Defending Left-Handed

Chapter 22

Reasee handed Liriel a can of beer. “It has been days, huh.”

Liriel accepted the can and opened it. “Yeah, our assignments are very different now so we would not really be able to talk a lot.”

“You are having fun with the princess?

Liriel’s forehead wrinkled. “Fun?”

“Isn’t it?” Reasee asked.

Liriel shook his head. “I don’t know,” he said as he took a sip.

“What are you doing right now?” Reasee asked.

“What do you mean?” Liriel asked. He really knew what Reasee mean however he did not need to know, though, even though he’s the best friend.

“The last time I know was you met a man asking you for food and weapons, what happened with that?”

*Nothing,” Liriel denied.

It was Reasee’s time to wrinkled his forehead. “Really? With your determination and plus your access to the palace, I am sure you did something.”

“I did nothing,” Liriel simply answered.

Reasee sighed as he wipe the beer residue on his lips. “All right. So you are dropping your goal now?”

“I’d still continue, just not today,” Liriel said to shut Reasee up.

Liriel took another sip and finished it all. Liriel crushed the can with his hands and threw away the can.

“Thank you for this. I will buy you a can next time,” Liriel said because it was Reasee who was treating him right now.

“Sure, no problem,” Reasee answered.

They were just quiet for how many minutes until Reasee decided to stood up from sitting on a wall. Liriel was leaning on it. He jumped down.

“I guess I need to go. My shift starts early tomorrow,” Reasee said.

“All right, I’ll just stay for a few minutes.”

Reasee nodded. “See you again, next time, friend,” he said as he started walking away.

Liriel just nodded as a response.

He looked up the moon. It wall full and yellow. When could he became a whole like that? He asked to himself. Ever since his parents died. He has always been empty and he became very different. Liriel decided to go back now to his room. It was all ready in the middle of the night so the palace was quiet except for the knights who was roaming around. He entered his room and closed the curtains again.

On his first attempt to look for the secret door in his room was a fail. He did find anything. It was his second attempt now and it looked like he still did not have a luck.

“Maybe this room did not really have a secret door,” he said to himself but every room should have just no one knew about it. No one could predict where was the king when there’s an attack so he was really positive that there’s a secret door on his room.

He could not find it on the wall so maybe, just maybe, the secret door could be down below. He looked down and he saw a carpet. There’s always a carpet on every room even though this is a Knight’s room, he thought. If there’s nothing so special about this room, they should have leave it bare or just a bed would suffice but there’s a carpet. Liriel moved the carpet on the side. It was heavy so no one would really bother to move it always. As he observed the floor, there was really nothing to it until he noticed a very thin square lines on the floor. It looked like it could be the door but he did not know how to open it. There’s no obvious hint on how to open the door.

Liriel looked on his window when he already heard a bird chirping. He stood up and looked outside the window. The sun was now rising. How could the time moved so fast? It was still midnight? He asked to himself. He no longer bother to close the curtains. He walked back towards the carpet and returned it back to its original position. He’ll look for a clue again when his shift ends.

He dusted off his uniform and walked towards his door to go to the princess room.

He could hear some laughing inside the room. It was the princess and her ladies-in-waiting.

“He sent you another letter?” one the girls asked, squeaking.

“Oh, how romantic!” Liriel heard another voice it must be one of the ladies-in-waiting. He could hear a rustling of paper inside.

“Let me have a look, too,” said the other and he heard some running inside the room.

“Do you think he’ll ask for your hand, soon, princess?”

Liriel heard Slithen laughed. “That’s absurd. It’s still early for that.”

“Absurd? Early? Coming from someone who accepted a man’s courtship even though she just met him,” one of Slithen’s lady-in-waiting reacted.

“I already knew him for two years,” Slithen answered back.

“See, you already knew him for years then asking your hand for a marriage would not be a surprise,” one of the ladies-in-waiting in waiting teasingly said.

“Then what about Liriel?” Liriel stood up straight when he heard his name. His forehead wrinkled, too.

“Liriel? I almost did not recognized him. I think he change very much. He was a naughty kid back then but now, he looked scary,” a lady-in-waiting said.

“Liriel is still Liriel,” Slithen said to them in a low voice.

“What do you mean, princess?”

“I really understand where he was coming from and how’d he change. I totally understood it all since we all know what happened. He may not be that naughty kid, anymore, but he still remained caring, just like before.”

“Oh no, don’t tell me princess that you still like him? How could you still see that side of him? He rarely even talks or shows emotion every time I got to pass him.”

“You still like him?” the remaining ladies-in-waiting reacted.

There was a long pause before Slithen answered. “I decided to stop liking him anymore that is why I give Benhart a chance to show how he feels for me.”

“That’s a good decision princess. Just stick on Lord Benhart. He makes you smile always. You should always choose the man who could always make you happy.”

“All right, so you are now done. We could now step outside.”

“I could not wait to see Lord Benhart visits here again,” one of the ladies-in-waiting in waiting said. All the girls giggled as a response.

Liriel heard steps towards the door. He did not bother to move. The door opened and he heard a soft gasp coming from the ladies. He did not really care about what he heard. All he cares about right now is the king’s trust, he thought to himself.

Princess Slithen looked at him but did not utter a word. She continued walking straight. The ladies-in-waiting looked confused but they just followed her.

They were all at the garden right now. The princess and the ladies-in-waiting were just sitting on the tea table sipping their teas when suddenly an explosion near them occurred. Everyone present on the garden shouted. They were gardeners maintaining the area and they were maids serving the princess and her ladies-in-waiting. They were also knights roaming around. Liriel immediately ran to the princess and covered her nose. The area was now to smoky and there’s a part where fire was slowly starting.

“Duck and crawl towards the castle, ” he commanded to the ladies. The ladies followed what he said. Even though the Liriel could see them, he heard them whimpering of fear.

“Crawl faster.”

He heard footsteps and it sounded like the knights because of it’s heavy footsteps. When they got to an area where the smoke was less. They stood up. They were already knight assisting Slithen’s ladies-in-waiting waiting.

“Go inside,” he commanded.

“What about you?” Slithen asked worriedly.

“Just go.”

Slithen had no other choice but to get inside.

Reasee immediately apporached Liriel. “You should go inside and stay with the princess, Liriel. You are her knight. You should always stick by her side. Go, we can manage here.”

“Tsk,” he reacted but then ran to follow the princess.

It must be the old man’s doing. It was him who gave him the grenade. He thought as he was running to follow the princess.