"As expected," Lizzy muttered in utter disbelief, staring at the sea of bodies. "It's packed. Don't these people have something better to do? I get it's a festival, but it doesn't have to be this crowded."
After slipping out of the castle without telling Arthur, the trio had sneaked into the busy streets and melted into the night. It was all Lizzy's sudden idea, but things rarely went as planned. They quickly got swallowed by the tough crowd — unable to move forward or backward. Lizzy hoisted Dan onto her shoulders and kept a firm grip on Number 1's wrist so they wouldn't get separated in the chaos.
"We might as well call it quits and wait for the fireworks right here," Lizzy said, sounding half-ready to give up.
Dan, perched high on her shoulder, was anything but restless. His reddish-orange eyes were wide with wonder. He had never seen so many people in one place. Even though it was nighttime, the street glowed softly from floating orbs of light that drifted lazily overhead like magical lanterns. The air smelled of grilled meat, sweet spices, and roasted nuts. Street stalls along the edges were making a killing, vendors shouting and squeezing every coin they could from the stuck crowd.
Number 1 stayed quiet, her purple eyes scanning the faces around them. She spotted a few agents from Amag lurking in the shadows. They saw her too, but made no move. She didn't alert Lizzy — she figured they were holding back only because of the dragon woman beside her. As long as they weren't attacking, it meant either they feared Lizzy… or they hadn't been ordered to strike yet.
"Oh!" Lizzy suddenly yelled, her voice brightening. "The crowd's moving! Thank goodness. I was starting to think we'd spend the whole night stuck here."
Dan, being the tallest of the group on his mum's shoulders, confirmed it — the mass of people was slowly shuffling forward. It took nearly thirty minutes of careful pushing before they finally reached a wider square where the crowd thinned enough to move freely. Lizzy set Dan down and stretched her arms with a satisfied groan.
"Wow, it's been a long time since I've been here," she said, still stretching. "Where was my favorite store again?" She scanned the square frantically, then lit up. "Oh, found it!" She grabbed both kids by the wrist and started pulling them halfway across the open space, her messy red hair bouncing with each excited step.
"You've gotta try this, Dan!" Lizzy said, smiling so brightly her sharp teeth showed. "He sells the best meat on sticks I've ever had. I don't know what they're called, so I'll just call it that."
"Hey mister! Hey mister!" she called, fighting through the people at the front of the stall. At the sight of her, the crowd parted instantly. The shopkeeper spotted them and broke into a wide grin.
"What's Queen Lizzy doing here?" he boomed.
The entire street seemed to fall silent for a heartbeat. Then whispers spread, followed by excited shouts.
"Whoa, it really is Lizzy!"
"Lizzy! Over here — I've got the best meat on the street!"
"Lizzy! I've got fresh crabs if you're interested!"
Soon the whole square was calling her name from every direction. Lizzy laughed nervously and turned them all down with quick "next time" and "I'll be back" promises.
"So mister," she turned back to the vendor, "I'll have six sticks, please."
"First of all, I've told you my name before — it's Gard," he laughed. "Also, I thought I'd never see you again. No one in the kingdom did. It's not my place to pry why you're here now, but one thing's bothering me… since when did you give birth to two kids? King Arthur, you sly dog!" Gard let out a booming laugh.
"No, actually the boy is my son and the girl is a friend of his," Lizzy corrected, her face flushing red.
"Oh, like father like son, eh? The boy is already making girlfrie—"
"Hush!" Lizzy interrupted hastily. "Can't you see he's too young for those jokes?" She nudged the kids forward. "Dan and One, say hi to Mister Gard."
"Hey! I just told you my name is Gard," he reminded her again with a chuckle.
"Hello, Mister Gard," Dan said brightly. Number 1 gave a small nod.
"See? You've infected your son too," Gard teased. "And the girl's a bit on the quiet side, isn't she?"
"She's just hungry," Lizzy shrugged. "Now less talking and start handing over those meat sticks. I'm drooling already."
