The Lady Knight

Chapter IV: Break-ins and Balls

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His eyes nervously darted between his timepiece and the corridors.

He waited with bated breath, wedged tightly between the one of the double pillars that flanked either end of the hallway of the Western Bordeux Dungeons.

It was his good fortune that Master had been in an indulgent mood when the news of his folly had reached him. Not only had Master forgiven him for the fiasco at Derelia, but he had also miraculously given him a second chance.

A second chance to accomplish what he had failed to at first attempt.

There had been very little time to plan, but somehow, with his Master's help and that of his own henchmen, he had been able to sneak past the front guards. He had even managed to slip into the Dungeons through a side door covered in shadows - all the while skirting around the edges of danger with his heart in his mouth.

He almost got caught on several occasions. Reaching thus far had been nothing short of excruciating.

Indeed, the current security arrangement in the Dungeons was too perfect, much more stringent than it had been in the past under the leadership of the Lord President. It was almost as if his successor, his daughter the Lady Knight, took special care to keep knaves like him in mind when she redesigned the security plan.

She was very intelligent, he had to admit.

His Master, however, was nothing if not a genius. Having lived within the boundaries of the Castle for a very long time in the past, he knew and remembered his way about the Dungeons fairly well enough to devise a way to break through this impregnable fortress.

And now he, his Master's most loyal follower, was about to carry out the task that had been assigned to him and him alone, above all others. He was well aware of the honour he had been given the first time, and the fortune this second time.

He was going to make his Master proud. This time, he would not fail him.

However, this junction was the most difficult portion of his Master's plan, and the most crucial. What he was about to do within a few moments had to be done with perfect timing - not a second too soon or too late.

Three.

All the guards stationed suddenly stood at attention.

Two.

A silent signal seemed to pass through them, as they saluted and pivoted to the right.

One.

They marched out through the same side door he had first entered in a single file, and their replacements marched in simultaneously, in the same formation.

This was it. This was his chance. There was no time to lose now.

He swiftly fished out the duplicate key bunch from his pocket and jumped out of his hiding place, before sprinting headlong towards the other end of the long corridor, his eyes searching for the correct dungeon number.

143....143....143...

It was located at the very end of the hallway, chilly and deserted. The familiar rush of excitement flooded him as he fumbled through the keys in his hand for the correct key to the door. When he found it, he held it up towards the keyhole.

Now all that remained between him and his triumph was this iron-wrought door.

Without further ado, he shoved the key into the hole with sickening eagerness, feeling a heady sense of achievement intoxicate his mind. Somehow, deep down, he knew he was going to be victorious this time. He knew he was going to make his Master proud. He just knew.