Lost and found
The wind blew past, Pushing the leaves back and forth, twisting and turning the branches into a wild melody.
A metallic scent hung in the air, familiar, bitter. The taste of death lingered on Lilly's tongue. The art of killing, the iron ghost that trailed her shadow, clung to her like a curse. She could still hear the heartbeat fading.
Blood poured like a fountain, staining the forest floor in crimson. It seeped into the soil, painting a silent carpet beneath the trees. Birds had stopped singing. The forest stood still, listening.
But all Lilly could hear was laughter, her own, buried deep and echoing cruelly in her mind.
"You're really so useless," a voice chuckled.
She spun around, eyes darting between trees and bushes. Nothing, just forest, just silence.
"You actually got kidnapped by a twerp like him," the laughter rang again, sharp and jagged as shattered glass.
"What's the use? All that training and you're still weak," it mocked.
Lilly turned her gaze to Markes. His body lay crumpled on the ground. A corner of paper stuck out from his coat.
She knelt down and pulled the paper free. Military operation reports. Records of Mana stone trades. Lists of raw materials harvested from monster hunts. Hunter quest success rates. Over eighty percent.
Every page spoke of the kingdom's lifeblood, its economy, its survival, its hidden power.
Flop. A letter slid from the stack and fell to the ground. A royal seal shimmered in the sunlight.
Lilly picked it up, broke the seal and read:
"Dear king Edward..."
The words were etched in a dark blue ink, delicate but ominous.
"My time in Emberfall has been fruitful, and my son has grown well. Like you said, the garden was provided, and the seed has been planted. I will continue tending to the seedling with the most care. I promise it will bear fruit worthy of your harvest. The blackjack you removed was the most stubborn root, thank you. Its absence has made the soil far easier to work. The garden is vast, the weeds relentless, but I remain committed. I await harvest day with faith in your vision"
the latter had no return address, no identification of the writer, and only stated where it was going.
Lilly searched the body. She emptied the pockets, searched through the coat, and managed to find only one thing, an identification card.
it was firm, edged with golden lining, and the letters gleamed in pure gold. The Frostfire seal was on the card and the card stated that Markes was a hunter that worked for the royal family.
"Now it makes sense," Lilly thought. But her voice dropped to a whisper: "How did he even get access to the palace halls? Only registered servants are allowed inside… so how did he move through them without question?"
She stared at the card, then suddenly the leaves ruffled, and the bushes shook, something was approaching from the distant bushes.
Lilly gripped the blade lodged in Markes's throat, yanked it free, and quickly dropped into a solid stance. Her eyes locked onto the moving bushes. she raised the dagger before her face; crimson light glinted off the blade and streaked across her face, amplifying the red glow in her eyes.
The louder the ruffles grew, the lower Lilly crouched. The sound coming from the bushes seemed to have a rhythm to it. the closer it got the clearer it sounded. Thump, Thump. In the ruffling of the leaves, footsteps mingled.
When it finally emerged, a small child stepped out from the leaves—her clothes torn, feet blistered and dirty, fresh scars lining her shoulders. Her messy brown hair hung over golden eyes.
She looked the same age as Lilly.
The girl just stood beyond the trees, her eyes wide, Limbs trembling at the sight of the dead man and the other girl with a bloodied blade in her hands.
"Did you come alone?" Lilly asked
The little girl nodded, her face pale and shaken from the sight.
Lilly studied the child. Her mind flashed back to Seoul, to a shadowy huge figure stretching out its arms asking,
"Would you like a better life"
She remembered a little girl with messy black hair, blank red eyes, torn and dirty clothes, and a frail, sickly body.
She saw herself in the girl's golden eyes.
"Where are your parents?" Lilly asked wiping the blood from the blade.
the little girls gaze dropped. she clutched the hem of her torn skirt and stood still, rubbing her knees together.
Lilly sighed
"So, you're alone."
Her thought drifted to the life the girl must have lived, wondering through the forest, clothes torn by the thorny bushes, feet blistered by the cruel terrain. The scars across her shoulders told the story of pain she didn't speak of.
