CHAPTER 60

HAKKEN KNEW his lady was very strong, but to actually see her gave her all to raze hell in the Hallowed Valley, one massive attack after another, he was left in awe as he watched his lady from a hidden corner near the large structure in the center of the canyon.

Thanks to the flower that guided them, they were able to went around the enemies and stay hidden.

Hakken's eyes looked at his lady again. She was mesmerizing as her flame surrounded her. She was a sight to behold. Anyone could feel her supremacy as she stood there and call on her flames to raze hell.

She brought chaos, destruction and death, and Hakken still finds his lady very alluring and mesmerizing.

Ah, I want to kiss her.

"Lord Hakken, let's go!"

That snapped out Hakken from his reverie and glanced at Grath who was pointing the unguarded entrance because the guards ran towards the battlefield to lend a hand.

Hakken nodded and after one last look at his lady, he ran towards the entrance with Grath and Zassia.

The moment they entered, they were greeted by a long tunnel and they found out that the building in the canyon was just an entrance to a tunnel. There was nothing and no one there. Maybe because all the guards that was supposed to be here were all outside, fighting the Mistress of Flame.

But there was another problem. The tunnel they took was connected to another three tunnels and it was deep underground.

"Which way?" Zassia asked while looking at Hakken, then at Grath.

"I have no idea." Grath answered with a shrugged.

While Hakken was looking around on the ground until he found a flower. "There. Flower."

"Oh!" Zassia beamed at the flower. "Thank you, Queen Gatria!"

With the flower as their guide, the three took the right tunnel. And while walking, they could feel they ground shake violently, one after another, as if it was about to give out.

"Teacher is really powerful," said Zassia while using her staff to light their path. "Her flame attacks can even shake the ground."

"Yes." Grath sighed, nervous that the ground might fall on them. "Let's hope we find Quern Gatria fast before we get buried alive here."

Hakken was on the front and beside him was Zassia. The tunnel's size can accommodate three people, but Grath chooses to take the rear to watch their backs.

Aside from the ground shaking from time to time, the tunnel was dead silent that the three started wondering if they chose the right tunnel. But their doubts disappeared when they finally reached the end of the tunnel and they were welcomed to a large underground chamber.

Unlike the path they took, the chamber was well lit with enchanted stones and there were two prison cell in the center. Both prisoners— a man on the right and a woman on the left— were chained to the wall. And more than a dozen of guards were stationed in front of the two cells and they were all armed and ready.

Hakken's hand immediately reached for his war blades when Zassia stopped him.

"Let us do it, Lord Hakken," she said with a determined look. "My teacher blessed me with her flame and I will use that flame to save Queen Gatria."

Grath nodded at Hakken. "Let us fight, Lord Hakken. We want to make Her Highness proud. We want her to not feel regret for blessing us with her flame."

That made Hakken smile. "Okay. My arm is killing me anyway."

Zassia and Grath both smiled and nodded at Hakken before they jumped out from the tunnel and down to the chamber.

My lady will be very proud of them. Hakken thought as he watched Zassia and Grath take on the more than a dozen guards or so. Zassia's flame and her style of fighting, even her attacks were similar to Sollel. Grath on the other hand took advantage of his flame claw and his brute force to take down anyone who tried to block the path.

With their back on each other, Zassia and Grath's flame filled the chamber and mercilessly burned everyone. It was not as lethal as Sollel's flame, but enough to send the soldiers to their deaths.

Only after Zassia and Grath defeated the soldiers did Hakken jumped down from the tunnel to the chamber.

Immediately after, Hakken pointed the right prison cell to Grath, and Zassia while he went to open the left cell.

Zassia used her scorching flame to melt the lock on the right cell while Hakken used his war blades to destroy the lock in the left cell. And after using so much force, the wound in his arm started bleeding, but he didn't mind it and continued destroying the door.

When it finally opened, Hakken put back his war blades on his back and kneeled in front of the prisoner to check if was the King of Druids. "King Tirac...?"

The man groaned and moved making the chains on his ankle and wrist clattered. "... who am I speaking with?"

