𝐌𝐘 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐀𝐍𝐓

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐎𝐍𝐄

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    Adrian stood at the foot of the table, conversing quietly with Basile before they both turned their heads at the sound of the small groups' footsteps.

"Everyone," he nodded, gesturing for them to take a seat, which they did. "Know that I have chosen all of you specifically for this mission because I know that you will far surpass any expectations I now hold for you. To begin, we will depart immediately tomorrow at dawn... the King doesn't have that much time."

(Y/N) could tell that he was struggling with the news of his father's potential death, and had to bite her tongue to stop the saddened emotions that threatened to show.

She knew he didn't like to be pitied.

"As for instructions, Basile here will assign you tasks along with gear and what to prepare for the journey," he continued, now stepping to the side to reveal the map of the multiple kingdoms behind him, running his finger along the crisp paper. "We'll be taking the main road until we have to cross into the Gentana kingdom that separates us from Chalar, and by then, we'll be sticking to secluded traveling paths to hide our arrival as much as we can."

A clearing of a throat distracted him from his task, heads turning to who had produced the sound.

A woman who appeared to be in her mid-thirties sat, scars littering her exposed flesh, including her face, with dull grey eyes and pale skin, her even paler lips thinning as she folded her arms over her chest. What surprised (Y/n) was the uniform she wore, knowing it was rare to find women besides those born into royalty in a position of power. The thought still made her glower at her hands.

"Yes, Captain Gen?" The Prince motioned for her to continue, cocking his head as he stared her down, though not threatening in the least, more in a respectful manner that insinuated years of close relations between the two.

"I apologize for interrupting, Your Highness," she  stated in a rough voice, standing up. "However, I'll have to disagree with you on that."

"And why is that?"

"Queen Jannali is not a fool," she practically hissed the name of the monarch of Chalar, the cruel tyrant of a woman not leaving many with a pleasant feeling. "She knows that we will not just sit back and do nothing, and she knows exactly what we might plan."

"How could she know this though?" Basile interrupted. "It's not as if we haven't already rounded up all her little spies and servants."

"She'll have predicted our movements based off of our armies and skill sets," Captain Gen proclaimed without wavering. "She'll also predict that we will move in from the Gentana kingdom, setting up possible barriers or even armies to catch us by surprise and eradicate us. It is not a wise move."

An awkward stifle of silence blanketed the room, making both (Y/N) and Claude look to each other, uncomfortable about the whole situation.

"Um... m-may I say something too?"

The tiny voice that squeaked was almost deafening in the silent room, Sofi shrinking back into her chair as soon as everyone turned to look at her, her crystalline eyes seeming to dilate in fear.

    "What?" Gen snapped, already irritated enough by Basile as is.

    "Um... well, I just wanted to say that the ingredient that we're looking for, Huelda Forla, is actually located on the far eastern side of Chalar..." the girl trailed off, her voice fading away as people looked between each other in uncertainty, almost asking with their eyes why she was even here, an exchange she clearly saw that made her want to sink into the floor.

    "What Miss Broin is saying is that if we continue with His Highness' plan, we'll not only have to travel within the Chalar territory further, but along with Captain Gen's suspicions that Queen Jannali has already set up a barricade, we'll be walking right into a trap," (Y/N) spoke up, irritated that people weren't even giving Sofi, someone who clearly knew what she was talking about, at least to her, the chance to speak.

"(L/N) is right," Claude added, hoping to take the heat off of his friend when Basile glared at them sharply. "If we go around Chalar to the eastern side, it'll decrease the chances of running into any of the Queen's army, if they are present at all."

Everyone then looked to Adrian.

He had been listening intently to everyone as they spoke, nodding along and cursing himself internally for not seeing the obvious flaw in his plan. Though, it had only been thought of mere hours ago.

He couldn't risk his father dying.

Not now.

He didn't think he'd ever be ready.

"I see where my error lies," he announced, albeit reluctantly as a frosty edge bit his tone, not happy to have been wrong. "We'll go along with your plan, Captain Gen, so long as it also does not heed any disadvantage for us." He flicked his eyes towards the woman who nodded in satisfaction, then turning back to everyone else to say, "Now that we've cleared up this misunderstanding, I'll leave you to go over all other necessary information with Basile. All but (L/N). I need to have a personal word with him. That is all. You are dismissed.

As Adrian exited the room, gesturing with his head for (Y/N) to follow him, she glanced to Claude.

It was clear in his eyes.

He was afraid for her.

    Giving Claude a nod to reassure him that she would be fine, she slid her chair back to stand, the wood scratching against the stone creating a rather ungodly screech in her ears. Exiting the room, she found Adrian waiting for her, his expression unreadable in the flickering torch lights, something that made her somewhat apprehensive to whatever he wished to speak with her about.

"You wanted me, my liege?" She questioned, lacing her hands together behind her back.

"I have a job for you, (L/N)," he proclaimed, finally looking up to meet her gaze. "And I believe you're the only one who can do it for me."

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