Lilly turned back to the pile of documents. She knelt, picked up a stone from the ground, and scraped the dagger against it. Sparks flew. A flame caught the edge of the papers.
She watched silently as the fire consumed them.
The little girl clung to the tree; her eyes fixed on the rising smoke and the corpse behind it.
"You've been in the forest alone for who knows how long," Lilly said quietly. "But if you want to actually be someone, you have to start making your own choices."
Her gaze met the girls again. The child stood in a daze, uncertain of what Lilly meant.
Lilly turned toward the path that led to Emberfall.
"I'm giving you two choices," she said. "Go back into the forest and survive as long as you can… or come with me.
The girl took a step back. She stood frozen for a few moments, eyes flickering between the smoldering papers and the dead man on the ground.
Then she gripped the edge of her torn dress—and ran to Lilly's side.
She couldn't bring herself to look into Lilly's eyes. She just walked beside her; eyes fixed on the ground.
They moved quietly through the forest as birds fluttered overhead.
"How could you let that happen!" The shout echoed through the palace halls.
Sir Rodrick, a knight of Emberfall's royal army, scolded one of the gate guards. His face burned with fury. One hand gripped the hilt of his sword, the other clenched into a fist. Cracks began to spread across the sheath as his grip tightened.
"Do you know what you've done?!" he roared. "Take him away."
His voice was sharp, cold.
The guards were dragged off—arms tied, mouths gagged, armor stripped.
Rodrick's orders echoed through the courtyard:
"Find the princess—whatever it takes!"
Inside the palace, chaos reigned. Her Majesty, Queen Monica, could be heard sobbing in the upper halls. The king's voice tried to calm her, but she would not be consoled.
The entire kingdom spiraled into panic. Houses were turned upside down. Carriages were stopped and searched. Travelers and citizens alike were pulled aside and questioned.
The search for the Princess of Emberfall had begun—and no stone was left unturned.
The knights even captured every criminal on the kingdom's wanted list in the process. But there was no sign of Lilly.
Meanwhile, deep within the forest, Lilly and the orphan girl kept walking.
Lilly had torn her dress short, tied back her long black hair, and walked barefoot on the forest floor.
They followed the trails through the trees, stopping whenever they spotted fruit-bearing trees. Lilly would climb them with ease, gathering what they needed. They ate some on the spot, saving the rest for the journey ahead.
By the time they glimpsed the distant walls of Emberfall, the sun was already dipping behind the mountains.
The forest darkened. Their shadows stretched long across the ground. The wind grew still, the birdsong gone. Only crickets and frogs remained—singing the night awake.
Down below, the lights from the city gates cast golden beams across the road. From inside, the howling voices of knights echoed across the kingdom.
When Lilly stepped into the boundaries of Emberfall, no one seemed to recognize her.
People rushed by in every direction. Knights soared overhead on dragon back. The streets echoed with the pounding of boots and hurried voices.
Lilly walked through the crowd with the little girl close behind. They passed through the chaos unnoticed—no questions, no stares. It was as if they were invisible.
Two children moving alone through the kingdom's darkest hour.
When they reached the castle gates, guards stood on high alert. Dragons circled the towers. Maids rushed through the courtyards.
They stood still at the threshold of the palace.
"Everyone, prepare for the search in the northern territories!" A commanding voice echoed through the castle walls.
"Get those children away from the gate!" Sir Rodrick barked.
But then his gaze locked with Lilly's.
A jolt ran down his spine. Her eyes—cold, steady—froze him in place. His breath caught. His voice trembled.
"It's the princess," he gasped.
Then he shouted, louder:
"It's the princess!"
His voice thundered across the palace grounds, carrying out into the kingdom.
Everything stopped. Guards, servants, soldiers—everyone turned toward the two girls.
A torn, bloodied dress clung to her frame. Her bare feet were covered in dust. Her black hair was tied back, revealing the face no one had seen.
