Chapter 39

Gruuk had been right; Via was still crouching in the same spot.

The darkness was already terrifying, and the time spent waiting for help, with no prospects, seemed unbearably long.

She had never known that complete silence could be so frightening. It felt as if she were isolated from the rest of the world, and as her fear grew, unpleasant sweat trickled down her back, and her breathing became ragged.

"Your Majesty"

She tried hard to hold back her tears.

Via knew that crying would only exhaust her strength. If she had to wait, she needed to conserve as much energy as possible.

She thought that the Emperor must be worried by now.

What words had they exchanged that morning? To distract herself from reality, Via buried her face in her knees and tried to recall the morning.

Today was the day Reiatoo was setting out, so Alek had hurriedly left after breakfast, giving Via a light kiss on the cheek as he went. It had been a peaceful morning, just like any other.

After that, Via went to see the children of the Crystal Palace and played with them more than usual.

Thinking back now, she might have said her goodbyes to the Emperor and the children.

No, Via shook her head. What was she thinking? She mustn't give up. The Emperor would surely come to her rescue.

She didn't want to die like this, Via thought earnestly.

At nineteen, she had finally been allowed to stand by Alek's side as Empress, and it had been only three years since then.

The Emperor had been a lonely person. He had grown up without the warmth of a family and was not allowed to express his loneliness.

So, when Via became Empress, she had vowed to give Alek a warm and bright home.

She couldn't leave yet, Via thought.

The young children would surely be raised with love by Lady Vieta and Lady Eleya.

But the Emperor would remain alone. The children were still too young to be a support to him.

How much time had passed since she had been crouching there? Eventually, even the faint light disappeared, leaving Via in complete darkness.

Night had come, Via thought. A terrifying night to spend alone.

Would anything be different when she woke up?

Alek was alone in his study.

He couldn't make the news of the Empress's accident public, so the search was being conducted in secret.

The Empress's guard knights were frantically searching every possible location, and Seltis and Gruuk were using civil servants to gather documents and traditions related to the underground passages.

After that, Alek summoned the two knight commanders, Antore and Rofman, and the deputy commander of Reiatoo's knights.

The palace of Ansheze, also known as the Bez Palace, was built in what was once called the city of Bez. This vast palace was protected by the four fortresses of the three major knight orders and the palace guard knights.

While the palace guard knights didn't have much functionality, the three major knight orders were supposed to have their own hidden passages. Alek informed these three of the Empress's accident and ordered them to thoroughly search the hidden passages of each knight order.

He was also having the palace guards search. They had their own secret routes for espionage and assassination, though he didn't know about the passages created by Emperor Amarius. He had been informed that all the passages would be checked by morning.

All he could do was wait. As Emperor, he was performing the minimum duties, and Luitas was assisting him where he couldn't.

He had requested documents on the palace's structure and was going through them one by one, but he hadn't found anything useful.

Via was probably waiting for help with all her heart. If she had fallen through a hidden passage, she was likely not injured.

However, she probably hadn't moved much from that spot.

"Via, don't die."

It would have been better if he had been the one trapped. He could have handled it.

But Via wouldn't know what to do. The image of her cowering and crouching came to mind, and Alek bit his lip.

If he didn't go to help her, she would die of thirst. The moment he thought this, his chest felt as if it had been pierced by a needle.

Feeling frustrated at his own helplessness, Alek slammed his fist on the table.

"Via..."

Alek rested his elbows on the table, cradling his head.

The endless passage of time was unbearable.

When she realized it, a faint light was shining in the passage. In a place where not a sound could be heard, Via looked around dully.

She had apparently dozed off with her face buried in her knees.

She must have gripped her hairpin too tightly; the metal was bent.

Tracing the broken part with her fingertips, Via dully whispered to herself that morning had come. The next moment, she stiffened, realizing that no help had come even after a whole night.

Finally, Via realized that no help would come if she stayed crouched there. The Emperor couldn't do anything about it either.

If she wanted to see the Emperor, she had to get out of there on her own. Staying put would only lead to her death.

Via made up her mind and, using the wall for support, stood up on her wobbly legs.

She hadn't drunk any water since then. The underground passage was cool, so she could still bear it, but her throat was parched, and she tried hard to swallow.

She didn't know which way was correct, so she decided to go right.

After taking a few steps, she found her heeled shoes were in the way and took them off. Then she slowly and steadily moved along the wall.

As she walked down the musty path, Via asked herself if she would have the strength to turn back if she realized she had taken the wrong path.

Her head was fuzzy from dehydration, and she fell several times in the empty space. Still, she continued walking. Occasionally, she brought the hairpin she was gripping to her chest and whispered, "Your Majesty."

Her body felt heavy, and she was out of breath just from walking. When she was too exhausted, she would sit down, then stand up again and keep walking.

How much time had passed? As Via mechanically moved her feet, she stopped, sensing that the surroundings were getting slightly brighter.

Straining her eyes, she thought she saw a small light in the distance.

Via started walking with her last bit of strength.

Even if this path was a dead end, she no longer had the strength to turn back and search for another way.