“This wasn’t supposed to happen… I never imagined Rumalus would be captured.”
Linden’s voice was low and grim. He stared into the darkness ahead, his brows drawn tight with concern.
The rest of the special operations unit stood nearby in silence, their faces equally tense. When Rumalus had gone down, badly wounded, they had all made the same decision in an instant: This mission was no longer viable. Retreat had become the only option.
“No one expected someone that strong to show up,” one of the operatives muttered, still shaken.
“With power like that, even all of us together might not have stood a chance,” another added bitterly.
They’d seen Belamus fight, and it had left no room for illusions. Victory wasn’t just unlikely; it bordered on impossible.
“We specialize in completing missions by strategy, not brute strength,” said a third operative, his voice tight. “But he doesn’t leave many openings.”
Even Linden, their commanding officer, found himself uncertain. Could they still complete their mission? Or had it failed the moment Belamus entered the fray?
As daunting as Belamus was, something else weighed even more heavily on Linden’s mind: “More importantly… the fact that Rumalus was captured… That’s a problem.”
“Of course it is,” another member of the team said at once. “Losing him is already a huge blow to our combat strength.”
“No,” Linden said quietly. “That’s not what I meant. The real issue is that he might talk.”
A stunned silence followed.
“He wouldn’t,” one operative finally said, shaking his head. “He’s one of us. One of the Royal Guard. Even if they torture him, he won’t break. He’s trained for that.”
“I’m not talking about torture,” Linden replied, eyes narrowing. “I mean, he might choose to talk. Willingly.”
That hit harder than any of them expected.
“Do you remember?” Linden continued. “He was opposed to the order to kill Lady Mimi. He never said he’d refuse to follow through, but the hesitation was there.”
He could still picture it—the slight pause, the flicker of discomfort in Rumalus’s eyes when Mimi’s life had come up.
“That may be true,” one soldier said slowly, “but even so… betraying us? That would be the ultimate offense. He’d be executed. And not just him; his entire family would be wiped out.”
“Only if he’s caught,” another said, quietly. “If he kills us, then fakes his own death, no one would ever know. He might think the chancellor wouldn’t go so far as to punish the family of a fallen hero.”
“Whether that’s true or not,” the first one muttered, “it’s a dangerous gamble.”
Linden said nothing for a moment, his jaw tight. He hated this. The doubt. The uncertainty. He didn’t want to believe Rumalus would ever turn his back on them. But he couldn’t deny what he’d seen.
“There’s a real chance he’ll betray us,” Linden murmured at last, his voice low and heavy, like the words were being dragged out of him by their own weight.
Linden still wasn’t convinced, though. Not entirely. Maybe they were overthinking it. Maybe Rumalus’s loyalty ran deeper than his doubts.
If Rumalus had truly turned on them, there was a strong chance he’d try to return anyway, pretending he’d barely escaped with his life, wearing the same calm, unreadable mask he always did. Linden knew it was likely. Rumalus was clever. Controlled. He wouldn’t come back in chains; he’d come back with a story.
If that happened, Linden had already made up his mind.
He would cut him down without hesitation.
There would be no second-guessing. No room for sentiment. If Rumalus reappeared under suspicious circumstances, he would die by Linden’s blade. That was the price of betrayal.
Either way, the situation was becoming more dire by the hour. Linden turned to his remaining men, voice steady but heavy.
“Our position is unstable,” he said grimly. “Truthfully… I’d like to request reinforcements from the chancellor. We’ll split up. One team will continue shadowing the enemy. The other will go back and request aid.”
There was no time for debate. No room for error.
He assigned the communication role to one of his subordinates, a swift-footed operative who could vanish into the landscape in seconds. As for himself, Linden melted once more into the shadows, resuming the pursuit of Belamus and the girl.