"You!" Matilda snarled, despite herself. She wondered how she had ended up captured in the first place, but now, the answer was obvious. The grin of the woman before her seemed seductive and warm, but in reality, it was sadistic and cruel.

"I did warn you. If you did not retrieve the Staff of Destruction as promised, you would be used in, other ways," the woman laughed, seemingly uncaring. The thief known as Fouquet ground her teeth. Sneaking past all the guards in this place would have been a challenge, even for her. So how had she managed to slip by so easily?

This had to have been part of their plan. The Staff of Destruction was under too many seals, under far too much protection for an attempt to steal it to be anything other than a failure. She made an effort, Matilda really did, but it was going to be outright impossible. Was it that they didn't understand that? Or was it that they didn't care about how impossible or not it was?

Matilda scowled. She wouldn't be surprised by that. She wasn't serving Reconquestia willingly. If they simply had a gun to her head, she would have slipped away by now. The world was big, and there were plenty of places to hide. Hell, she might even give information that she had to the Queen. It might not do her a lot of good, but it was better than nothing.

But no. Reconquestia, or at least, those behind the movement, had hostages. And there wasn't anything she could do about it.

But she didn't think they would be this stupid! What good was a master thief while in prison? None!

"Don't make a face like that," the woman smiled, an icey grin that chilled Fouquet to the bone. Could she risk calling the guards? Should she? Would they even hear her? "While I do enjoy indulging my Master's cruelty, they're much smarter than most people assume they are. You of all people should know that."

Matilda continued to grind her teeth. She wanted nothing more than to punch that woman in her smug face. It wouldn't do her any good, as she didn't have her wand, and there was no telling how many magical artifacts were hidden beneath the woman's robes.

"Sure, you've shown that you can get to me, but that's not doing a whole lot," Matilda tried to fire back at the woman. "What good is a thief of my caliber in a cage? There isn't a whole lot to steal in a prison, but I'm assuming you know that, right?"

The worst part was the woman's grin only grew wider. Why? She was useless in here. There was no reason to put her in prison. Unless.

"There we go," the woman's voice cut through her thoughts like a knife, as she faintly clapped. "I knew you'd figure it out eventually. If the Staff of Destruction is as impossible to steal, as you claim, then we don't have much need for a master thief, now do we? All we need you for is one, little distraction."

The woman raised her arm, revealing a ring on her fingers as a light began to illuminate from behind her hood. Fouquet's eyes widened.

"Guards! Guards! There is an!"

There was a bright flash of light, Fouquet's words dying on her lips. Sheffield smiled.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

The day of festivities had arrived. And I, for one, was not prepared. I had no idea that so many people would be here. There were so many people, and every single one of them was extremely important. At least, they thought so. However, as one of the junior maids, I was kept away from the main gala. My job was more focused on cleaning other areas of the palace, as well as helping with cooking, and washing dishes.

Not exactly glorious jobs, but they were needed so I didn't have much to complain about. Frankly, it was better for me anyway. Being around that many people, that many strangers, would have been completely exhausting for me, and while I probably could keep it up for the entire night, there was no real reason to push my luck on such matters.

I did manage to catch a glimpse at a few of the VIP's. Joseph, the King of Gallia, didn't seem to live up to his whispered reputation of being a 'Mad King'. At least, the man looked completely sane. Maybe it was because I wasn't aware of any of the political background surrounding things. He could be pushing for commoners to have more rights, an idea that sadly, many nobles would find truly insane. Still, the blue hair was strange. Then again, Henrietta's family had purple hair, and Louise had pink, so that was only noteworthy by my standards.

But everything felt, normal. Mundane. Sure, there was a large party going on, but at the end of the day, that almost felt like usual.

Frankly, I don't think anyone saw what was coming. The rumbling nearly took me clean off my feet, as if there was an earthquake. Plates, pots, and pans fell everywhere. Several of the other girls around me tumbled over, unable to handle the sudden shaking while carrying plates full of food.

What the hell was that? Sure, I hadn't been here long, but Tristian didn't seem like earthquake country. Then came a bell, a loud gonging sound that managed to pierce through the walls. Was that, some sort of alarm? Then came a second quake, one less powerful, but still concerning. Could this be natural?

I didn't think so. I never really had to deal with earthquakes, so I didn't have any first-hand experience. But the panicked screaming from some of the girls told me that clearly, this was not a regular occurrence. And in a world with magic?

That left very few other options as to what exactly was causing this. It did leave other questions, however. Like why, or frankly, how. Why was some mage setting off earthquakes, and how was one of that caliber allowed to even get that close in the first place?

