Natalia woke up to the sun shining directly on her face from the window. That light illuminated her room, which was filled with dust.
"I had drunk too much… and ended up spilling all my secrets toward Yezekael. How embarrassing!"
"But… when he told me I was spectacular …"
The first thing she noticed was her lack of bodyguards.
"…"
She sprang up.
They couldn't have… already left?
Natalia jumped out of her bed and ran out of her door. She basically glided down the stairs, reaching downstairs in a single leap.
Her family was chatting in the music room. Her professor brother played the piano very softly.
"Natalia?" Amelia said.
"You're awake early," her father noted.
"… I'm leaving the house."
"Huh?"
"What is she talking about?" Ruby laughed.
Landon continued pressing the piano's white keys.
"Where do you guys think she'll be going?" Azil added.
"Maybe the bakery."
Her voice was very upright and firm, almost as if she were giving out a command. "My servants. Where are they?"
The fervor in her voice left everybody a little bit stunned
"Those two young servants? They've already packed. They left quite a while ago," Mr. Laio said after a few seconds.
"I'll be catching up with them, then."
Natalia walked mindlessly. Her arm reached for the doorknob.
Amelia grabbed her wrist, preventing her from doing anything. Natalia quickly swiped away, escaping her sister's grasp.
"Natalia…?" Amelia looked confused. Along with everybody else.
"What do you think you're doing?" Mr.Laio's expression grew fierce.
"You guys… all think I'm just an incompetent, useless little sister… I can see it in your eyes. The way you talk. The way you belittle me! I'm sick of it! You've been kind to me all my life, Father, and although I'm incredibly grateful, maybe that's the problem. You didn't raise me with enough hardness! Because of that's you guys think I'll never amount to anything. That's when you're wrong. From now on, I'm a war criminal!" Natalia yelled out.
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
Her sudden declaration left everybody silent.
"That's right… Yezekael and Caelum. That's their names. I'm with them now. So don't go looking for me. With my command, they'll kill you in the blink of an eye!"
Before they could say anything else, she slammed the door and made a run for it.
The sweltering heat of the sun beat against her skin as she ran. She had only left with a brown backpack, stuffed with a few necessities.
She followed the path that made the most sense— a winding path through the forest that surrounded the manor, made of stone.
"Haah…"
She rested for a moment, placing her hands on her knees. She raised her hand to wipe sweat from her forehead. The incline was high around this part of the path.
"Just… how far did they go?" she grumbled.
She tied her hair up and got back up, continuing her sprint.
At the top of the hill, there was a wooden bench shrouded by trees and pleasant shade. It was there that she saw the two of them. She finally grinned.
"Caelum!"
"Yezekael!"
She yelled out the two names, her hands cupped to amplify the sound. They turned their heads.
Yezekael and Caelum squinted.
"So you changed your mind?" Yezekael smiled. He sat up in his chair.
Natalia trudged up the stone staircase, finally reaching the top. She let out a sigh of relief. Standing up tall, she finally spoke.
"I'll help you guys. I'll betray my kingdom, and save the war. The Laio family will become even more extraordinary, now that they have a traitor amongst them."
"Natalia… you do understand the risks of this, right? Joining us-"
"Don't even start. You're belittling me, just like how my family would. I'm fully aware of it. If I get caught, I'll be executed."
She sighed.
Yezekael's eyes tightened. He quickly took out his spear.
Something… someone was coming!
Clang!
The tip of his blade collided with Amelia's greatsword. The sound of the two metals clashing rang into the air.
"So… it seems like these bodyguards are competent after all…" Amelia smirked. She landed.
Ruby appeared out of nowhere, beside her sister Amelia. Her arms were crossed, her head tilted down.
"Little sister… You really have a way with words. Articulating all those emotions deep within you must've been hard. But it's time to leave that delusion and come back home!" Amelia yelled out.
She lunged forward, toward Yezekael, with an open guard, her greatsword waving loosely behind her.
She then struck with a wide swing, her blade cutting through the wind.
Woosh!
Yezekael ducked, his knees buckling. With his low ground position, he struck Amelia's knee with the other side of his spear.
He follows up closing the distance, holding the spear close to its blade.
Slsh!
A shallow cut struck her cheek.
"…"
Amelia backed away, recovering. She had never encountered such a strange way of using the spear.
Meanwhile, Ruby began walking toward Natalia, her eyes narrowing. She held a hand out, presenting a smile.
"It's time for you to stop, Natalia. Quit being foolish. Return to your life of luxury, with Father, and everyone."
Natalia's fist balled up.
"…"
Caelum stood in front of her, his AHMC rifle in hand.
"You have a chance to leave. Your sister is so precious to you that you'd go through all this trouble, yet she chose to be our accomplices. Ironic."
[Cast: Flashstep]
With terrifying speed, Ruby dashed forward, her palm stretched outward.
Bim!
White energy encased in a red light shot forward at equally alarming speeds, striking Ruby in the chest.
She flew backward.