"Order!"

The dining hall was consumed by loud chatter the moment Yves and I arrive. Upper-class men and women yelled up at the King with scowls torn across their faces.

"Just days ago the northern queen entered our kingdom during our celebration feast. Just days ago she did what you told us wasn't possible. You told us we were safe, that it wasn't possible for the north to pass the barrier. You lied!"

A chorus of "yeah!"s  follows the woman as her face turns red, practically seething. I let Yves lead me to our place besides the overseer, lingering not too far away from the podium homing the council and royal guards. I don't miss the knowing look shared between Yves and the Overseer when he notices the staff in her hands, nor the way his eyebrows furrow. He turns towards us and lowers his voice so only we can hear, barely coherent over the shouting of the kingdom folk.

"Why do you have that?!" His voice sounds like a mixture of panic and shock. For a moment I startle: this had to be the first time I'd seen the man don an emotion other than seriousness, and needless to say-- something had to be terribly wrong. Yves parts her lips in confusion. 

"They left it behind. Why, what's wrong my lord?"

The overseer looks between us with words seemingly on the tip of his tongue before he zips his lips closed and shakes his head. He takes the staff from Yves' grip and holds it in his spare hand so now he was wielding two. Yves and I share a look of confusion but before we can question it we're stopped by a sudden loud shout from the growing crowd.

"They ruined our farms! There was six of them verse your whole army! Where the hell was everybody?!"

The shouting grows louder with each passing second, a cacophony of noise. It wasn't until then did I notice Jungeun was standing among the council guards. She stepped forward and spoke with clarity, confident in her words. I almost forgot she was a commander from the time I'd spent with her. I don't bother wiping the surprised look off my face. It was my first time seeing her in action.

"Our soldiers killed three of them and to our knowledge the queen did not leave unscathed." Jungeun shares a knowing look in our direction although keeps her gaze locked on Yves'. Yves keeps her eyes forward and presses her lips together. 

How did she know? Olivia must have told her. She must be keeping tabs on the princess' thoughts.

I observe the way Yves tears her eyes away from her friend and the way her fists clench by her sides, observe the way she turns her head slightly to the right so she can spare a quick look in my direction. As if noticing my confused stare she lowers her voice to a whisper.

"I wasn't suppose to leave the throne room."

My lips form into a small 'o' as I spare a glance in the King and Queen's direction. The duo were already staring our way, a combination of shock, anger and disbelief etched across their faces. Suddenly Yves' silence made sense to me, her sudden submissiveness. She defied her parents orders.

I'm drawn back to reality at yet another particularly loud shout.

"Is that suppose to make it okay? It shouldn't have been possible!"

"Enough!"

Silence. The startlingly loud demand has the entire dining hall falling mute as if heeding the commands of an alpha. The Kings lips are pursed together in a grim line as he looks over the people, clear agitation etched across his face. Once he's sure there's no room for protest he takes a deep breath.

Somehow I knew instantly something bad was going to happen.

"Obviously there are questions we do not have answers for." He spares a sideways glance at the overseer, then at me. I gulp. "All your doubts are validated but please do not lose faith in our rule. When I was sworn in as your king I promised I would keep you safe." 

He levels the crowd with a firm stare before once again his gaze locks with the overseers. He continues.

"Investigation will commence. You may be dismissed." He bangs the hilt of his sword against the floor as if it were a lawyers gavel, a loud thud reverberating through the room. 

"But-"

The people call out in disagreement at the kings dismissal. 

Ignoring the calls of the people shouting for the King to come back, I feel a hand place itself on my back and push me away from the dining hall. From my peripheral I watch as the palace guards lead by Jungeun direct the King, Queen and fellow council members away from the room. Behind us the remaining guards hold the angered palace folk back, spears drawn in attempt of stopping the uproar. I felt sick to my stomach, an uneasiness coursing throughout me as mayhem breaks loose around us. Remembering the warmth of the soft grip on my back I spare a quick glance up at the figure. Yves keeps her eyes hard and head drawn forward as we walk further and further away from the hall, not once looking my way. She looked distraught.

Once the chatter of the dining hall is no more but a hushed whisper and the guards closed the door behind us to the throne room, the king turns around.

"What is the meaning of this!"

His voice practically echos around the room, guards standing still and on alert. Yves pulls us so we're standing besides her mother, the Queen looking on at her husband just as confused as the rest of us. But he wasn't talking to us, no. His hard gaze stays trained on the overseer who stands in the centre of the room, silent. The king continues.

"The people are right. It shouldn't be possible-- how did they pass the barrier twice?!" 

He gives the man a once over before his eyes falls on his off hand, a shocked expression crossing his face.

"Why do you have her staff!?"

Guilt. The emotion practically radiated from Yves as I watch her lips purse together from my peripheral. Her hand still pressed against my lower back seems to grip my shirt, tension running high in her body. I'm drawn back to reality when the king practically grunts in anger.

Silence once again consumes the room as the overseer stays mute. With each passing second the atmosphere grows heavier, the king growing more and more agitated. And then it happens. Acting on a whim the man draws his sword and stands impossibly close to the overseer, pointing the sharp tip of the blade under the mans chin. For a moment he freezes, simply staring up at the staff-wielded man as a small trickle of blood pricks from the skin of his neck. The king falters but the man stays still. 

"If you hurt me you will regret it. Please, be reasonable King Ha." The overseers voice sounds unnaturally calm despite the seriousness of the situation. It's as if he barely registers the sword against his throat, nonchalant. I don't miss the way Yves' grip on my