# Chapter 4: The Crown's Gaze
The road to Auria stretched like a golden ribbon beneath the morning sun. Ryan pressed his face to the carriage window, watching the countryside transform from rolling Ravenshade vineyards to the grand approach of the capital city.
Towering spires pierced the clouds ahead, their crystalline peaks catching light like captured starfire. The **Palace of Auria** dominated the skyline—a magnificent structure of white marble and floating gardens that seemed to defy gravity itself.
**Lira (adjusting her silver gloves):**
"Still think this is just 'fancy shoes and judgmental old men'?"
**Ryan (whistling low):**
"I take it back. This is fancy shoes, judgmental old men, *and* a castle that could probably crush our manor just by existing."
They were both seeing the pictures in the books.
## 🚚 The Day-Long Journey
The travel would take the entire day, with multiple horse-drawn carriages fanning out along the forest road. Ryan, Lira, and Damian rode together in the lead carriage; Parichat and Lady Eleyna followed close behind, flanked by a dozen Ravenshade knights.
After several hours, the enclosed carriage grew stifling.
**Ryan (yawning):**
"I'm bored. I'm going to get some air up top."
He climbed onto the carriage roof, bracing himself against the gentle sway. Minutes later, nature called.
> *Why now of all times?* he thought.
> *Just find a tree, be quick, and rejoin them before anyone notices.*
He slipped into the edge of the forest, finished his business, then prepared to climb back when a sudden, piercing scream of a little girl shattered the birdcalls.
Instinct flared. Ryan darted toward the sound, bursting through the bushes into a hidden clearing.
## 🌲 The Hidden Battle
Two armed bands faced each other: one masquerading as mercenaries, the other a group of five cloaked women traveling by carriage. Between them, five captive elf girls huddled in a makeshift cage.
Ryan, sword drawn, stepped onto a fallen log for height.
**Ryan (yelling):**
"Stop! What's happening here?"
The faux-mercenary leader—a grizzled man in patched armor—stammered.
**Fake Mercenary Leader:**
"These women are slave traders! We're trying to rescue the girls!"
The cloaked women gripped their daggers.
**Cloaked Woman #1 (coldly):**
"We intercepted these criminals. They confessed to smuggling children. These girls are under our protection."
Ryan saw the fear in the girls' eyes but swords drawn on both sides. He misjudged at first.
**Ryan (rage flaring):**
"Slave traders! Back off—or die!"
He activated **Silent Step** and **Shadowstep**, vanishing and reappearing behind Cloaked Woman #2. His sword slashed out in a brutal arc.
*Clang!* The blade cut into her shoulder.
**Cloaked Woman #2 (crying out):**
"Aagh! Why—who—?!"
She flew backward into a tree with a sickening crack. The forest fell silent.
**Cloaked Woman #3 (staggering):**
"He's… attacking us!"
The faux-mercenaries cheered, mistaking Ryan's strike for aid.
**Fake Mercenary #2:**
"He's on our side! Kill them!"
## ⚔ Reactions to Ryan's Mistake
- **Cloaked Woman #1 (wide-eyed, bleeding):**
"How dare you—"
- **Cloaked Woman #3:**
"We're saving these children!"
- **Fake Mercenary Leader (beckoning):**
"Finish them! All of them!"
Realizing his error, Ryan's heart lurched. He saw silver badges beneath their cloaks—the royal crest of Sylfenya.
**Ryan (voice trembling):**
"No… I—"
He whirled on the faux-mercenaries.
**Ryan:**
"You—slave traders—die by my sword!"
He struck out, cutting down two mercenaries before they could react. The cloaked women, battered but alive, regrouped behind him.
## 🌪️ Uniting Against True Villains
The faux-mercenaries attacked the women to defend their ruse. In the chaos, Ryan joined the cloaked protectors.
**Cloaked Woman #1 (breathing heavily):**
"Thank you… it's them who traffic these children."
Ryan nodded, rushing forward with renewed purpose. He weaved among the mercenaries, each strike precise: disabling legs, disarming swords, driving foes to their knees. Within ten seconds, every trafficker lay incapacitated.
**Fake Mercenary #3 (gasping):**
"They… lied to us!"
## 🆓 Freedom for the Captives
Ryan hurried to the cage and unlocked it.
**Ryan (softly):**
"You're safe now. I promise."
Tears sprang from the little elves' eyes. One sobbed:
**Elf Girl #1:**
"Mister—are you really taking us home?"
Ryan lifted the smallest into his arms and smiled. The cloaked women watched him—both struck by how naturally protective and handsome he appeared.
**Knight Healer #1 (blushing):**
"He… he's like a hero from legend."
**Knight Healer #2 (quiet gasp):**
"Did you see his eyes? Golden."
The other women exchanged flushed glances before looking away.
**Ryan:**
"Yes. Come with me."
## 🙇 Apologies and Hidden Identities
Ryan turned to the cloaked women he had struck.
**Ryan (bowing deeply):**
"I'm truly sorry. I misjudged you."
One of the women he had wounded steadied herself, placing a gentle hand on his arm.
**Cloaked Woman #2 (softly):**
"You reacted to what you saw. Understandable."
Her companion stepped forward, lowering her hood to reveal a crown-shaped ring on her finger.
**Woman Leader (quietly):**
"We are… travelers from the Elven realms, here on royal invitation. We intercepted these criminals by chance."
She offered him a small, ornate badge bearing Sylfenya's crest.
**Woman Leader:**
"Keep this. We prefer to travel unrecognized."
The younger woman, her daughter, bowed shyly, cheeks again pink.
**Daughter (soft voice):**
"Thank you… for saving us."
Ryan realized he stood before no ordinary nobles but the **Queen of Sylfenya** and her daughter—though they chose to remain anonymous.
**Ryan (eyes widening):**
"Your Majesty… I'm honored."
They smiled, yet kept their titles concealed.
**Woman Leader:**
"As thanks, please accompany us as protector until Auria. Will you?"
Ryan glanced back to his family's carriage. Then he bowed.
**Ryan:**
"With all my strength, I will."
They helped the elf girls into the women's carriage and secured the unconscious traffickers for the guards. Ryan took the empty seat beside the queen's daughter, who offered him a grateful, shy smile.
## 🚚 Return to the Road
Before dawn, the rescue carriage silently rejoined the Ravenshade convoy. Ryan climbed into his own carriage, clothes dusted with leaves.
**Damian (raising an eyebrow):**
"A little side quest?"
**Lira (smiling):**
"You smell like star-lit woods."
Ryan managed a sheepish grin.
**Ryan:**
"I… attacked the wrong side first. Then we saved the girls.
**Lira**
Girls ? What are you saying? , and where were you this whole time"
**Ryan**
Nah, its nothing.
## 🏰 Arrival at the Palace
As first light crested Auria's marble walls, the Ravenshade convoy drew up before grand gates. Banners fluttered. A new day—and a grand celebration—beckoned.
They stepped from the carriages, ready to face the King's Gaze, unaware that Sylfenya's queen and princess rode among them, watching closely.
**End of Chapter 4**