With the quick reflexes of an old, experienced chef, the six sticks were ready in seconds. Lizzy handed one to each kid. No one questioned why she bought six — both Dan and Gard knew she was a big eater. The other four were clearly for her.
Lizzy dropped a few gold coins on the counter, grabbed her sticks, and started to leave when Gard called her back.
"Whoa!" he yelled.
Lizzy spun around, surprised. "Is it not enough? How many more do I need to add?" She handed her sticks to the kids and began digging through her pockets for more coins.
"No, that's not the problem," Gard said, calming her with a laugh. "You always do this. Even one gold coin could buy my whole shop six times over, and here you are dropping six. Is it wise to waste funds like that? I was even willing to give them to you for free — you're the kingdom's queen, after all."
"You don't need to worry about that," Lizzy said, taking one stick back from Dan and wolfing it down in seconds. "My funds don't come from the kingdom's treasury. I have my own horde of gold. And good meat should be appreciated." She waved the empty stick like a trophy. "Just think of it as thanks for the good food." She grinned and kept walking, the kids trailing behind with full hands.
Dan took a big bite, then tapped his mum. "I think One would like another too." He pointed at her — both sticks she had been given had already vanished.
Soon all three were walking with hands full of meat sticks. Dan kept firing questions at Lizzy about how the floating light orbs worked and how the streets were maintained. Lizzy, not knowing the exact mechanics, distracted him by pointing out a man selling colorful balloons. Dan forgot everything instantly and ran over. After getting balloons for both kids, they continued toward the main festival square where the peak of the night would happen.
What surprised Dan most was how everyone seemed to know his mum. From the books he'd read, kings and queens were supposed to be respected… even feared. Yet here people treated Lizzy like an old friend, talking to her informally, waving, calling her name without any guards around. It clashed completely with everything he thought he knew about royalty.
"So, One, what do you think of the outing so far?" Lizzy asked, gazing up at the star-filled sky.
"I think you're being reckless," One replied, also looking upward, her voice flat. "Which queen walks around unprotected and careless in a densely packed place? Even though she's strong, she should at least think about her kid."
"Whoa," Lizzy gasped, then burst out laughing. "You're awfully honest, aren't you? I didn't think any kid would have such a mature thought."
"Protection? What are you guys talking about?" Dan asked, feeling left out. "Isn't Mum here with us? Isn't she enough?"
"You naive kid," One continued coldly.
"Enough," Lizzy interrupted, still laughing. "I asked if you enjoyed the outing so far, not for a lecture on protection and stuff."
"It's alright," One said quietly, "but I wish you'd be more cautious."
"So in other words, you're enjoying yourself, aren't you?" Lizzy grinned, patting One on the head. "I thought it would take a long time to break through to you, but it seems this will be easier than I thought."
"Well, it's about time," Lizzy said with a soft grin.
A bright blue streak suddenly cut across the night sky. More followed, swirling and dancing, nearly colliding before shooting past each other. They met high above and burst with a huge bang into showers of different colors — reds, golds, greens — illuminating the entire kingdom in brilliant, flickering light.
Lizzy looked down at One, who was completely mesmerized, purple eyes wide and reflecting every flash. Dan was the same, mouth open in awe. Lizzy leaned close to One's ear so only she could hear.
"As you can see, no one has attacked. As long as I'm with you, you're safe. Let me rephrase — as long as you've been brought out from Amag, you're never going back. Ignore the rats in the street and just focus on moving forward. You're free now." Her voice softened. "You'll soon be given a job as atonement for the things Amag made you do these past four years. From now on… you're free."
A light trickle of tears ran down One's face for a moment. She quickly wiped it away with the back of her palm. She finally understood why the agents were watching but not moving. It was a battle lost before it even began. One person — just one entity — had tamed Amag to its core. It left her confused and strangely warm inside.
As they started heading back, Dan began stumbling from tiredness. Lizzy scooped him into her arms and let him sleep against her shoulder. The streets were less crowded now, though people still called out to her from the sides. She just waved and kept walking. When they noticed the sleeping boy in her arms, the noise quieted down respectfully until she passed, then picked up again softly behind her.
