William:

The first thing I noticed upon arriving at the old drunk's place was the silence. When we were out there, there always seemed to be some type of noise, whether people talking outside or the insects chirping, but here, underground, not even the insects' noise made it. Arthur yelled,

"HELLO, OLD DRUNK, ARE YOU HERE!?"

No response. I took my mask off and placed it on a little table in the corner, then made my way to the room in the middle where Sentinel was. I opened the door and saw Sentinel still lying in bed, but this time he had something connected to his arm. I motioned for Arthur to come.

"Arthur, come look at this."

Arthur and I got closer and saw a small tube connected to a pouch with clear liquid. Then, a voice slurred out,

"That liquid is how Sentinel is getting his daily nutrients."

We turned around and saw the old man. He was leaning on the door frame, holding a beer bottle in his right arm. Arthur spoke,

"Jeez, old drunk, where were you? I yelled your name out and heard no response."

"I was taking a good ol' nap and having an amazing dream until you two woke me up," the old drunk said, then took a long sip from his beer.

I asked,

"Old man, do you know where the princess is?"

"I'm afraid that I don't, boy."

Arthur's voice filled with concern,

"How long was she supposed to be gone?"

"At most a week and a half. Her mission was only supposed to scout out the place and get a good estimate for when all three of you could attack. But since it's been two weeks now, I assume she went ahead and tried to do it herself."

Arthur, now shouting at the old man with more concern,

"THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU INFORM US OR AT LEAST TRY TO HELP HER?"

"I did, boy, but when I went to her location, or at least the location that I sent her to, it was completely destroyed. I have no idea where she is or even if she's alive. I've got my contacts trying to figure it out, but no luck yet."

Arthur was about to yell again, but I intervened,

"Old drunk, where was the place you sent her? Me and Arthur will go there and try to figure it out."

The old man was about to speak when the door to the entrance loudly opened. Arthur and I quickly adopted a defensive stance but lowered it as two women came in. One was all bloody, from her shoes to her face, and the other was also covered in blood, most of it not hers. As I took a closer look into her eyes, I remembered who it was. It hadn't been a day since I last saw her; it was Evelyn.

The Princess:

After William and Arthur teleported away, it was just the old drunk and me left. I asked,

"Alright, old drunk, what do you need me to do?"

The old drunk grabbed a bottle from his small desk in the corner, took a long sip, and said,

"Alright, princess, here," handing me a paper from his back pocket.

"What's this?" I asked, confused.

"It's where you need to go. Infuse some mana into it."

I did as instructed, and when I did, the blank paper started to show a map. The old man explained,

"That's where you need to go. I've got information that the last council member is located there. The map will guide you; just make sure to keep infusing mana so it can guide you."

He took another long sip from his drink and continued,

"Your only task is to scout the area out, find where the weaknesses are located, then retreat and wait for your friends to come back and help you rescue the council member," he said forcefully.

I nodded, looking at the map. He added in a more serious tone,

"Listen, you cannot take that place alone, so please do not attack it by yourself. If you do, you will guarantee your death."

I looked up from the map, smiled at him, and assured,

"Alright, old drunk, don't worry. I won't go in alone. I'm not stupid enough to attempt it by myself."

A relief washed over the old drunk. He then said,

"Good. Now, take this medallion. With it, you can enter the wall without causing attention, and if any guard catches you spying, just show them this medallion, and they'll leave you alone."

I grabbed the medallion and inspected it. The symbol on it was a shield with two swords on the back and a rose with what seemed to be blood dripping from it on the shield. I put it in my back pocket.

The old man then shooed me away, adding,

"Alright, now go. You don't have time to waste."

I smiled at the old drunk, bowed, thanked him, and made my way out of the underground base. Once I reached the surface, I squinted at the bright sun, adjusting after my time underground. Once my eyesight recovered, I infused the map with mana, and a flow of mana appeared, leading me to my destination. After following the flow of mana for some time, it brought me to the wall where we first entered. Once I entered those walls, my mission would begin.

I approached the guard who was sleeping and politely spoke,

"Excuse me."

The guard jolted awake, flailing his arms and legs until he found his footing. He attempted to draw his sword from its sheath, but it was stuck. In his desperation, he pulled harder until the strap holding the sword to his waist broke, and the sword slid to my feet. I picked it up and offered it back to the guard, whose face was as red as it could be. He accepted the sword, stepped back, puffed up his chest, and tried to speak in an intimidating manner, though his voice cracked throughout.

"Who goes there, and what business do you have?" he said, then cleared his throat.

I smiled and displayed the medallion to him. His eyes widened in awe and fear; he quickly bowed and apologized for his behavior, then led me through the door, apologizing again. I thanked him and proceeded through the door, amazed by the stark contrast between the two sides of the wall: one completely destroyed, the other looking as if the gods themselves lived there.

Everywhere I looked was marble inlaid with gold, incredible even to the small restaurant to my left. It was no wonder the people from the other side attacked, starving and dying from the temperature extremes, while those here lived like gods. Shaking my head, I focused on my mission, pulling out the map from my pocket and infusing it with mana to follow the flow. It seemed I had a long walk ahead, so I began my journey.

Deeper into the kingdom, I noticed many people from the other side enjoying themselves. The kids, nearly skin and bones, didn't let that stop them from having fun, inviting me to play, though I politely declined. Their carefree joy filled me with happiness.

The adults, however, watched me with jealousy and anger, likely due to my healthier appearance. Entering a shop, I selected a dark green cloak to conceal my skin, hoping the medallion would suffice as payment. I approached an older woman at the counter, laid the cloak down, and said,

"I don't have any money, but I do have this," while showing her the medallion.

Her reaction mirrored the guard's: fear. She hastily agreed to give me the cloak for free and urged me to leave. I donned the cloak, covering myself completely except for my face, which I hid with the hood, and left the shop.

After re-infusing the map with mana, I felt I was getting close. The flow led me to a large, seemingly affluent inn. Using mana again, the map directed me underground, beneath the inn. Revealing the medallion might attract unwanted attention, so I needed an alternative way to afford a room.

I visited another shop down the street, inquiring about selling my cloak for some coins. The shopkeeper offered three copper coins, but her interest peaked at the shiny object in my pocket. Revealing the medallion, her demeanor changed to fear, and she pleaded for mercy while offering me a pouch filled with silver and gold coins along with my cloak.

Confused by the varied reactions to the medallion – fear and awe – I accepted the pouch, feeling a mix of disappointment and surprise. Money had never been an issue for me as a princess, and part of me was excited to earn it on my own. However, with the necessary funds secured, my focus shifted to infiltrating the inn and locating the last council member, preparing myself for a long night ahead.