The most gracious and generous Queen Dinah of Furvus granted Felix all three of the months left before the princess's coronation to complete the job. The long timeframe seemed unusual and unnecessary at first, as Felix's speed was one of the reasons people sought him out. When he was offered a horse from the queen's stables, it dawned on him. The distance between Niveus and Furvus was what called for the extended time period.
Despite that, he politely declined the horse. It was another of his master's teachings: do not accept extra help from the one who hires you. He claimed it was a measure built for both safety and pride. It was unwise to give anyone something to hold against him.
More than that, animals held a certain animosity toward Felix. He could never properly understand them, and it took too much effort to try. Because of that, he had never been taught to ride one and had been content to remain in Furvus. A horse would be more of a hindrance than a help, though it was selfish of his mind to make that choice for his feet.
He took a few extra days to gather supplies for his journey, cutting down his time to two months and roughly three weeks. Adding to that an extra day to plot his journey and rest took it down a little more than he would have liked. Getting to Niveus on foot would take nearly two months, and that was assuming nothing happened along the way.
Felix raked his fingers through his hair. If he had a horse, it might have cut his time in half.
"Sometimes, I really hate you, you know," he muttered to his master, though there was no one in the room but himself. With a sigh, he pressed his forehead to his clasped hands.
It was worth it for his freedom, wasn't it? It would all be worth it when he was free.
And when he was free, perhaps he would leave his blades behind and disappear.
With that thought in mind, he rose to his feet. He pulled the map laid out across the table toward him before folding it and stuffing it into his bag. Hesitation flickered in his chest as he stared at the bag. Frowning, he grabbed a few vials of poison from the chest below his desk and buried them at the bottom of the rucksack. Once that was settled, he swept his gaze across the room one more time. There was nothing left to pack, it seemed. Satisfied, he blew out the candle and let the room fall into darkness.
⇠⭑⭒⭑⇢
Only when Felix's feet ached enough to fall off did he truly grasp how much regret a person could feel. Leaving Furvus had been the easy part; a group of kind merchants offered to take him to Kaifel, the trading post nearest to the border checkpoint. When he was comfortably riding on the back of their cart, it was easy not to miss having a horse. Though the straw clung to his clothes and hair, it provided him with something to keep his hands busy every time they stopped.
He grumbled to himself, combing his fingers through his hair. Bits of straw came away between his fingers. He shook them out with a curse.
The sun was high in the sky. At that time, the merchants always stopped for a short break to eat and water the horses. Felix took that time to get up and stretch his legs. He always preferred to eat alone, but the merchants seemed to be full of people-people: those that loved conversation and couldn't understand alone time. Unwilling to cause a fuss, he settled down in their semi-circle in the grass and gratefully took the slice of bread, cheese, and meat that he was offered.
"So, you're heading to Niveus then?" the cart driver asked. He was an older man, with a full beard and a face full of wrinkles. Every word that came out of his mouth was sincere, however. It brought a flicker of relief to Felix's clouded mind—and he couldn't deny that he hadn't hesitated to accept when the man offered to let him ride to Kaifel with them. A person who didn't breathe lies and feed on greed was a rare find these days, and Felix could never pass up the chance to linger in the presence of sincerity and peace.
Felix brought up a pleasant smile. "Yes. I'm hoping to make it in time for the coronation. I know it's not a celebration that concerns our kingdom, but I'm curious about Princess Aiko."
"Ah, I see." The old man chuckled.
"Princess Aiko?" A younger man chimed in from across the semi-circle. "I've heard about her. They say she's beautiful. Are you hoping to see her?"
The young woman beside him dug her elbow into his side, her brow furrowed and her lips pressed into a frown. He mumbled something to her, but Felix paid their conversation no mind. It was meaningless chatter.
Almost everything the merchants spoke of was meaningless chatter. Sometimes, however, they had bits and pieces of new information. Things they heard from the outer reaches that Felix couldn't catch wind of so close to the guilds or the larger cities.
Felix broke off a piece of bread. "It would be nice if I could. I don't expect to see her up close though.
"Just seeing her from the crowd would be more of a chance than anyone else in Furvus has ever had," the old man said. "It's rare for anyone to travel to Niveus these days. Her Majesty has effectively shut down travel to and from Niveus."
"So I have heard." Felix peeled off the crust of his bread. The movement was mindless, but it kept his blank in place. "I received special permission from Her Majesty. It took a bit of negotiating, but she finally agreed."
Being merchants who mainly kept to the outskirts, far from the prattle of nobles and the sickening air that populated the main cities, they seemed to be clueless as to who he was. Or more importantly, what he was. It was rare in Furvus, but it was something he treasured.
When he returned, everyone would treat him this way. When his freedom was given to him, no one would look at him like he was a thing to be used or a creature to be feared.