She had returned home, and she was not alone. The castle gates groaned open, Knights and maids rushed toward the children. The chaos of Emberfall collapsed into silence.
The two girls were taken into the palace, and the gates closed. Knights stood guard at every corner of the palace. The palace doors swung open, and Miss Monica ran out. Her arms wrapped around Lilly, tears running down her cheeks.
King Mcdannald stood at the palace doorstep, watching. Lilly's eyes met her father's, and he turned back into the palace.
For the first time in a long time, the gaze that came from her father felt warm.
"By the way, what's your name?" Lilly asked the orphan girl.
The girl's cheeks turned red as a warm breeze brushed over her skin. She then stepped closer to Lilly and said, "M... My name is Nisha."
They were then both welcomed into the palace, and the doors closed.
Five years had passed since that incident. Lilly had grown to the age of ten. She was now old enough to attend school.
Lilly had gained the title of the Iron Princess. Her presence was head-turning, not for beauty alone, but for the discipline etched into her every movement
Years of training since the moment she could walk had shaped her into something unnaturally poised. She stood too straight, moved too precisely, and held a gaze too sharp for a child.
Her long black hair flowed like ink, her skin smooth and polished from constant care, but it was her stillness that unsettled people the most.
She was a child carved into a weapon, and everyone around her felt it.
The princess of Emberfall was a legend even among the travelers.
Word had spread throughout the kingdom, whispers flew like the wind, and rumors roared like wildfire. The princess who survived the monster attack and brought back a child from the wild.
"...From then on, the princess of Emberfall was known as the Iron Princess—for reasons I'm sure you all remember." The teacher closed the book with a gentle thud, the sound echoing across the classroom.
"And that, class, is the story of how a ten-year-old princess became a legend." A hand shot up. "Miss! Is it true that she fought the monsters herself?" The teacher smiled mysteriously. "Some say she did. Others say it was fate. Either way, her story still walks these halls."
The bell rang. "Now, who's ready for class break?"
The story of Lilly's survival from the griffin attack was written in the kingdom's books.
"I hope you're ready for the trip, my lady," Nisha said.
Lilly was preparing to depart for a royal academy. Nobles and commoners alike were all welcome.
Lilly and her nine brothers were all leaving to attend the academy.
Nisha was assigned to be at Lilly's side at all times, so it was mandatory for her to attend school as well.
Carriages had been prepared, bags were crammed into them, and the children were all ready to depart.
The carriage doors shut, out through the castle gates, and into the city streets the carriages thundered through.
"It feels a little too quiet with the children gone," Emilly said to one of the maids, who was cleaning a mess left behind by the boys.
Pastries were on the floor, drinks had been spilled, and dirty footprints were all over the place.
"On second thought, have a great trip," Emilly shouted out to the children's carriages as a drop of sweat fell from her cheek.
The carriages had left the kingdoms. Dust covered the windows, and rocks bounced off the road as they stormed through the dirt roads of Blackburn's Academy.
The light grew darker; shadows of the carriages grew taller. Whispers of crickets and frogs sang in the roadside.
"How long is this going to take?!" someone shouted from another carriage.
"You mean we're stuck on this dusty, dry road for two months?" groaned a knight.
"Just be quiet. You're getting hazard pay."
"Still... why didn't we take dragons?"
"Because dragons cause panic," another grunted. "You know nobody likes dragons."
Their arguing drifted through the convoy, bouncing from carriage to carriage like an annoying song stuck in everyone's head.
The steel clatter inside one of the carriages was nearly drowned out by the knights' bickering.
"Did you get everything?" Lilly asked calmly.
"Yes, your Highness," Nisha replied. "The diamond-edge dagger, your sword, and the lightweight dragon armor—all accounted for."
She closed the bag, tightening the straps before quietly sitting across from Lilly. She folded her hands neatly in her lap and watched as the princess gazed silently out the window, her eyes following the blur of trees and rocks that raced past the carriage.
Outside, the light grew dimmer. The road narrowed. Shadows stretched across the dirt path, and crickets began their nightly chorus beneath the rising moon.