Footsteps run right pass my door and the screams are closer. I’m scared. I better hide. I go to the closet and close myself in. I wish I wasn’t alone. I think the palace is being attacked.
“Princess! Setsuna-sama!”
I peek out the door. It’s one of the guards. He turns to see me and gathers me up quickly.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“We’re under attack. You have to survive.”
“But mother and father-”
“Keep your voice down.”
He picks me up over his shoulder and starts running. He seems scared too. The house is wrecked. I move my hair out of the way and see blood on the walls. We’re definitely being attacked. He runs down the stairs and slows down peeking around the corner.
He starts running again and I see a man crossing the hall behind us. I don’t think he sees us as he drags his blade against the ground hunting. Please don’t let him turn this way. Just as we turn the corner his eyes snap towards us.
Who could he be? He has a mask and long hair. The guard frantically looks for a way out while the masked man closes in.
“Behind you!” I scream.
He turns quickly and I fall from him. I look up and see the blade piercing his body. The masked man withdraws the blade and I back away fumbling over my clothes. The man approaches me and slams the blade down near my head. I scream and he pulls it away for another attempt. I can’t let him kill me. I’ll never be able to see Kyoya-sama again.
I’m the princess to my country; I have to protect myself. I have a blade on me. It’s a spring blade loaded against my forearm. I never had to use it but father insisted I wear it for protection. I reach my hand to his chest and he stops. How do I release it?
He reaches down for my hair and yanks out my ribbon. My hair falls down and I struggle to remember. It’s a slight movement to make it work.
He slowly slides his blade to my face and I whimper at the incision. I push on his chest more.
“Go away!” I scream.
The blade springs out and slides back in. He groans and backs away. I finally got it to work. I run for the nearest exit. I never had to use them before. I burst out into the night running. I keep running and hit the guard wall. Yumi-chan said there was a door around here. I can’t see it at night.
“Somebody help me!” I scream.
Where are the guards? Why is no one here? They can’t all be dead.
“Help me!” I scream.
Maybe if I’m quiet the man won’t find me. There could be more people lurking around here. I sit down against the wall and try to slow my breathing. My heart is beating so fast.
“There you are.”
I look up and scramble to my feet. As I run away he grabs my hair and pulls me to him. I can’t see him but he pushes me against the wall as if he can see me well.
“Please stop,” I say to him. “Why are you doing this?”
He points his blade at my face again and I start to cry. He lowers the blade and punches me in the stomach. My eyes close and fall into his arms.
Chapter 19: Kyoya
“Kyoya-sama, wake up!”
It must have happened. I haven’t been able to sleep. I ruffle my hair and rub my eyes. I have to play the part. I can’t believe I went through with it. I orchestrated the massacre of an entire royal house. I hope Setsuna-san is alright. I keep thinking about her tears.
I take a breath before opening the door.
“What is it?”
“The Morinaga royal family is being attacked.”
I follow him to the main conference room. The entire family is there while the servants and guards are scrambling to secure our perimeter. Everyone sits in pajamas watching the news report with palace guards running around frantically.
Yumiko-san steps in next and holds her mouth.
“Uh, Kan-nii,” I say to him.
He reaches back and braces her just as she screams out.
“This is terrible,” mother says. “How could this happen? We just spoke to them.”
“Are our own borders secure?” father calls back to Kan-nii.
“Of course.”
He struggles to hold up Yumiko-san. I’m sorry. I really want to say sorry to her. No one did anything wrong. It’s for power. I keep an eye on her and watch her tears. She’s making me feel even guiltier. I walk over and touch her shoulder. Kan-nii looks back at me in anger. He knows what I did too. He knew it would hurt her but…he cares enough about her to hate the person that caused it all the same.
“Maybe you should take her back to her room,” I tell him.
“Kyoya-sama,” she cries to me.
“We’ll catch whoever is responsible. I promise,” I say to her.
Kira grabs my sleeve and I look over at him. He’s in tears but trying to hold it back.
“D-do you think Setsuna-san is okay?”
“I hope so. I hope they’re all okay.”
But I know they’re not. I hold my head. She’s somewhere crying covered in blood.
“Get our people over there now,” father says.
Mother walks Kira back to his room and I stay with father. I stand over his shoulder while he watches the newscast for every detail.
“I’m really scared. What if she’s not okay?”
“This is unprecedented,” he says.
“It’s because I kissed her. I brought hate to her family.”
“Probably. I never would have thought someone could do this. The King…Hajime-sama, I just spoke to him.”
He’s stressed over this. I did it for power and I did it so I could be with her. I said I would be her hero and she really needs that now.
“I want you to stay in the palace. You might be a target too.”
“But Setsuna-san needs me.”
“I’ll bring her here….if she’s alive.”
The thought occurs to me that something could have went wrong. She could be dead. I take another breath. No, that can’t be. I said to leave her alive no matter what.
I stagger back to my room. It’s making me sick just thinking about it. I have to be tougher than this. I’m so sorry. I’ll pay for my sins by being a better leader.