Or, was I missing pieces of the picture here?

What was clear was that an abnormal event was ongoing, one that proved to be a possible threat to not just myself, but several others. Including, well, the Princess, and the rest of her family. I had no idea what I could do on that front. If it came to fighting a mage, it was far from impossible. Agnes made that clear, as did my own previous experience. Even winning outright was possible, though that required several things to go my way. An Overconfident or an inexperienced mage would likely be my limit right now though, but it wasn't like both was an impossibility.

Though in this case, it likely wouldn't be. If one was capable of whatever this was, then they were likely powering, experienced, and worst of all, competent. Or simply put, well beyond my weight class that it wasn't even funny.

Of course, there were likely a whole lot of mages in the palace right now, that while not exactly being on that power level, were probably pretty damn close. Maybe at that level, if Karen of the Heavy Wind was in attendance. Which I wasn't sure about, either. I didn't exactly have access to a guest list.

But with the panic in the kitchen, with numerous maids running about. It was chaos, but an understandable chaos. Even if I couldn't do a whole lot against such an opponent, there had to be other things going on beyond just fighting whatever it was that was causing the earthquake. Who knows what else was happening? Because if the shaking was bad here, then it had to be worse elsewhere.

And if it was worse elsewhere, then there were all sorts of knock-on effects that this would have. Hell, they might not even be targeting the Gala itself. There was Fouquet, who was put in the Royal Jail just last week. Someone like that had to have powerful allies. A thief of her caliber would be quite the asset, and one wouldn't likely want to lose.

And if breaking Fouquet out resulted in other prisoners escaping? Then all that created was a purpose-built distraction for everyone else. They'd have to round up all the escapees, which were likely to be both violent and equally capable. It would take time, time that would allow Fouquet and whoever was breaking her out to make a getaway.

Sure, I couldn't prevent that, not by a long shot. And while most of the guards would ideally have most arrested short order, that was by no means a guarantee. The palace itself should be a place anyone would be reluctant to assault, but that was no guarantee either. Someone could be reckless enough to try and attack this place as some form of vengeance. And while Agnes was present, and more than capable of holding her own against such, ruffians, without assistance, that doesn't exactly mean she should have to deal with such on her own.

Stepping out into the hallway proved to be full of just as much chaos, the ringing of the bell even louder than it was before. Panic was in the halls, as I made my way through the crowd of people. Some of them only stared out the window, gawking at something I didn't see.

I took the time to spare a glance at the distance, a building was burning, flames illuminating the evening sky. And against the backdrop of the flames, something moved. It looked as if the walls were, arranging themselves, taking on a new form. Something towering and massive, almost like a monster.

I picked up the pace, making my way towards where I knew the Gala was, meeting stiffer and stiffer resistance as I went. Out of the corner of my eye, I managed to catch, something streaking through the sky. There was a crack of lightning, striking the incoming projectile with destructive force, splintering it apart, but parts rained down, still, respectable slabs that crashed through wall and ceiling alike. More screams, more panic, and I had to push through the crowd more and more. It took everything I had to avoid being trampled, to be washed away by the tide of people pushing against me.

By the time I made it into the Gala hall proper, it was somehow even worse. A telling statement, given how the majority of the people were mages, which in theory, should have been more than capable of putting up some degree of self-defense, but they were too busy panicking to do that. There were a few points of sanity in the chaos. King Joseph was thankfully one of them, doing his best to control his delegation and guards. As was the Queen herself, though she was less skilled than Joseph was.

But the picture still wasn't pretty by any means, as another quake nearly knocked me off my feet. I dared to look through the windows again and sorely wished I hadn't. The fires continued to rage, but it looked like whatever that thing was had begun to come closer and closer, like an unstoppable giant.

Because that wasn't concerning, that wasn't concerning at all! What even was that thing? Could it be stopped? Did someone manage to piss off some sort of Kiju or something? Yeah, I needed to figure out how magic worked if that was the type of stuff a powerful mage could produce.

Of course, there had to be powerful mages on guard of our own. Wardes being an example I knew about. Of course, I could imagine even he would have a hard time bringing something like that down.

However, my job was a different one. I needed to find Agnes and Princess Henrietta, and at least help getting her to a safe location. Yes, the Princess was skilled when it came to fighting, but this thing was not something that could be fought with just simple swords or guns. Getting her and her sister Minnette out of harm's way would be a high priority, regardless. But I couldn't see them. Of course, Agnes had probably been on the move since the first sign of trouble, no orders needed.

