Wounds that would never heal

Although Kvahiya said that Gianna might not wake up for days, she woke up at the midnight. Waking up, she saw a young man beside her. Prince Danyel had come to rescue her!! She spoke in excitement.

“Sire, I thought I was going to die. But you’ve come! Thank…”

“Gianna, it’s me, Amell.”

It was Amell and not Danyel?

“Oh! Sorry, Amell. I didn’t recognize you.” Gianna tried to sit with Amell’s help. She felt a bit sad and awkward.

“Careful! Gianna, actually, his imperial highness is here. The prince asked us not to disturb him. We’re on the way to Nemphitre.”

Just after Gianna stood up, Danyel reached the duo.

“Hey, you woke up. Are you alright now?”

Gianna nodded. She felt relieved that Danyel was fine, but she understood that he was attacked by someone.

“Sire, you have some wounds. Were you attacked? Oh, where’s Yasvie?”

Danyel’s face darkened. The person that he wanted to have vanished from his memory was mentioned again. From his expressions, Gianna concluded that he might have failed to rescue Yasvie. Breaking the silence, Danyel spoke.

“Gianna, do me a favor. Never ever mention her name in front of me. Got it?”

That was a total shock for Gianna. She quickly understood that something was wrong, but what could possibly go wrong?

“Commander, we’re about to change the guarding shift.” A soldier came to Amell in an instant. Amell went to the cave’s open end with him, leaving Gianna and Danyel alone. Gianna continuously stared at Danyel, trying to know his feelings. He seemed rather furious than exhausted or sorrowful.

“Sire, may I ask what is wrong?”

Danyel glanced at Gianna and came near her. Both of them sat on the ground.

“Gianna, listen carefully. You must not trust anyone except me and Amell. There are traitors everywhere. It might be dangerous for you to go alone to Werto because you might be attacked on the way. They’re trying to get me in any possible way, so you can be a target too. So, just stay with me until the end.” He rubbed Gianna’s head.

That statement did not answer her question. Her curiosity kept increasing.

“Sire, what happened to Yas... What happened to her? Could you not save her because of me, by any chance?”

“I wish it was. If that happened, I would only hate myself. Now…” Danyel paused, stood up, and went towards Amell.

***********************************************************

Yasvie was abandoned in the jungle by the Lisdonian soldiers just before they left with Danyel. They assumed that Yasvie was no longer important because she was only the bait to catch the crown prince.

Horrified and shocked, Yasvie could not move or focus for a moment. When she regained consciousness, she wept endlessly. In the end, she had won nothing but had lost everything including Danyel’s trust. According to what he had seen, he must be thinking that Yasvie betrayed him for money.

“Sire, forgive me! It wasn’t for money. How can I ever do that to you? They threatened to kill my mother!! I couldn’t bear to see that! Please forgive me!!”

Even though Yasvie obeyed Nimue’s orders, she could not assure herself that her family was safe. Nimue was the type of person who would kill anyone if no longer needed. It means that Yasvie’s mother and sister might probably be dead. As Danyel was taken to Hesmia, the possibility was high that he got murdered immediately by Remington. That was how Yasvie thought. She had no idea that Danyel was rescued by Amell and that Nimue had not put a finger on her family.

She glanced at the purse that she got from the Lisdonians. She never expected to receive money for her deed. Yasvie opened the purse slowly, only to see that it was full of broken pieces of a metal plate and not Semiis. She was fooled in every way. But she felt a bit better after realizing that she had not sold her love to the enemies.

Suddenly, Yasvie saw a group of women crossing through the jungle. They seemed like they were searching for something. Before Yasvie could even hide, all of them noticed her. Yasvie shrank in utter terror. She feared that those women might be sent by Lady Nimue.

But… they were Strians. They were looking for Gianna.

“Emse Minnah, you saw that girl in there, right? What should we do? Looks like she’s in trouble.”

“Let’s speak to her, Lia. She might know something about Ginger.”  

The four women reached her. As Yasvie had a much fair skin for a Hesmian, Minnah mistook her as a Lisdonian. But seeing no response from her to the question that Minnah asked in Lisdonian, Minnah got confused. Bingi- the youngest one in the group suddenly noticed that Yasvie was wearing a Hesmian water maids uniform. Covered in mud, it was almost unidentifiable.