Chapter 20: Kantarou
I knew this day would come. I figured I would pat her on the back and be done with her. Her crying is really bothering me. I took her back to my room instead of hers. She’s crying in my pillow.
I sit next to her and try to peel her away by petting her head.
“Um…I don’t know what to say to you to make you stop crying.”
“Please help my family.”
“I will.”
I’ll have to travel there anyway. She finally sits up with red eyes. I don’t want to see her this upset.
“What about Setsuna-chan?” she whines.
I know she’s alive. It would all be for nothing if she wasn’t. I pet her hair again and she falls into my chest.
“Kantarou-sama, if you didn’t take me I’d be there too.”
I lean back and it’s a night of us lying together with me soaked in her tears. After some time she sleeps. I pull myself away and go back to Kyoya. He’s awake in his bedroom smoking on the balcony.
“Is she okay?”
“Not really. Probably will have a case of survivor’s guilt.”
It’s going on four in the morning. I just wanted to see if he was okay.
“You should sleep,” I tell him.
“Thank you for letting me confide in you. I don’t think I could handle this all by myself.”
“That’s what brothers are for.”
“You’ve always been a great brother to me.”
“And we’ll both make great kings. Unlike you, I’m not ready to take the throne. Hmph…you’re a king now. You surpassed me.”
“I’m a king now? I won’t feel it unless I have my queen.”
“I’m sure she’s fine. Make sure you sleep.”
I walk back to my room and pull off my shirt. I have no choi
ce but to sleep with her. I get back in and her arms immediately grab hold of me.
It’s fine. But this will just confuse her feelings even more. I lean over and kiss her forehead. She’s just a pretty girl to me. I don’t mind being around her though. She admires me and her reactions make me laugh.
By morning she’s still in my arms. I have to get back to work and investigate the massacre. I pull away from her again.
“Thank you for spending the night with me. I’m sorry if-”
“Don’t worry about it,” I tell her. “I’m going there to see what happened. If you need company, stay with Kira.”
I look back and see her sit up. It’s arousing to see her in my bed. She pushes her hair behind her ear and starts to sniffle.
I shouldn’t rush off so quickly. I go back and sit next to her.
“I can’t believe they could all be dead. Who could have-”
“Calm down.”
I reach out and cradle her head. I don’t want to see her sad. I want her to smile at me again. I lean down to her and kiss her.
“I like kissing you,” I admit to her. “If you’re a good girl while I’m gone, I’ll kiss you again.”
I kiss her lips again and she lingers biting my bottom lip. It’s hard to believe she’s seventeen. That’s another way it’d be troublesome if this got out.
“I wish you would only kiss me if you plan on returning my feelings.”
“Are you really in a place where you can be picky? I don’t invite women into my bedroom but you’re here. Can’t you be happy with that?”
I get up and go to the bathroom. In trying to comfort her I’m saying too much. I can’t even remember the lies I was supposed to say. It all sounds truthful.
Chapter 21: Setsuna
I’m not dead. It’s all I can think about at this time. I sit up leaning on my elbows. I’m somewhere in the woods. There’s a small creek beside me. The water floats by calmly.
The man is still here. He’s leaning over the side with his hands in the water. I open my mouth to speak but nothing comes out.
“I’ve temporarily sealed your voice to keep you from screaming,” he says with his back to me.
I sit up and grab my forearm. The blade is gone. He’s rinsing the blood off my blade. If he wanted to kill me he would have done it already.
I might have to describe him later on. He has long black hair. He’s tall but slender. I can’t see his face just yet.
I sit up and touch my face. The bleeding hasn’t stopped. Mother is going to kill me if I get a scar. Mother! Is she okay? I need to check on her. I get to my feet and struggle to stand.
Which way is the palace? It’s my first time being outside the palace and I just want to run back to it.
“Don’t move,” he says to me.
I have to help them. I take one step and he grabs my arm. He pulls up my sleeve and attaches my blade back.
With him this close I stare at him. Half his face is covered with a mask. I can’t tell what he looks like. He seems focused on attaching the blade back. I reach my hand up and grab his mask. I have it in my hand. His cold eyes snap to me and I’m frozen.
“If you see my face, I will have no choice but to kill you.”
My teachers warned me about kidnappings. I should always avoid seeing the kidnapper’s face. He didn’t just kidnap me. He killed people. There’s no way he could have killed everyone but with all the blood and screams I have my doubts. I release my hand and he finishes attaching my blade.
What happens now?
He pulls my arm and I stumble forward. I try to balance myself from falling in the creek but he gives me a push and I fall in. It’s shallow but I’m weighed down by my heavy robes. Can hardly move.
“Stay here until someone finds you. I’ll be watching so don’t move.”
It’s cold. I look back to find him and he’s gone. So I’m supposed to wait here; no one is looking for me. I can’t even scream for help. Every time I open to speak my throats hurts.
