Five days later…
The main town of Wonderveil was as busy as usual. Even though the issues surrounding the royal family were still a hot topic, the people had to carry on with their lives. The central market was packed with crowds. Fruit vendors shouted, offering cheap prices, while fishmongers were busy arranging fresh seafood brought in from the harbor. The scent of spices, toasted bread, and hot soup filled the air. Small children ran through the crowd while horse carriages moved slowly along the cobblestone streets.
In a corner near the market, a simply dressed woman sat alone in a small restaurant. Her dress was plain—not luxurious, not eye-catching. Her head was covered by a dark hood, making it difficult to see her face clearly. No one suspected that this woman was actually Princess Elowen. On her table sat only a glass of plain water; she hadn't touched any food. Her eyes had been scanning the surroundings for the past thirty minutes, as if searching for someone. Or… waiting for a prey.
Elowen remained there, unmoving, until finally, her eyes locked onto five men carrying sacks of rice on their shoulders. They looked like ordinary laborers, but Elowen recognized them. They were a group of criminals who had successfully escaped the guards multiple times, known for theft, smuggling, and hurting civilians.
Elowen stood up slowly. She placed a few coins on the table before leaving the restaurant. Her steps were calm—not too fast, not too slow. The five men didn't realize they were being followed. Elowen adjusted her hood to keep her face hidden. Because the market was so crowded, no one paid her any attention.
The five men continued walking with the sacks on their shoulders.
"We have to be quick," said one of them.
"You think it's easy lifting all this?" his friend replied, sighing in exhaustion.
"I know, but we have to move before someone notices."
"I noticed."
That cold voice made the five men stop dead in their tracks. They turned simultaneously. At the end of a narrow alley near a small shop, Elowen stood watching them. Her face was still hidden, but the aura she carried was enough to make the atmosphere turn tense.
"Who are you?" one of the men asked suspiciously.
"You don't need to know who I am," Elowen answered calmly. "But I know what you've done. You are committing serious crimes."
She looked at the rice sacks on the floor.
One of the men snorted rudely. "So what's your problem?"
Elowen stepped forward slowly. "The problem is... I need to catch you and take you to prison."
A few seconds later— "Hahaha!"
They all laughed loudly. The narrow alley was filled with mocking laughter.
"Don't try to be a hero."
"We always get away."
"You think you can fight the five of us alone?"
Elowen only watched them calmly, but her gaze sharpened. "Don't let yourselves regret this."
"Regret?" one man sneered. "It's just you. There are five of us. How are you going to defeat us?"
A small smile appeared on Elowen's lips. And without warning, she lunged forward. Her movements were so fast it caught them off guard.
BUKK!
A punch landed squarely in one man's stomach. His eyes bulged. His body was sent flying back, slamming into the alley wall. The rice sack fell to the floor. "Ough...!" he groaned, clutching his stomach.
The other men turned furious. "Oh, you're really looking for trouble! Let's get her together!"
They dropped their sacks and surrounded Elowen. But Elowen wasn't intimidated. She dodged every punch with speed. Her body was light and agile.
"This person is short... is it a woman?"
Elowen didn't answer. She grabbed one man by the neck and threw him hard onto the floor. DUMM! The man groaned in pain.
The other four attacked at once. But Elowen leaped in front of them. Her legs moved rapidly— BUKK! BUKK! BUKK!
Precise kicks landed on their heads one by one. They collapsed but still tried to get up. Elowen gave them no chance. She attacked relentlessly—punches, kicks, throws. Every move was precise and swift, like an experienced warrior on a battlefield.
The five men finally began to feel terror. they couldn't even touch Elowen. Their bodies were covered in bruises and wounds. Some vomited blood from the heavy impacts. Finally, all five were down, panting on the floor. Elowen pulled out some rope and tied their hands and feet tightly.
"So..." she stood over them. "...I need to take you to prison."
Suddenly, someone appeared at the end of the alley. A man dressed as a guard bowed respectfully to Elowen. Without a word, they began dragging the five criminals toward a prison carriage. People in the market were shocked.
"Isn't that the criminal gang that always gets away?"
"I can't believe they were finally caught!"
"Who is that woman?"
But Elowen had already pulled her hood back down. No one recognized her. The prison carriage began moving out of town. Elowen and the guard followed behind. However, they did not head toward Wonderveil's main prison. Instead, they moved toward an underground area near the palace.