Hakken gave his name.

King Tirac clicked his tongue. "Took you long enough. Do you know the suffering I'd been through because of your damn plan?"

Hakken smiled as he took an item from his pocket. An enchanted item left to him by King Tirac before he was 'taken' and 'imprisoned'. It could open any lock put on a person, such as the chains locked on the King of Druids wrist and ankles. Though it was useless against lock doors and prison cells.

"You agreed to it, remember?" Hakken answered as he used the key to unlock the chains on his wrist and ankles.

King Tirac scoffed. "Countless years, you shithead! If not for Her Highness, I will never agree to your crazy plan!"

Hakken just smiled and help King Tirac to stand up.

"How's my people?" King Tirac asked as he stood up straight.

"Safe."

"Good." The king nodded before he grabbed the key from Hakken's hand and he ran towards the prison cell next to him.

Hakken followed and entered the the moonrite prison. Grath, and Zassia were already there, holding the weak woman while King Tirac used his key to unchained the queen.

And Hakken felt it when he saw King Tirac shedding a tear as he unchained the woman.

"I'm so sorry, my Queen. It took me a long time to free you." King Tirac was asking for forgiveness while crying and bowing his head while unchaining the queen at the same time. "You can punish this lowly and foolish, weak King for not being able to save you fast. I will accept any punishment, Your Highness. We will accept any punishment."

Seeing King Tirac, Hakken remembered how he also begged and cried when he first held his weak and unconscious lady in his arms.

"My Queen, can you stand up?" King Tirac asked Queen Gatria with so much reverence. Druids were after all one of Queen Gatria's loyal subjects.

All Queen Gatria could manage as a reply was a small groan.

"Just carry her." Said Hakken to King Tirac who immediately shoot Hakken and glare.

"It's disrespectful! I will not do it!"

"Just carry her!" Hakken snapped. The ground already stopped shaking, that meant his lady was now in the enemy's hands. "We have to go! Do you want get caught and be imprisoned again?! If so, then be my guest."

"Fine!" Against King Tirac's wishes, he carefully carried Queen Gatria in his arms and the five of them went back to the tunnel.

But before they could even reach the center of the tunnel to escape, they came face to face with the strongest general in Treterra.

General Kar Drue.

Even with bleeding arm, Hakken draw his war blades. While Zassia raised her staff and Grath unleashed his claws. Meanwhile, King Tirac muttered something under his breath, an enchantment to activate the shield in his clothes to not sustain damage and protect his queen in his arms.

But their battle stance remained a battle stance when General Kar didn't move to attack. His eyes were focused on Queen Gatria's face and there were longing and confusion in their depths.

Kar's hand gripped his war hammer tightly and his mind was shouting at him to move and attack, but he couldn't take his eyes off of the unconscious woman. He was drawn. He wanted to get close, not to attack, but to touch her. To feel her skin. To make sure that she was unharmed.

Kar felt like his world stopped spinning when the woman's eyes started fluttering open. It was too slow, but Kar waited for them to open with bated breath.

And when those dark brown eyes opened and their gaze met, slowly, the woman's hand raised, as if reaching out to him and Kar unconsciously reached out his hand to met hers, but before their fingers could touch, out of nowhere, a thick wall appeared in the middle, separating the two groups

From behind the wall, Gatria spoke in a weak voice. "I u-use—d all t—the s-strength I have l—left to m-ma—ke a new t-tunnel. It's s-safe..."

"Your Highness!" King Tirac panicked when the queen lost her consciousness.

"That's normal," said Hakken who was already following the new tunnel. "She had been drained and she just used all the strength she had to give us safety passage. Let's go. We have to get her to safety."

King Tirac trusted Hakken's judgement even though he didn't like Hakken, so he nodded and followed him together with Grath and Zassia.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, Kar was left speechless and he felt like his heart was being squeezed and trampled on that he had to cupped his chest where his heart was and hold it as if it could lessen the pain.

Why... why am I hurting?

General Kar had no way of knowing that Gatria was not reaching out for him, but using her last strength to erect a wall in between them to not see the general and make a new safe passage for her rescuers.

