Dead or Alive

Agatha didn't know how she managed to get through the lunch. The knights had been suggesting plenty of changes to the constitution, mainly wanting to restore the tax law that Liam had prohibited.

After hearing their pleas and seeing how disappointed they were with Liam's changes, she realized that Philippe favored the army much more than the citizens.

They were used to having power and now were rebelling because Liam was trying to return power to the citizens. They couldn't accept that they had to serve the kingdom and its people.

Agatha's head hurt trying to keep up with them. She had just begun reading the constitution when Liam went missing, so she didn't really have any idea what they were talking about.

Luckily, after working at Primotheus Capital for quite a while, she knew firsthand that people wanted to be heard.

No matter who they were or how rich they were, they wanted to feel important, to be acknowledged. So instead of answering their every query, Agatha asked what they thought instead.

That way, they would feel assured that their ideas were important and being considered as they themselves discussed them. Instead of answering, Agatha listened to them talk and complain.

She let them speak, asking questions about themselves and the missions they had undertaken while carefully listening to them.

Most men liked boasting about their adventures, so it was easy to make them talk and burn some time.

Sometimes, Agatha also faked a smile and laughed as if she were interested in what they were telling her.

Soon, their lunch ended pleasantly. Once Agatha was back in her room, she took the chocolate paper where she had placed the map of the Water Fae Kingdom. There were more than ten white dots moving on the map.

The first time Agatha saw the tablet that Lady Alexa gave her, she didn't know how it worked. Fortunately, it came with instructions.

Each tablet, once ingested, acted as a tracking agent, showing their accurate locations on the map.

But it only lasted for half an hour. So she concocted a plan to give the knights additional power to make them move.

If Agatha's suspicion was right, Mingway wasn't acting alone. She knew he would report this news to his allies since it leaned in their favor. And she was right. The ten high-ranking officials began to move.

Yesterday, after analyzing the letter, she realized that besides Leonel and Liam, Ryle was missing too, along with other commanders Liam had brought from Primotheus Capital. It only made her suspicions grow. It was impossible for all of them to go missing.

Every time Agatha asked Commander Mingway, he would just say they were on a mission with Leonel. It was believable at first until she noticed how few knights were guarding the entire Orient Palace.

It was not even more than twenty when there had previously been over a hundred.

Once Agatha saw the ten dots moving in different directions within the kingdom, she became confused.

Someone went east, west, south, north, southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest. One remained inside the palace while another headed to the town.

Agatha studied the map once again and gasped, realizing it.

"They're everywhere," she said. "We're surrounded."

Because the knights were too few in the castle, it could easily be taken if they decided to attack from the outside.

But why would they try to take the palace from the outside? They could always do an inside job since they were free to roam around.

Unless they didn't just want the palace but the power that came after conquering all of it.

If they attacked from the outside, everyone would witness it. The citizens primarily. It would make them appear strong and instill fear in the townsfolk.

Agatha rubbed her temples. She didn't know who her allies were except Mr. Quaint. They were like lambs thrown into a cage full of lions. They were surrounded, and there seemed to be no escape but death.

For a few minutes, she was preoccupied. She didn't know what to do next until she remembered something. Everyone went to different locations, but when they ate with her, all of them had traces of red mud.

Some traces were still wet, while others had dried. There were also small trails that could hardly be seen anymore. But one thing was certain: all of them had traces.

It seemed their headquarters was there since all of them reported there.

Agatha didn't want to hope, but she felt that maybe Liam was there. It was just a wild guess, and she didn't have any evidence, but she still needed to try.

She couldn't be weak any longer. She wasn't the same Agatha who couldn't do anything. This time, she needed to stand and fight. If it was true that they held Liam and the others, that meant he was in trouble and needed them. Liam needed her.

But plans could only do so much. She didn't have an army to fight them, and even if she did, she didn't know how to defeat them without destroying the entire kingdom.

Evening came, and she was restless. She was contemplating how to solve this situation when the dresser opened, and Agatha and Aiden had crossed before.

King Ludwig, Lady Alexa, and Princess Hiyasmin entered the palace discreetly and faced her.

Agatha rose to her feet. Before she could stop herself, she hugged Alexa and Hiyasmin out of relief. But when she remembered what she had done, she immediately let them go.

"I'm sorry, I was just carried away. Your Highnesses, I mean Your Highness. I mean... Sorry?" Agatha awkwardly smiled.

Hiyasmin waved a hand dismissively. "No problem," she said. "You're family."

Agatha didn't know how to react to that, so she pretended she didn't hear. But her heart skipped a beat. Family.