The merchants were clueless, and he silently thanked them for this. Somewhere in the back of his mind, the small, childish part of him fears what they would do if they found out. How they would look at him, how they would speak to them. He would no longer be a fellow traveler in their eyes.
He stuffed his shredded pieces of bread into his mouth to keep from biting down on his tongue. Soon, he promised himself. Soon, you won't have to worry about it.
As it always did, the flow of conversation moved on to other things. When their time ran out, the group moved on once again. Felix climbed back into the cart and perched himself on the edge, as far from the straw as he could be.
Upon parting ways from them, it wasn't long before his feet began to ache, screaming in protest with every step. It almost made him miss the itchy, clingy straw and stirred the fires of irritation in his chest. If he didn't walk a certain distance each day, he would never make it to Niveus's capital city of Crocea in time. He didn't know why the timing mattered, but it wasn't his place to know or to care.
He couldn't risk failing the queen and losing his one chance at freedom. On top of that, he didn't know the consequences of failure. Something about Dinah reminded him of a snake, always poised to strike. To avoid the snake's bite, it was in his best interest to chase the reward he was promised.
With that thought in mind, he pushed himself onwards. Furvus's mountainous landscapes slowly faded into the sprawling forests of Niveus. Uncertain of what lay in wait within the thick undergrowth, Felix kept to the road as often as possible. When the sun began to sink behind the cover of the canopy of emerald green leaves, he finally allowed himself a moment of rest. The nights were only slightly warmer in Niveus, and the open night sky above him was speckled with millions of stars. Though the trees did block some of the view, it still felt more open than Furvus.
The days blended together in a mix of weariness and pain. He couldn't remember what life was like before the leather straps of the rucksack began cutting into his shoulders, or back when he could take a step without a rush of pain shooting up his leg.
When the tallied marks on his paper numbered sixty-six and his prepared rations were all but gone, the city of Crocea loomed in the distance. The last rays of sunlight cast golden beams across its faint silhouette, gradually swallowed up by the oncoming darkness. With the dark came the waxing moon and its court of stars once more. As weary as he was, Felix found comfort in the pale moonlight. It was one thing that had been a constant companion all the way from Furvus to Niveus.
He came to a stop, dirt scraping against the soles of his boots. Frowning, he tried to calculate the distance left to cross between the city and himself. It was difficult to tell in the dark—especially when the long, twisted limbs of the trees stuck out and partially obstructed his view. When the shadows grew too thick to see through, he released a deep sigh. It was too far to walk in one night, and his body was heavy with exhaustion.
"Sleep it is then," he murmured.
Turning his gaze toward the forest that lined both sides of the road, he tugged on the straps again and made his way closer to the trees. Closer to the city, it would be safer to camp out in the forest than on the side of the road. Though he had never personally been to Niveus, he wasn't quite sure how widespread his reputation was. In a major city like Crocea, it wouldn't surprise him if news had reached the guard. He had sixty-six days to think about a plan of action, and yet his mind still came up blank. It had been so long since he had stepped into anything new that he felt stranded. The shallow waters lapped eagerly at his feet, threatening to sweep him away with the tide if he stepped too far in.
The last time he had veered from the normalcy of life—if assassination could be considered "normal"—had been with his master by his side. Though he was an adult by all standards, that thought pulled sharply at his heartstrings. He had all the tools to continue on his own, but his hands appeared small like a child's when he looked down at them.
He shook his head. Sleep, Felix. What you need is sleep. Everything would be fine. It was the same thing he had done a hundred times before. There was no reason to hesitate, not when his freedom waited for him.
The memory of his brief time with the merchants tickled the back of his mind, bringing with it the pleasant feeling of security. That was freedom. That was what he sought.
One girl's life was a small price to pay for complete and total release from the chains that bound him.
Patching up the cracks in his resolve, he turned and made his way into the thick undergrowth of the forest. The chirping of crickets filled the silence, mingling with the soft crunch of grass and ferns beneath his feet as he walked. Silver moonlight filtered through the trees, lighting his path. As he inhaled, the scent of pine flooded his senses. Calm drifted over him.
A soft trickle of a stream came within earshot as he drew farther away from the road. Hefting his rucksack, he altered his direction and followed the gentle sound of the stream. He brushed aside low-hanging tree limbs in his path and finally emerged into a small clearing. The line of trees thinned, opening up to a patch of flattened-out grass. A brook slithered through, its edges overgrown with dark green moss.
Felix stepped into the clearing. A trail of deep-set footprints led away from the patch of grass, but their shape resembled the paws of a bear rather than the shoes of a human. Pressing his lips into a frown, he stared off in the direction of the footprints. There was no sign of the bear, and straining his ears provided him with no sounds that it was close by.
