"Your Majesty, the High King's army is here," her commander-in-chief Marcus spoke, bringing her back to reality.

"What do they want?" she muttered thoughtfully, looking out the window, her gaze fixed on the valley that stretched along the entire kingdom.

"They say they came on the orders of General Bogdanov."

The mention of his name made her relive the events of a few nights ago. She heard the screams of her friends and acquaintances, the unsuccessful escape of many, as well as blood gushing in all directions. And that light... The light that blinded everyone present like a shield, and scared the Etiorians to the bone; causing them to retreat instantly. She remembers rushing towards her unconscious daughter, the daughter from whose direction the light was coming. She was unconsciously shaking her head in disbelief.

"Let them in," Ines replied coldly, holding back the tears that were ready to escape at any moment from her frightened eyes.

She approached her throne with a hesitant step, glancing wistfully at the throne where her husband was no longer. It was still hard for her to do all this alone, without his hand and warm eyes by her side. However, knowing the cost of everything, she composed herself as best she could – putting on the famous Alekseev mask of calculating and not at all vulnerable women.

The heavy wooden door opened and two navy blue uniformed soldiers led by a black haired man walked in behind Marcus. Although he seemed extremely young to her, the look in his eyes said he had been through much more than she could have imagined. His uniform was different from the two soldiers, it was charcoal colored with emerald cuffs on the sleeves. It matched his charcoal hair, blue eyes and pale complexion. He was tall and muscularly built, and you could tell by his uniform that he was in excellent shape – the way you should be if you had the responsibilities that came with his title.

"Your majesty," he bowed formally, stepping closer, leaving the two soldiers behind. He put his hands behind his back and stuck his chin out decisively, which only accentuated his physique even more.

"To what do we owe your visit?"

"We have an order to deliver your daughter to General Bogdanov."

"I'm afraid that's not possible," she said reservedly. "Katerina experienced a great shock due to the attack that hit our kingdom. She has only been conscious since a few hours ago. The royal doctor ordered strict rest.''

"I think that is of the least importance at the moment, Queen Alekseeva," he said with a stony expression, clenching his jaw. She could have sworn he reminded her of someone she knew once upon a time. "Especially with all of Ravenshield buzzing about the princess's... debatable abilities."

"Forgive my manners, but that is nonsense."

"Is it really?"

"Are you questioning my integrity, young man?"

"Of course not, Your Majesty," the corner of his mouth quivered slightly. "I am not here to question anything; I'm just carrying out General Bogdanov's orders.''

The queen watched him in silence for a few moments, trying to control the feelings that fluttered in her chest.

"What is your name, young man?", she asked him monotonously.

"Popov", answered her. "Colonel Andrej Popov."

"Do you know, Colonel Popov, how many people were lost as a result of the Etiorian's attack?", she asked him without waiting for an answer. "Dozens of people. What about our people, the staff, the high officials of the entire Ravenshield? Do you know what a loss that is to this kingdom? For Ravenshield?''

"I am terribly sorry for your loss, Your Majesty; everyone in the Royal Palace is deeply disturbed by the unfortunate event. However, you also know that the news spreading across the country is not naive at all. It's only a matter of time before someone strikes again. I'm afraid you'll have much bigger losses then. His army will not stop and run for a few flashes of light.''

"That won't happen."

"Not if we take the princess with us."

Ines Alekseyeva began to breathe shallowly, watching Popov with burning eyes.

"She's all I have," she said softly, feeling a slight sting in the corners of her eyes. "I don't want her to become a moving target because of rumors."

"I am aware of your concerns, Queen Alekseyeva," his voice was soft. "But you know what the consequences are if you disobey the order of the general and the king himself. If you are right and your daughter is not what everyone thinks she is, she will be returned faster than she left. And no one will chase her or try to kill her. Otherwise, it will be safest in Evermore Palace.''

The queen tried to control her emotional side that played with her judgment. She watched him for a long time without blinking, her eyes slightly wide. She feared for the safety of her heiress. She knew she had to weigh both possibilities, both very scary possibilities. But she also knew that she would have to choose the lesser of two evils.

"Marcus", she addressed her faithful protector, still not taking her eyes off the colonel. "Take Marjorie with you and bring Katerina."

At her words, the corners of Andrej's lips curved in satisfaction. She let out a soft breath and sat down on her throne, again feeling the emptiness of missing her husband. She knew that he would never agree with her decision. Ilia Alekseyev would fight to the death for his Windfalls heiress. He would never let her be taken away – especially not by High King.

But did she have any choice at all? High King Augustine was not someone who would let anything stop him from achieving what he set his mind to, and she increasingly thought that General Bogdanov was similar in that respect.

Andrej briefly turned to his soldiers with stony expressions and determined looks, signaling them to follow the queen's servant. The uncomfortable silence between them was creating more tension that could be cut with a knife, but it didn't seem to affect Andrej. On his face, which was sculpted like the face of a Greek god - from full lips, straight nose to thick eyebrows - not a single bit of emotion or thought could be read. Ines could not fathom whether it was from some kind of training or simply carrying the burden of a cold warrior for whom emotions were an unknown topic.

