Knights of The Dauntless Princess

Chapter 10: Betrayal and Compassion

"M-Mister... H-Hanzo," Amara uttered in disbelief, her gaze fixed on the old man.

The young lady could see the regret in Hanzo's eyes; betraying her was against his will. Amara turned to Martha, who was engulfed in a fever and struggling to breathe. Sympathy filled the princess's heart; she knew Hanzo's actions were solely to save his wife's life.

"Do not worry, I will come with you without a fight," Amara said as she looked sharply at the soldiers, "but I want you first to give Mister Hanzo his reward for informing you of my whereabouts."

"P-Princess..." Hanzo said with a tearful voice, feeling that Amara still cared for them despite his betrayal.

"And who are you to give us orders? Perhaps you have forgotten... you are no longer a princess," the arrogant leader of the soldiers smirked. "He will only receive his reward once we bring you to the palace—"

Amara clenched her teeth and narrowed her eyes at the soldier's words. They appeared untrustworthy to her.

"The notice you put up clearly states that anyone who informs you of my whereabouts will receive a reward! I AM HERE NOW, SO GIVE MR. HANZO HIS REWARD!" Amara exclaimed angrily, infuriated by the soldiers' behavior.

The soldiers remained silent for a moment as they stared at Amara, seemingly awaiting their leader's command.

"Huh? A reward?" the leader of the soldiers chuckled mockingly. "And why should we give a reward to this lowly peasant? We could simply kill them and claim we found you somewhere else, right? And the reward would be ours! Hahaha!"

As the leader spoke, some soldiers drew swords and pointed them at Hanzo.

"N-No! Please! Please don't kill us! Have mercy!" Hanzo pleaded, tightly embracing his children, who were now trembling with fear.

"Hanzo, it's okay. You and your family are of no use in this world anymore," the seemingly deranged soldier said.

Amara stared at them, her heart burning with anger, but she didn't utter a word.

"W-What have I done to you? I forced myself to do this for my sick wife! If only I knew the soldiers of Emmett were so corrupt... if only I knew this is what you would do, I wouldn't have revealed the information about the princess—" Hanzo's voice trailed off.

"You talk too much. Maybe I should cut off your tongue first," one of the soldiers taunted, pressing his sword closer to Hanzo's face.

"If you want the reward, take it! Take everything! Just spare my family!!!" Hanzo said bravely, tears streaming down his face.

"The reward is rightfully ours—" One of the soldiers was about to strike Hanzo when, suddenly, Amara kicked the hand of the leader, causing him to fly his sword in the air. Amara swiftly caught it and rushed towards the soldier who intended to kill Hanzo.

The soldiers were taken aback by Amara's action, and because of that, they were triggered. They began to attack Amara, and the young lady didn't hesitate to fight. Hanzo quickly grabbed his children and weak wife, and they opened the window to escape from the small-scaled house.

"Princess!!" Hanzo called out to Amara as they fled. He beckoned her to join them, knowing she couldn't fight effectively in such a confined space.

Amara deflected the clashing of their swords and stepped out of the window. The guards didn't allow them to escape and immediately pursued them. With the sheer number of guards, Amara found it difficult to fight them off.

"Princess," one of the guards called as Amara was about to attack one of their companions. Amara froze when she saw Hanzo being held by the guard, a sword pointed at his back. "If you don't stop, we will be forced to kill this wretched man!"

Amara's eyes widened, unsure of what to do. The distance between her and the guards was considerable, and if she attacked, they would surely kill the old man.

No, what should I do!?

"P-Princess... f-forgive me," Hanzo said with sadness in his voice, struggling to breathe. He thought it was his end and begged for Amara's forgiveness.

"Mister Hanzo!!!"

Amara shouted as she saw the guard about to strike Hanzo, but suddenly the guard screamed and let go of him. They were all surprised when the guard's eyes rolled back, and he fell lifeless on the grass.

W-What just happened?

Amara's eyes widened even more when she realized Cyrus was there.

