The Princess And The Lord-Chapter 1414: Lies and Deciet

Inside the privy chamber, everyone had been waiting.

Members of the Garrof Guild were already present. There are Owen, Daniel, and Lydia, along with Serena, who stood quietly near the window, while Jack and Gavin joined them as the former Ultima infantry.

The Hamilton family had also arrived, including Ethan, who sat between his father and grandfather, engaged in a quiet conversation. The three men spoke in hushed tones, their expressions calm but focused, occasionally nodding as they exchanged thoughts that only family could share.

It was a rare sight to witness three generations of the Hamiltons who each share the same bearing the same composed strength, gather in one room, united in purpose.

Seated a little apart from the others were Maddeline and Samuel. Maddeline sat stiffly, her hands clasped in her lap, her eyes wide as she took in the grandeur of the room.

The golden accents, the towering windows, and the carved ceiling were overwhelming—it was all far too much for someone like her, who had never imagined stepping foot into such an opulent space.

Beside her, Samuel was engulfed in a storm of complicated emotions. Never in a million years had he imagined he would set foot inside Cestine Palace. His mind drifted back to his earlier years, when he and others were trained specifically on how to infiltrate this very place. It had always been seen as the ultimate challenge—an impossible fortress cloaked in elegance.

He remembered how detailed those briefings were. The palace was fortified not just by its thick walls, but by an intricate web of protective spells, each one etched into the very structure and placed at every crucial point. Invisible surveillance spells, magical laser grids, and unseen eyes monitored every inch of the interior. And then there were the palace staff that unassuming at first glance, yet every servant had been trained to a standard far beyond any ordinary employee.

But the most frustrating detail of all was this: none of them could be bribed.

Samuel knew that firsthand. His former commander had once tried, believing every system had a weakness. That attempt had only exposed their spy network in Harland, which was swiftly and ruthlessly dismantled.

A six-month mission, carefully built in secret, was destroyed in a matter of days. Since that failure, they had never managed to gain access to Herriond again.

And now, ironically, here he was, invited in not as a spy, but as a guest. The weight of that irony pressed heavily on his chest as he looked around the room, still half-expecting to be found out and dragged away.

Fargo, Jay, and Clift stood casually along the walls, appearing relaxed as they exchanged light conversation with one another. To the untrained eye, they looked like they were simply passing the time. But beneath that easy facade, their eyes were sharp and constantly sweeping the room, especially when it came to Samuel.

Their focus on him was no coincidence. After all, this was the man who had been trained to kill an Archknight and, eventually, the Lucient family itself. His presence in this room was more than just uncomfortable, but felt like a provocation to old instincts and scars.

The truth was, if not for Lory’s personal reassurance, they would never have agreed to cooperate with him. Even though Samuel was no longer a Dragxtarn agent, the sins he carried for scheming against the Lucient heir’s life were not easily forgiven.

They could accept that Samuel once held the intention to kill them, they don’t care, he wasn’t the first and definitely not gonna be the last, however, they find it hard to forgive the part where he had taken part in the plan to hurt the Lucient family.

Unfortunately. Lory had made her decision.

And as loyal subordinates, they had no choice but to follow it, even if their hands itched to reach for their weapons every time Samuel so much as shifted in his seat.

A moment later, the heavy doors of the chamber opened.

Fredhard stepped in first and held the doors wide. A moment later, Lory entered with effortless grace, followed closely by Lilly.

Lily steps were steady, but there was a certain hesitation in her eyes as she glanced around the room, taking in the sight of so many important figures gathered in one place.

"I’m sorry to make you all wait," Lory said gently, her voice calm and commanding. "Please, have a seat."

She took her place at the head of the room, and the others followed, settling into their seats. Lilly moved quickly to sit beside her mother, Marsha. No sooner had she sat down than the nervousness returned, it was an uneasy flutter in her chest as the room’s atmosphere thickened with unspoken tension and expectation.

The door opened once more, and a middle-aged maid entered the room, pushing a cart before her. Her eyes trembled slightly when they met Lory’s, but she quickly composed herself. Lory offered a faint smile as she recognized the woman. She was the maid who had served in Cestine Palace for three generations, a figure known for her unwavering loyalty, even by Harland’s high standards.

Lory was happy to know that she had survived the Dark Age War. With efficient movements, she set the food and beverages onto the long table, then offered a deep bow before quietly leaving the room while silently wiping the corner of her eyes as she went.

Lory slowly scanned the room, meeting each person’s eyes in turn.

Her expression was unreadable, calm, thoughtful, and composed. Then she leaned back into her armchair, steepling her fingers slightly.

"Let’s begin the discussion," Lory said, then turned her gaze toward Maddeline. "Maddy, if you don’t mind, would you share what you told Fargo and the others with everyone here?"

