happened in the midst of her blurry memories. But then her hand was touching something like a mattress. And then suddenly she was snapped awake out of her daze in panic.
"Don't tell me, I got brought back to the castle?!" Not even noticing that he accidentally voiced her thoughts, she immediately removed the bed cover, stood up on her shaking legs and ran forward, hoping to get a better view of her surroundings.
It was a large room with enough space for numerous beds lined up one next the other on each side of the walls. Elizabeth herself was just a few seconds ago in one of those beds and because it felt empty as she was the only person present in the corner of this large room.
It wasn't her room in the castle at least and it wasn't a room she recognized. From what she remember, there were also no beds in the castle's dungeon... Besides there were nothing but beds here…
"..." Just a tiny bit, Elizabeth felt uneasy. The solitary atmosphere felt a bit gloomy and creepy as many questions went through her mind.
'Where am I? What is this place? Did I manage to escape? Was I taken back?' Though an unsettling feeling was rising inside her chest, Elizabeth tried to forcefully calm herself down by breathing deeply and keeping her panic at bay.
After repeating this action over and again. And then, after her running heartbeat has finally been set in a calm rhythm, she made her mind up on her next goal as pushed the door of the room open and exited it.
'Whenever I'm back at the castle or not, I need to find a way out and seek help.'
Elizabeth has often been accused of a bad sense of direction since her childhood, a fact that she has a hard time denying despite her best retorts.
But this time only she wanted to say that it wasn't her fault, she isn't aware of how long she walked, but she felt that she went from one side to another and that every corridor seems to be the same to each other and she had the feeling that she has been turning in round over and again. It was as if this whole place was a maze and…
"...Huh?"
Now that she finds herself here and thinks about it, Elizabeth is reminded of a rumor and urban legend she often heard in her childhood. One that her sister Veronica also heard and warned her about at her turn.
—You know what Ellie? I've heard that in the underground of the castle, there was a witch that lived in a maze down here! Apparently she would grant infinite knowledge to the one who managed to reach her and succeed in her trial. But if you were to fail then she would eat you up!
It was like those scary stories that one who tells during bedtime, she remembers that the young her got scared of it and was scared to sleep alone for quite a while since then. But if those stories were actually true then…
Even if it's risky and something bad may happen to her if she were to fail, that may be able to tell her the locations of the Sins if she were to succeed! Besides, she couldn't do anything else than that for now. So despite her fears, Elizabeth keep on walking forward.
Her shoes were making a crunching sound as she was walking on dry ground, though she almost tripped on the hem of her dress in the middle of her actions but she managed to catch herself back before she committed another blunder and then approached the nearby stairs before pushing another door open, looking over them, and...
"...Eeeek?!" She couldn't even hold back that frightened shriek that came out from her mouth. Well it wasn't a surprising reaction so nobody could blame her for that. It was an absurd spectacle, and if one were to express it into a single term, it would surely be... "super-humongous-library-room".
It seemed to be a world that was only composed entirely of "bookshelves and books" spread out infinitely. The overall space was shaped as a cylinder, but many layers of staircases and passages were built on the Wall's surfaces, with myriads upon myriads of bookshelves lined up on one side or both.
The distance between the ground, no, the floor where she was currently standing on and the canopy on the other side of the long gallery that stretched out like a multi-story maze. Or rather now she looked carefully, she was close to the ceiling and she was looking down, she couldn't even see the ground from where she was.
Suddenly being overwhelmed by the difference of height from the ground and where she was, Elizabeth felt her legs tremble as she slowly walked backward, avoiding the view that gave her a certain dizziness. She wasn't afraid of heights, one may even say that she liked high places, after all she liked to go on the top of the towers of the castle and admire the magnificent view it gave on the integrity of Liones from here.
But that was a totally different case. Not only was she taken by surprise, having just woken up and wasn't expecting such a scenery at all. This place was probably as tall as one tower of her castle in terms of height and space! She couldn't even begin to estimate the total number of books stowed away in the shelves!
