Princess Valerie walked a few steps towards them. Then, just a few metres away she stopped.
Gesturing her fingers at the ground beneath her, she said in a calm manner.
"How long are you two going to keep the Sea Mage underground? She shall suffocate."
Draven's expression suddenly crumbled. His eyes widened as he realised the lady in front of him....
'She knows.'
"But how?" He rasped huskily, the world suddenly becoming quite smaller to him.
To which she replied, "I didn't kill her during the battle in the village; only made her unconscious. And the only group you would have trusted her with is this- the one group where you yourself shall be present. It wasn't hard to understand the rest if you used a few of your braincells."
Draven looked like someone had sucked away the blood from his body as his skin looked extremely pale. Beside him, Shogun looked between the princess and Draven with a hint of empathy and complexity.
As if reading his mind, Valerie turned towards Bloodaxe, her figure exuding authority. "Would you still just die or would you accept the last chance I give you? Surrender!"
David didn't understand a single word of what they were saying. But even from the way she spoke and the crestfallen faces of both the other men on the ground, he could guess the content of their discussion.
'Surrender, old man! Surrender! Do whatever you want, renegotiate how much you want afterwards. Just.... don't kill us with you!' If only thoughts could just be transmitted to others, Shogun probably would have a pair of bleeding ears, just from David's rambling.
Gritting his teeth, Bloodaxe asked the woman in front of him.
"And...what shall be the fate of my people?"
Valerie suddenly turned quiet. Her silence was defeaning in the gloomy dawn around them, which was soon broken by a hoarse laughter from Bloodaxe.
"Of course, what else did I expect? Each of them shall probably end up as the slaves of your people. And me...I guess the poor me shall rot in some underground cellar, aging like fine wine." His tone held a hint of mockery.
Valerie took one step forward as she spoke, "You are too quick to assume things. I was just thinking about what to do with your clan...I mean the members who are still alive." Both Draven and Bloodaxe felt goosebumps rise on their skins as she added the last sentence in a soft tone.
Then she gestured towards David, who was watching their interaction with focussed eyes; towards the nameless girl, who not so surprisingly....was poking at a neighbouring knight's armor to his growing irritation. She had already forgotten about their impending death. Even the princess halted for a moment as she saw the bizzare scene in front of her.
However, shaking her head slightly she gestured towards Thorgar as well, who was lying on the ground unconsciously.
"For these three, I shall allow them to contest for the Sipahis. If they win it, good for them. If not, you know the fate that awaits them don't you?" She didn't wait for an answer from the two men as she continued, addressing the Shogun.
"For a respectable warrior like you, I am not worthy enough to choose your fate. Instead His Majesty, my father...shall see to it."
"As for the Sea Mage, she is dead. I have killed her in the battle back in your village."
"Wha-?!" Draven almost shouted but a sudden pressure enveloped him, making his mouth go shut.
Princess Valerie turned her head to him, slowly and deliberately. Then in a calm tone, she asked, her voice slow as if deliberately drawing out each syllable.
"Is there anything wrong with what I said? I killed her...right?"
Draven felt himself quiver at the intense gaze. Even though he couldn't see her eyes, at that moment he felt like a small prey in front of the girl who was almost half of his age.
In a hesitant voice, he replied. "Y-yes, she is dead. Killed by y-you."
Valerie nodded in satisfaction as she declared. "Draven, you have 10 days with you. On the eve of the 11th day, I want you to surrender yourself at exactly this spot. And don't even think of running away. Do that...and I shall personally come here to kill you."
"Consider this as the only gesture I could show to the Hermann family."
In the common tongue, she spoke. "Knights, Arrest them! Mind you, not a single one of them should be harmed."
Then looking at the rest of the three barbarians, she contemplated something for a while.
Ultimately, she seemed to come to a decision as she gestured to the two nameless barbarians.
"General Adams, take the two nameless to the Southern Capital. As for the red haired boy, transport him to the Northern Capital. Each of them shall be contesting for the Sihapis."
With a side glance to General Adams, she instructed. "....Make sure they can join it without any 'obstacle.'"
"R-right, Your Highness!" A rather disappointed voice came out of Adams as he hurriedly ordered the men under him.
"Take them as captives. And prepare two horses. You, yes..." He spoke as he gestured and made preparations for the journey back to the Windsor Kingdom. But not before glaring at David, as if making it known that he would be having his revenge.
On the other hand, David stood stupified as he saw the sudden twist of events. He had already prepared himself to face death for a second time.
And even then, at the back of his mind he was sure the worst that could happen to him was getting enslaved to some noble and working off his ass for all he was worth.
But Sihapis? Sure, it sounded like a better choice than death.
'But that's the...the ones who are constantly fighting in the borderlands. In other words....they are CANNON FODDERS! They shall not just work me to the bone but make sure, I could never return to the society as a sane person.'
He felt a soldier behind him wrapping his hands in steel cords. It bit into his skin and in the cold winter, it seriously hurt. As if someone just pinned a nail into him.
At that moment, Princess Valerie passed by him. But not before subtly nodding at him.
His eyes widened as something struck him.
'Is this her way of taking revenge on me for slapping her? Or does she think....she helped me by saving us from sure death?'
In any case, his future looked...quite grim.
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A/N: This is the end of a minor arc. Even though the original drafting plan was to complete this in 15 chapters, yet we are somehow here with 22 chapters. I guess that's an area I would need to improve. To not unnecessarily drag out few plots.
If you are liking this story, please do leave a review if possible. Power stones and golden tickets are appreciated as well. Thank you to all my readers who have been supporting me till date :)