Chapter 79: Collision
The Royal Capital of the Kingdom of Layton.
As a subordinate power affiliated with the Shadow Forest Wizard Academy, King Hudson of Layton had never experienced such anxiety. He sat high upon his throne, his face dark and troubled, brows knitted with worry. The core members of the royal family were continuously disappearing; his own children and even his wife had vanished without explanation.
This was not merely a tremendous blow to him personally, but it also brought dire consequences upon the entire noble class of Layton. Everyone lived in fear, dreading that calamity might soon reach them.
Just as Hudson was at his wit’s end, a guard hurried in.
“Your Majesty! Princess Kavelin has returned!”
The guard dropped to one knee, speaking swiftly.
Hudson’s face brightened instantly at the news, a hint of joy spreading from the corners of his eyes: “Where are they?”
“They’ll soon arrive at the palace,” the guard replied respectfully.
“Excellent!” Hudson rose abruptly, pounding his right fist into his left palm in excitement, as if to confirm something. He asked again, “Other than Kavelin and Orian, are there others?”
The guard hesitated, speaking slowly, “Only two have come…”
“Only two?!” Hudson cut him off, the joy vanishing from his face. He muttered in disbelief, “How can this be… I followed Lord Banseni’s instructions and requested aid from the Wizard Academy. They said the request had been made into a task and accepted. How could there be no one else…”
“Your Majesty…” The guard, seeing Hudson’s perplexed expression, hurried to add, “It’s true that only two are arriving at the palace, but they’re not Princess Kavelin and Commander Orian…”
Hudson raised his brow, confused. “Hmm?”
“According to the reporting sentry, only Princess Kavelin and a young man have returned. Commander Orian is not among them.”
The guard spoke as precisely as he could, speeding his words to avoid being interrupted.
“Orian didn’t return… What’s happened?” But Hudson could no longer dwell on it. From the sentry’s description, the young man accompanying Kavelin was likely the wizard summoned from the Shadow Forest.
Hudson quickly straightened his royal robes, pushing aside the handmaid who tried to tidy his collar. He seemed anxious, his expression solemn as he commanded the guard before him, “Tell the palace guard to assemble at the palace gates immediately! And inform Lord Banseni as well.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
The guard, seeing Hudson’s urgency, quickly rose and departed.
“The royal family is finally saved!” Hudson muttered to himself as he briskly strode out of the hall.
…
On the streets of the royal city.
Linvey and Kavelin walked side by side, and the crowds instinctively gave way before them.
Just from Kavelin’s attire and demeanor, the commoners could easily discern her noble status.
“I imagine someone is already waiting for us at the palace gates,” Linvey said, glancing carelessly at the street of mortals, bringing to mind the year he’d spent living in the Tulip Territory.
Kavelin seemed not to understand Linvey’s meaning. Her features were delicate, still touched by the youthful softness of her age. She pouted, “Sir, how do you know someone will be waiting for us at the palace?”
“Your city’s secret guards noticed you the moment you entered,” Linvey replied offhandedly.
At that moment, an impatient voice sounded behind them.
“Move! Out of my way, all of you!”
A carriage escorted by four or five cavalrymen sped down the middle of the street. The commoners scattered in terror, fearing the horses’ hooves.
“Didn’t you hear? How dare you block the path of the Vapasi family?!”
The leading cavalryman shouted at Linvey and Kavelin, brandishing his whip arrogantly.
In his eyes, though the girl perhaps was a squire-in-training, before the Vapasi family of Layton she was nothing but an ant.
“The Vapasi family! It seems they’ve been indulged far too much,” Kavelin’s face turned icy cold, her fury ignited by their behavior.
Ordinarily, she might have merely rebuked them, but today, with the mysterious wizard Linvey newly arrived in the city, she would not tolerate such insolence. Not only was Linvey here to resolve the royal crisis, but his uncanny strength alone made it impossible for Kavelin to let this arrogant knight — and whoever sat inside the carriage — go unpunished.
Instead of avoiding the conflict, Kavelin turned her horse directly. From her waist she drew a sharp, ornate cross sword, charging straight at the luxurious carriage.
“Hmm?”
The leading cavalryman hadn’t expected Kavelin to approach aggressively. He was stunned for a moment, then sneered and shouted, “Someone’s attacking the carriage — protect the lady!”
He tossed aside his whip and drew his own cross sword, advancing toward Kavelin with a vicious mutter, “What a pity for such a pretty little girl. But in the royal city, provoking the Vapasi family is suicide! Unless… you’re a princess!”
He possessed the strength of a knight’s squire and assumed Kavelin would be easily overwhelmed.
Hooves thundered closer.
Kavelin’s eyes were full of steely resolve. As their blades were about to meet, she struck in a flash.
“So fast!” The squire exclaimed in shock.
But his realization came too late. Though both were squires, Kavelin, trained under Grand Knight Orian, was far superior.
With a single thrust, she pierced the squire’s heart.
He fell from his horse at once. The startled steed bolted into the crowd, panicked and wild.
Another stroke.
Kavelin cleaved off the horse’s head.
Linvey observed the scene, clicking his tongue softly. “Kavelin… seems to possess a compassion and mercy toward commoners quite at odds with noble manner…”
Suddenly, a playful notion arose in his mind. “If she could be molded into the Queen of Layton, that wouldn’t be a bad idea…”
The four cavalrymen surrounding the carriage were caught off guard — their captain, possessing squire-level strength, had just been slain by a young girl? They immediately heightened their vigilance.
“Whoever’s inside the carriage, come out!” Kavelin reined in her horse, murder in her eyes.