The next morning, the Queen and the princess prepared for the day's affairs: they would have to entertain their guests, as usual, but Grimilde soon retreated to her office to receive an important communication. When the Queen opened the door and saw a man and a woman standing in front of her desk, she wasn't surprised; on the contrary, she smiled.
"What good wind brings you here to me?"
"Your Majesty, what a pleasure to see you again," Derek joked, bowing his torso and placing his hand over his heart to show his respect for Grimilde, while Iza greeted her with a simple nod.
The Queen was used to their behavior, so she ignored the formalities and went to her desk, grabbing some documents she had left lying around and putting them in order. "Why don't you tell me a bit about how your journey went?"
The two siblings exchanged a glance, then reported what they had discovered and what had happened in the territories of the Kingdom of Umgard. When they finished summarizing the events of the last few days, they waited for the Queen to express her thoughts. They watched her grow thoughtful and began to assume the worst: they feared they had disappointed Grimilde, given that they had been discovered and had risked their lives. After all, it was a massively important mission that would define the fate of the Kingdom of Arran, and the slightest mistake could lead to armed conflict.
Derek and Iza expected a scolding, some form of reprimand, but the Queen surprised them with a proposal: "The Order has been training for years to fight threats far worse and darker than you. You are skilled, the most formidable spies I know, so do not let this event demoralize you. Rather, I have a proposal for you. Follow me to the Oyindar, protect me and your princess, and keep your eyes open. I will be meeting Empress Zeyana Voklanden, a very influential figure on the continent, and I don't know what game she's playing... she might even be in cahoots with my family of origin."
"Do you really think she found out about your past?"
"Considering the extent of her empire and her great skills, I cannot rule anything out." The Queen massaged her temples and closed her eyes for a few seconds, then regained control of herself and the conversation: "Derek will be with the royal guards, while you, Iza, will accompany us as a lady-in-waiting. One of the counselors will cooperate in keeping the situation under control. You can trust him, at least for the moment."
The siblings nodded with a stiff jerk of their heads, but relaxed their postures, that is until the Queen announced she would introduce them to the princess.
"Grimilde..." Iza's worried tone did not irritate the Queen, who placed a hand on her arm and smiled: "I trust Snow White blindly, and you can too. I really want to introduce you to her."
Derek was more than happy to meet a woman as fascinating and important as the princess. Sure, Grimilde was wonderful too, but he had known her for years now. He and his sister settled onto the office's comfortable sofa, drinking the tea the blonde had offered them, while waiting for the princess to arrive. The more seconds passed, the more tense the two siblings grew again, and when Snow White finally arrived, they quickly sprang to their feet.
"Your Royal Highness, it is a pleasure to meet you!" Derek prepared to perform a deep bow, but the princess gently stopped him, placing a hand on his arm: "I do not desire formalities, not for people so dear to the Queen."
When the two siblings blushed, Grimilde cleared her throat and intervened in the conversation to avoid further embarrassment: "Snow White had the brilliant idea of receiving self-defense lessons from the two of you. Umgard will be enemy territory, despite its apparent neutrality. We don't know the Empress's intentions, but we know she is usually accompanied by a highly skilled witch. Certainly, a few lessons in hand-to-hand combat won't be effective if we clash with magic, but it is wise to take precautions for other eventualities as well. What do you think?"
The Queen's firm tone and logical arguments certainly wouldn't have left room for negative answers, but Grimilde usually granted a certain degree of freedom to the people who worked with her. Especially when it came to Derek and Iza. The two siblings were fiercely loyal to her, but the Queen was determined not to accept them as vapenkamerater (brothers-in-arms): she wished to guarantee them a less ill-fated destiny than what she suspected would happen to her, and to do so, she had to keep her distance. She would protect them, she would love them as siblings, albeit not by blood, and when the time came to say goodbye, she would have no regrets.
At the moment, however, the priority was dealing with the next steps to take before leaving for Umgard. There were only two weeks left; it was a short time to prepare a plan and train Snow White, but Astrael's presence by their side would ensure protection against any arcane spell the witch might cast upon them. That is, assuming she would... Grimilde didn't have enough information, and this made her sleepless, restless, and above all, insecure.
