章 32: Chapter 28: Emperor Alastor.
Chapter 28: Emperor Alastor.
Elizabeth's POV
What could have made Victoria that mad?
"I don't understand why Victoria would be lashing like that inside there! Something must've happened!" I told Tobias who was occupied on making sure the layers of the earth wall were strong enough to withhold whatever attack Victoria did.
"Tobias, can we go out now? What if she's in danger?" I pulled onto the gloves on his hands and he chuckled hearing my words.
"The general in danger? That's rather impossible, your highness. If there's someone in danger it would be the people that even attempted to attack the general." (Tobias) told me, making my heart be at ease knowing that Victoria is good at avoiding danger.
She has shown me her prowess at the art of fighting back when the assassins attacked me in the carriage, perhaps a few times before without me noticing in my early years but at the same time I wanted to get out of the forsaken barrier to see it for myself.
To see her safe.
Yet I knew I wouldn't risk my position of safety, giving Tobias and the other knights working hard to protect me to be hurt so I should listen to their orders.
"Everything became quiet, Sir Tobias! I think the fight is over. We could only feel the first layer of the earth barrier being destroyed other than that there is no more damage." One of the earth magic user knights reported and we could breathe a sigh of relief. The oxygen here is getting a little low.
"Alright, prepare for any kind of magic attack and hold onto your weapons. We'll be laying down the earth barrier in fifteen seconds." (Tobias) orders, and the rest follows.
They all let the earth barrier down, the debris turning into sand.
"Hah…"
A cold mist covers the entire room, we could see the once drenched floor now turned into a flat ice slippery surface and a man standing in front of the door.
"Cold… it's cold." I shivered, my dress was not one for this level of cold. The man stood still with his fur clock, tired eyes staring into the open door of the council room.
"..." (Victoria) was on her knees, behind her were many people. Soldiers whom I didn't know and Count Nikolai who was cowering in fear but still he did his best to kneel.
The Count and Victoria kneeling?
"Victoria!" I yelled out, I wanted to run towards her in a hurry but stopped due to the slippery ice surface that was in front. The mysterious man noticed me and frowned.
"Princess…" (Victoria) muttered out in dismay, looking like she wanted to stand up and run to me but something was stopping her from doing that.
"M-My Emperor."
I turned around and heard the other knight's gasp in shock, their armors clanking as they kneeled upon the icy cold floor looking serious. They did not mind the cold, slowly snow fell inside of the hall. "Welcome home, emperor! We greet you with the utmost respect and honor!"
The Emperor, my father?
He's that man the winter seems to follow. Stood six feet tall, black hair with gray strands a sign of his old age but still the emperor looked young and handsome just-
"Are you my father?" I asked my head turning to him, my eyes staring into his eyes. The expression on his face daunted, first he seemed interested, soon it was lost in a matter of a few seconds.
We had the same color of silver, while mine was still full of life.
Those pairs of silver eyes seemed to be dead and tired.
"You look just like her."
"???"
Look just like who? Could he mean my mother?
"Did I come at a bad time, to see you two acting like children fighting inside my home and to risk my daughter's safety." (Emperor Alastor) says with a hoarse voice and the two keep their heads down further.
Victoria and Count Nikolai's body stiffened hearing his words. The aura and presence he gave, my first impression of it, was that he was scary and an intimidating man.
"Emperor you've arrived so early-"
"Is that wrong?"
"No! No! I'm sorry but you must know this woman beside me has committed atrocious crimes-!" (Count Nikolai) started to explain the accusations that Victoria might have made. Each sentence that came out of his mouth made me angry, he dare suspects Victoria of doing all of these things like-
Forgery, abandoning her position on the military post because the law stated that anyone who was able to fight is required to join the war.
"The reason why we lost the war is because she did not do her duty of being the general before! Instead she stayed and played being the housemaid for the princess!" He proudly preached.
I wanted to rush at him, I gritted my teeth in anger.
"You sucky son of a-" I muttered in anger, planning to walk over and give him a piece of my fist, no matter if my fight caused a little bruise or none it will make!
I wanted to shut Count Nikolai up!
The Emperor stood still before walking with ease, not slipping on the ice that he seemed to have made. I was amazed because that was a feat he was doing in boots that were not slippery proofed.
It was like he was one with the ice.
"Stand up, Victoria." (Emperor Alastor) ordered Victoria to stop kneeling, I could see a faint red on her knees as she stood up to face my father. "You are excused, I will give proper consequences for whatever Count Nikolai did and this is to be kept a secret."