"General?"

"General Kar?"

That snapped out Kar from his shock and immediately, he gave out an order. "Find them!"

The sorcerers and the Adral warriors immediately went to work and scoured the whole tunnel to look for the intruder, but they saw nothing, not even a footprint. But they still searched the whole tunnels, not knowing that a new tunnel was made using Gatria's last strength — a tunnel that they didn't know of. And the more they search, the more the intruders were getting away.

But of course, they didn't know that and just continued searching the whole Hallowed Valley.

♕♕♕

IN THE SACRED FOREST, under the sacred tree, ten elven elders were all sitting in a circle position and Cira was at the center, holding the moonrite stone in her hand.

Everyone had their eyes close as they focused all their essence into analyzing the stone together with Cira.

And meters away from that was Xeke who was leaning on a tree trunk and guarding his Cira from anyone who wanted to do her harm.

In a couple of days that Cira had been analyzing the stone together with the elders, Xeke never left her side. He was always there, watching and guarding her.

Though Xeke liked watching Cira, there was one thing he hated while guarding her, and that was her sister elder sister, Coradyl.

She kept on visiting him and talking to him. Xeke didn't want to be arrogant, but he could tell that Princess Coradyl wanted his attention that was only meant for Cira.

He didn't want to be rude, but after a few days of feeling annoyed, he finally decided to be blunt with the Elven Princess.

"Princess Coradyl, please refrain from talking to me and acting as if we are close. I only belong to my elf over there," he pointed at Cira who was on analyzing the stone, "I don't want my Cira to think badly of me if she sees us together and you are acting close to me."

Princess Coradyl's face became unsightly and wailed like a brat. "Just who do you think I am?! I am the Elven Princess while that useless garbage is not even part of the sacred forest anymore! I have more value than her!"

Xeke was playing with his dagger as he answered while staring at Cira. "To me, my Cira has more value than you or than anything in this world. Even my arcane weapon is valueless compared to her, so don't bother comparing yourself to my Cira. In my eyes, you are nothing."

Princess Coradyl, who wanted to steal the man whom she thinks Cira likes, couldn't help thumping her feet on the ground before she left furiously.

Meanwhile, seeing the princess leave, Xeke was relieved because he didn't really like her from the moment she called his Cira 'insolent'.

My elf is adorable, not insolent. Xeke clicked his tongue and continued watching Cira from afar to make sure she was safe.

Xeke thought he'll have to wait a couple more days until they finished analyzing the stone, but when night fell, he heard Cira's triumphant and gleeful howl.

Xeke immediately transported himself beside Cira where he left one of his daggers and he was shocked when Cira just suddenly hugged her while jumping up and down in delight.

"You succeeded?" Xeke asked as he let Cira hugged him while controlling himself not to wrapped her in his arms.

"Yes! Yes!" Cira was beaming with happiness. "We found it! I don't know what kind of stone is that, but at least, we know. At least, we have an idea, right?!"

Xeke nodded and smiled at Cira's happy face. "I'm glad you found it."

"Me too," Cira didn't care if she was almost pressing her body against Xeke's, she was too happy to care. "Come on! We have to leave immediately and find that stone!"

Xeke just sighed when Cira just held his hand and dragged him away. Of course, as soft as he was when it comes to his elf, he just let her do whatever she wanted.

But their plan to leave the sacred forest and look for the stone that Cira was talking about didn't push through when they heard the rumor that was circulating in the elven kingdom.

"With Warlord Hakkeran Adral unending efforts, the Mistress of Flame has been caught and is now back in the empire."

Other races who knew the Mistress of Flame and were happy when she escaped would be devastated by such news, but to other races who knew what it meant, it was not a devastating news, but a good one.

Because that news was the beginning of a much larger plan. A large scheme that had been going on for years under the noses of the four powerful human kingdoms.

Now, it was time to strike back. And striking back will start from the queen of destruction herself, Queen Sollel Vatra Sarragny, Krahika of the temple of Ignis, the first blessed queen of Yther, the Mistress of Flame.

CECELIB | C.C.