“Retreat for now, Dragon Consort,” the queen ordered. “That is your role—”
“Shut up! Don’t decide my role for me!” Jill snapped back. “Hey, you’re in there, aren’t you, Dragon Consorts?!”
Faris froze in shock when her hand was suddenly grabbed.
“You guys felt sympathy for the Goddess and betrayed the Dragon God, didn’t you?!” Jill shouted. “Help us out here, then!”
Before Faris could speak, golden magical energy coursed from Jill’s hand, which held onto the queen’s, and magical energy rushed through the Dragon Consort’s body. When Jill tried to pry the iron grate open again, it bent easily under her grip. Faris staggered and almost fainted—she’d only been able to last this long thanks to the magical energy of the other Dragon Consorts.
Jill grabbed Faris’s arm and slung the queen across her back. The Dragon Consort took the easy way out and kicked a hole through the wall. Then she leaped out into the rain. As she landed, golden particles of light dissipated into the air; it seemed this was all the support the Dragon Consorts could provide. Jill clicked her tongue and ran ahead. The muddy terrain prevented her from running as fast as she liked, but worst of all, her footsteps remained in the dirt.
As she’d expected, she soon heard voices searching in her direction. Faris was light, but Jill couldn’t run as fast as she pleased with her, and her rain-soaked clothes weighed her down. The loud rain only obstructed her senses, and she’d failed to notice an object by her feet—a tree stump. She stumbled and crashed to the ground.
When Jill jumped back to her feet, a tall man leaped out from the trees and pointed his blade at the unconscious Faris.
“Don’t move. This is the end of the road for you,” the man said.
Jill, crouched low and ready to launch an attack, froze at the familiar voice.
The man turned to her pursuers. “Bring me two pairs of cuffs and chains with magic seals. I’ll keep watch over them here.”
“Roger,” the pursuers said. The footsteps grew farther away, soon drowned out by the sound of the rain.
“Now then, how can we escape and throw them off our scent?” the man muttered as though he was complaining.
Jill felt her strength leave her as she chuckled. “Why don’t I beat you up? It’d be a good cover for how you let us flee, Mr. Brooder.”
“Give me a break,” Roger replied. “I could feign my injuries and that’d do the trick, Miss Jill.”
Her hooded former coworker gave a playful wink. Rudgar Teos Rave went by the name Roger Brooder, and he was the oldest living brother among Hadis’s siblings. Tired of the constant wars spurred on by the slew of crown imperial princes’ deaths, he abdicated his claim to the throne and left the Rave imperial family. But only he had thought that he was no longer a royal.
“You promised to be the principal of the military academy in Radia,” Jill complained.
“Now, now, we still have some time until that happens,” Roger replied. “The academy’s still being built, and this is the only place where I can flee from the watchful eye of Elentzia.”
“And that’s why you snuck into the Arks?”
Roger headed into a small watchtower cabin a good distance away from the Arks’ manor. He seemed to know his way around the place. The majority of Ark members all slept together in a room in the basement of the manor, but Roger’s competence earned him some freedom—he was allowed to use the watchtower cabin as he pleased.
Once Faris was carried to the bedroom and the doors were properly locked, Roger turned toward the fireplace and lit a fire for a small pot. He placed a small chair in front of the fire and encouraged Jill to sit down. Summer was just around the corner, but it was dark, and she was wet from the rain. Admittedly, she was a bit cold.
Roger flapped the dark mantle he’d wrapped Faris in and flung the water droplets away. It seemed the clothing had some sort of waterproof spell on it, and the fabric wasn’t drenched. Roger smiled as he noticed Jill’s face.
“This mantle’s amazing, isn’t it?” he asked. “It’s not only waterproof but resistant to the cold and heat, too. They use this surprising piece of technology as a hook to invite new members, telling everyone that the gods took away these advancements from humanity.”
“And that’s why you joined, too?” Jill asked.
“Don’t get me wrong. Their dangerous ways have been hammered into me since I was a kid. But it’s the best way to efficiently gather info on Kratos and Rave, ironically. It allows me to keep tabs on Minerd’s movements.”
“When His Highness Minerd came to the imperial capital, you didn’t show up.”
Roger scratched his nose and grinned—he was an excellent fighter with the courage and skills to sneak into enemy territory all by himself. In the Grand Duchy of Laika, he’d infiltrated La Baier Military Academy in hopes of stopping the revolt as soon as possible. He even became a spy in the Liberation Army. Jill knew of his capabilities and had him graciously accept the position of principal at her military academy in Radia.
“I couldn’t make it in time,” Roger said. “I decided to trust Hadis and you, Miss Jill. And with Natalie around, I knew that Minerd wouldn’t do anything too nefarious.”
“He plotted an assassination of the previous emperor,” Jill said.
Roger was grabbing some rye bread and cheese from the small kitchen when he jerked his head toward Jill in surprise. “That idiot…” he groaned. “Wait, so it was Minerd who killed Father, not Prince Gerald?!”