A rusted old iron door was opened slowly. A dark underground tunnel appeared. The carriage entered the tunnel, the sound of wheels echoing along the damp, cold stone passage. Soon, they arrived at an old, long-abandoned prison. Torchlight on the walls was the only source of light. A musty, rancid smell hit their noses. Many cells were empty, and the iron bars had begun to rust. The atmosphere was so silent, as if the place had long been forgotten by humanity.
The carriage stopped. The doors were flung open roughly. The five men were dragged out and tossed into one of the cells. THE IRON DOOR SLAMMED SHUT. The lock was turned.
"Hey!" one man stood up, shouting in anger. "Do you know what will happen if we get out of here?!"
Elowen approached the cell slowly. Her eyes looked at them without mercy. "No one gets out of here." She gently touched the rusted bars. "No one... except certain people."
The five of them began to look uneasy. "Is this... the prison beneath the palace?"
They had heard rumors about this place. A haunted prison. A place where people disappeared without a trace.
Elowen turned slowly. "Goodbye. We will meet again tomorrow."
The guard followed her immediately. The carriage moved back out, leaving the place behind. And shortly after, the old prison returned to silence. Only five men remained, beginning to realize... they might not leave that place alive.
The dungeon was silent and damp. The torchlight on the walls flickered slowly, casting eerie shadows on the old, moss-covered stones. The sound of water dripping from the ceiling could be heard faintly, adding to the cold atmosphere of the place.
The five men captured the other day were still in the prison. Both of their hands were handcuffed to iron chains hanging from the ceiling. Their bodies were pressed against the hard stone walls while their feet dangled slightly off the floor. They were punished with hanging handcuffs.
Their bodies were already covered in bruises from the previous fight. There was dried blood on their lips and cheeks. Some of them had already lost the energy to resist. However, the most terrifying thing was not the pain—it was the fear of waiting for someone to arrive.
The iron door at the end of the corridor opened slowly. The sound of the iron grinding echoed throughout the prison.
Tap... tap... tap...
A person's footsteps drew closer. The five men raised their heads slowly. They saw a man in a black robe with a hood covering his face standing in front of their cell. The man's body was not too large, but the aura he emitted was enough to make them shiver. The guard standing by the side opened the cell door respectfully before bowing his head.
"Your Highness."
The hooded figure entered the cell. When she pulled back her hood slightly, the five men's eyes widened instantly.
Princess Elowen.
The woman who had defeated them single-handedly. The woman who had now become their nightmare.
"I didn't expect you all to still be in the prison," Elowen said softly while looking at them one by one. Her tone was calm. Yet, that calmness was far more terrifying than an angry scream. "I still remember you yourselves saying you could easily escape from this prison."
One of the men swallowed hard. "P... please have mercy, Your Highness..." He no longer dared to act arrogant like he did in the market alley the other day. All their courage seemed to have vanished after being locked in this place. "We regret it..."
"Regret?" Elowen smiled cynically. She walked slowly in front of them. The sound of her boots echoed on the stone floor. "You robbed, injured civilians, murdered traders, and even escaped from prison several times."
Elowen stopped in front of one of them and roughly lifted his chin. "And now you want to talk about regret?"
The man trembled in terror. "Your... Your Highness... please release us..."
Elowen released the man's chin before turning toward the guard behind her. The guard immediately handed her a special whip. The whip was long and thin, but its surface was covered in small, sharp iron thorns. The five men turned pale at the sight of it.
"Your... Your Highness..."
"You will receive your punishment." Elowen held the whip calmly. Her eyes watched them sharply. No sympathy. No mercy. Only the sternness of a princess who wanted to punish criminals. "Wonderveil does not need trash like you."
Plaar!
The first lash hit one of the men's bodies. A loud scream immediately echoed in the prison. "Arghhh!!" The small thorns on the whip tore slightly into his skin. The man shivered in pain while trying to free himself from the handcuffs. But the iron chains were too strong.
Plaar!
Plaar!
Elowen continued to lash out without showing any change in emotion. Scream after scream filled the underground prison space.
"He... help!"
"We regret it!"
"Forgive us!"
But Elowen did not stop at all. In her view, they were no longer just ordinary thieves. They were a threat to the people of Wonderveil. And a threat like that could not be allowed to go free.
Sweat began to soak the faces of several of the men. Some cried, some almost fainted from the pain. The guards watching the punishment could only remain silent. They themselves knew who Princess Elowen really was. Cruel? Perhaps. But every punishment Elowen carried out was always given to those who were truly guilty.
After a while, Elowen finally stopped. She looked at the five men who were now weak and lifeless. Their bodies were covered in red wounds. Some were gasping for air, enduring the pain. Elowen handed the whip back to the guard.
