Nox got up, animated by a new determination. He was no longer a broken man, but simply a bruised man. He put on light clothing and headed for the conference room.

There he found Johan, Jack, and the other survivors, their faces grim, gathered around a table.

"Nox! You're here," said Johan, relief visible in his eyes.

Nox entered the conference room, his gaze sweeping the room. He saw the familiar faces of Johan, Jack, and the other survivors, all marked by fatigue and worry. He felt a surge of gratitude toward them for holding strong despite the ordeal.

"I'm here," he said, his voice firm and resolute. "What did I miss?"

Johan stood up, his face serious. "Nothing, but why this meeting? Shouldn't the priority be to go to the imperial palace to report and request reinforcements..." he said, his voice tinged with sadness.

Being sad was normal, after all: out of about thirty Guardians who left to close that gate, nearly half had perished.

Nox felt a shiver of anger run through him. "Johan, even if the motive isn't clear yet, the Empire is trying to eliminate us. I will go see the Emperor to report on this mission, but not without being prepared," he asserted, his gaze fixed on Johan.

"Yet we left three hours ago, so why hasn't the Emperor sent healers to treat us? They must know we left the gate and are here, yet nothing..."

Johan hesitated for a moment before answering. "Maybe they are waiting for us somewhere..." he murmured.

Although he wanted to speak and contradict Nox, he had no argument. Under normal circumstances, since they had just closed a gate of such magnitude, the palace, upon learning of it, would have already sent support of all kinds to welcome them.

That said, whether it was Jack, Nox, or the other surviving Guardians, they had a bad feeling about the whole thing.

Nox clenched his fists, his heart pounding in his chest. He had always known Prince Arin was a dangerous man, but he never imagined he would go this far.

"If I gathered you here, it's because I want us to coordinate so there are no nasty surprises," he said, his gaze sweeping the room. "I will go to the palace to see the Emperor with Tilda and a representative of the Erian Guardians to give him a report on our expedition. The rest of you, stay here and wait for us."

The others nodded their heads. Since Nox had requested a representative from Erian, Johan stood up to represent them, but Nox refused.

"You, you stay here. In case my premonitions turn out to be true, those who are here will have to rely on you to leave Kyralia quickly," he said in a calm tone.

Hearing him, some Guardians already took him for someone overly cautious or paranoid. But seeing the calmness of his actions and his assured words, they began to ask themselves questions.

"What if what he said wasn't true? What if their Empire had decided to kill them? What if...?"

"Jack, you will be the representative of Erian," said Nox, his gaze intensely scrutinizing the room. "Have you seen Tilda?" he asked, his tone tinged with a hint of worry.

There was no sign of Tilda in the room, and Nox felt his instinct screaming at him to look for her. He had a bad feeling.

"A few hours ago, she was here," Johan replied. "But I think she left the citadel with her guard after coming to treat those of us who were injured."

Nox nodded, his mind buzzing. "I see," he said, but his gaze was already elsewhere, listening to the sounds coming from outside the room.

Suddenly, he sensed a group of guards entering the citadel. He signaled Jack to follow him and left the room, his gaze fixed on the newcomers.

"It must be the Emperor's people," he whispered to Jack. "If I notice anything suspicious, I'll give you a sign to bolt. I'm counting on you, Johan," he added to Johan who watched them leave.

"I'm sure you're being too paranoid. They'll welcome us like heroes. Who knows?" Jack said to Nox as they exited the room.

...

With Jack by his side, Nox walked toward the guards, his gaze scanning the surroundings, looking for any sign of danger.

Nox and Jack approached the guards, their eyes fixed on the leader of the group, Sirius, a tall, robust man with a stern face. Nox knew him very well, as he was one of the twelve strongest captains in Kyralia. Seeing this madman did not bode well.

As for Jack, he still believed they were going to be warmly welcomed, but it was quite the opposite. Upon their arrival, they were greeted by armed soldiers who surrounded them, their faces hard and threatening.

"What does this mean, Sirius?" asked Nox, his sword in hand, ready to defend himself.

Sirius approached him, a cruel smile on his face.

"You are accused of treason, Nox," he said. "You have been tried and convicted in your absence."

Nox was taken aback. "Treason? What are you talking about? We just returned from a mission to save the Empire!"

Captain Sirius smiled, his gaze cold and calculating. "Save the Empire? The evidence is against you. You are suspected of having assassinated the Princess of Erian, and your actions have been deemed a threat to the security of Kyralia. You want to start a war, don't you?"

The sentence echoed in Nox's ears, giving rise to a feeling of anger and denial. Kill Tilda? Why on earth would he do that? He thought back to the scene at the gate, and an idea came to mind: Tilda must still be alive.

"I didn't kill Tilda," Nox said with assurance, his gaze fixed on Sirius. "I swear to you, I did not harm her."

Sirius burst out laughing, his face red with rage. "You dare to call the Princess by her name?" he roared. "More importantly, where is the rest of your team?"

Nox shrugged, his gaze never leaving Sirius's. "I don't know."

Sirius smiled again, his gaze cruel. "Oh! You killed them? Surrender meekly if you don't want to die an agonizing death, Nox."

Nox had already predicted such a setup. Calmly, he raised his hands in the air without trying to fight and was immediately arrested. Jack, meanwhile, was left behind. They didn't even spare him a glance as they dragged Nox away.

"I'm screwed, aren't I?" he muttered as he watched Nox being led away.

...

After leaving the citadel, Tilda had returned to the imperial palace. She had wanted to request an audience to speak to the Emperor about the forces lost at the gate so that together they could find a way to reduce losses at the next gate. But after careful thought, she gave up. It wasn't her job to do that, but Nox's.

"Hmm, he should be awake by now, shouldn't he?" she thought detachedly.

"Princess, something wrong?" asked Tiffa, her personal guard.

"No, it's nothing," Tilda replied.

Since their return from the citadel, Tiffa had seemed strangely odd to her. No matter how much she asked what was wrong, she hadn't given her a clear answer. Tilda had finally given up.

"It will pass soon," she had told herself.

Tilda walked in the palace garden, enjoying the coolness it exuded. She liked it. Of all the places in this palace, it was her favorite.

Suddenly, she felt a tingling sensation on her neck. She turned around, but there was no one. Just her and Tiffa. She shrugged and continued walking.

"Tiffa, don't you feel something abnormal?"

"No. Is something bothering you?"

"Hmm, maybe I'm just too tired..." she said.

But the tingling returned, stronger this time. Tilda turned around again, and this time, she saw a shadow moving in the bushes.

She froze, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew she was in danger.

Suddenly, a figure emerged from the bushes, a dagger in hand. Tilda threw herself to the side, narrowly avoiding the dagger which plunged into the ground. She sprang back up, ready to defend herself, but the assassin had already disappeared into the bushes.

Tiffa rushed to her, her face pale with worry. "Tilda, are you okay? What happened?"

Tilda looked at her calmly and confidently before answering platonically: "I don't know. Someone attacked me."

Tiffa took her arm, her gaze sweeping the surroundings. "Come, we need to get you to safety."

They quickly headed toward the personal quarters of the imperial palace, Tilda glancing over her shoulder, fearing the assassin would return.

When they arrived at the palace, Tilda turned to Tiffa. "Tiffa, I think someone is trying to kill me."

...

Here we are at the end of this chapter.

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