Chapter 64 - Wake Up, Lilia!

  A silver-haired girl lay asleep on the cool jade floor of the princess’s chambers.

  It had been only two days since she’d been assigned as the princess’s personal maid—an appointment that had come as a complete surprise, especially given how young she was. Not much older than the princess herself, really.

  Lilia had cleaned the room with ease, despite the state she’d found it in.

  Clothes had been scattered across chairs, books stacked haphazardly, and half-forgotten trinkets tucked into corners. She’d paused more than once, wondering how anyone could possibly sleep in such chaos.

  But if there was one thing she was good at, it was cleaning.

  She'd worked quickly—too quickly. By the time she was finished, the room was spotless and empty of tasks.

  With nothing left to do—

  She must have fallen asleep without realizing it.

  She lay there for a while.

  Then the large, embroidered doors creaked open.

  A golden-haired girl slipped into the room.

  She moved quietly, hands clasped behind her back as she approached the sleeping maid. She circled her once. Then again. Leaning in, tilting her head, popping in and out of view—

  Like she was inspecting something particularly interesting.

  Or particularly adorable.

  Without warning, she yanked her sleeve back, drew her arm up dramatically—

  “WAAAAAAAAKE UP!”

  A sharp knock landed squarely on Lilia’s head.

  Lilia jolted awake with a yelp—

  Only to be met with Ariel’s bright giggles ringing through the room.

  Lilia blinked, still half-disoriented.

  heat rushed to her face as she pushed herself up. She opened her mouth to explain, but the words tangled on the way out, collapsing into nervous stutters instead.

  Ariel, on the other hand, laughed even harder.

  Lilia sighed quietly, shoulders drooping, already bracing herself.

  After a moment, she lowered her gaze to the floor.

  “Sorry…” she murmured.

  Ariel stepped closer and tapped her lightly on the shoulder with her fingers.

  “There, there.“

  “No need to apologize,” she said easily. “You’re just a kid. It’s normal to fall asleep.”

  Lilia knew she wasn’t wrong—but it was still her duty. And still—

  “Don’t call me a kid,” she muttered under her breath, barely aware she’d said it aloud.

  “I’m older than you…”

  Ariel’s laughter stopped.

  A wide grin slowly spread across her face.

  “What was that?”

  Lilia stiffened.

  “N–NOTHING!” she blurted out.

  Too late.

  Ariel lunged forward and tackled her to the floor.

  Lilia let out a startled gasp, hitting the jade tiles hard. She struggled, scrambling awkwardly, trying to crawl away, but Ariel was already on top of her, pinning her down with effortless enthusiasm.

  Ariel had been doing this ever since the first day they’d met.

  As Lilia twisted, her hand brushed the back of her head.

  It came away wet.

  Her breath caught.

  That can’t be…

  Ariel wasn’t strong enough to hurt her.

  “Wake up.”

  The voice was quiet.

  Familiar.

  A knight’s voice—young, steady—someone she remembered.

  “Wake up?” Lilia whispered, confusion threading into fear.

  Ariel was standing over her now, staring down.

  “Is something wrong?” the princess asked.

  The voice grew louder.

  Urgent.

  “LILIA—WAKE UP!”

  The sound tore through the memory—

  And the world splintered apart.

  ***

  Lilia woke to the sound of grass being torn apart—and Ryn screaming her name.

  Her head ached.

  The fading remnants of Ariel’s flames scorched the ground around them, scattering embers through the grass, the only source of light

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  “LILIA, GET UP—! Take Ariel and r—”

  The rest of his words were cut off.

  A massive tail burst out of the darkness and struck him mid-sentence, whipping him through the air like a discarded doll.

  Before Lilia could even process it, a flash of gold tore forward through the flying debris.

  Ariel lunged forward, managing to catch Ryn just before he was thrown completely away. The impact sent them both crashing into the nearby ruins, stone shattering as the camp was obliterated in the process.

  The world shook.

  Lilia tried to push herself up—but the ground spun violently beneath her. Her ears rang, vision blurring, her body refusing to cooperate.

  Ryn and Ariel were somewhere behind her in the ruins to her left, she'd heard the crash but couldn't turn to look.

  She had really thought things would be different.

  She’d asked Ryn to teach her to be useful, to stop being someone who only stood behind others.

  She wanted to change. She needed to.

  But when the aberrations had appeared in the temple, and now, whatever this thing was,

  She still couldn’t move.

  The creature loomed before her.

  It was massive, lizard-like in shape, its body low and coiled, scales catching faint traces of light like broken glass. Its jaw stretched far wider than it should have been, rows of sharp, uneven teeth glinting even in the darkness. A heavy tail dragged behind it, carving a deep line through the torn grass.

  The creature stepped into the dying firelight.

  Its breath came hot and wet.

  It was right in front of her.

  Mouth agape.

  Lilia stood frozen, shock locking her limbs in place, her mind screaming for her body to move—

  But she couldnt.

  A scream tore out, and a flash of white light exploded across her vision.

  The creature reeled as the blast struck its scaly neck, snapping its head violently to the side and sending its massive body tumbling backward through the grass.

