All through the night—or what was left of it—I replayed that scene over and over in my head. We were about to fight the queen, Stellio and I, then the prince arrived to help us, but suddenly the queen was killed and we were thrown into these maximum-security cells.
It's inhuman, honestly, and unfair. We didn't kill the queen, but of course I'm sure the nobility of the Realm of Davidova is as corrupt as my hard drive after downloading movies. Yes, I pirate movies—I'm not paying for a million subscriptions when I can just watch everything for free.
I stayed locked in that cell for I don't know how many hours, staring at the camera, my eyes full of despair. I couldn't sit down, and my legs—especially the soles of my feet—hurt, painfully so. Suddenly, the door opened. Soldiers stood outside, and I saw Stellio and the chained prince being escorted by guards. One of them spoke to me in a stern voice:
"It's time for your execution."
He grabbed me by the collar and threw me out of the cell. I fell to my knees, only to take a kick straight to the face.
"Stand up!"
The prince glared at the guard with anger.
"You don't treat a lady like that!"
"Silence, traitor."
A fist slammed into his stomach. I got back up and looked at the prince. I didn't say anything, but I tried to thank him with a few facial expressions. Then I turned toward Stellio. Her chin was raised, proud and confident. I couldn't understand where that confidence came from. Did she have a plan?
I didn't know, but eventually we made it outside. They led us out of the royal palace and toward a stage. On it stood an apparatus… a guillotine? I remembered this thing being used against nobles during the Era of Fracture, a time when a great empire fell due to multiple rebellions. This weapon was used to execute high nobles.
You know, it's been less than two weeks since I woke up, and people have tried to kill me several times already… always in different ways, of course. And now, for the second time, they're trying to kill me by public execution. Can't I get some peace, or what? I just hope Lesky and the others will find a way to save me. I pray they haven't abandoned me.
We were forced to our knees on the stage. I saw the furious crowd glaring at us, and a Zyvari noble staring us down. He looked every bit the corrupt noble, with the same smug smile, the same posture. He hadn't even said a word yet and I already hated him to the core.
"People of Davidova, we truly live in troubled times… Our queen was assassinated by the Prince and two Babylonians. This prince faked a grave illness in order to kill her… Unfortunate, isn't it?"
The prince was outraged and shouted,
"That's a lie! It's nothing but lies! You can't do this!"
A guard behind him struck the back of his head.
"Silence!"
The guard barked. The crowd turned rabid against the prince, and I saw trash being thrown at his head.
"Here, citizens, we also have two Babylonians… First, the infamous Stellio, the empire's notorious thief."
In response to this introduction, she smiled and lowered her head as though bowing nobly.
"Thank you for the introduction. You couldn't have put it better."
I saw the noble grit his teeth, then turn toward me.
"And next we have this… Felkaï. She's not known. What's even your real name?"
"Ro—"
He slapped me across the face.
"No one cares about your name!"
I growled. What a complete bastard. If only my wrists were free.
"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for… the execution. Who shall we begin with, dear people? You decide."
As I expected, the crowd shouted the prince's name. It was logical—he was the well-known figure, the one they most wanted dead first.
The prince struggled against his chains, but a guard forced him into the slot where his head would go… right under the guillotine's blade. I turned away, but just the sharp sound of the blade falling was enough to make me imagine the pain it must have caused.
"And now, on to the Babylonians… The soldiers and allies of the Deadhorses who took everything from us!"
I hear shouting as they move toward Stellio and force her to stand. She keeps smiling, confident, refusing to let the crowd see any fear on her face. I guess if she has to go, it's with dignity—not with shame and humiliation.
Suddenly, a man rushes onto the stage, and I see smoke rising from a large building in the distance.
"A fire has broken out near the west gate!"
"What?!"
the noble exclaims. I look toward the flames—could that be… thanks to Lesky? I hope so. This distraction, however, gives Stellio the chance to slip away from the guards and come to my side.
"Catch her!"
She can't untie me just yet, but the two nearest guards who charge at us each take a swift kick to the head, dropping instantly. Stellio's movements are unbelievably acrobatic in combat.
"Alright, Roxy, let's run."
She grabs my arm and pulls me along, sprinting faster than I thought possible. The guards can't keep up, and she leads me toward the east gate.
"I'm guessing your friends are here to rescue you."
After a short sprint, I spot Amr in the distance with Ashley and Lesky, who is still spreading the fire.
