Shawn walked surrounded by the royal guards.
From a distance, the castle of the Kingdom of Sharpi looked imposing.
Its towers rose high, bathed in a white light that made the place seem almost sacred.
But the moment they passed through the main gates, the atmosphere changed completely.
The interior wasn't bright at all.
The walls were made of dark gray stone that seemed to swallow what little light managed to get in.
The hallways were long and narrow.
The carpets were such a deep red they looked like dried blood.
A shiver ran down Shawn's spine.
'This doesn't look like a castle,' he thought, glancing around nervously. 'It looks like the set of a horror movie!'
Shawn remembered all those films where the protagonist walks into an old mansion and never comes out again.
He swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.
"Hey," Shawn said, breaking the silence.
One of the royal guards walking beside him glanced sideways.
"Are there… monsters in this place?" Shawn asked, voice trembling. "Or… evil supernatural creatures?"
The guard blinked, thrown off by the question, and looked toward the leader of the knights walking ahead.
The commander let out a small chuckle.
"Did that knight woman fill your head with nonsense about this place?" the commander asked without slowing down.
Shawn was confused for a second.
"Huh? Elena?" he said quickly. "No, no. She has nothing to do with it. It's just a question of mine."
The commander didn't seem entirely convinced, but he didn't press.
"You can relax, girl," he replied firmly. "This is the safest place in the entire kingdom. Nothing bad will happen to you here as long as you do your duty."
Shawn didn't feel relaxed at all.
They kept walking through increasingly darker corridors until they reached an enormous door.
It was made of black wood with silver engravings depicting bats and moons.
That was the entrance to the throne room.
The commander stopped and looked at the two guards stationed at the door.
"Inform the princess," he ordered. "I've brought the girl."
Both guards nodded in unison.
One of them cracked the door open and slipped inside quickly.
The rest stayed outside, waiting in silence.
Shawn couldn't stay still.
His hands fidgeted with the hem of his tunic.
His feet shifted from side to side.
The commander noticed his restlessness.
"What's making you so nervous?" he asked, looking at her curiously.
"Nothing," Shawn answered immediately.
The commander raised an eyebrow.
"Be honest," he said. "Don't bite your tongue."
Shawn took a step back, feeling the space closing in around him.
His hands began to visibly tremble.
"Really… it's nothing," he stammered.
The royal knights surrounding him watched in silence.
Seeing her so small, trembling, eyes wide, some of them felt a pang of tenderness.
She looked like a frightened little creature who didn't understand where she was.
The commander softened his tone slightly.
"Listen," he said, taking a step closer. "If your talent can really heal the queen even a little, you have nothing to worry about."
Shawn looked at him attentively.
"The punishment for those rebellious knights will probably be minimal," the commander continued. "The queen is quite merciful toward those who serve her well."
Shawn let out a nervous little laugh.
"I'm… I'm glad to hear that," he said.
But inside his mind, panic was in full swing.
'Merciful my ass!' Shawn thought, cold sweat trickling down the back of his neck. 'She's a vampire queen. I've seen enough movies to know this is going to end badly…'
A terrible premonition gnawed at him and wouldn't let go.
At that moment, the door opened again.
The knight who had gone inside came out and nodded toward the commander.
"The queen is ready to receive her," he announced.
Shawn stood still, waiting for the knights to guide him inside.
But no one moved.
The commander pointed toward the door with his hand.
"Go on," he ordered.
Shawn looked into the darkness beyond the threshold.
The other side was pitch black.
Nothing could be seen at all.
It was like staring into a black void.
"Could… could someone come with me?" Shawn asked, looking at the knights with pleading eyes.
His voice came out small and shaky.
Once again, the royal knights felt that twinge of tenderness seeing her so helpless.
One of the younger knights even took a half-step forward, as if about to volunteer.
But the guard at the door spoke firmly.
"The queen wishes to be alone with you," he said curtly. "No one else is permitted to enter."
Shawn swallowed with difficulty.
He looked around with eyes that seemed on the verge of tears.
The commander let out a long, exasperated sigh.
"Don't be so cowardly," he said, giving her a light push forward. "Get in already. Don't keep Her Majesty waiting."
Feeling the social pressure of all those armed men staring at him, Shawn finally stepped forward and walked through the massive, slightly open door.
He kept glancing back, searching for an escape route that didn't exist.
The fear grew stronger with every step.
'I hope you appreciate what I'm doing for you, God.'
The moment he crossed the threshold, he heard a heavy sound behind him.
Bom!
The door slammed shut completely.
Shawn was alone.
The hall was enormous, but the ceiling was so high it vanished into shadow.
What caught his attention most were the torches on the walls.
They barely gave off any fire.
They were weak blue flames placed so high they hardly lit the floor.
Shawn started walking very slowly.
'This is straight out of a horror game,' he thought, holding his hand out in front of him. 'I can barely see my own fingers.'
He advanced step by step, terrified of tripping over something or having something leap out of the darkness.
Suddenly, a sound broke the silence.
"Hehehe…"
It was laughter.
Soft laughter that echoed off every wall thanks to the acoustics.
Shawn panicked and clutched his neck, as if trying to shield himself from an invisible attack.
He looked left and right, but all he saw was darkness.
The laughter stopped abruptly.
Then came a dry cough.
"Cough, cough…"
Followed by a feminine voice—deep, elegant.
"I didn't expect my new healer to be such a beautiful girl," the voice said, seeming to come from everywhere at once.
Shawn froze in place.
"Tell me, little one," the voice continued, now with a mocking tone. "Are you afraid of the dark?"