"Keep them here."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Elowen adjusted her hood before walking out of the cell. However, before she left, she paused for a moment. "You should be grateful."
The five men raised their heads slowly.
"Because I have not yet passed the death sentence upon you."
Their eyes widened in terror. Elowen then walked away, leaving them in the darkness of the underground prison. The sound of her footsteps faded into the distance. And after the iron door was closed once more... only then did they realize one thing.
Princess Elowen was far more terrifying than all the rumors they had ever heard.
Celestia noticed that her sister, Elowen, was leaving the palace every day to go somewhere, which made her start to feel suspicious. This had been going on for nearly two weeks.
Every morning, Elowen would leave her room before the sun was high in the sky. She didn't bring many guards; in fact, she sometimes went out alone with an expression that was difficult to read. At first, Celestia tried to ignore it. But as time went on, her heart grew increasingly uneasy—especially after the people began to speak ill of her sister.
After the incident where the maid was injured, Celestia could sense that something had changed in Elowen. Her sister had become quieter, harder to find, and spent more time alone. Because of this, Celestia finally decided to follow her sister secretly.
That morning, Celestia stood behind a corridor pillar, watching Elowen's room from a distance. She wore ordinary clothes so as not to attract anyone's attention. Not long after, Elowen's door opened slowly. Elowen stepped out with a calm stride. Her black hair was tied back neatly, and she wore dark clothing like someone who wanted to go out unrecognized.
Celestia shrunk her body slightly behind the pillar. Her heart beat slowly. After ensuring her sister had walked a fair distance, Celestia began to follow from behind. She was careful to make sure the sound of her footsteps couldn't be heard.
Unbeknownst to Celestia... a pair of tiny eyes was watching her from atop a corridor cabinet. A brown squirrel. The squirrel twitched its tail slowly before jumping down and beginning to follow Celestia silently.
Elowen walked out of the palace through a back door rarely used by anyone. The area was silent, filled with old stone walls and creeping vines. Celestia continued to follow from afar until Elowen stopped in front of a small door hidden at the back of the palace. The door was narrow, only wide enough for one person to enter at a time.
Celestia furrowed her brow. She had never seen that door before. Elowen opened it and stepped inside without hesitation. Celestia waited a few seconds before approaching the door slowly. A sense of fear began to rise within her, but curiosity overcame everything.
Celestia opened the small door and stepped inside. The squirrel also hopped in before the door slowly closed again. Beyond the door was a stone staircase leading deep underground. The walls on the left and right were lined with torches burning dimly. The orange glow from the fire made the passage look eerie.
Celestia's footsteps echoed softly as she descended the stairs. The further down she went, the colder the atmosphere became, and the stronger the damp smell hit her nose. Celestia covered her mouth gently.
"Where... where am I?" she asked herself softly.
She kept going down. The stairs seemed endless. Finally, however, Celestia reached the bottom floor. Her eyes widened slightly. Stretched out before her was an old underground dungeon. Rusted iron bars filled the area. Empty prison cells were lined up on the left and right of the corridor. Iron chains hung from the walls, while the dim torchlight made the place look even more terrifying. The stench of blood mixed with the smell of decay filled the air.
Celestia nearly gagged. Her hands trembled slightly. Then... she heard the sound of something being dragged across the stone floor.
Srek...
Srek...
Srek...
Celestia slowly lifted her head. At the end of the corridor... Elowen was walking while dragging a long sword. The sound of the sword's steel scraping against the stone floor echoed throughout the dungeon.
Celestia's eyes bulged. "Elowen...?" she whispered softly.
Without a second thought, Celestia immediately ran toward her sister. The little squirrel moved quickly from behind, continuing to follow Celestia's every step. Celestia's heart beat faster and faster. Her feelings were a blur of fear, confusion, and disbelief.
Elowen stopped in front of the very last cell. Unlike the other cells, this one had solid stone walls and a thick iron door, as if it were a special room for dangerous prisoners. Celestia reached the door and flung it open immediately.
The iron door swung open with force. And in that moment... Celestia's body froze.
Blood flowed across the stone floor. Five men were inside the cell, critically injured. Their bodies were covered in wounds and sword gashes. Blood dripped from their hands and shoulders. Some of them were already unconscious, while others could only groan in pain.
And in the middle of the room... Elowen stood holding a sword drenched in blood.
Elowen looked toward her sister with a cold face, while Celestia could only stand there, paralyzed. Her eyes were filled with shock at seeing the true side of her sister that had been hidden all this time.