After separating herself in a safe distance where she could no longer see the view below, Elizabeth's knees gave away and she fell on her butt, shaking in fear. If, just what if, she didn't manage to get a hold of herself and kept trembling without moving over there, and that her usual clumsiness were to strike again, and that she would have tripped over the stairs... wouldn't that be instant death?
'W-Well at least, I'm not back in the castle, that's for sure!' Trying to reassure herself from a possible near-death experience, Elizabeth managed to calm herself down by taking a few deep breaths. She would have definitely recognized such an impressive place if it was a part of the castle, so there should be no worry about Holy Knights coming here, right...?
"However this place... could it be the Witch's Maze...?"
This place indeed seemed to be out of reality. However it was definitely not a dream. If it's truly what she thinks it is, then she should start going to search for the witch. By passing by, she noticed that the bed she thought to be laying on earlier was actually a sofa.
She doesn't think she would have the confidence or courage to come down after seeing that mountain of stairs, maybe she would take a look around and see what she can do from here...? Making her mind up, she started to take a look around, in contrast to the many bookshelves below, it seemed that there wasn't much of it here on the ceiling.
However there was something leaning over the fence, it seemed to be like a human figure and this made Elizabeth panic. The figure was sitting on the fence and back against the pillar, if there was one wrong move then they could fall to their deaths!
Temporarily forgetting her own fears, Elizabeth quickly walked over and was about to warn her but then closed her mouth with both hands. If she were to call out to this person too loudly, wouldn't they still fall from surprise? After all, the other party didn't seem to have noticed her, but calling out to them too softly is no good either…
—However, when she walked closer and closer in a careful manner...
"...Wow..." Elizabeth couldn't help but let out a sigh of amazement.
What sat there was actually a beautiful life-sized doll. Long flowing platinum blonde hair that was almost reaching the floor and reflected the light, petite height and thin limbs, smooth-looking white skin that seemed to have never felt the sun, and a deep blue close to purple victorian-style dress with white frills along with a matching set bonnet headband on her head, tied around her chin.
It was a bit unfortunate that she couldn't see her eyes under her bangs though…
Being a princess, Elizabeth has received a lot and all kinds of dolls during her childhood. All of them were extremely cute in their own ways, but they just couldn't compare to the work of art that was in front of her, that seemed to be carefully crafted by a master, probably an expensive gift to someone of extremely high-standing.
It was then that she noticed that on the lap of the doll, there was an opened book which seemed to be of a language Elizabeth couldn't read despite the good quality of education she received as a princess.
'Did someone put it on the doll's lap?' Chuckling to herself at the slight childish texture (because she remembered about how she did the same with her own dolls as a child), Elizabeth intended to carry the doll away from such a dangerous place. After all, it would be a shame for it to be broken. However when she extended her hand...
"...Eh?"
For some reason, mysteriously right in front of her, the doll just moved her hand and turned the page of the book on her lap with her fingers.
Elizabeth froze, unable to move, as the doll slowly raised the face that was casted down earlier and looked at her right into the eyes.
Heterochromia eyes, one was emerald green, the other was sapphire blue, creating an opposition in her perfect symmetrical features, both were shining with the vitality of a living being, and certainly not the reflected light from a glass ball.
She then jumped without hesitation from the fence to the same ground as she stood on. And as the 'doll' opened her small mouth, Elizabeth gulped down her saliva, and...
"For someone who was unconscious not even a few minutes ago, you're sure making a lot of noise, aren't you?"
...There is no need to say that Elizabeth screamed in response (how embarrassing)...
"I-I'm really sorry!"
"It is fine, I don't mind. Though it seems that you can actually be noisier than what I've expected."
"U-Uuuh…"
After showing a very embarrassing side of herself, Elizabeth quickly apologized to the doll-like girl, not a doll but a girl, in front of her for the ruckus she ended up making. Even though the other party didn't seem to mind (there was hardly any change in her facial expression and her voice was steady despite the harsh comment), Elizabeth still continued to apologize while bowing over and again for the next few minutes.