Hearing the murmur and thump of footsteps that were getting closer to them, Andrej turned briefly and saw a slender brunette in an ivory-colored dress resenting and breaking away from the guards who grabbed her by the arms. Ines watched him closely, seeing a slight change in his look - something like the realization that she was not going to make this easy for him.

"I can walk on my own, thank you very much," her heiress exclaimed. She looked directly at Andrej and poison darts were shooting from her eyes. "May I know what it is about? Mother?''

"General Bogdanov requires your presence," the colonel jumped in.

"Well, tell your general I'm not interested."

"That was not a request," he retorted. "It was an order."

"Mother, tell the gentleman that he can't do it like this-" she fell silent when she saw her mother's expression. Pure defeat. She balled her hands into fists and bit the inside of her cheek. She felt her hands tingle again as they had that evening.

"Queen Alekseyeva knows that you would come with us whether you agree or not, princess," he said with a sour smile. "I just had enough respect to politely ask and present the situation as it is."

"Katerina, come," commanded the queen, standing up from the throne again and cutting Katerina off from answering the black-haired man. Katerina walked past Andrej with her head raised without even looking at him; focused on her mother who was standing a few steps away. Ines timidly embraced Katerina's hands, caressing them gently. Ines felt a sharp pain in her chest, as if someone had plunged a blade directly into her heart.

"Honey, I know this is extremely difficult for both of you, but you will have to listen to Colonel Popov."

"But I don't want to go anywhere," complained Katerina. "You know what this is about, mother. It has nothing to do with me. I'm not one of them.''

"If you aren't, they'll just leave you alone and you'll be back as soon as possible.''

"And what if I don't come back?"

The queen's face turned to stone, and the sea blue in her eyes began to overflow. She was afraid of it. She was afraid that something similar would happen.

She tried several times to say something, but to no avail. Breathing raggedly, she placed her hand over Katerina's cheek. She gazed unblinkingly for a long time, as if she wanted to absorb every bit and feature of her face. Katerina finally threw herself into her arms.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but we really have to go," the colonel's raspy voice interrupted them. "We have to be at the Palace before noon."

Without saying a word, Katerina walked over to say goodbye to Marcus and Marjorie who were standing off to the side, then turned on her heel and marched proudly in front of the colonel.

"Colonel," he stopped at the sound of her voice, making him turn to face her once more. "Promise me that you will bring her home. Please.''

He stared at her for a few moments, still without a hint on his face of what he was thinking.

"I wish I could, Queen Alekseyeva," he said sincerely. "But I don't make promises I can't keep."

Without looking back, he walked out with two of his soldiers following close behind the princess, leaving Queen Alekseyeva to mourn in the silence of her empty court, weighing the guilt that seeped through her entire body.

A good half hour had already passed as Katerina rode in silence in the carriage with the colonel beside her and two soldiers across from her. She still could not contain the rage she felt in her chest at this whole commotion. Looking at the pastures and hills that lined their entire route, her mind drifted back to the night the Etiorans attacked Windfalls. Her hands began to shake from the screams she heard in her head, and she felt a huge pressure on her chest as if someone had placed a huge rock over them, cutting off the airflow.

One of the soldiers cleared his throat as soon as he noticed her unusual behavior, bringing her back to reality. His brown eyes portrayed concern and she quickly looked away, straightening the creases in her dress.

"My name is Luka, and this is Petar Milenov," he said, pointing to the blond soldier sitting next to him and smiling shyly. "I think it's better to get to know each other if we're going to spend a lot of time together, princess. The road to the Palace is long.''

Katerina smiled weakly, knowing that it was not their fault for carrying out the orders of someone above them.

"Soldier Fyodorov, I don't remember that we are here to chat," Popov looked at him, making Luka daunt.

"He didn't do anything wrong," Katerina defended him. "If it bothers you, feel free to continue looking out the window as you have been doing so far."

Popov looked her directly in the eyes for the first time since they got into the carriage, suddenly realizing how close he really was to her. She could feel his warmth even though his gaze was as cold as an iceberg. She wasn't sure if the blush rushed to her cheeks from his gaze or from wanting to smack him in the face – although that's not how a princess behaves.

"You really are too spiteful for a princess."

"And you are a real jerk for a colonel," she retorted with the same measure, not taking her eyes off him. She could hear Fyodorov and Petar restraining themselves from bursting into laughter. His jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. They watched each other in silence for a few moments, and the tension between them continued to grow.

''I hope to fulfill your mother's wish and take you back to Windfalls in the first carriage,'' he said before turning to looking through the window.

''It would be my pleasure.''

For a while, they all drove in silence, reluctant to broach the subject. With her peripheral vision, she noticed that Popov, unlike Milenov and Fyodorov who would occasionally doze off, seemed to be alert, constantly watching the surroundings through the window of the carriage. She would have thought he was morbidly paranoid if what Popov had been dreading had not happened.