"C-Cyrus!?" Amara exclaimed in astonishment as she learned that he had killed the guard.

"Hello, my dear princess!" Cyrus widely grinned as he playfully twirled his axe in his hand with blood stains.

While Amara wondered what Cyrus was doing there, the guards suddenly screamed as if they were being attacked. Amara turned her gaze towards the guards and saw Dravis systematically killing them one by one.

"D-Dravis!?"

Amara didn't expect to see him. She didn't know how they found her, but she was immensely grateful that they were there. They continued to fight, and after a while, they defeated all the guards. The lifeless bodies of the guards were scattered around, and their blood stained them.

"Princess, are you alright!?" Cyrus asked, immediately checking Amara's body for any injuries.

"I'm fine, thank you!" the princess replied with a sweet and gentle laugh.

"Oh, my princess! Why did you run away? I was worried about you—" Cyrus was about to embrace Amara in his arms, but Dravis swiftly grabbed his neck and threw him away from Amara.

"Stay away from her, you scoundrel!" Dravis said irritably.

"D-Dravis," Amara trembled as the man stood in front of her. She bowed her head, overwhelmed by the shame and trouble she had caused. She knew they had been searching for her. "I-I'm sorr—"

Amara was taken aback and couldn't finish her sentence as Dravis suddenly placed his palm on her head. She looked up at Dravis, and even though she could not see his eyes due to his long hair, she could sense that he was looking at her.

"Yes, I thought you were stubborn," Dravis said, and it squeezed Amara's heart. "And please forgive me for that."

When Amara heard Dravis apologize, tears welled up in her eyes. Along with the tears, a smile appeared on her face.

"D-Dravis!" the princess couldn't help but wrap her arms around the man who had saved her once again. Dravis was astounded, but he didn't resist or push Amara away.

Lady Amara.

As the princess held him, Dravis felt that familiar warmth again. He couldn't understand it but couldn't deny that he liked that feeling.

"Hey! Why are you hugging only Dravis!?" Cyrus said, feigning hurt. "What about me!? I also saved you!"

Amara realized what she had done and quickly let go of Dravis. Her face turned red with embarrassment because she didn't know why she did it.

"I'm sorry, I was just surprised!" Amara said shyly before smiling at Cyrus. "Thank you too, Cyrus!"

"Thank you? How about you kiss me, my dear princess? Even just on the cheek, please?" Cyrus joked, but if Amara were to take it seriously, her heart would leap with joy.

"Cyrus, you scumbag!!!" Dravis growled and smacked Cyrus.

The princess laughed at their playful banter. "Hey, that's enough! You might hurt Cyrus too much. Hahaha!"

"He deserves it," Dravis replied. "He's a shameless creature."

"Y-You," Hanzo suddenly spoke as he approached them with his whole family. He was surprised to see Cyrus and Dravis again. "You're the gentlemen we saw earlier, aren't you?"

Dravis was about to draw his sword and Cyrus his axe, but Amara intervened to stop them.

"It's alright, Dravis, Cyrus. He's not a bad person," Amara said.

"Not bad? But he betrayed you to the guards!!!" Cyrus said, still feeling angry towards Hanzo.

"He did it... because his wife is sick, and they don't have money for treatment," Amara explained as she took a step closer to Hanzo.

Tears streamed down Hanzo's face as he fell to his knees in deep remorse and grief. "M-My dear princess, forgive me! Please forgive me for what I've done! I didn't want to, but Martha... M-Martha, I don't know what to do because she's not getting better! I need to take her to the doctor, but we don't have the money for it! Forgive me, please forgive me."

Instead of anger, Amara's heart was filled with compassion at that moment. She knelt before Hanzo and held his hand.

"I know, I know you're a good person, Mister Hanzo," Amara said with a sweet smile. She took off her earrings and placed them in Hanzo's palm.

"P-Princess—"

"These are my mother's earrings. They are made of high-quality diamonds, so I think you can get significant money if you sell them," Amara said, closing Hanzo's hand.

