Lysandra finished the wine in her goblet, then placed it on the table.

“Thank you for the invitation, Lord Naevius, but I really have to go.” It was the third time she had attempted to excuse herself and leave the party.

Though ‘party’ was rather generous, considering she was the last guest left.

It was long past the time she had been planning to return to the Palace, and she didn’t even have the opportunity to send a message that she would be late.

She didn’t want to worry anyone. Especially Saria.

“But the night is still young, Your Highness!” Lord Naevius protested, and just like every single time before, he reached for the carafe with wine.

This time, however, Lysandra firmly covered her cup with her hand and glared at him. “Are you trying to get me drunk, Lord Naevius? Do you perhaps have an ulterior motive to keep me here at all costs?”

The situation was slowly turning from inconvenient to dangerous.

As far as she could tell, the Naevius family didn’t have any connections to her brother, so it was highly unlikely that they were acting in his interest.

Unless…

The flow of information coming to Lysandra had gotten heavily disturbed ever since Drusus disappeared. Even more so, when she lost contact with her mysterious friend.

Perhaps, she underestimated how cunning Loukios could be and walked right into a trap.

Lysandra cursed in her heart. She never should have come here. Not alone. Not without…

Saria.

“Your Highness is misunderstanding,” the man laughed apologetically, but his voice carried a note of dishonesty.

“It’s been a while since the last time we saw each other. I was hoping to spend this evening with you,” he said, then leaned closer. “Make up for lost time.”

That was when Lysandra finally understood.

The man wasn’t trying to kidnap or imprison her. Or at least not in the full meaning of it.

He was courting her.

And failing.

Adrian was the oldest son and the heir to the House Naevius. While he certainly wasn’t lacking in physical appearance, with his handsome face and toned body, he most certainly didn’t have much to offer beyond that.

Lysandra always found him rather boring, only willing to keep the connection between her and his family due to his influential parents.

Absorbed by what her brother was planning and the loss of Drusus, she completely forgot that there were other reasons people, especially men, wanted her attention.

“I’m sorry, Adrian, but I’m not interested in you that way.”

Or any other way, she added to herself.

“But you never even had the chance to get to know me. Please, Your Highness, let me prove to you that we belong together.”

“I highly doubt this could be the case, Lord Naevius. There’s no need to waste both my time and yours.”

He refused to give up.

“Why are you so stubborn about this? How can you know before you even try?”

The conversation was draining Lysandra’s patience by the minute.

“This is my final word, Lord Naevius. Now, if you excuse me, there are matters in the Palace that require my attention.”

She turned to leave, but Adrian grabbed her arm. “I don’t believe you.”

“Let go.” Lysandra tried freeing herself to no avail. She could feel bruises forming under his iron grip.

“I won’t until you—”

“The custom demands listening when a woman says no, Lord Naevius.” Therion joined them unexpectedly.

“Will you let Her Highness go, or should I ask my guards to help you with that?” he continued, gesturing towards the group of imposing men behind him.

All armed. And all looking like they were ready to chop off Adrian’s head alongside his arm.

He had no choice but to let go.

“I don’t remember inviting you, Lord Qilio,” he forced through his teeth.

He especially made sure to invite a few people and only those who would know when to leave, so he and Lysandra could be alone.

The eldest son of House Qilio wouldn’t make the list, even if there was nobody else left to invite.

“You didn’t. I invited myself,” Therion flashed him one of his signature charming smiles.

Right afterwards, his expression changed, replacing the roughish tease with a cold-blooded death stare.

“I had no choice when I received a disturbing message from the Palace that Her Highness hadn’t returned yet. It made us very worried that she had fallen victim to something nefarious.”

Hearing that it was the Palace that informed Therion about Lysandra’s absence, it became clear that it was a fight Adrian couldn’t win.

“Please, give my deepest apologies to your father for keeping you so long, Your Highness,” he said stiffly. “Thank you for gracing me with your presence.”

He bowed apologetically and gestured towards his guards to let them out.

“Thank you for coming,” Lysandra said on their way to the carriage. “It was taking an ugly turn. I would be in trouble if not for you.”

Therion smiled. “You should be thanking your love-struck puppy for that. I’m surprised I didn’t find her beating the hell out of Adrian, though.”

The Princess looked at him, confused. “Who are you talking about?”

“Saria, of course. She was the one who sent the message telling me to come here.”

An unpleasant sensation churned her stomach. If Saria knew she needed help, it was very unlike her not to show up in person.

Therion noticed her worried expression. “I’m sure she’s fine. She probably realized that it would be difficult for her to get in as a slave, so she stayed in the Palace, knowing that I’ll come here,” he comforted her.

What he said made a lot of sense, but Lysandra couldn’t shake the bad feeling. “Let’s just hurry to the Palace. I don’t want to stay here a moment longer.”

“Thank you, Therion. I owe you.” Lysandra said, getting off the carriage.

Therion stood in front of her and smiled. “Nonsense. What kind of friend would I be if I just left you alone with this?” The charming grin on his face turned into a cunning smirk. “Well… unless you feel really indebted, then how about you invite me for a glass of wine?”

Lysandra laughed at his shamelessness. “I will. Just not today. Today—”

“Today you have to make sure your girlfriend is alright, I know,” he finished for her.

The expression on his face didn’t change, despite the prickle in his heart and a slight hint of annoyance in his voice.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” she rebuked, but the bashful smile felt like a contradiction.

“Mhm… sure.”

“She isn’t,” Lysandra glared at him, “She’s just…” The answer hung in the air as she was trying to find the proper words. “She’s a friend,” she said.

“Alright, alright. I was just joking. No need to bite my head off,” Therion laughed. “It’s getting late, you should get back. Let me know if you need anything.”

He gave her a hug and got back into the carriage.

Lysandra didn’t linger any longer either. She went into the Palace and rushed to her chambers, expecting Saria to be waiting there for her.

However, the moment she arrived at the place, she was met with an unpleasant surprise.

“Your Highness! You’re back!” Heron exclaimed the moment he saw her.

“We were worried something bad had happened to you!” Alkaios chimed in.

“I’m fine. Therion came just in time,” Lysandra answered, walking towards the guards.

“So Saria was right, sending the messenger after all,” Heron wondered out loud, “I’m surprised she didn’t get there first, though.”

Lysandra stopped and looked at the guard. “What do you mean?”

The guards exchanged confused looks. “W-well, she told us to get the message and then rushed out of the Palace somewhere.”

“We thought she went to find you,” added Alkaios.

“She hasn’t been back yet?” Unsettling cold crept down Lysandra’s spine.

“No. We just asked a maid if anyone saw her, but nobody had since she left.”

“How long ago did she leave?”

“Around three hours ago, Your Highness.”

Lysandra’s heart sank. She knew it. It was unlike her to simply let someone else handle this. Something bad must have happened.

Her mind raced, trying to collect her thoughts.

Saria must have run into trouble when she left the Palace. But some random mob wouldn’t be much of a challenge for someone like her. Meaning, she had to be targeted by someone who knew exactly what she’s capable of.

However, for everyone else, she was just a slave. It made no sense for anyone to…

“Sulla,” Lysandra groaned, hit with the realization. He was the only one open about wanting to get Saria.

She underestimated how far he was willing to go for it, and now Saria was going to pay the price for her recklessness.

“Gather the men and meet me at the front gate,” Lysandra said to the guards. “We’re going to pay Praetor Sulla a visit.”