Admiration

"They're talking to each other, but they are so quiet I can't hear it from here."

"What do you think they're talking about?"

"The heroes most likely."

"Come to think of it, Mahal na Reyna and Prinsepe Aran never told us why they summoned the four heroes, right?"

"Yeah, but considering they wanted to keep it a secret from the civilians to prevent chaos, the reason could be a pretty big deal."

After a while the knights watched the Reyna go over the edge of the platform.

"There will be changes with our planned raid towards Kruule today. I will address them after our discussion. Until then, stand by and be ready to head out."

Following Reyna Amaya's orders, the knights stood in a dignified manner with a powerful stomp. And then, they all put the palm of their right hands onto their left chest synchronically.

"Masusunod!" The knights roared in unison.

Before they headed out of the scene, Lyrica requested to have Bagel sent back to her mother with an escort.

"Eh, I can't go with you? I can't?" Bagel asked with a sad look on her face.

"Sorry Bagel," Lyrica replied in a soft voice as she crouched down to look at the little beastman face-to-face. "We're going to discuss something very important."

"Very important?"

"It's a secret, Bagel. You know what a secret is, right?"

Bagel nodded with a resounding yes.

"A secret is a secret because only a few people know about it. If you learned what that secret is, then it's no longer a secret, isn't that right."

"Yes."

"And that's why I'm gonna have you go back to your mother. But don't worry," Lyrica placed her left hand onto Bagel's head and began tousling her hair. "Once we agreed that we can share the secret with everyone, I'll make sure to tell you first, okay?"

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

Finally, her gloomy face disappeared and returned to her usual cheerful look.

"Okay! I'll head home for now!"

"I have someone who will send her back to her Ina." Spoke Kael who came just in time along with a Malayas who volunteered into sending Bagel home.

They watched as Bagel and the knight disappeared from their sight. Shortly after that, Amaya and the others went ahead to the mayor's office, where the Alkalde is waiting.

"Welcome, Mahal na Reyna Amaya, Prinsepe Aran, Kael, and...?"

The man who is oblivious of Lyrica's name looked at her as though waiting for her to state her own name. She picked up the sign and said, "Lyrica."

"I see, Lady Lyrica, come in."

Having received the invitation from the Alkalde, Lyrica helped herself sit on one of the couches present in the room. Coincidentally, she's facing Prinsepe Aran on his seat who happened to be staring back at her.

"What?"

"What?"

There's no particular reason why they are looking at one another. If anything, this occurred only because they happen to sit on two separate couches placed to mirror one another.

Lyrica let out a sigh shortly after that. "Nothing," She said in a dead tone soon after averting her contemptuous gaze from Aran. After that, Kael took everyone's attention started sharing the information he gathered.

Kael started it off on his arrival to Kabba on the same day Lyrica saw the Malayas and Riko and the others in the Forest of No Return. He came to look for the missing Malayas and the four heroes alone in Kabba, but just like in Takkot and other towns, Kabba doesn't allow foreign visitors to enter their territory.

It got him wondering, "Why all of a sudden are they keeping people from entering Kruule?" At that point, he began suspecting that it has something to do with the missing Malayas and the four heroes. And so, he tried to find another way to get it.

Because of a certain incident that left Kabba in ruins, there are a lot fewer soldiers roaming the town, hence he was able to sneak in and try to blend with the residents. However, in fear that talking to random people might reveal his identity, he decided to just observe the town quietly and hope that someone would eventually unintentionally leak information in his presence.

While waiting patiently, Kael realized something strange.

"Are they grieving or what?"

He saw a family and their mother carrying a dead man, the woman's husband. Tears are overflowing from their eyes, and yet they are sporting a really strange smile. It felt forced, it felt out of place, and it creeped Kael out. And then, the day passed. And another.

It was time around noon, a commotion caught Kael's attention. A family is being harassed by a high commander and his men. Kael slowly drew his rapier underneath his worn robe, but then, a terrifying scream resonated.

A girl, Lyrica, came out of nowhere and saved the day for the family. And then, the woman she saved told her everything she know, and Kael was fortunate enough to hear it all.

The four heroes are indeed in Kruule, but one of them turned into an Anino. A battle between the Anino, Uruk and his dark magic was what led to the ruination of Kabba. Uruk defeated the Anino while the other three heroes are held captive. Three years ago, Uruk put a sumpa seemingly to make everyone hate him. A curse that triggers if ever one of his people even thinks of going against him.

And then, the reason why those tears and smiles creeped him out was that it was a mix of genuine and ingenuity. The sumpa was implanted on everyone to hate Uruk, but they eventually figured out how to counter it. And that is by devoiding themselves of genuine emotions and thoughts.

At first, it was just some sort of way to retaliate against Uruk. However, from women and children, and to the elderly, doing the same thing for three years became a habit. It became a part of their being.

"Now no one could tell if their smiles are even genuine anymore. The people of Kruule are forced to sit between genuine and ingenuity."

"..."

"Kael..."

Hearing Kael's story puts a sour expression on their faces, especially Lyrica who was told all about it directly.

"They become what they are today because they have no choice."

Lyrica tried to keep it to herself, but they could see in her trembling hands her frustration. She was being frustrated because she remembered what Robert said back then.

"You're here," Robert said back in Takkot's square.

She realized that it was a call for help, but it was a little too late when she did. Robert wanted Lyrica to help them just like how she helped Riko and the others in the Forest of No Return because she was there. She was there in Kabba, but she knew she was not powerful enough to help them all alone so she had no choice but to leave, and Kael's story reminded her of this fact. That is why she's frustrated.

"Now that it's all out, let me formally address why I tagged along with Kael back here in Reilaea," Lyrica uttered after a deep breath. "I made a promise to the people I left that I would be back. And now I'm here because I want to keep that promise."

"Lyrica..."

The girl stood up before bowing in front of Amaya and started begging, "Please. Help me give them a choice. A choice to be free."

While this is all happening, Lyrica is oblivious to Aran intensely staring at her face.

'I could see the helplessness in her eyes, but more than that..."

Aran could also see that Lyrica had a bond with the people of Kruule and that gives her the determination and desire to help them.

He doesn't say this to anyone in the room, however, Aran finds Lyrica's determination admirable.