  Ryn sprinted forward, grabbed Lilia by the arm, and hauled her away from the beast—dragging her toward Ariel.

  Ariel was already on one of her knees, one hand braced against the ground.

  The other trembled violently, fingers spread and glowing faintly as dying sparks of light slipped between them.

  Her breathing was ragged. Sweat plastered golden strands of hair to her face

  She looked up as they reached her, eyes unfocused, struggling to track movement.

  Lilia barely had time to register it.

  All she could think was—

  The only reason she was still standing.

  Was because someone else had acted first.

  Ryn straightened after laying Lilia down, jaw tightening as he sucked in a breath.

  “Tsk.”

  The creature was already hauling itself upright, scales scraping as it shifted its weight. Its tail dragged a deep groove through the grass, slow and deliberate, as if it were testing the space around it.

  Ariel’s voice wavered as she spoke, still struggling to steady her breathing.

  “This aberration… It’s stronger than the one that hunted Lilia and me in the forest.”

  She swallowed, eyes fixed on the thing’s silhouette.

  “And I—I think that one was a faded chimera.”

  Ryn’s gaze flicked toward her for half a second, then back to the creature.

  “Is that so,” he said flatly.

  His grip tightened around his sword.

  “And isn’t this exactly what you were trying to avoid, Ariel?”

  Ariel pushed herself fully upright. Her shoulders shook as she brought a hand to her chest.

  “I—”

  The creature’s head tilted.

  Just slightly.

  Its jaws parted, strings of saliva catching the dim light from Ariel’s fading glow.

  Then the creature exploded into motion.

  Its jaws snapped shut where Ariel had been standing seconds earlier, the impact sending dirt and stone flying. Ryn threw himself forward without thinking, slamming into Ariel and shoving her out of the way with all his remaining strength.

  They hit the ground hard—rolling, skidding—

  And then they were separated.

  Ryn landed to one side, breath knocked from his lungs.

  Ariel slid across the torn grass to the other.

  And Lilia,

  Lilia remained directly in front of it.

  The creature straightened, towering now, its green eyes flicking between the three of them as if weighing its options.

  For several long seconds, nothing moved.

  No wind.

  No sound.

  No breath but their own.

  Then the lizard spun.

  Its massive tail tore through the air, smashing into the ground with brutal force—ripping up grass, stone, and ruin alike as debris exploded outward.

  Ryn reacted first.

  He yanked his sword up with one hand and turned his body sideways as the tail struck. The impact rattled through him, nearly tearing the blade from his grip, but he let himself be thrown backward instead of taking it head-on. He hit the ground hard, rolled, and forced himself to his feet before the creature could follow up.

  Ariel moved almost at the same time.

  She twisted aside, her body responding faster than thought—speed and perception sharpened by her blessing. The tail tore past where she’d been standing, close enough that the displaced air burned against her skin.

  Lilia didn’t have any of that.

  Up until barely a month ago, she’d been nothing more than a maid. No training. No enhanced senses. No instincts honed for battle.

  The tail slammed into her side with a sickening crack.

  The force knocked the air from her lungs and sent her flying across the grass. She hit the ground hard, rolling until she finally came to a stop in a shallow depression torn into the earth.

  Something inside her broke.

  She knew that much.

  Strangely, the pain didn’t come right away.

  If anything, there was only a hollow, sinking sadness.

  “Lilia!” Ariel screamed.

  She sprinted toward her without thinking—without looking back.

  “Ariel, don’t!” Ryn shouted.

  "It's baiting you—"

  Too late.

  The aberration's body uncoiled like a whip, jaws splitting open impossibly wide as it lunged for Ariel's exposed back—

  She planted her feet and spun to face it, teeth clenched. Both palms came up, light already gathering between her fingers.

  Two beams of concentrated fire slammed into the creature's open mouth.

  The explosion thundered through the clearing.

  The aberration reeled backward, its jaw rupturing under the force, smoke and shattered scales spraying outward as it roared in pain.

  Ariel bit her lip hard, tasting blood, but she didn’t pause.

  She rushed to Lilia’s side and scooped her up, careful but desperate. Lilia groaned weakly as Ariel’s arm slid beneath her, the movement sending a sharp jolt through her shattered side.

  Ryn stumbled toward them.

  The aberration’s sweeping tail had torn through most of the lingering white flames from Ariel’s blessing. The last flicker sputtered—

  —and went out.

  Darkness rushed back in all at once, swallowing them completely.

  For a heartbeat, they dared to hope.

  That Ariel’s attack had worked.

  That it was over.

  Then a screech ripped through the dark—broken, rasping, furious.

  The creature was still alive.

  Ryn tightened his grip on his sword, bracing it in his one remaining arm, feet shifting into a defensive stance despite the pain from his side.

  Ariel pulled Lilia closer, arms tightening around her as she backed toward Ryn. Her hands were still shaking from the pain of her vow, light flickering weakly between her fingers before sputtering out.

  It hurt.

  Somewhere in the darkness ahead, scales dragged across stone.

  Closer.

  Closer.

  The creature was done toying with them.