Cithara's eyes widened as she realized that in front of her stood the boy at the coronation — the soon-to-be-emperor of the Elven Empire, Everdaile. She looked at him out of surprise from his head down to his toe — from his luxurious coffee-brown hair down to his leather boots.

"A-Are you sure? Are you... Are you sure what y-you're talking about?" she stuttered.

"I went on a mission to find the chosen warriors. But the only one I found was you," said the boy.

"Is there anything I can do? Am I supposed to join you in your search?" asked Cithara.

"You have to come with me as soon as possible," he added, grabbing her hand as he pulled her away. "You can be one of my assistants. A smart and powerful lady like you can surely be a great instrument for this journey!"

Her mind said she should go with him. However, her heart said that she should not.

"Does Hara Aja know about your journey?" she asked. "If I join you, I can finally have a worth, right?" she said, trying to remove her hand away from the boy's uneasing hold.

However, in every attempt she does, the hold just becomes stronger and tighter.

"You have to come with me," the young man insisted, "Cithara!" They stopped walking as his gaze fell straight on the curious young lady.

Cithara's attention was caught by the sudden change in the boy's eye color. From emerald green eyes, it slowly turned pitch black.

"You're... You're not the soon-to-be emperor, are you?" she asked, still trying to let go. "You tricked me!"

The stranger gave her a smirk. "You are right where I want you to be, Lady Cithara Elizell. Now you should come with me whether you want it or not!"

For just a quick moment, the stranger's body was entirely covered with dark smoke. In front of her emerged a dark, strange creature wearing a black robe but with no face and no skin at all — all that can be found was darkness.

"Let go of me!" Cithara exclaimed, pulling away her hand from the creature's iron gauntlet.

The creature's hold was vehemently preventing her from escaping. However, having her mind fixed on surviving, Cithara pulled out her hand with all the energy she could give.

It was not a very good did. As she pulled her hand away, the iron gauntlet left her a scratch, tearing away a thin piece of her skin.

She let out an excruciating pain and then ran as fast as she could to get herself away from the monster in front of her.

She ran and ran, never looking back. As she was on her way, she ripped off a piece of her sleeve and then tied it up towards the wounded arm.

Minute by minute, her vision turned blurry with her legs wiggling like jelly. She continued to run until she felt herself falling slowly towards the ground.

Cithara gasped, her eyes flying open, trying to wake herself up. As the golden rays of the rising sun glared into her eyes, she let out a groan and squinted. "I must... escape," she breathed.

She blinked slowly and looked around. The strange creature was gone. It might be out of her sight, but deep inside of her, she knew that the creature was still hunting her down.

Her eyes widened as she glanced down at her arm. The blood-drenched cloth was still there staunching the blood.

She tried to stand up but cried out weakly. She knew she had to remain silent so that the creature couldn't find her. The next time they meet again, she had a feeling that it'll do worse.

But... Why? she thought curiously and lost her hope slowly.

She laid back down, frustrated. She was kicked out from her kingdom, and now she was in big trouble.

"Help..." she groaned. "Someone, please help me," she added, raising her voice a little louder, hoping that someone could save her. Her wound caused a sharp, excruciating stab, making her cry out.

It almost seemed like it was the end for her, not until all of a sudden, she spotted someone running right towards her. She couldn't tell who it was because of the pain and tiredness she felt.

Warning sensors went off inside her head. She tried to move away from the mysterious stranger approaching, but she was so weak.

"Edue!" she heard the man exclaim.

The man looked down and gasped as he saw Cithara's wounded arm. "Oh, no!" he breathed in horror.

He tightened up the cloth wrapped around her right arm and gently picked her up into his arms.

"This needs immediate medication," he spoke, sounding slightly panicked.

Cithara rested her weary head against the man's chest before sinking into unconsciousness. There, she felt a strange feeling, which made her put her trust towards the stranger.

Cithara woke up inside a small room, laying on a hard, flat makeshift bed in an unfamiliar place. She looked around the empty room and started to push herself up in bed. She gasped in pain but continued to move.

The door opened, and there came a man walking towards her. Seeing the man's familiar face, a sudden memory flashed out inside her mind, making her give out a large, radiant smile.

"You're awake," said the man.

"Ade?" Cithara asked, "Is that you?"

"Of course it is I. Who do you think I am?" Alvier spoke. "I came back to fulfill my promise once more."

"Well, a promise that I don't have a choice but to do," he added, whispering.

"No matter what, thank you anyways for coming back and for also saving my life out there," Cithara sincerely responded.

A moment of silence came between the two, but still, seriousness remained on the old man's face.

"The very thing I want the most that pushed me towards here was to find a very important person," the old man spoke.

Is that me? Cithara thought hopefully with her eyes beaming.

"If you are thinking that it is you then," he added, "you are wrong."

"Oh, I... I thought of that, too," she whispered, her hope fading away.

"By the way," Alvier spoke, his eyes turned towards Cithara. "What are you doing here, young lady?"

•○GLOSSARY○•

⚔️Ade
- Enchantrian word: Grandfather

⚔️Edue
- an Enchantrian word to express surprise or anger

⚔️Hara
- Liberian word: Queen