"There!"
"Got it!"
Stellio says as she reaches them, then frees my wrists.
"You're… Stellio?"
Amr says, completely shocked. Lesky, on the other hand, doesn't seem to recognize her, which doesn't surprise me since she never really lived in my era.
"Charmed, darling…"
Then she looks at Ashley.
"Oh, Ash, you're here too."
She smirks lightly and gestures toward Ashley's axe.
"As always… You could've at least said goodbye before heading to Abundance. We could've made the journey together."
Stellio pulls a small grimace.
"Sorry not sorry, but I'm a loner… for now. Anyway, let's run."
"There they are!"
a soldier yells, and we all take off. Thankfully, the gate out of the capital was open, and we managed to escape into a nearby forest. Thanks to the fire Lesky started in their capital, they'll probably throw most of their forces into putting it out.
"What now?"
I ask the group.
"We keep heading toward Abundance."
"I'll come with you,"
Ashley says, still gripping her axe like a lumberjack. Our eyes then turn toward Stellio.
"Will we have the honor of your company, Stellio?"
She looks thoughtful—though whether it's real or an act, I can't tell.
"Well… Since there's not much of the road left… and because… I'm extremely interested in you, Roxy… I'll keep following."
Stellio placed a finger on my cheek, her leather glove brushing against my skin, making me blush with embarrassment. It's always like that when people touch me. Suddenly, she looked behind her and, on instinct, hurled a throwing knife toward a tree. It hit someone—I knew from the groan of pain that she'd nailed her target.
I turned around and saw the figure wearing the same clothes as the queen's assassin. He countered by flinging knives at us, which I barely managed to dodge—they were clearly aimed at me. Then, just as suddenly, he vanished.
Stellio turned to me.
"You're… really fascinating, Roxy."
In a large hall, Romuald paced back and forth, deep in thought. Several people watched him; he was waiting for something. Suddenly someone approached him, a knife wound in his knee where a throwing knife had lodged.
"Where is Roxy's head…" he said, filled with rage.
"I missed…" the man replied.
Romuald continued to stare at him with the greatest hatred in the world.
"I paid you well… For a member of an 'assassin' guild, you're not very good!"
"I'm sorry… We'll reimburse you."
"It's too late… A failure is a failure… I don't blame you."
"Really?" the assassin said, slowly rising despite the pain.
"Yes… Really… I won't ask for any refund."
"You… you're too kind." He smiled and looked at the man with a noble air.
"I've already revealed the guild's objective to you, haven't I?"
The assassin forced a smile and swallowed; it was a fake smile, an attempt to comfort himself with the idea that nothing would happen to him.
"The objective is… for you to pass all the trials to amass as much power as possible."
"Yes, such is the power of the Deadhorse of Glory… but that's not all."
"Oh? Really?" the man swallowed.
"This guild's purpose is to eliminate Roxy Hearts because… if she dies, the world will become… like it was before. It's a sacrifice we must make if we want to restore the old world…"
Suddenly a knife was driven into the assassin's chest.
"That's why… I tolerate no mistakes. A failure is a failure, and failure is unforgivable. I cannot allow this to pass."
Romuald pulled the knife from the man's body and then slit his throat. He took a handkerchief and wiped his bloodied blade.
"Very well… We'll need to move soon. There's one day left before Abundance. Let's set out and make sure we kill Roxy."
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Lore informations
Era of Fracture : The Emerald Empire, a vast empire ruling all across Sano begins to collapse under the weight of numerous rebellions. Regions and tribes break away to form their own states. The era ends when the empire's capital falls to the Kingdom of Baumgarten. (504 to 904)
Realm of Davidova (Updated) : A country part of the north in the tundra, they were part of the Coalition against the republic, they are mostly populated by semi-humans.The capital city is "Pasternak".A long time ago, the Realm of Davidova was a big empire who was in the tundra but power fights over loyalty made it loose a lot of it's territory.Their government is a Monarchy, the monarchy of the Medvedev who rules on the Realm of Davidova since 400 years. During the Dark Age. During the Dark Age, the country fractured and most hybrids formed different tribes in town all across the country. Pasternak is really what is left of the Realm of Davidova but they try to capture and execute any babylonians they see, seeing them as allies from the titans
Dominion Guild : Founded by Romuald, this guild have two goals, putting an end to the Babylone's games by killing Roxy Hearts and win all the trials to become the strongest team