During that short period, the Council had made no move, although this could be quite unnerving. It was possible that the nobles were dealing with their affairs and responsibilities with dignity, without breathing down the Queen's neck. It was also possible, however, that they would unleash chaos once Grimilde left the kingdom to travel to Umgard. At that point, poor Federik would have to deal with their aristocratic complaints.
"Your Majesty, we have finalized the preparations for the journey. Your luggage has been carefully stowed in one of the wagons, along with Her Royal Highness's belongings. Your carriage is ready to depart."
Federik had accompanied the princess and the Queen to the palace exit, where several carriages and wagons awaited the start of the journey. The guards who would accompany the royal family were on horseback, making final checks. There were ten of them, including Derek, and although it seemed a paltry number in the face of the unknown adversities awaiting them in Umgard, arriving at the Oyindar with a massive escort would not be permitted. Consequently, Grimilde had chosen the best and brought along her most loyal warriors, as well as the demon Astrael.
The latter stood with his hands in his pockets, his gaze bouncing here and there, searching for something interesting, failing miserably. He had never been so bored in his life, but luckily, something very interesting was about to happen! Going to Umgard and witnessing the intrigues among foreign rulers and princes with his own eyes was the most captivating thing he could think of right now.
"Astrael? You seem slightly lost," the Queen commented, approaching him.
The demon muttered something and shot her a quick glance, noticing how she was dressed: she was elegant, beautiful, powerful, all in a single look. She wore a sort of dark blue uniform, with a jacket embellished with golden cords laid horizontally across her chest, accompanied by the royal family crest placed right over her heart. Her legs were clad in trousers and tall boots, giving the impression that she was going horseback riding... and perhaps she would once they reached the Oyindar stadium in Umgard.
Astrael approved of her look and gave a mischievous smirk: "They say style sends a much stronger message than words."
"I believe I heard a different saying. Something about actions, not style."
"Always making a fuss! That's not the point." Astrael lowered his head to get closer to the Queen and continued the conversation in a lower voice. "I am convinced that you and the Empress will be the undisputed protagonists of the games... but what I really want to know is: who will be the winner at the end of the Oyindar?"
Grimilde pursed her lips and stared straight ahead, catching Snow White's movements out of the corner of her eye, as she was checking with Federik that everything was in order.
"What will you do if the witch decides to hurt your sweet princess? Or tries to kill you in your sleep?"
"I won't allow it."
"Easier said than done. Now what do you say? I nailed the saying."
"Less talk, more action. And that is an order, not a figure of speech, Astrael. We have an agreement, and you know it. I'm not bringing you with me to play games."
"Loud and clear, boss." Astrael hid an annoyed grimace as he turned to head to his carriage. He said nothing more and vanished from the Queen's sight.
Meanwhile, Iza had also joined them, accompanied by Rachel and Mariella, who wanted to say goodbye to the princess before she left. "Take care of yourself. Do you promise us, Snow White?"
"Rachel, Mariella, I understand your concerns, but I won't be alone. There are capable and strong people around me... and I am no longer as weak as I once was. That being said, I promise you I won't take any risks."
The two women nodded thoughtfully and bid their dear friend farewell with a hug, then turned to the Queen as well: "Have a safe journey, Your Majesty."
"Thank you." Grimilde smiled warmly, surprising a few employees who were busy working nearby. Even Iza was stunned to see such a friendly attitude directed at the handmaidens, but she said nothing, and when it was time to leave, she boarded the carriage she would share with the princess and the Queen.
"Be careful. I've heard bad things about the people of Umgard!" Dopey stated, earning a light slap on the back of his head from Grumpy: "Don't let rumors influence you, you fool!"
The seven miners were as lively as ever and would remain at the palace to keep an eye on things for Snow White and Grimilde during their absence.
"Don't cause too much trouble." Snow White jokingly said goodbye to her dear friends and headed to the carriage. The group left the royal palace, leaving behind the people who waved and loudly voiced their wishes for them to stay safe while away from Arran.
The journey would be quite long, but with a bit of luck, there would be no problems along the way.
"We will stop here for the night."