Aiden shyly neared her, and she immediately held his hand.

"I thought you wouldn't understand the letter."

Besides what she requested to track the knights, she also wrote a cryptic message that she discreetly sent using Mr. Quaint.

Agatha couldn't send a normal one because she was scared someone would find out about Mr. Quaint and learn their plan.

"Using the names of herbal plants to ask for help was a great technique. Louise had a great time decoding the message." Ludwig commented while analyzing Agatha's room.

"How did you know there was a way into the palace?" Agatha asked.

"We grew up in a castle too, and every castle has at least a dozen secret passages," Hiyasmin said as she laid out a huge map of the Water Kingdom.

"Our time is limited," said King Ludwig. "We need to move." Then he neared them. "First things first, we need to get Aiden out of here."

All of them stared at Aiden, who stared back at them.

"I can take care of that," said Louise, who had just suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"What the… I already told you to stay in the castle," King Ludwig glared at her, but Louise just raised an eyebrow at him.

"Calm down, Ludwig. I'll leave immediately. I'll just bring Aiden along. It's safer for him. And I just want to make sure you arrive safely, that's all."

Louise looked away as she said the last sentence, a pink color blossoming on her cheeks.

Ludwig softened and embraced her, while Hiyasmin pretended to vomit.

Agatha didn't really trust anyone when it came to Aiden. Even with Liam, it took a long while before she became comfortable letting Aiden go with him.

But with Louise, she felt at ease. For some reason, it felt like she would take care of Aiden and keep him safe.

It scared Agatha how easy it was to trust her, but she didn't have any choice right now. Louise was right. Aiden was safer away from here.

She hugged Aiden before handing him to Louise.

"If anything bad happens, and I mean anything, you run, got it? You know where to hide. But if you need to fight for your life, then do it, Aiden. Promise?"

Aiden nodded and hugged Agatha once more.

Louise embraced Aiden, and Agatha watched in awe as a different color appeared in Louise's hand before they were swallowed by light and disappeared just like that.

Lady Alexa saw the shock in Agatha's eyes and smiled at her. "You'll get used to it."

Agatha couldn't believe she was eating again. Alexa had already consumed apples and blueberries. How could she eat at a time like this? Agatha had no clue.

Hiyasmin then suited up and went serious. "This looks like a normal mountain, Alex, are you sure about this? I can't sense any Faes." She was trying to make sure she was seeing what was in front of them properly.

"It's cloaked, Hiyasmin," said Alexa. "The magic has been there for a decade."

After they talked intimately inside the room, they immediately went to the forest where the red mud was.

Agatha used to go there when her mother Lorelei was still alive. She would play with her all day until sunset.

Father Henry would also join them, and they would gaze at the dark sky, looking for constellations, moons, and stars.

For a few hours, they hid behind the trees. Agatha was already drained from having to cloak her own presence.

It was near midnight when they glimpsed Mingway on the right side of the field.

He was alone. So either Agatha was wrong about her assumption that he was the mastermind behind the knights' involvement in Liam's disappearance, or, like Ludwig accused, he was already preparing to attack, which was why they were surrounding the kingdom.

They waited for a couple of minutes until Mingway was far away from them.

Agatha stayed still, holding her breath as Mingway finally stepped on the trap they had made. When he was caught, she exhaled with relief.

Mingway was trapped in a net hanging upside down from a tree. Before he could move, Hiyasmin flew and attacked with arrows coated with Enchanted Moonvine.

It was an herbal plant only found in Collosus. When Ravagers and Werebeasts were deeply wounded, it was used to help them heal quickly. This plant rendered a person unable to feel pain, but as a side effect, they couldn't move their body for several hours.

Earlier, Agatha had mentioned the red mud on the boots of the knights, and Alexa had followed their tracks while Hiyasmin prepared the traps.

"Where's Liam?" Agatha demanded, grabbing Mingway's collar once Hiyasmin put him down, motionless on the ground. His limbs were limp like delicate flowers, giving her the courage to approach him.

Mingway seemed surprised to see who was surrounding him.

"How… How…" His voice was rough but barely a whisper.

"Where's Liam?" Agatha repeated, this time holding a knife against his throat.

Mingway just smiled arrogantly and remained silent. She asked again, but when he still didn't speak, Agatha slowly sliced the knife against his throat, making him bleed. His eyes widened in disbelief.

The wound was bleeding now. Not enough to kill him immediately, but enough to show him how serious Agatha was.

"Last question, Mingway," Agatha said, "Where did you hide Liam?"

"He's…" There was a long pause before Mingway finally said, "Dead."