They were now not at the top of the library but at the bottom, so Elizabeth got to enjoy a different point of view than the one she had earlier. Though it was less impressive than an overview of everything from upward, it was still enough to make her feel dizzy and make her legs tremble a bit even though she is now free from the fear of falling down.
Not only the hallways she just went through earlier, but this library itself was worthy of the title of "maze". A maze made up of countless bookshelves, each of them full of books. Endlessly overlapping hexagonal corridors with no end were going through it.
Instead of walls, nothing but thousands upon thousands of the backs of books could be seen. There were no windows or doors in this maze, just endless corridors of bookshelves. In a way, it reminded her of the castle's towers that were made by empiling many stones together, one above the other.
'...Is this girl truly the witch of the rumors?' Being faced with such an impactful literary display, Elizabeth couldn't help but think so, after all the mystical atmosphere that gave this doll-like girl somehow fits this mysterious library, so she wouldn't be surprised if it was actually the case.
"Here you go."
"T-Thank you very much…" Elizabeth thanked the girl, in front of her as she was handed something. It was a plate that carried something like a slightly burnt bowl and inside there was a steaming hot soup-like liquid (since when and from where did she take out such a thing?).
'No, it actually smells like soup but why even put a bowl on the plate? Was it too hot?' Elizabeth couldn't help but be confused by this gesture. But why soup of all things? She wasn't one to complain but in normal times, shouldn't it be—
"Sorry but it's been a few years since I ran out of tea."
"Ah, it's alright, I don't mind."
—It's not like she minded anything about it, but if it ran out then it can't be helped.
'...Huh? But why "since a few years"? Has she never gone outside since then? Or was she prived of tea' Elizabeth couldn't help but wonder about those many possibilities as she listened to her words.
However, she felt hesitation between being reserved while staying in ignorance in consideration of privacy and asking or following her curiosity and asking and intruding with rudeness. In normal times, taking account of her personality, she would immediately choose the former but she was a bit ashamed to admit that she felt interested towards the latter too, leading to a small internal conflict inside her head.
"...Won't you eat?"
"Ah! P-Please excuse me!" Elizabeth took the spoon placed on the plate before scooping a spoonful and…
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...U-Um, if you are staring at me this hard, it'll be a bit hard for me to eat…"
"...? Do my eyes have a link with your stomach?"
"N-No, it's not that. Just that, err…" Elizabeth struggled a bit with her words as she saw that the other party was genuinely confused over what she was trying to convey.
The girl with heterochromia paused for a moment and it may be her imagination but Elizabeth felt like she had seen a "..." mark above the former's head.
After a few seconds of silence, Elizabeth spoke out in an hesitant manner, "Um… It means that it's a bit unsettling for me, and because of that I can't indulge myself into eating…"
And then it turned into a lightbulb then into a "!" mark as the girl's eyes widened slightly as she nodded. "Understood, indeed it's rude to have someone staring at you when you're eating."
"I-I don't have the intention to insinuate that you are…!"
"Don't worry, I was truly the one in the wrong. Then I'll stop watching, feel free to partake without any restraint."
"Thank you—Wait a second! There's no need to go as far as turning your back to me! I don't mind if you face me as long as you don't stare at me so intently while I eat!"
"I see." And then, the girl immediately turned back, or rather faced Elizabeth, but this time she kept her eyes down on the table.
Elizabeth felt a bit guilty that the girl in front of her is doing so much for her sake but also felt that on the other hand, the girl was a bit… How to say… out of ordinary, in a lot of ways. Or could it be that everybody was like that outside of the castle?
'Maybe I am the one who is too sheltered.' Elizabeth pondered slightly as she remembered about how many times she fell under the pranks or lies of her sisters or childhood friends (though harmless since they were just teasing her) and how many times she has been called "gullible".
