MISTRESS OF FLAME

CHAPTER 25

CHAPTER 25

A CHAOS BROKE inside the throne room of the Kingdom of Treterra when the report of what happened to Castetava reached their ears. Hundreds of soldiers died; the mercenaries were all burned to death by the Mistress of Flame; some escaped but suffered from severe burns; some vials were stolen; and the forest was still burning, and it couldn't be put out.

What made everyone worry and slightly panic was the forest fire. The report said that it felt like it had a mind of its own. The fire was not spreading like a normal fire—it was moving upward, to the noble's hill, like it was the only place it wanted to go.

Reading the reports, everyone believed that it was Mistress of Flame's doing. And they couldn't deny the worry and fear in their hearts. They only heard what the queens of Yther could from their forefathers, but it was enough to put terror in their hearts.

"Did they see her?" a noble asked.

One of the nobles nodded. "I heard the noble's hill sent a sketch, and the Mistress of Flame is carrying a fire stone."

"It'll be distributed soon," the noble beside the two added.

Then one of the prime ministers spoke. "S-Should we surrender the Mistress of Nature—"

"Are you an imbecile?" King Maximilian snapped at the minister who spoke. "The Mistress of Nature is the reason why we're still alive in this barren land! Letting her go is not an option!"

"But the Mistress of Flame—"

"Is weak to moonrite stone. She's maybe powerful, but we have something that could weaken her," one of the prime ministers interrupted. "She's no match for us as long as we have moonrite stones to defend ourselves."

The king nodded. "Yes. Don't be scared and let her come. We will capture her and sell her to the empire. We'll not only earn money, but the empire will also owe us."

One prime minister stepped forward and spoke. "Your Highness, I think it would be best to hide our moonrite stones for now and let the Mistress of Flame enter Ager without a hitch. It would lower her guard, and once she's inside the city, that's when we'll bring out our moonrite stone and capture her."

King Maximilian liked the idea that it made him smile. "Good idea, but she has companions, I believe."

One of the prime ministers snorted. "What can an elf, two hunters, and a demi-human do against our kingdom? With our elite troops, our renowned general, and the finest sorceresses and sorcerers, they are no match for us. They only managed to damage the noble's hill because of the Mistress of Flame's help and their attack was sudden. Without her, they are nothing but insects."

King Maximilian had a triumphant smile as he handed the sketches of the individuals who raided the noble's hill to his aide. "Make a wanted poster out of these sketches on the announcement board, but don't let it leave Ager. It will help us pinpoint their location once they entered the city."

"Yes, Your Highness."

King Maximilian nodded with a smile, eager to capture the Mistress of Flame and take advantage of the empire.

♕♕♕

INSIDE THE CITY of Ager, an old man was silently walking on the side of the street with the help of his cane when a commotion caught his attention. Looking ahead of him, people were talking and whispering to one another as they watched a soldier of the kingdom paste five sketches on the announcement board with the word WANTED on top of them.

It was a copy of the sketches that King Maximilian gave to his aide yesterday, and with the soldiers working extra fast, they were able to copy the sketches sent to them and paste them on the board as ordered.