"N-No, I can't accept this! After what I've done to you—"

"If you want me to forgive you, please accept them. I can't bear to see Martha's condition worsen, so please, accept them as my gratitude," Amara pleaded, glancing at the elderly woman, Martha. The children ran to Amara and hugged her, crying. Amara smiled softly and embraced the children. "And if there's anything left, please buy them new clothes and delicious food, okay?"

Tears flowed from Hanzo's eyes at the purity of the princess's heart. He deeply regretted his actions. Martha approached him and embraced him, causing the old man to burst into tears.

"Thank you, my dear princess, thank you!"

...

To prevent any evidence from surfacing and for Hanzo's family to continue living peacefully, they cleaned up the area. They disposed of the guards' bodies in the nearby forest, where ferocious beasts roamed. So, if anyone discovered the bodies, they would assume that wild animals had killed them. Fortunately, Hanzo's house was far from the town and had no neighbors nearby. No one saw or knew what had happened.

It was already dark when they left Hanzo's house. To avoid being recognized on the street, Dravis made her wear a cloak with a hood that covered her head.

The young woman remained quiet as she rode on Dravis' horse. Dravis and Cyrus even argued over whose horse the princess would ride before they left, settling it with a game of rock, paper, scissors. Cyrus lost, and he looked like a disappointed child upon realizing that the princess wouldn't ride with him.

"What are you thinking about?" Dravis whispered softly, which Amara immediately heard since he was just behind her.

"H-Huh? N-Nothing," the young lady replied hesitantly.

The truth was she felt embarrassed because they were so close to each other. She couldn't help but repeatedly think about Cyrus saying that the man was only thirty years old and Lillian's comment about him being the most handsome among the soldiers. Her heart started to beat faster, a wish she hoped Dravis couldn't hear.

"If you don't tell me what's on your mind, we won't understand each other again," Dravis said, causing Amara to freeze. "I might have said something you didn't like again, and you might leave us again suddenly. Maybe next time we won't be able to find you. Maybe next time... I couldn't save you."

As before, Dravis spoke with a quiet voice, but it wasn't as cold as it used to be.

"Ahmn, how did you actually find out that I was there?" Amara suddenly thought to ask.

"We bumped into Hanzo at a restaurant while searching for you earlier. We overheard his conversation with his child since they were just ahead of us. He mentioned something about having a large sum of money. When he stumbled and dropped his belongings after we collided, I noticed a folded piece of paper, which I was certain was one of the posters with your picture. That's when I suspected, and we followed him," explained Dravis.

Amara was amazed by Dravis' observation skills. He was remarkable, making her no longer wonder why he was a former general.

"Is that the only thing bothering you?"

Amara could sense the concern in his words at that moment. Her forehead furrowed. She wondered if she should say what was on her mind. Still, because of Dravis' remark, the former princess was convinced even though she hesitated.

"Promise me you won't get angry first," Amara said, her eyes focused on their path.

"It depends," the young man replied curtly.

"D-Dravis?" Amara turned to Dravis with her pouting lips. When Dravis saw Amara's cute face, he couldn't help but grin, which caused Amara's eyes to widen. It was the first time she saw Dravis smile, and something surged in her heart. She quickly averted her gaze and bowed her head again.

Since Amara no longer spoke, Dravis retracted his statement, "Alright, I'll try not to get angry. What is it?"

"Hmm? Nothing!"

"Just tell me because I get more annoyed when you act like that," Dravis threatened, making Amara shiver.

Amara forced a strained smile and reluctantly said what was on her mind, "W-Well, I just wanted to say... that I want to see your face."

When Dravis heard that, he was also surprised but didn't show it. Amara didn't look at him either and simply waited for his response. Several minutes passed, and Dravis remained silent, so Amara thought he was truly angry with her.

"Uh, forget what I said—"

"I'm thinking," Dravis quickly interrupted, stopping Amara. "I'm thinking of a reason to do what you want. Suppose your reason is just because you're uncomfortable with my appearance. In that case, I don't care, but if you can give me a deeper reason, I might consider it."

D-Dravis.