“Emse Minnah, she’s a Hesmian water-maid.”

“Oh, thanks Bingi. So, you’re Hesmian. Did you see a girl in armor in the woods, by any chance? She has tan skin and black hair, like a Hesmian. You might’ve seen her. She’s the…”

“Minnah, shouldn’t we ask if she’s alright first? She looks as if she just escaped from hell.” Qindei- the Mekanquish-born Strian interrupted. She walked past the others and knelt near Yasvie.

“What’s your name, little girl? What happened to you? Are you okay?”

“Qin, we don’t have time for this. Ginger might be fighting for her life right now.” Minnah yelled.

But Yasvie began to talk.

“I… I am Yasvie. I…was caught… caught by the Lisdonians. But I escaped.” Yasvie was too afraid to tell the truth. She feared that she would be instantly killed if anyone found out that she was a traitor.

“Okay. Have you seen Princess Gianna while in the palace?” Qindei asked kindly.

Yasvie nodded.

“Did you see her in the woods?” Minnah asked impatiently.

Yasvie could not come up with an instant reply. Plus, she was still angry as she believed that it all started because of Gianna. She did not want Gianna to be found or saved. Instead, Yasvie prayed for Gianna’s death.

“I-I am sorry Emse… I know nothing about the princess.” She stuttered while lying.

Although Qindei seemed like she believed it, Minnah had suspicions. But before she could even talk, Lia recognized something else about Yasvie.

“Hey, wait. You’re the one that the crown prince dated, right?” Lia used to spy on her as she disguised herself as a handmaid and worked for Nimue.

Yasvie’s shiver increased. Would they ask something about the crown prince?!

“Uh, um… yes I have… met his imperial highness several times. That’s it. I don’t know much about him.”

“You’re lying. I know that you escaped from Hesmia with Prince Danyel. You know something. Tell the truth or I will hand you over to Lisdonians.” Minnah shouted furiously.

“Minnah, you can’t…”

“Shut it, Qin! I want to find Ginger no matter what happens. She’s one of us. How can you not feel like I do? Because you hate each other? Qin, past is the past, just help when she’s in danger.”

For a moment, the entire place went silent. Bingi and Lia stared at each other awkwardly.

“Minnah, it’s not what you think. Just look at this girl. She’s a girl. She’s one of us too. We need to talk nicely. Oh, I’m not helping? Isn’t this enough? Did she help me when I needed her? Just…” Qindei pushed Minnah and left in anger. Bingi followed her to calm her down. Lia put her hand on Minnah’s shoulder.

Having no idea about what just happened in front of her eyes, Yasvie wondered what would happen next. She got goosebumps when Minnah suddenly turned to her.

“Tell me what you know or…”

“I met her!” Yasvie confessed.

“I escaped Hesmia with the crown prince and… I met princess Gianna. But Lisdonians attacked us. They caught me and took me to Hesmia. I didn’t see the princess after that. I’m telling the truth. Please, spare me!”

Minnah felt extremely relieved to hear something about Gianna, even though it was too small as a clue. Her impatience kept increasing.

“Tell me where you saw her for the last time. QUICKLY!!”

Yasvie suddenly recalled Danyel saying that Gianna was hurt and that she was heading to a healing house. Considering the current circumstances, Yasvie decided to inform the Strians about it despite not wanting Gianna to be found.

“Well, Emse… I heard that the princess was heading to a healing house. I honestly don’t know where it is.”

“Emse Minnah, maybe she’s talking about the one that Emse Kvahiya works in,” Lia whispered to Minnah’s ear.

Minnah agreed and asked Lia to inform the others. Seeing the women prepare to leave, Yasvie could not help but asked Minnah to take her with them.

“No way! How can I trust someone like you? You knew too much about Gianna but lied! What if you try to deceive us again? Get lost! If you dare to follow us, I will kill you straight away!” Minnah threatened.

Then, the four Strians headed towards the hidden healing house. Within an hour, they reached it.