After blowing the bit of piping hot steam, Elizabeth finally drank the first spoonful of the soup provided by—
"...Oh, by the way. The bowl can also be eaten."
"Eh?!"
"And when you are finished with that, please write your impression on this paper."
"...?!" Elizabeth was suddenly handed a note of paper and a pen as she was asked to now write a report, however this explains why there was a kind of baked smell, which was separated from the soup, coming from the 'bowl'...
(In the end, the 'bowl' tasted like a baked apple yet the 'soup' inside was corn soup… it's a mystery as to why the two combinaison were strangely tasty, so Elizabeth wondered as she wrote her thoughts of it on the paper a few minutes later.)
"I can't believe that there is also a bathroom in this place… "
'And I can't believe that she also even made me write a report about the quality of the bath. I don't understand why she does so but I somehow have the feeling, with this flow, that she would also make me write one about the bed...'
The doll-like girl silently took the towel handed to her, the one that Elizabeth just used to dry her hair after her bath.
After her meal(?) Elizabeth was taken to a place where she could clean herself up, which was much needed as she rolled in the ground from head to toe. She didn't notice it earlier so much that her dress got dirty, so the way she presented herself to her host wasn't really good. Thankfully the other party didn't seem to be bothered but it was still embarrassing.
They were now back at the room where she just woke up and she was wearing some borrowed nightgown(?). Unlike the previous time she wasn't alone, the girl in front of her led her back, and it was impressive how she walked ahead without any hesitation, as if this confusing maze was her garden. It's great that she was here, if Elizabeth was alone she would have surely (without doubt) gotten herself lost once again.
'Or maybe it was obvious for someone who apparently lived here for years? Still, it's very impressive… I must learn from her.' Elizabeth was impressed with the maturity and independence of this girl who seemed to be a few years younger than her, it made her reflect and notice on how spoiled she has been up until now and strive to try better in the future.
Perhaps seeing that Elizabeth got comfortable, the girl in front of her finally spoke again. "...So, now that you've calmed down, filled your stomach and cleaned yourself up…"
"Ah, goodness, how shameless of me, where are my manners? I can't believe that I forgot to give my gratitude. Thank you very much for all your kindness…"
"—I don't mind. But now can you tell me about how you got yourself here?"
"...!" At those words, Elizabeth's smile fell immediately as panic instead took place on her face.
"There have been no visitors since 10 years ago… so I was surprised when one actually managed to find their way here. Even more than the one in question is one of Liones' princesses."
"...?! H-How did you…?!"
"First, the dress and second, the earring." The heterochromia girl held her fingers up each time she listed her answers, "Even dirtied, the high-quality of the dress can be seen, and the earring holds the Liones' royal family's symbol; sun, moon and stars. I doubt that it is something anybody can easily wear. And an additional reason; wherever it's table manners or the way you present yourself, it doesn't seem like something a commoner would do which makes me think you learned it from a court lady or something similar…"
"..."
"Of course if I am wrong feel free to deny it and prove to me otherwise."
"...No, everything you said is true…"
"Oh? Surprisingly, I at least expected you to deny it."
"No. You helped me and deserve to know the truth after all."
Indeed, everything she said was spot on to the point that it made Elizabeth speechless.
Elizabeth felt ashamed about how she got her identity discovered not even before the first day out. But she has no other choice but to admit it. So Elizabeth looked straight into the heterochromia eyes in front of her with her only visible eye as she declared with the most calm voice she could use right now.
"As you have said, I'm one of the princesses of this Kingdom. I am the third princess, Elizabeth."
"...And?" Despite the fact that she just announced her social rank, the doll-like girl wasn't much fazed but instead continued to press Elizabeth into talking further, so with no other choices left...
"And… if possible, I would like you to overlook this matter. Please don't inform anyone that you found me here. Unfortunately I have nothing right now but I will definitely repay this debt later on, so… I beg you, please. Father, everyone, the Kingdom needs it!" Elizabeth bowed her head deeply as she shut her eyes in fear.
