MISTRESS OF FLAME

CHAPTER 24

CHAPTER 24

HAKKEN IMMEDIATELY noticed that there was something wrong with his lady before he even heard Cira's voice, shouting at him to get his lady to safety. Just hearing the desperation in Cira's voice, Hakken knew it was an urgent order that his body moved on its own.

"Get her out of there!"

Hakken didn't waste any time. He picked up his lady and carried her out of the walls surrounding the noble's hill, into the dark forest below the hill. He ran as fat as he could that the soldiers lost sight of them.

Knowing that he couldn't leave his lady just anywhere, Hakken picked a large tree he could climb and let his lady sit on its large tree branch, fifteen feet high from the ground.

Sollel still felt weak even after putting a safe distance from the moonrite, but her strength was slowly coming back. Even though she was recovering quickly, however, she was angry at the thought that she couldn't enter the hill and save the people she cared about.

"Are you okay, my lady?" Hakken asked, worried. "Should we go back now?"

Sollel was ashamed to shake her head. She was the one eager to fight and save Grath, but here she was, weak and useless. She might be free, but right now, she felt like she was back to her prison, caged and trapped again, too weak to save herself and the others.

"Hakken, go back. You're more needed there than I." They heard Cira's voice before she landed on the same tree branch Sollel was sitting on. "I will take care of Her Highness."

Hakken held Sollel's hand and squeezed it before he jumped down from the tree and went back running for the noble's hill, his face contorting in rage and bloodlust.

Back in the tree, Cira sat in front of Sollel and looked down. "I'm sorry, Your Highness. It's my fault. I can't still find a stone that could negate the moonrite's effect on you."

"It's not your fault." Sollel took a deep breath while waiting to fully recover. "Go. I can't fight. Please save Grath for me, Cira."

"Your Highness—"

"I'll be fine here."

Cira clenched her fist, seeing Queen Sollel struggling because of those good-for-nothing humans. "I will go back, but not to fight. I will look for that damn stone and break it."

Even though she was feeling bad, Sollel couldn't help smiling at Cira, amused by her words. "Cira, even if you break the stone into pieces, its power to weaken me will never change."

"Then I'll seal it in my pouch," said Cira, gritting her teeth. "Just where the heck are they getting that stone?!"

"I have no idea." Sollel sighed and leaned on the tree trunk. "We know that we are weak to moonrite stones, but it's a rare stone, almost nonexistent, so we didn't mind. After being imprisoned—and even now—I still don't know where they get so many moonrite stones. I don't even know where humans learned about our weakness. It happened so suddenly."

Cira closed her eyes to calm herself. "I'm going, Your Highness. I have to find it and seal that stone so you could raze hell and burn those good-for-nothing nobles on the hill."

Sollel smiled at Cira and watched her jump from tree to tree to go back to the hill.

Alone, Sollel sighed and clenched her fist. She felt so useless sitting there, hiding while everyone was fighting to save Grath. I can't even save and protect the people I blessed. A queen who couldn't save her people was not a queen at all.

♕♕♕

OBSERVING THE noble's hill from a hidden place, Cira saw how vicious Hakken was in battle. He was fiercer and more merciless than their other battles. Was it because Queen Sollel was hurt? Cira thought, pressing her lips together as she watched Hakken mercilessly slaughtering the soldiers who dared to block his way.