Alliance of Forces: Celesia and Lina Cooperate to Uncover the Conspiracy

"I am Lena Etherlin. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, Lena," replied Celesia politely.

"From now on, Lena will be your personal maid. I hope you both become good friends," said Catherine enthusiastically.

"Then I'll leave you two to get to know each other first. Goodbye," said the Empress, leaving with her guard. Celesia and Lena remained silent, staring at each other nervously.

"Um... sorry, I'm not good at talking to people, so please don't feel uncomfortable," Celesia said hesitantly.

"Don't worry, I'm actually a bit introverted too, so I'm not good at talking to people either," Lena replied shyly, trying not to cause any concern for Celesia.

Celesia smiled and suddenly took Lena's hand to quickly lead her to her room. Lena was surprised by her swift reaction.

"Welcome to my room. How about we sit down and get to know each other more?" Celesia said eagerly.

"Oh... okay," Lena replied, taken aback.

They sat on the bed, and Celesia started talking. "Let me introduce myself. I'm Celesia Ryoger, the eldest princess of the Grand Duchy of Ryoger. I'm ten years old, I love chocolate sweets, simple and comfortable clothes. I use water serra and I love sword fighting. Now, your turn."

"I'm Lena Etherlin, the eldest daughter of Count Etherlin. I'm ten years old, I love lemon sweets and writing. I use air serra and I'm good at archery," Lena responded nervously.

"So you're a count's daughter. Why do you want to be my lady-in-waiting?" Celesia asked curiously.

"Our family is on the verge of bankruptcy due to an accident at our crystal mine. So I decided to help my family, and the Empress suggested I become your lady-in-waiting," Lena answered sadly.

"That's a noble goal of yours, to work for your family," Celesia said optimistically.

"R-really?" Lena said in astonishment.

"Yes, you're already mature for your age," Celesia said with a smile.

"I think you're mature too. You've been through a lot since you were little," Lena said sadly.

"Do you know my story?" Celesia was surprised.

"I don't think anyone doesn't know about your past," Lena replied.

"Oh, really? Never mind that now. What do you say we become friends? Call me Celesia from now on," Celesia said excitedly, taking Lena's hands with enthusiasm.

"What? I can't do that," Lena said in surprise, indicating her reluctance.

"No, I insist," Celesia said firmly.

"Alright, I'll try," Lena couldn't resist her determination, ending up becoming Celesia's first friend.

"That's good. I hope we'll spend happy times together in the future," Celesia said happily.

Lena smiled after hearing her words, glad that she was accepted first despite her status. She began to relax little by little beside Celesia.

"Celesia, what's your dream?" Lena asked curiously.

Celesia paused for a moment before answering, "All I want is to live a normal life like everyone else and not be a threat to them." She looked out the window where the sunlight filtered through the curtains, illuminating the room.

"And you, Lena?" Celesia asked, looking directly into her eyes.

Lena sighed quietly and said, "I want to restore my family's dignity and help rebuild our wealth. But I also wish to find a place where I can be myself, without fear or worry."

"I'm confident you'll achieve that," Celesia said confidently, making Lena feel warm.

"I hope so," Lena smiled.

Suddenly, Celesia stood up and said, "Let's take a walk around the palace for a bit. I feel like we need some fresh air." Lena agreed enthusiastically, and they left the room to stroll through the beautiful palace gardens, where diverse flowers adorned the place with their sweet fragrance and vibrant colors.

As they walked and enjoyed the beauty of the garden, they heard a faint sound like a whispering breeze. In an instant, an arrow appeared out of nowhere, speeding towards Celesia. Lena quickly pushed her to the ground, narrowly avoiding the arrow.

"Celesia!" Lena cried out, checking on her friend's safety. Celesia got up, still shocked by what had happened, and stared at the arrow lodged in the wall.

"Are you okay?" Lena asked anxiously, her hands trembling.

"Yes, I'm fine, thanks to you," Celesia replied, trying to regain her balance. The two girls quickly looked around them, searching for any signs indicating the source of the arrow, but there was no one nearby.

"They must be traitors. Lena, we must capture them quickly before they escape," Celesia said seriously.

Lena looked at Celesia with determination and nodded. "You're right. Let's use our abilities."

Lena began using her air serra to enhance her vision and search for any unnatural movement among the trees and bushes. She spotted two people moving swiftly between the trees and signaled to Celesia.

"There, behind those trees!" Lena exclaimed.

"Let's each go after one," Celesia said.

Celesia started using her water serra to manipulate the water from a nearby fountain. She formed strong currents and directed them towards one of the traitors. The traitor tried to resist, but Celesia was quick and determined, trapping him in a watery vortex.

At the same time, Lena used her air serra to create strong winds that pushed the other traitor towards Celesia. They tried to resist, but soon found themselves trapped between air and water vortexes.

"Surrender!" Celesia shouted, her determination clear in her voice. "You can't escape."

Two other figures suddenly appeared behind them, swiftly delivering a quick blow to the back of Lena's neck, causing her to immediately lose consciousness. Celesia turned to her in astonishment, "Lena!" But she too was swiftly sedated by a fast-acting anesthetic, causing her to lose consciousness instantly.

The traitors were freed from the vortexes, quickly carried them and left the royal palace immediately.

"They are really reckless girls," said one of them.

"Silence, we have to go quickly to headquarters. The president must be waiting," said another.