V
Olivia and the others set off in the opposite direction from Felix, heading for the eastern wing of the palace. There was a servant’s entrance on the floor plan that appeared to be unguarded. They were about to try and use it to infiltrate the palace.
“Just a moment, General.” Claudia, at the head of the group, attempted to sense through the door if there was anyone inside when Olivia’s hand snaked out toward the handle. She knew at once what Olivia was doing, but before she could prevent it, the handle gave a hard clunk. Claudia hurriedly cast her eyes around them, making sure there was nothing amiss. Olivia tossed the wrenched-off handle to the ground. Claudia gave her a reproachful look.
“What if someone had noticed us?” she demanded.
“It’s fine. I don’t sense anyone here but us,” Olivia replied lightly. She threw the door open, then strode inside without hesitation, leaving Claudia to hurry after her. Just as Olivia had said, there was no one inside, only a spotlessly clean kitchen. As Olivia went to open yet another door in the back of the room, Claudia grabbed her by the shoulder.
“General, I am begging you to show a little more caution!” she hissed.
Olivia turned back, the puzzlement on her face plain even in the darkness. “I mean, we’re supposed to cause a distraction, aren’t we? I’m pretty sure it doesn’t matter if they find us now that we’re inside.”
“Yes, but your goal is to meet Darmés, isn’t it? If they find us too quickly, that will make getting to him all the more difficult.”
According to the floor plan, it was a significant distance from their current location to Darmés’s workroom. In addition, the layout of this palace was far more complex than Leticia Castle. Claudia argued that they would have plenty of time to create a distraction after they made it to their destination and organized everything properly.
Temporary truce or no, at the end of the day, Felix was still their enemy. Of course Claudia didn’t say it out loud, but privately, she saw no need for such loyalty.
“Hmm, right...” Olivia said slowly. “Yeah, I guess so.” Despite the noncommittal answer, she seemed to have accepted it. Claudia let out a sigh of relief. They resumed their search, but almost immediately ran into another problem. When she glanced at the soldiers, she saw a mix of nerves and uncertainty on their faces. It seemed that they were thinking the same thing she was.
“Doesn’t this seem off to you?”
“Yeah,” Olivia replied, keeping her eyes fixed ahead of them. “At Letitia Castle, there were lots of humans working day and night, but here there’s no one at all. Maybe in the empire they don’t work at night?”
“That’s absurd,” Claudia said, exasperated.
“It was a joke,” Olivia replied. Then to add insult to injury, she grinned and added, “I’m getting pretty good at them now, don’t you think?”
Claudia’s exasperation deepened as the other soldiers all tried not to laugh.
“At any rate, we have reached our ultimate destination,” Claudia said, lowering her voice warningly. “I trust you will not forget that.”
Olivia’s smile gradually hardened until at last, she gave a few small nods. After that, they continued on to their destination without meeting another soul.
“I think that’s it...” Claudia said, looking around the corner with one eye at a towering set of doors. Olivia peeked out after her, obscuring her view.
“Even without any guards around, it took a really long time getting here, huh?”
Without the floor plans Felix had given them, they might still have been wandering lost in the castle’s labyrinthine corridors. If they had had to face imperial soldiers on top of that, it would undoubtedly have taken longer, which made the current state of things all the more unsettling.
“Right. From here, I’m going on alone,” Olivia said.
“Why, ser?”
They had not encountered anyone thus far, let alone guards, which led Claudia to the conclusion that the same must have been true for Felix. In which case, a diversion was unnecessary, making staying together the obvious choice. The other soldiers all started making their wishes to go with Olivia known.
But Olivia only said, “No questions. You are to carry out your orders right now.” Her expression had suddenly become frighteningly harsh. Claudia found herself speechless. Despite being always at Olivia’s side, this was the first time she had seen her act in such a way.
The soldiers too looked deeply shocked at this sudden change in Olivia.
“Claudia and the rest of you are to go back and meet up with the others.”
“But—”
“No arguments. Go!”
“Yes, ser,” Claudia said at length. “Good luck to you.” Cowed by Olivia’s unyielding aura, Claudia and the others, still reeling, left back the way they had come. Claudia looked back reluctantly several times, but Olivia did not turn around once.
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