If the girl in front of her were to refuse her request, then she would probably encounter no other endings than being dragged back into the castle, despite all the efforts her father made to make her escape, and this was the last thing she could let happen. She could try to escape before that happened but with how she got herself lost earlier, the hope was low.
Still there was no reason for this girl to believe in her words, after all Elizabeth is just a stranger who invaded her home and took advantage of her hospitality with nothing to give her back. Elizabeth could understand if the girl wanted to avoid trouble by refusing her request and calling out the Holy Knights, who despite their rebellion, are still considered as more trustworthy than herself.
But despite how low the chances are, Elizabeth still prayed for a miracle—
"...I stayed this last decade underground and I haven't contacted my most recent talking partner since quite a while, I happen to be quite bored."
"...Eh?"
"So if you want to talk about it, I may be interested in hearing you out."
—For some reason, the answer was the one she expected the last time.
'...This girl... Was she trying to be considerate?'
There was no telling if she would help her or not, but even so Elizabeth felt grateful that someone was willing to lend her an ear despite that, she would be grateful for it to share what she currently feels. She had hardly been able to do so with everything that happened. And so, Elizabeth told her everything.
"And for the Kingdom's sake, you are going on a journey..."
"Yes, however even now there is not a single information about the Sins..."
"Actually there are."
"I see, there are… Wait, there are?!" Elizabeth couldn't help but jump on her feets from the bed she was sitting on to a standing position.
The girl answered her, without missing a beat or being surprised by her outburst. "Well if you're bored for a decade like me, you would have a lot of time to search for interesting information outside."
"W-Well, indeed... But do they really exist after all…?"
Elizabeth personally didn't even know if she could still believe in the legend of their existences. But she had no other choice but to put her hope into that information… Still what if the one about the Seven Deadly Sins was unreal too...?
The girl blinked and tilted her head slightly on the side, "How weird… Didn't you say that you were looking for them?"
"Y-Yes, I am! But… are they truly still alive?" Elizabeth asked, her hands clasped together in front of her as if she was praying, praying that the journey that would start from now on wouldn't be in vain.
"Yes they are."
"...!" Elizabeth held back a gasp and covered her mouth with both her trembling hands as she felt that the corner of her eyes grew hot.
"...Are you going to cry?" The girl in front of her asked, her eyes never moving away from her and only staring at her curiously.
"No…" Elizabeth shook her head slightly, keeping the beads of tears from falling from her eyes as she directed a relieved smile towards the doll-like girl, "Thank you very much! Thanks to you, I know that my journey wouldn't be in vain!"
In answer to her words, the platinum-haired girl gave a faint frown on her formerly expressionless face, "...Have you ever been called 'naïve'? You shouldn't believe the words of someone you just met so easily. Did it never occured to you that I could've been lying?"
Elizabeth blinked as the words of the girl slowly registered in her mind. Now that she thought about it, the thought actually never crossed her mind. Or rather, she was on her guard when she first woke up in this place, but then all that wariness disappeared since she met the girl in front of her. And even if what she insinuated was actually possible…
"No, I don't think you would do such a thing!" Elizabeth declared so with a glowing smile without any trace of suspicion while the girl just stared back at her, dumbfounded (it was hard to know since her expression didn't change that much, but somehow that's the feeling she got from her).
'After all, you speak with such a gentle voice…'
Even if her expression hardly changed, her voice was soft yet clear, sounded mysteriously reassuring to Elizabeth. Though she didn't have any foundations to actually prove the reliability of her words, still for some reason she just feels that the person in front of her can be trusted (If someone of her surroundings was here they would retort that she isn't the type of person who would ever doubt of someone to begin with though).
"..." The heterochromia girl just stared, and stared at her until she gave a heavy sigh before walking away, "...I see… Well you better sleep in early, the best time to leave would be at dawn. I won't let anyone discover your escape here before you're out of the Kingdom."