Chapter 22: Kantarou
I get to the palace by noon. Things are moving fast. I check in with the lead investigator. They seem to not be able to keep calm. It would be better if I was running the investigation. I would be able to look at their bloody faces without feeling anything.
“Any survivors?”
“Everyone that would have been in the palace is accounted for and dead except the princess.”
That seems about right. She can’t be far. She must have run away to protect herself. I grip my forehead.
“If this is too much for you, I can take over. I was put in charge of the princess’ wellbeing.”
“I’m sorry if I sound rude but by who?”
“By her fiancé. He has jurisdiction over her.”
“That’s a bit archaic-”
“Well that’s how it works. Show me a map of the palace.”
I’ll figure out where she is. She’s never left the palace before so she’s probably lost. Maybe Kyoya would know.
“I’ll have my men search the woods. If she’s injured, she doesn’t have much time.”
“She wouldn’t be there.”
“Why not?” I ask him.
“She would have run for the town towards the guards of course.”
“Not if she was trying to hide. Look, we don’t know who did this but they were obviously deadly. Guards wouldn’t be able to protect her. Nor would she be the type of person to lead the killer to more victims. It was late and she probably wanted to hide.”
“You’re not permitted to search as you want. If anything, my men will search the woods.”
“You’re wasting my time.”
I’m the superior commander. I’ll find the princess myself. It’ll look great on the news. I get up and go back to my men.
“We need to find her quickly,” I say to them.
“Commander, I overheard an examiner saying they found the princess’ blood at the scene. She was in a struggle.”
They won’t share all the information with us so I’ll figure it out myself. Kyoya didn’t share the entire plan with me. I don’t know who he chose to do it. It must be someone he trusts but also someone expendable if things get out of hand. It could even be someone that’s here.
I’m tempted to call him. If she was hurt then we don’t have much time. I brought three captains with me but some seem to have migrated here on their own to help out.
“We need to check the woods,” I say to them.
“I’d like to stay behind and see where the investigation is going. I’ll report to you from here,” one says to me.
“Fine, the rest of you move out.”
I take a minute to gather my thoughts and a captain brushes by me.
“She’s at the creek. I’ll lead you there.”
I turn my head to him slowly. So it was Captain Saki. I should have guessed. Kyoya and him were inseparable in the past. He’s one of the youngest captains and the biggest palace freeloader. I trust he’ll do this without suspicion.
“I’m an expert at tracking so let me take lead, commander.”
“Fine. I’ll follow.”
Chapter 23: Setsuna
It’s getting dark. The water feels colder. I feel so weak sitting here. But he’s watching me. Probably wants me to die from a fever.
“Setsuna-sama!” I hear.
Someone is looking for me. I open my mouth but still can’t scream out.
“Setsuna-san!”
I look for the voice. It’s Kantarou-sama. He came to look for me. Kyoya-sama must be here too. Oh no! What if the killer was trying to lure him here so he can kill them. I can’t let that happen. I lay down in the creek with my mouth slightly above the water. Please don’t hurt Kyoya-sama or his family.
Soon I’m lifted out of the water and cradled in someone’s arms. I open my eyes.
“Are you alright?” Kantarou-sama says to me.
I hug him. I’m so glad to hear a familiar voice. Another man stands behind him looking on
. He brought his army to find me. More men run up behind him with the same uniform.
Kantarou-sama begins walking back. He stares at my face.
“It’s okay to talk to me. Whoever did this is long gone.”
I shake my head to him. I really want to. I want to warn him and tell him everything but even if I could I’m not allowed.
“Speak,” he says to me. “Can you talk?”
I shake my head again. He tilts my head back inspecting my throat. I don’t know what the man did to keep me from talking.
The palace comes into view and he covers my face with a jacket. Everyone seems happy to see me. I’m happy to be alive too.
“At least there’s one survivor,” I hear.
I peek from underneath the jacket. They all can’t be gone. I pull on Kantarou-sama’s collar. Tell me they’re not all gone. I need mother and father.
“I’m sorry,” he says in a low voice.
It hurts to cry. I want to wail but it hurts. I can’t recall what’s happening. He sits inside a tent and I’m examined. He tries to leave me but I hold on to his sleeve.
I’m alone now.
“Calm down,” he says to me. “You’re making yourself sick.”
I feel sick. I feel like throwing up and passing out.
Chapter 24: Kyoya
Kira and I sit with Yumiko-san trying to distract her. She’s been crying all day. Especially since the news report went out that everyone in the palace was murdered. There were no survivors. I know Setsuna-san is safe. They may be hiding it to protect her.
He’s attempting to play chess with her. I look at him to keep him from making a stupid comment.
“Is it okay to move the horsey here?” she asks him.
“Why would you? Are you trying to…I mean, yes.”
We’re in the library trying to keep her away from any media coverage.
“Has Kantarou-sama called yet? Did he arrive?” she asks me.
“He’s investigating.”
“Aren’t you worried?”
“I’m terrified. I feel as though it’s my fault.”
The Last Princess Page 7