Chapter 136: Prince Lemuel

Lemuel opens his eyes to find himself in the dark halls of the Blair Palace. He looks outside the window to sense the tranquility from the dead hours of the night. Lemuel tilts his head down to find he wears only the thin layer of his nightgown and is lost as to why he is standing in the middle of the hallways barefooted. 

He observes the surroundings to get an idea of where he is, but the monotone of the night is blending the surroundings to seem the same. So, he starts walking to encounter a familiar sight, but the end of the hallways is just a set of stairs.

"Lemuel…" A young woman's voice calls from his behind, and he quickly flips his body around to the familiar voice.

"Sister Fiona! You are awake! How are you feeling?" Lemuel closes their distance and looks at his sister's apathetic expression.

He jerks a bit from the unfamiliarity and slowly loosens his grip on her sleeves. Fiona watches Lemuel's hesitations, and her lips widen into an eerie smile.

"Sister?" Lemuel stops and backs away after the bottom of his foot senses the edges of the first stair step.

"WAKE UP!" A man's voice echoes in his mind, making him flinch.

His mind suddenly clears up, and Fiona's figure starts to change. The surface of her skin is starting to bubble and pop. A black slime flows out, and her body starts to crack and burst into a hideous massive creature covered in that slime. Her face remains intact as if the head is actually put onto the body like a hanging object. He loses his balance and falls back down the stairs.

"Wake up, damn it!" Another cry shouts towards him again, but he knows it is a voice inside his mind.

The creature leans backward and propels toward Lemuel, opening Fiona's delicate mouth into a jaw of sharp teeth. 

'It's a dream,' When Lemuel finally realizes the fact, his surroundings get consumed by white light.

He opens his eyes in shock and grasps to see that another man is standing on his bed, jamming his two swords on the jaw of the creature he saw in his dreams. His feet are sinking into the mattress, and his knees bending.

"Took you long enough! Get out of the way!" That man squeezes out words as he uses all his strength to block the creature.

Lemuel immediately stands up from his bed, letting the man release his standstill with the monster. The hideous creature crashes onto the bed, breaking it with the snapping of its jaw. 

That man breathes heavily, and then he wraps his arm around Lemuel's waist. 

"Hold on tight."

Lemuel freezes at this man's sudden boldness to touch him indecently. However, he quickly puts his arm around the strange man's neck after seeing the man frown. As if he is weightless, that stranger runs to the balcony and jumps down, making Lemuel hug tighter. His scream gets drowned on his chest, and he feels his heart jar when they land on the floor. 

Another man with silver hair and a woman with a high ponytail appear before them. 

"Federline, take his highness away," Kyrie commands. 

"Yes."

Federline scoops Lemuel up, and without hesitation, he turns back and runs away. Lemuel looks back at the two that stayed behind with worry. 

"They are going to be fine," Federline murmurs like he has read Lemuel's mind.

"What was that?" Lemuel shives while remembering his sister's face on that hideous creature.

"Maybe the thing that has been causing the serial murders."

When he gets deep into the massive palace garden, Federline stops and puts Lemuel down. Lemuel's heart starts to race so fast that he feels it is about to burst. Just two days ago, Lemuel thought that his sister came back alive, but now, seeing that creature with his sister's head, he is starting to get consumed in sorrow.

Federline flinches, watching Lemuel tear up all of a sudden. His tears are welling on his pale green eyes, running down on his obsidian cheeks that reflected the generous silver moonlight. Federline puts his hand into his pocket on the last piece of candy he has saved. With a bit of reluctance, he extends his arm to Lemuel. 

"Here."

Lemuel's tears stop flowing after watching the fist that is holding something towards him. He puts out his hand to receive it, and a candy lands on his palm.

"Sometimes, sweet things help," Federline pouts at the last piece of candy.

Lemuel opens the wrap and looks at the cylinder-shaped candy. He picks it up with his fingers, and he hears a slight whine. Lemuel looks at Federline to see the man watching him. 

"Half half?" Lemuel suggested.

Federline's eyes immediately shine as he nods. Taking Lemuel's wrist, Federline pulls him close. His lips brush on Lemuel's fingers as he takes a bite into the soft candy, completely taking Lemuel off guard. Lemuel muses over how Federline is enjoying the small piece of candy.

"It's good," Federline puzzles over why Lemuel has yet to place the candy into the mouth.

So, Federline takes Lemuel's hand and directs the candy to his lips. When Lemuel feels his fingers touch his lips, he gaps, and the candy enters his mouth.