"...! Thank you very much! Not only are you lending me a place to rest but you are also covering for me! I promise that I will definitely repay this debt!"
"No, someone else already paid for it."
"...Eh?" While Elizabeth blinked in surprise the doll-like girl turned around before taking out a crumpled paper from her sleeve and showed it to Elizabeth.
Elizabeth examined it from afar for a few seconds before realization struck her mind as she let out a "AAAAHHHH!", she immediately closed her mouth with both hands once she realized that those were the "bad manners" she must avoid, and pointed a shaky finger in what the girl with the black dress held between her fingers.
"T-This is…!"
"Indeed, a request of escort from the king of your country aka your father, you held onto it when you fell in here… Or rather, did you forget about it all this time?"
"...Ugh…!" Elizabeth groaned in pain as felt an imaginary arrow with the word "FORGOT" given physical shape by the girl's words mercilessly stabbing her in the heart… How weird, it was supposed to be an imaginary arrow and yet why does it hurt so much…?
Indeed, her father entrusted it to her with the utmost care and instructed her to go find a person living underground to protect her, yet she can't believe she actually forgot about all of this (even if it's because she fell unconscious halfway and a lot of mind-blowing events happened in between though!).
"C-Could it be that you are..."
"Yes. The one who will act as your bodyguard on your journey." The girl pointed at herself with her thumb, her expression stoïc as ever.
Elizabeth immediately stood up from her sitting position on the bed as she protested while shaking her hands in denial, "S-Such a thing…?! B-But I can't trouble you any further than I already have, and it would be too dangerous! You may end up hunted too!"
"Indeed in comparison to the Seven Deadly Sins I'm not that strong but I shouldn't be that weak either. At least it would be better than leaving you alone on the run, besides it's the king's direct request, who am I to refuse it?"
"S-Still…"
"Besides being the sheltered princess you are, how are you planning to try and live out of the castle? You already got yourself lost here before your journey even starts, so if you are left alone you may get yourself lost, starve and die."
*Tchack, tchack, tchack!*
—And more imaginary arrows mercilessly pierced her where it hurt the most!
"And you shouldn't trust appearance too much. Your father chose me because he trusted me right? Of course I can't prove that I am the one your father spoke of, so now the choice is up to you. There's no point in searching for the Sins if you don't get to survive long enough to reach your goal, and Holy Knights wouldn't be the only thing standing in your path."
"Y-You are right about it…"
"So? Your answer is...?"
"…" Before Elizabeth could even voice out her arguments, all of her options had been cut out and she had been forced into some heavy self-reflexion.
She was already aware that it would be a difficult journey, that it would be hard and there would be any easier shortcuts, but even so she already made her mind up. If she couldn't do it, who else would do it in her place?! It was her duty as a member of Liones' royalty, and also she wanted to save her father and people!
'Still I don't want to drag anyone else in this mess!'
The thought of someone getting hurt or unhappy because of her was enough to frighten her to no end, if someone must be hurt then please let it be her alone. She wanted to go on this journey alone, without relying on anybody, without causing trouble for anybody, yet…
'...It seems it won't be possible for me after all…'
She knows it since her childhood, but she is quite a helpless person who can only cling to another person's help to get over her troubles. It hurts to admit it but it isn't a fact that she could deny either. Which is why…
"...I am definitely not strong enough… Please help me." Elizabeth pleaded so as she bowed her head. Denying her status as royalty and bowing to someone she doesn't know. Elizabeth didn't look up, but she could somehow feel the air around the person in front of her soften, and then…
"Good. So now the contract has been signed(?). As I've said earlier, we're leaving at dawn, rest carefully."
Upon hearing those words, Elizabeth looked upward and called out in an almost reflexive manner, "Ah…!"
