ASH
After the meeting with the King, I ordered one of my knights to secretly gather the group that is closed to the former Queen and the group that doesn't agree with the ways of the King.
"Tell them to the usual place," I said to him. He nodded his head and departed from the palace.
I glance at the door of the throne room and sighed.
I turned around and firmly step away from that place.
'What I am doing right now is for the sake of Oryn. I don't want all the hard work of my sister in this kingdom to go to waste.'
Later that evening...
[Underground Basement]
I walk down towards a dim basement - the place of our meeting - with a lamp in my hand. Before I came here, I make sure no one follows me all the way here. I cannot let our plans be ruined by a rat.
I heard someone approaching from behind, and turn to look. It was the guy that I instructed earlier.
"Dame Ashlyn, they are all here," he said.
"Good," I stopped and looked at the wooden door in front of me. I fixed the hood of my cape first before I pushed open the door.
When I entered, I saw them - the important figure of the kingdom - waiting for me with their capes on. I can count on my fingers the numbers of people here in the same room with me. They are the people that have been around here since the day of my sister's reign until now. Just like me, they don't like the situation of our kingdom. They're here to show their respect and their loyalty towards the kingdom despite who the ruler is.
These are the noble faction and the aristocrat faction. Only the representative of each faction was allowed to attend this meeting to minimize the people in the room and to avoid suspicion.
To be honest with you, this is the first time that these two factions are on the same side. It was always known that these two factions are like fire and water. No matter how much the rulers do, they wouldn't still side with one another due to differences in their opinion.
But, today, is different.
They are on equal terms - for now - for their interest. This is due to the King's changes that these factions decided to have a truce and side with us. This is only for the sake of their interest and they can't have what they want if the King doesn't listen to them.
"Greetings to the Moon of the Oryn Kingdom," they greet me with a bow. It's been a while since I've been greeted like this. Back when my sister was alive, they always address me like this. It was because of my dark hair from our mother, and blue eyes from our father. I was like the moon not only because of these traits but, also because I was known as the shadow of the Queen. If I was the moon, my sister would be the Sun of the Oryn Kingdom. This is because of her blonde hair that resembles a lot like our father's.
"Did I tell you guys to stop addressing me like that?" I sat down in front of them, and I gesture for them to sit down as well.
"We can't Dame Ashlyn," the Duke of the West said. He is in his 30's and had a big build that proves that he is still strong, and he is someone that you can rely on.
"The Duke is right. This proof of our loyalty to you and the kingdom, and a proof that one day, you will rule this kingdom," the head captain agrees as he looks me straight in the eyes. He was around the same age as the Duke of the West and the person that my sister trusts the most among her peers. And what stands out of him was the big scar on his left eye that he got probably from the war.
I deeply sighed and shook my head. "Well, I called you here because I decided that it's time to execute our plan."
"Really?!" everyone in the room exclaimed.
"What happened? You always tell us that you don't like this idea," the Duke asked. "You always tell us that there must be another way or you don't want any bloodshed. What changes your mind?"
"I've been ordered by the King," I said. The atmosphere in the room changes. They know that once the King called me, it must be bad news or good news. But, this time it is a piece of bad news. "He ordered me to kill the small villages that reside in this kingdom. The village that the former Queen loved the most."
I heard a loud thud echoing in the room. It was none other than the head captain of the knights. He slam his fist on the table loudly that made a crack on the table.
"That...That bastard... How dare he touch my queen people!" he said between his gritted teeth. Everyone here knows how much the captain respect and loved the queen. To him, my sister was his friend, his little sister, and his master. Out of all of the people that work for the Queen, he was the most loyal to the queen. Even if I became the queen, I couldn't gain that much loved and respect from him. Even if he does, it would be out of respect for me because I am the little sister of the queen.
"Calm down, captain. Don't worry, I would do everything that I can to protect my sister's people."
"How would you do it, Dame Ashlyn?" one of the nobles asked. I gesture to one of the knights to hand me a map of the kingdom.
"I plan to follow his orders," I replied which cause everyone to madly react.
"Don't worry, I'm not a fool blinded by his orders."
"You must have a plan in mind then," said the Duke. I nodded and laid out the map on the table.
"We don't want any suspicion from the king towards me. As long as I follow his orders, he would not suspect a thing. But, just like I said, I have ways of my own," I encircle the small villages with my fingers and look at them. "To make him believe that I 'really' killed all the villagers, I plan to burn down the village."
"What?!" the captain exclaimed. "Are you crazy?"
"Of course, I cannot do it by myself. I need your help for that matter," I said.
"What help do you need?" the Duke asked.
Three days later...
It was a dark gloomy day when the fire happened in a nearby village that resides in the kingdom.
A fire engulfs the houses of the villages, and its smoke reaches above the sky.
In the middle of this burning village, there's a knight covered in dust, walking on the burning road with a torch in their hand.
With her black hair swaying together with the scorching wind.
"Please forgive me..."
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