Queen of Roses

5) Three Devils

"Open the palace gates!" The head guard ordered as Chaeyoung rode furiously towards the entrance, "the princess has been found!"

Without slowing her pace at all, she led Midnight inside the palace just as the iron barricades lifted. Once inside, she could finally exhale a breath of relief that she was not aware she had been holding since leaving the garden. She pulled Midnight to an abrupt halt in front of the stables, causing a whirlwind of dust and sand to momentarily engulf them. Immediately, dozens of guards and court maids surrounded her, all of them holding wooden torches and lanterns. They began to all speak at once, muttering words of relief and concern which simultaneously made Chaeyoung feel guilty and overwhelmed.

"Oh my, what happened?"

"Is that blood, your highness?"

"Your hair is a complete mess!"

"Who did this to you?"

Chaeyoung glanced from one worried face to the next, at a loss for words, and unsure of where to begin explaining the events of the night.

At that moment, Lisa elbowed her way through the large crowd and stood in front of Chaeyoung protectively, "that's quite enough everyone. Thank you for your concern, but the princess needs her rest."

After a couple moments of hesitation, the crowd reluctantly dispersed to leave Lisa and Chaeyoung alone in front of the stable.

Lisa turned towards her sharply, her long auburn braid almost whipping Chaeyoung in the face, "where have you been? We have been looking everywhere. We were about to begin a full-force search party!"

"I'm sorry, Lis," Chaeyoung replied with a sheepish smile before pulling her stiff body into a brief hug.

"Your highness!" Lisa exclaimed, immediately pushing her away and glancing around cautiously, "I am your servant, it is inappropriate for you to be so affectionate-"

"That's quite enough," Chaeyoung interrupted, pulling Lisa back into her embrace, "I've known you since you were a baby. And, I was almost assassinated today, so I could really use some comfort."

Lisa's mother was the head court maid of the late queen, so Lisa was naturally raised in the palace with the intention of following in her mother's line of work. Chaeyoung and Lisa had grown alongside each other and formed an unbreakable bond before they could even speak in full sentences. However, the politics within Goryeo forced Lisa to detach herself from Chaeyoung at times, forming an unnecessary boundary that irked Chaeyoung to the core.

"Assassinated?!" Lisa screeched, pulling back to stare at her with wide, shocked eyes, "who would dare to commit such treason?"

"I'm not sure. I pulled back their face masks but couldn't recognize any of them."

"Wait, did you manage to defeat them all by yourself?" Lisa asked, her eyes even wider than they were before.

Chaeyoung laughed, looping her arm through Lisa's and beginning to walk towards her bedchamber, "I wish I could say yes, but I had some unexpected assistance. One of the new soldiers happened to be in the area at the time and came to my rescue."

"Oooh, a soldier?" Lisa turned to give her a mischievous grin, "please tell me more."

Chaeyoung avoided her gaze and shrugged, "there's not much to tell."

She suddenly wished her room was closer, so she could run inside and avoid this topic. But, Lisa remained adamant.

"Well for starters, was he handsome?"