"...?" The girl in black dress turned to her with a confused look, waiting for her to continue her words, and then Elizabeth felt a bit embarrassed as she tried to find a solution in her thoughts before suddenly remembering something.
"W-What is your name?" Now that she thought about it, she never asked the name of her savior, and once again berated herself for her lack of attention.
The girl in front of her just blinked and then stayed silent. This action worried Elizabeth a bit, did she say something unneeded? Well there are times where people don't want to name themselves, and maybe it was one of those cases, if so she must take back her question and apologize if she accidentally did something hurtful, but…
"...You can call me 'Lill'." After a lasting silence, the girl spoke out, almost in a shy manner.
Elizabeth blinked at the curious name before smiling happily as she said, "Lill-chan, is it? It's a wonderful name!"
"...Thank you… yours isn't bad either."
Elizabeth giggled slightly at the hesitant answer and praise, the way the girl spoke was as if she wasn't used to this kind of conversation.
"Good night, Lill-chan!"
"...Good night... Elizabeth." And with that last night greeting, the girl—Lill, pushed the door open and left through it. The door slowly closes itself, silently once more, Elizabeth noted.
After climbing on the bed, slipping herself into the covers and resting her head on the pillow, Elizabeth stared at the unfamiliar ceiling and room she would use for this single night with a pensive expression on her face, but then the lights suddenly turned off on their own, startling her.
Even though she knows that she should be resting early, she had some trouble falling asleep from all the surprises she encountered and also from the anticipation of tomorrow's trip. Her body was sore and tired from today's exercise yet she still couldn't fall asleep. She tried many ways like shutting her eyes closed and counting the sheeps but it all ended with her rolling on the bed, unable to fall asleep.
'...Maybe it's because it's too different from my room in the castle?' Elizabeth wondered.
Indeed, the bed was more firm than the one she had in the castle and she wasn't used to this yet,
but it probably wasn't the only reason. After all, she only lived in the castle up until now and never left it for such a large amount of time. They say that a change of environment can lead to insomnia, and it seems that she was in that case…
'Am I a kid?' Elizabeth berated herself as felt a small blush of shame crept up on her face and tried to calm herself down by massaging her warm cheeks instead of stressing herself further. It was something she needed to eventually get used to if she was going to travel out of the Kingdom, so better try to start getting used to it now…
Elizabeth stretched her arms in an attempt to soothe her sore limbs but her hand actually touched something on the nearby table. She blinked in confusion and then tried to touch it further before bringing it in front of her.
It wasn't the vase and water cup that Lill left by her bedside before going out… It felt flat and thin and something else was long, kind of round but also a bit cold…
She couldn't make out the identities of the things in the darkness but little by little, her sight got used to it and she could make out vaguely… a similar piece of paper and a pen.
"..."
At that moment, only a single thought went through Elizabeth's mind. '...Eh? Seriously?'
...She did mention it just on a whim, but it seems that she truly has to write a report even about the quality of the bed…
"...Pff!" Elizabeth pressed her hand against her mouth to hold back her laughter, if she makes too much noise, there is a possibility that it would become a bother to Lill but she just couldn't help herself, it was so hilarous!
It was too unexpected… or maybe she should have expected it? Anyway, this action was enough to cut off all the tension she felt earlier. After wiping the tears at the corner of her eyes, she set the paper and pen back onto the bedside table before laying back onto the bed and closed her eyes.
Now that her tension is gone and she has relaxed, her exhaustion truly caught her back up and Elizabeth's heavy eyelids closed slowly and fell asleep pretty easily, in contrast to her earlier struggles.
Lill slowly walked through the hallways devoid of light, despite being completely in the dark, her steps never stopped, as if she could easily find her way into this maze.
In her hands was a crumpled opened letter, after giving its contents another glance, Lill lifted her head upward, in front of her was the ceiling yet the way she looked at it seems like she was trying to see through it.
Her lips opened to say the following words: "...Finally, it started…"
Wherever those words were said in anticipation or worry, only she knows.