Must have stopped for a drink before moving on. He slipped his arms out of the rucksack's straps and dropped it with a sigh. The throbbing ache in his shoulders lessened in the absence of the weight. He grimaced and rubbed his shoulder. Despite that the amount of supplies had lessened as the journey carried on, the bag seemed to have gotten heavier. Throwing a glare at the rucksack, he refrained from kicking it, though the urge still lingered as he rolled his shoulders to lessen the strain.
Footsteps rustled the grass. Jolting back to the present, Felix reached for the dagger at his waist. He remained still, barely even daring to breathe in the hopes of concealing his presence.
A voice drifted toward him, soft as the evening breeze that brushed past him. His grip tightened around the hilt of the dagger.
"... time to myself. Honestly, what's so wrong with that? Sometimes, a girl just needs a nice stroll through the forest at night."
A young woman emerged from the underbrush, swiping dirt and leaves away from her scarlet cloak. Behind her, a lithe, white cat stepped out, tail swishing back and forth as it swept its gaze over the clearing. When its striking blue eyes landed on Felix, it bristled. A hiss tore from the cat's mouth, pulling back its lips to reveal sharp fangs. The woman jumped and spun around on her heel. For a moment, their eyes met and she froze.
The moment ended with the shake of her head. She bent down and scooped up the cat, tucking it into her arms. As soon as it was secure in her hold, the cat fell still and silent. Its hissing faded into a low purr, though its eyes never left him and its tail twitched irritably.
"Forgive him," the woman said, dipping her head in a quick greeting. "Mae isn't really used to... other people."
"That's alright." Felix released the hilt of the dagger and slowly righted himself. The girl gave off an air of innocence; she was no threat. "I'm sorry to have startled both of you."
The woman lifted a hand and pushed back the hood of her cloak, moonlight illuminating her dark brown skin. Waves of mahogany brown hair tumbled down her back, interwoven with tiny braids tied off by gold bands. Ribbons of gold pulled back the hair from her round face, framing it with a few loose strands that hung in front of her ears. She studied him with narrowed hazel eyes, her lips pressed together in a thin line.
He barely noticed when she dropped the cat and shooed him back into the forest. On top of that, he wasn't sure how long he had been standing so rigidly stiff that his muscles began to ache.
"If you don't mind, may I ask what you're doing here?" She clasped her hands behind her back and stepped closer. Gold bands around her wrists clinked together behind her back. "You're so far from the road. Are you lost?"
Felix curled his fingers against his palms, digging his nails into his skin. Focus. Think. "I could ask the same of you."
"Oh, me?" She drew back, chuckling a little—a sound that carried that softness of the breeze again. "Just a lady out for a stroll. With her trusty cat for protection, of course."
"Of course," he mumbled along. Her innocence was intoxicating. Everything about her—from the way she carried herself, to the inflection in her voice, to the look in her eyes—was small. Angelic. When she smiled up at him, the pieces clicked together.
She carried herself like a liar.
His gaze immediately dropped to the sash around her waist, searching for a hint of a hidden weapon. There were no obvious bumps or awkward folds. Her loose-fitting cloak obscured most of her form, and he inwardly cursed the idea that it would work in her favor should she be concealing any kind of weapon.
"I'm just a traveler," he finally managed to say, lifting his gaze again to meet hers.
She leaned in slightly. "Most travelers keep to the road at night, don't they?"
"I was wary of bandits."
"This close to Crocea?"
"I'm a cautious man."
"I see, I see." Seemingly satisfied, she withdrew and spun around. Her hand trailed across the trees as she passed by, making her way back into the thick of the forest. She stopped suddenly, throwing a glance over her shoulder. "Do be careful of this place though," she said. "The air here is heavy with magic. I hear it stokes the fires of the soul." With that, she pulled her hood back over her head and disappeared into the brush.
When she was gone, he slumped against the tree with a sigh. Frustration clawed at the outskirts of his mind, tearing through the bewildered buzz left behind by his exhaustion.
He couldn't read her.
Normally, people's intentions and desires were laid out before them in the way they acted. Talking, standing, moving, gesturing, looking, all of it told him something.
But this girl was completely blank. A brilliant flame burned in her eyes, but nothing else fed him hints about her intentions.
His heart thudded in his chest. When was the last time he felt truly intimidated by a person? When was the last time he met a blank?
"Do be careful of this place though," she said. "The air here is heavy with magic. I hear it stokes the fires of the soul."
He looked up, hoping to catch sight of her red cloak again, but she was long gone.
Fun fact: while the scenes of this chapter didn't really show up until slightly later in the process, it does have some lines in it that have bouncing around in my head since the beginning. Which lines? I'll leave that up to you to figure out if you want to. If you can though, they're quite fun.
We got a new character this time! Who is this suspiciously adorable yet slightly scary young women? And what's the deal with the cat? I don't know, the cat's just a cat, he does what he wants.
See you next update! :D