"Yes," Maddy tensed slightly, caught off guard by the attention. But when she met Lory’s reassuring smile, it helped settle her nerves. She took a deep breath before she started to speak,

"Hello, um... my name is Maddeline Myre, and... my sister’s name was Olivia Myre," she began, her voice wavering slightly. "Before the Dark Age War, we were both recruited as healers by the S.A.I.N.T. organization. We were just two among dozens—maybe even hundreds—of other healers at the time. The truth is, I don’t know exactly how many of us there were... I just know there were a lot."

She gave a nervous smile, glancing down for a moment before continuing. "At the time, my sister and I were very young. We were also orphans. I was only eight years old, and Olivia was seventeen..."

Everyone’s expressions instantly softened with genuine sympathy, especially Marsha, whose maternal instincts were stirred by the sight of such a young girl recalling painful memories.

Usually, Maddy will feel annoyed under such a gaze, but not today. Perhaps it was because, deep down, she felt assured that everyone in this room was a good person and genuinely felt sorry for her. After all, if Princess Lorient trusted them, then she believed she could too.

"With no one to look after us, Olivia accepted the offer without thinking too much. Why would she? It was a respected organization, praised for serving humanity. So she didn’t worry. None of us feel that way, everyone just feel positive and...lucky," she let out a small bitter smile.

She paused and rubbed her hands together, her voice quiet but steady. Jack, seated nearby, watched her with concern, his brow furrowed. "Then strange things started happening—not much at first, just little things," she continued. "They began limiting our contact with the outside world, restricting family visits, and controlling our phone calls. At first, we thought it was just part of their training protocol, meant to help us focus on becoming better healers. Still, Olivia thinks it was too excessive."

Her brows furrowed slightly. "We weren’t allowed to leave the Elysium compound. Communication with the outside world was almost completely cut off. Actually, from the moment we arrived, we weren’t allowed to go outside without a supervisor. We were constantly watched. It felt like we were caged... or hidden away."

She paused, then added with growing unease,

"After that, soldiers started appearing at Elysium more and more often. It was strange. Why would a healing organization need that kind of security? And from the way they spoke or looked, my sister suspected they weren’t Dolza’s soldiers. They were from somewhere else."

Maddy paused for a few moments, trying to steady her emotions. Her fingers trembled slightly as she clasped them together on her lap. "They kept talking about relocating us to a place called Black Hill Town as soon as possible," she said quietly. "And that only made things feel more suspicious. Why were they so insistent? Why the urgency?"

She took another breath before continuing. "Olivia tried to share her concerns with her friend, Jessi. You probably know her father; he was the one who wrote the article about his missing daughter, the girl who was recruited by the organization just before the Dark Age War?"

"Yes," Lory replied gently. "We’ve already placed him somewhere safe."

Maddy let out a small breath of relief. "I’m glad. I knew Jessi, we shared a room and she used to give me candy to cheer me up," she added, a soft, nostalgic smile blooming briefly on her face.

But the memory faded quickly, and her expression grew tense once more. "When I heard what Jessi’s father was doing, I knew he’d be in danger. But I couldn’t even protect myself... how could I help him?" Her voice wavered slightly before she looked at Lory with quiet gratitude. "But thankfully, you did."

Lory gave her a small nod, then leaned forward, her tone calm but serious. "What happened then?"

"They said there was an outbreak in Black Hill Town," Maddy continued, her voice calm but laced with unease, "and that many people were sick. So we were sent to provide medical assistance until the official unit could arrive. Naturally, everyone was excited. It felt like our first real mission."

She paused briefly, her brows knitting as the memory returned.

"But something felt off. We weren’t escorted by regular staff or transport. Instead, we were accompanied by soldiers, real soldiers. Not just any unit, but a Dragxtarn team. The kind that usually only escorts top-level officials... like presidents or high-ranking officers. It made us wonder, why would such an elite squad be assigned to protect us? Was the outbreak more severe than they told us? And why foreign military, why not Dolza’s?"

Her voice dropped slightly. "Then, just before we left, they confiscated all of our communication devices. Said it was for ’confidentiality reasons.’ No phones, no messages. Total silence. I knew my sister and Jessi started to get uneasy."

Jay leaned forward, his tone direct but not unkind. "Were there no Paladin members assigned to go with you?"

"Oh, they came too," Maddy nodded. "But more to calm us down than anything else, since we all got tensed, so their presence was more or less to calm us down, since it would’ve raised our questions if there were no Paladins supervising a mission under S.A.I.N.T. organization, in short, they were there to keep an eye on us."

Fargo crossed his arms, watching her closely. "And what happened once you arrived at Black Hill Town?"

Maddy took a breath, her fingers tightening slightly on the edge of her skirt.

"After several days of traveling, we finally arrived. But the town was... dead silent. At first, we thought some people might had been evacuated somewhere because of the plague, but it didn’t take long to realize something was wrong." She shook her head slowly, eyes distant.

"The shutters were covered in thick spider webs. The doors creaked on broken hinges. Some of the buildings were leaning, half-collapsed. It was clear the town had been abandoned for a long time. That’s when we really got suspicious. This wasn’t a town in crisis, no, it was a ghost town. And we had no idea why we were there."

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