"My lord-"
"The soldiers behind will suffer the same fate as the Count. They ambushed you, did they not?" (Emperor Alastor) asked Victoria who nodded, looking guilty glancing behind the young soldiers that were wrapped around this whole ordeal.
"I only ask for them to be treated, a few are wounded. They are young and inexperienced, and were only a victim in Count Nikolai's ploy to have me in the light of wrong." (Victoria) glares at Count Nikolai who looks away, seeing that the king was not moving towards his side.
"Give them another chance besides they did no harm to me, emperor." she pleads with my father who looks at the soldiers behind them, in the very further back of the room, unable to look their ruler in the eyes.
"I am so screwed."
"Please emperor, forgive us."
"I can't be executed not now… my family would be livid."
Fear…
I could smell and detect how scared they were.
"They will be taken back to the military academy, let them learn and memorize important figures. Our former general has retired to take care of my daughter and thus was excused from the IXX Law of Militants." (Emperor Alastor) snapped his finger, the cold mist that surrounded the room was now gone.
The ice melts, turning into water.
"Clean up this mess and I expect the council room to be the way it should be." The emperor ordered, the only present servant there was Victoria who I just noticed was holding a long polearm weapon with a sharp curved blade laying on the top.
"Whoa…"
The blade shined through the morning light, making me amazed of how she could wield such a heavy looking weapon. I wanted to hold it, but I remembered where we were and who was in our presence.
"Princess if you don't mind waiting a bit for me to clean up some things around here…" (Victoria) goes over to me and apparently she'll be the one cleaning all of this mess. "I'll be over in a minute so why don't you- get to know the emperor more?"
Get to know him more?
I didn't know what to feel after hearing her suggestion. I am not against it but I just can't help but feel afraid of being close to my 'father's' presence.
The way he stares at me is just weird- and I feel uncomfortable.
Emperor Alastor heard everything Victoria said, I could see him sighing before rubbing the temples on his head. "We need not to waste time, I have a kingdom to run after the destruction the war left upon our kingdom."
"The reason why we lost, is my fault."
"My lord it's not your fault-" (Victoria) calls out but he just walks away, leaving me and a couple of other soldiers stunned at how not only his magic is strong, terrifyingly cold and lonely.
My maid bites her lip looking sorry for me, I shake my head and hold her hand instead. Reaching for it I realized it was cold as ice, wet and rough.
Victoria may have suggested trying to try and get to know my father, but what is the use of it if he is not going to do the same to me?
"I'll just wait for you… to finish cleaning. I don't want to be alone with anyone else." I tell Victoria who sighs, looking at her weapon before making it disappear placing it back into her [Storage Ring].
I gave her my best puppy eyes and as usual it worked. Victoria held onto my hold and patted my head. "As you wish, princess."
Tobias and my other guards escorted Count Nikolai.
"Apologies but you're going to need to come with me and your other hired soldiers with us under the emperor's order."
Count Nikolai looked angry hearing Tobias' words.
He still spouted nonsense on getting his revenge, and that his father will hear about this and it won't be soon that he'll be back in the council, making her life hell.
"It won't be long Victoria! I'll have you paying for what you did! Hey! I'm a noble, don't you dare touch me!" He started screaming and my ears were ringing from all of that noise coming out of his mouth.
"Tobias hurry up and toss him to the nearest cell!" I told Tobias who looked tired but still did his job, cuffing the count gently and I still wanted to land a punch over his face.
"Your highness you too?! I did nothing but say good things about you-! You little-!" (Count Nikolai) started making a scene. My observation of him is that he was one spoiled manchild to be even allowed into the council room, that needed people who were calm, collected, and was able to make choices with heavy burdens.
Who in the hell approved him?!
"On second thought. Tobias give him to me for a moment." (Victoria) reached out his hand to the Count.
"Hiiii! Don't hurt me I swear you're just a maid now-!" (Count Nikolai) squirmed, and are my eyes deceiving me or did he just?
"Pfft- He peed his pants." (Tobias) chuckled, nudged his friends to check out the count's pants and tried stifling in their laughter.
"Speaking ill of royalty, may you be someone of nobility will land you an eternity in prison." (Victoria) told him as she gripped into his leather vest that seemed to be worth many coins. "Don't you talk ill of the princess and future empress of the land of snow, know your worth, Nikolai."
I was expecting Victoria to throw a punch after that awesome line of her defending me but I was disappointed how she only threw him back into Tobias' arm but- still.
"Thank you, Victoria."
"Anytime, princess."
The Elite guards that were guarding the floor proceeded to help Victoria in cleaning, apparently they were there stiff as a log watching everything that happened.
I tried helping too, picking up a few broken glass but I was forced to stay in a corner because Victoria didn't let me help clean.
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