As I looked, a slip of purple caught my eye, going down one of the many hallways. Lacking any other options, I weaved my way through the crowd, coming to a long hallway. My eyes gleamed, spotting Henrietta as she moved with her sister down the hallway, with a group of guards to her front, Agnes leading the way. I moved to join them as there was a loud cracking noise. The ceiling came apart, rubble and rocks falling everywhere. I managed to close the distance, pulling back on Henrietta and Minette, rocks nearly falling on where they just stood.

"Aimee!" I heard Henrietta gasp in surprise, while Minette seemed shocked as well.

"Apologies, Princesses. Are you unharmed?" I bowed, trying to keep an air of respect. It was better the pain of a harsh tug upon one's arm than it was rock or mortar to one's head, but being nice would not hurt me here.

"No, I think we're fine, thank you," Henrietta turned toward the mound of rubble, and I knew exactly why. Not only were several guards trapped, provided they hadn't been killed, the same could be said for Agnes herself. "Agnes, are you okay?"

"I'm alright, Princess," her voice rang back from the other side, somewhat distorted by the rocks. Though there was a twinge of pain in her voice, at the very least, she was alive and conscious. "Aimee, if I heard your voice, then you need to get Princess Henrietta and Crown Princess Minette to safety, understand?"

"Yes Ma'am," I did my best to ignore Henrietta's snicker. "And where exactly would that be?"

"There should be a safe room in the lower levels, but given the situation, it might be for the best if you just evacuate the Palace for the time being," I nodded. I could understand an unwillingness to be indoors during the present situation, as both avoided death by a hair's breadth. But taking them out into the open had its own risks.

However, I trusted Agnes and her judgment. If she thought it was a better idea to break into the open, then there was a reason for it, even if I didn't know what that reason was.

"Please, follow me, Princesses," I bowed. "I will do everything in my power to get you to safety."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

The halls had begun to thin out in terms of people, but there was a problem. With several parts of the ceiling caving in, the path I had to take to get the two out was now muddled. Almost like a winding snake, and I didn't like it. Not one bit.

Then I felt it as I turned the corner, a sudden pressure slamming into my chest, sending me sprawling. My shout of pain was breathless, the wind being knocked clean out of my lungs. I hissed, trying to force myself up, my hand already going towards my pocket, despite the pain.

"Well, well, well," a woman's voice came from where I had been hit from, just as Henrietta rounded the corner. To her credit, Henrietta immediately put herself between this attacker and her sister. The speaker had long, silky black hair, and her skin was pale, almost unnaturally so. "I didn't think I'd be so fortunate to run into Tristian's Princess and crown heir."

Something about her voice sounded twisted, almost sick. My fingers still felt for the brass knuckles in my pocket.

"Stay away from her!" Henrietta snapped, even though she didn't have a weapon to defend herself. The woman's laugh sent a chill up my spine.

"I'd do no such thing," her grin was a twisted thing, as she raised a ring on her hand. "You on the other hand? I'd never thought I'd get an opportunity to make the one who made my Master suffer pay. I'd imagine even a Void mage would have a hard time rallying the country if you killed."

She didn't get further, as my fingers slipped into the brass knuckle in my pocket. My pain became dulled, vigor flooding into my veins like a raging river. In one moment I accelerated, one hand going toward the ring on her finger, while the brass knuckle smashed into the side of the woman's ribs, knocking her back with a crunch.

"Go! I'll hold her off!" I shouted. Henrietta looked as if she were in a daze for a moment, before she shook her head, grabbing hold of Minette's arm, and taking off.

"Stay safe!" She shouted, back, and I could tell it wasn't a request, but an order. I kept my eyes on the woman, who was already standing back up, as I fished the second knuckle out, letting the ring I stole slip into my pocket.

"Most impressive, Gandalfr," the woman said, almost as if her body hadn't produced a sound that signified the breaking of bones. She raised her hand once again. "I suppose, it will be your turn to kill the crown princess instead!"

What? Seriously? That was her plan? I was very thankful I took that ring, then.

I closed the distance, throwing a punch towards the woman's head, but she dodged, a slight scowl on her face. Still, the name tickled the back of my mind. Gandalfr. It certainly wasn't my name, but it was being applied to me. Some type of title, maybe?

"Look lady, just surrender already," I scowled. Magical mind control rings were completely new to me as is. I had no idea what other tricks she had up her sleeve. If I could get her to back down, then I could just take anything that allowed her to cast spells, and find somewhere to tie her up. Instead, the woman just laughed, a dark sick sound, a noise that could only be created by someone who was insane.

"You think you stand a chance against me, young Gandalfr?" Her grin was madness. "I am Lifdrasir and Miodaitnir! You are merely his left hand, while I am the Heart and Mind of God!"