Chapter 4

Emery managed to leave without catching unnecessary attention. Breathing with relief, she decided to head to the house of the nearest noble lady on the list that Secora gave. It was in the second circle of the capital so she walked double time. The noble lady was the first child of one of the kingdom’s current ministers. According to Secora, this lady would often visit the palace for some visitations to her father who often worked overtime.

If the attackers were indeed after her, then it would probably be for the reason of getting her to talk or she could be used as a hostage to make the minister spill confidential information. Just when she was about to make a turn, she saw the lady leaving the house with some maidservants and a pair of bodyguards. Emery followed them to one of the popular clothing shops in the area and closely monitored her.

“Lady Yerin, why don’t you choose something of gold color?” one of the maidservants asked. “Aside from its elegance, it also reflects the eyes of His Majesty. Adding to your flawless manners and beauty, I bet he would not hesitate to look your way.”

Lady Yerin smiled as she stared at the golden cloth that reminded her of the ever enchanting eyes of the kingdom’s ruler.

“I am not confident to do such a thing. Every lady who desires His Majesty knows too well that the only woman who could catch his attention is none other than his first queen. She did not only protect His Majesty but she also fought on the frontlines when the kingdom was in trouble. I bet no woman could surpass her.”

Emery chose not to make a huge deal about that because no matter what happened and even if the king truly admired and loved her up until that moment, it did not change the fact that he had scarred her too much. A few moments later, Emery snapped out of her thoughts when one of the guards of Lady Yerin came in a hurry.

“Lady Yerin, you must return home immediately.” His voice was firm and filled with urgency.

“What is going on?” the lady asked.

“There is another report of murder just three shops away from here so we have to get you out of here.”

Emery held her dagger underneath her cloak and followed them behind. But upon stepping out of the shop, she hesitated as she stared at the direction where the people were crowding around. She clicked her tongue and instead of following Lady Yeron and make sure that she gets home safe, Emery turned on her heels and rushed into the alley where she could freely run to ge to the shop where the murder happened. 

Reaching the backdoor, she peeked into the window first to check the vicinity and saw several guards covering the corpse and bringing it out. Upon making sure that no one was inside, she slowly snuck in and noticed how the room was a total mess, showing that the dead victim clearly fought back against  his attacker.

“Even in broad daylight, huh,” she muttered to herself as she stared at the pool of blood still fresh on the ground.

With the sun’s rays getting into the room through the two large windows as Emery looked around, something shiny caught her attention. Just a few feet away from the pool of blood, she knelt on one knee and picked up two silver buttons. There was an intricate drawing of a puma baring its sharp teeth and its piercing stare seemed to send fear to anyone who looked at it. Right at the back of the button was a printed “E.S.H” and whatever that meant, Emery had no idea.

Just then, she heard some footsteps and several voices getting louder so she kept the buttons in her pocket and immediately ran out to the backdoor. Since she had been away for quite some time, she decided to go and check on Lady Yerin to make sure that she was safe and to see if the killers were after her.

Just when she was about to step out from the alley, she gasped upon seeing Vasmir with some other men walking towards the crime scene. Seeing the one beside him wearing a hooded cloak, she knew that it was the king so she immediately stepped back and turned away to keep herself hidden.

“The victim this time was a former active soldier of the army. His family is currently being interrogated just in case they know something,” Vasmir said. “Just like the others, his tongue was cut out. It only proves that his killer is related to those who had been causing trouble throughout the kingdom.”

“They’re really going after the soldiers, huh,” the king commented. “Have you checked on the Minister of Military Affairs?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. He is currently in the palace as of the moment to help in the investigation.”

The two were on their way to the shop where the murdered occured, but then, King Lawson once again noticed the person in a black cloak right at the secluded alley.

“Vasmir, go check the crime scene and report back to me within 30 minutes,” the king stated, causing the assassin to look at him with a mixture of suspicion and confusion.

Though he wanted to ask a question, Vasmir just followed the king’s orders and left him by himself. King Lawson, on the other hand, decided to approach the person who had been catching his attention, and not to mention, it was reported to him before that the killers were wearing black cloaks. That person could be one of the culprits he had been wanting to catch. 

Meanwhile, Emery felt like she was being watched so she just casually went further into the alley and upon seeing a door, she was about to open it but much to her misfortune, it was locked. It made her mind and body scream that she had nowhere to go and she might just get caught right on her first day. Somehow, it reminded her of her very first mission that was not really a good memory to reminisce right at that moment.

“You there…” King Lawson called out. “Stay right where you are.”

Running away was the last option Emery had, especially that the vicinity was surrounded with soldiers. If she were to run, the chance of her getting exposed would be inevitable. However, confronting the king was also an option she did not want to opt for because it was something she did not prepare for.

As she still debated with herself, she flinched when a hand touched her on the shoulder. Her nerves were on edge but fortunately, she still got to keep herself together.

“What are you doing here?” King Lawson asked as he tried to look at whoever the person was. Though the hood was keeping him from taking a good look at her.

Emery, on the other hand, prepared herself to once again fake her voice.

“I am about to get inside the shop since it is already time for my shift,” she replied while keeping her head down, wishing him to just go away.

“Let me see your identification badge.”

Emery hesitated but in order not to raise any further suspicion, she had no choice but to give it to him. There was a minute of silence between them before King Lawson handed it back.

“You seem to have not yet renewed your badge this year. When do you plan to do it?” 

This puzzled Emery as she had not heard such a thing before so she simply assumed that it could just be a new policy that was implemented during her absence.

“I will have it renewed after my shift today.”

This made the king smirk so without hesitation, he pushed Emery against the door with a dagger in his hand and held it across her neck. He just confirmed that she was indeed not a resident of the kingdom because there was no such thing as renewing their identification badges.

“If I were a different person, you’d be arrested and be brought to interrogation with that little mistake, Emery.”

“I am not-”

“Don’t try to fool me. It won’t work. So… Do you have something to do with what is going on?”

Since she was already exposed, Emery no longer tried to hold back. She looked up to him with an amused look in her eyes. 

“This somehow brings back memories, isn't it, Your Majesty? But let me ask first… If I were to answer your question honestly, will you believe me? Or will you just once again point your finger at me and accuse me of something I did not even do just like the old times? Hmm?”

King Lawson could not even bring himself to answer her question since he knew he had been committing the same mistake before. That aside, he noticed that Emery seemed to be on attack mode this time, which was the total opposite of her when they last met in Realgar Kingdom.

He kept his dagger and replied, “I will believe you this time.”

“Really? Even if I am lying, will you still believe me?”

“Do you want me to believe you? Even your lies?”

This somehow silenced Emery but before she could say another word, King Lawson said, “We should talk somewhere else.”

“There is nothing else we can talk about. Just forget that you saw me.”

She walked past him but came to a sudden stop when the king spoke.