"Something's wrong," he muttered to himself and suddenly turned to Katerina, clinging to her in order to move the curtain from the window on her side with his long fingers. She could smell the faint note of peppermint his hair smelled of, and her nostrils itched.

The alarmed soldiers sitting across from them were wide-eyed waiting for any sign of alarm from their colonel as Katerina stared unblinkingly at the focused face only inches away from hers. She fantasized about which part of his face she would punch, as well as how he got the right to have such long eyelashes that further framed his sea-hued eyes.

"You have to bend down now," he snarled through clenched jaws, not taking his eyes off the window.

''Excuse me?''

''Get down!''

Not even having time to react to his words, Popov flipped her over the seat he was sitting moments ago and found himself on his feet like a cat, ready for the blow that followed a few moments later. Something hit the rear wheel of the carriage, causing it to tip over twice before settling on the ground and crushing everything inside it – or so Katerina thought. Dazed, and with her ears ringing, she heard a muffled voice asking her if she was okay, to which she just nodded her head even though she wasn't even sure how she really felt for quite some time.

"Don't you dare get out of the carriage," the black-haired colonel ordered her.

Popov broke down the door of the cabin and ran out accompanied by two soldiers in blue uniforms, followed by a dozen other soldiers who were in other carriages. They saw dozens of figures coming their way—distorted abominations charging at them with their artificial powers. Signaling the soldiers their defense strategy, they all took certain positions and began to attack.

Andrej drew his sword, the blade of which flashed under the beam of light, immediately raising it to ward off the oncoming fireball. The soldiers did what they knew best - manipulation of natural elements. Some summoned the winds, some opened chasms with the help of the earth, and some of them used fire as a defense against their enemies.

While fending off the fireballs headed in the direction of the chariot and piercing one of the creatures with sword one of the abominations that was a head taller than him and had hideous scabs on every part of his face crept up on him. It snarled before lunging at him, blasting him several meters away from the carriage with high frequency waves. He hit the trunk of a tree, growling in pain. Although the force of the impact seemingly blurred his vision, he could see the freaks fall along with some of the soldiers, losing the fight. He saw his men wounded, some motionless, and those still fighting like lions, trying to clear the remaining enemies.

Katerina saw at the entrance to the carriage a human-like creature with mutilated skin, emitting animal howls, screaming in fear. She tried to kick herself like last time in the conflict with Etiorians, but to no avail. The monster grabbed her legs and threw her several meters away to the ground, making her let out a pained moan. The creature was slowly approaching her, and she panicked, looking around to see if she could find anything that could be useful to defend herself. Digging her nails into the ground, she found a large stone in the grass above her head. Stepping back, she clutched it in her fist, ready to use it at any moment. The creature found itself in front of her, grinning horribly and revealing a rotting oral cavity. She could smell the sulphurous stench of death wafting up, trying to hold back the urge to vomit. Getting in her face enough to miss her intent, Katerina swung the rock with all her strength and hit the monster in the face. He let out a shrill scream and threw himself to the side, giving Katerina enough space to get away from him.

She straightened up fast and ran in a direction that was without humanoid monsters in sight. Adrenaline pulsed through her veins, making her run as fast as her legs would carry her, but soon something grabbed the collar of the coat Marjorie had gave her outside the castle a few hours earlier to keep her from freezing. A radiating pain in the area of her jaw washed over her as the creature knocked her to the ground and flipped her onto her back to face his hideous face again.

She didn't want to die; but the stiffness that still accompanied her from the previous attack did not work in her favor. She felt tears burning in the corners of her eyes, realizing that she wasn't lucky enough to survive another attack in such a short time.

Finally, there was a sharp rush of air, and then a metal tip went through the monster's neck, leaving it with nothing but a stony expression. Warm liquid splashed her face, causing her to flinch. She stared in disbelief at the motionless body of the monster falling beside her like a cut tree. In front of her, she saw Popov, panting, his hair matted and dusty. He still had the same determined look, as if this was all just another ordinary day.

"Are you okay?" he asked, still with the same inscrutable face.

It sounded like the question was more of a formality than he really cared about her well-being. Although she couldn't blame him, she wasn't particularly excited about his company either.

Katerina nodded silently, still under the impression of everything that had happened in less than fifteen minutes.

"Come on then, we have to go."

"What, is that it?" she asked in shock, leaning on her elbows to get a better look at him. "We were just attacked. They almost killed me. They almost killed you. Your people are hurt.''

"Do you want to stay and wait for the third round this week then?" he asked her arrogantly, arching an eyebrow when he didn't get an answer. "That's what I thought."

He quickly turned on his heel and headed for the carriage that had not suffered the same consequences as the one they were traveling in, not giving her a chance to throw any remark at him. She watched him for a few moments in disbelief, imagining, for the thousandth time since she'd met him, how she's stabbing him in the face.

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