"So, what do you think of Dan?" Lizzy asked quietly.
"I believe he's too naive for his own good," One responded. "He doesn't know danger."
"And you don't think that's a good thing?" Lizzy asked.
"No. In fact, I think it's normal to have some idea of danger. He approached a killer in the courtroom — isn't that going too far, even for ignorance?"
"Do you think if he hadn't approached you, you'd be alive right now?" Lizzy countered gently, patting Dan's head as he stirred in her arms. She couldn't help smiling. "Trust me, Dan knows danger. If a truly dangerous person showed up, he wouldn't just jump to meet them. But the fact that he met you means he didn't consider you dangerous… and as you can see, he was right."
"Still, he should learn a little restraint when approaching strangers," One continued.
"I didn't know you cared for him so much. At this point we might as well leave you two together — you'll eventually rub off on him," Lizzy suggested casually. One stayed silent.
"I don't know how they treated you in Amag, but you're with the royal family of Shula now. So would you mind showing Dan some restraint when you're being blunt? I'm afraid you might hurt him unintentionally." Lizzy kept patting Dan's head without thinking.
"My God, you seem really mature for your age, huh One," Lizzy laughed softly. "I can't believe I'm having this kind of conversation with a kid. It's funny."
They arrived back at the castle late that night. With Lizzy's help, they snuck in noiselessly. She carried Dan to his room, tucked him in, and was about to leave when she noticed One following her.
"Oh no, you'll have to stay here with Dan for the night. Or maybe we'll just have you guys share a room. That'll be decided tomorrow. Goodnight, One," Lizzy sang merrily as she shut the door.
"What kind of careless mother is that?" One thought to herself. She had been taught to survive any situation in Amag. It wasn't that they had gotten through to her — this was simply her new reality now. Since Amag couldn't reach her, she might as well adapt.
She walked up to the bed where Dan was curled up fast asleep in a ball. She almost climbed in, then stopped. "I can't possibly sleep in the same bed as someone as pure as him." She took a chair from the desk instead and sat down. "I'll sleep here."
One didn't know how long she had dozed off, but she suddenly became aware of someone at the door. Knowing exactly who it was, she accepted her fate and stepped outside.
It was over in the blink of an eye. She couldn't even defend herself. With lightning-fast movement, a hand grabbed her throat and lifted her clean off the ground. She choked, legs dangling uselessly. The attacker was clearly far more powerful. There was no mistaking that blond hair and those blue eyes, even in the dead of night.
That earlier tap on the shoulder from Flynn hadn't been accidental. One had understood the signal and knew this moment would come.
"I'll get straight to the point," Flynn spoke calmly, but the deadliness in his voice was unmistakable. "From now on, you're appointed as Dan's knight — just as I am to Arthur. You'll keep the prince safe. Those moves you learned in Amag? Put them to good use. You'll dog his footsteps. And if you do your job well, you won't end up like the old man who followed you here."
He continued coldly, "I'm sure you knew I was watching when you and Dan went into that tunnel. I'm sure you knew I never really left. I commend your sharp instincts… but as you can already tell, I'm still much too powerful for someone like you right now."
He let go. One's legs crumpled beneath her as she gasped for air, neck throbbing.
Flynn loosened the sword he always kept strapped at his waist and laid it beside her. "Tomorrow I'll get you something to strap it against yourself." His voice stayed icy. "I'm sure you understand why I'm doing this. Unlike Arthur and Shula, you and I have the same kind of personality, so I won't have to explain my methods. Now pick up the sword and go to bed."
One stood without a word or even a wince from the pain in her neck. She picked up the sword and headed for the door, hearing Flynn's last words behind her.
"As long as you're in this castle, your head will fly before you can harm a hair on the prince's head."
The door closed. It felt like the whole encounter had been a dream. The night turned quiet once more.
She walked back to the bed, clutching the sword tightly to her chest, and looked at Dan sleeping peacefully. "Have I become so complacent that I actually slept?" she thought to herself.