"Sweet, isn't it?" Federline lets out a smile.

He looks toward the palace's direction and extends his arms up to crack his lazy back.

"I think it is about time the headmaster and chief are done," Federline turns to walk out of the garden.

However, the hedges of the garden start to move, creating a maze. Federline gets startled and scratches the back of his head.

Lemuel chuckles, "The garden becomes a labyrinth at night if someone enters into it. I think I can find the way."

Lemuel closes his eyes and chants. Unlike normal enchantments, the magic circle does not appear. Instead, gold patterns start to emerge on Lemuel's obsidian skin. Like snakes coiling around his limbs, the patterns move like they are alive. Once they reach the end of his limbs, they halt. Lemuel's fingers become gold halfway up like he has dipped them into a basin of gold powder.

Federline silently follows Lemuel, and after a couple of minutes, they go out of the maze. He wows at the number of times they have to turn in the labyrinth. Federline looks at Lemuel's eyes, turning hazy. Before Lemuel faints, Federline catches him with one arm. The patterns start to dim.

He lifts the legs and carries the prince toward the palace building again. An enormous block of ice erected from the ground comes into sight, reflecting the fire on the torches carried by knights. Federline curiously looks at the icicle, frowns, and quickly looks away when he sees the human skin and head inside the ice. 

He returns next to Kyrie with Lemuel in his arms. 

"What happened?" Kyrie looks at the unconscious Lemuel.

"He has fainted from using his ability."

Kyrie widens his eyes, "He is also a guide? I thought guides are only women."

"He is an exception."

Kyrie turns towards the direction where that voice comes from and bows to the grand duchess. The grand duchess walks towards them in her nightgown with a cape over her shoulders.

"Paladin… I thought I had told you that I would not be receiving you."

"Apologies, Grand Duchess Halinas. We actually had no other choice but to intrude into your palace. Lives were involved, so I didn't consider much of the necessary formalities."

The duchess looks at Lemuel in another man's arms and frowns. 

She turns to the maid standing by her, "Take the prince to rest."

The maids hold onto Lemuel and guide the unconscious prince to a room. The grand duchess is about to turn to look at the ice block when Kyrie calls her.

"Grand Duchess, I think you should pass on seeing the ice block," Kyrie warns.

However, the duchess does not listen, and when she looks up, she screams in terror. Shocked to the core, she trembles as the maid catches her from falling. 

"My beautiful daughter…" The grand duchess weeps, "Just who did this horrendous thing to you?"

She angrily turns to the knights, "Well? Did you catch the culprit?"

The knights remain silent at her question, and she squeezes the tears out from her eyes.

"Paladin… Who did this to my daughter?" 

Kyrie shakes his head. When Kyrie has captured the thing inside the block of ice, the formless creature, like shedding its skin, comes out of the mouth and escapes. Kyrie does not have enough time to examine what that creature is. However, he is sure that the creature takes its victims' skin and molds itself into it to hide.

"Although we do not know who, we do know that the creature is after the prince."

"Then… The Fiona that came back…"

"The creature might have used her identity."

Shivering, the duchess stands back straight and nods at the sad news. She puts her hand over her mouth and looks pale sick. After telling some servants to arrange rooms for the three to stay for the night, she retreats to her room. 

After Kyrie has taken care of the princess's remains, he goes to his assigned guest room. Laurel has been waiting inside for Kyrie, sitting on the couch while polishing her sword.

Kyrie leans on the couch as he lets out a tired sigh, "So… what brings you here?"

Laurel places the sword down, looking hesitant to ask. Seeing that the message is written plainly on Laurel's face, Kyrie gives in.

"Nothing yet," says Kyrie while deepening his frown, "But they are alive."

"Why are they not sending any message to us? It has been a year since they entered the gates. They must be waiting for the third gate, right?"

"They went in already."

Kyrie pulls a diamond pendant out of his shirt similar to the one he gave to Ian. The diamond pendant is dim, meaning that the connection has cut. 

Laurel tries to hold in her tears, "Don't they know we are worried about them?"

"There must be a reason why they are not sending the message to us, Laurel."

"I know… You have said the same thing over and over again for the past year…" 

Laurel looks over at Kyrie's expression and feels guilty for mentioning again. She knows how much Kyrie has silently worried as well. For this past year, she has seen Kyrie dazed, looking out the window for long periods of time if no one is bothering him.