They were hiding something, she realized as she left her assigned chambers, her silent Tatar guardians standing on each side of her door in a long line of sentinels that lasted to each corner of the hallway, when they were offered accommodations of their own they declined by a simple shake of their heads, refusing to elaborate any further and while the imperials did not understand, she knew why, they had a duty to fulfill.

  Castle Kruger was nothing of significance, from the free time she had, she ended up assessing the construction and its defenses only to realize the advancement of Imperial construction, it was known that it is near impossible to build a stone keep or castle in the red marshes as it was filled with swamps up till the green line so what other land it offered was mainly for mining or basic farming, thus the Asarothians left only wooden forts behind as they were chased out by the imperials decades ago.

  She knew where castle Kruger was built was a place supposed to be filled with swamps but they existed no longer except for one, it was the one which wrapped around the walls of castle Kruger serving as a natural moat against attackers, she could have sworn she saw something move around in those waters but did not come close enough to find out, the rest of the swamps must have been either drained or buried, replaced by defensive ditches behind palisades as the imperials called them, a fancy word to say a wooden fence.

  As for the castle itself, the wall rose up behind the encircling swamp fifty feet high, on each of its four corners were watch towers standing at eighty feet tall and connected to one another through the third level which was in the form of battlements with arrow loops every few steps and sentinels patrolling it, they looked different than the other imperial soldiers she saw so before.

  Both sides of the battlements met at the gatehouse with murder holes overlooking the exit and the entry passage with arrow slits on the two guards chambers on each side, as for the inside of the castle she became accustomed to it during her short stay, the keep was at the center of the castle and offered many chambers, a kitchen, a hall and an underground storage room, not to mention a war room that she is yet to see, the rest did not deserve her utmost interest beside what they had in the third level, the only one she was not allowed to enter.

  "Legionnaires are standing watching there, young Princess." Tiberius Mountain told her. "You are under my protection here... But even I cannot predict their impulses, consider them the same as your mute guards."

  His argument seemed valid but she knew there was still something that he did not share on the matter, Yemna vowed to find out one way or the other, at least before the arrival of Gaius Maximus, the third son of empire and the head of the operation in the red marshes, she was told that upon his arrival they would have a war council, and from the rumors she heard from the caravans at home, he was a brute with prowess and a military genius though did not meddle in politics.

  She stood on the stairs outside the second floor during one of her walks, leaning against the fences as she glanced down at the training grounds, her eyes caught the sight of Lieutenant Hemacus, instructing those from their following who decided to take up the sword whilst the road warden watched from the side with an unreadable gaze.

  Right behind him was the smithy, the few who had the skill from the followers of the host were put to the work, brandishing armor and working on the dents, sharpening the dulled swords and crafting new ones, the rest were not so lucky, those who weren't put to the kitchen were deemed as labourers, carrying heavy crates and items and metals to earn their stay at castle Kruger.

  With a small sigh, she gathered her resolve and made her way to the road warden, standing shoulder by shoulder next to him as they seemingly watched Hemacus whoop the fresh faced folk into shape, without glancing at the road warden she exclaimed. “Say Lucas, am I the only one to feel slightly estranged here? I fear that I will sneeze and be filled with arrows in one instance.”

  Lucas gave her a sharp look before his lips broke into a smirk. “Do make sure you are not standing next to me when you sneeze then, your highness… But I do understand what you mean.”

  She crossed her arms and watched as Hemacus knocked down yet another green faced recruit, she gathered her thoughts and chose her words carefully. “Since we share the sentiment, it’s safe to assume that we’re still on the same side.”

  “I only do what needs to be done as a Road warden, nothing more or less.” He replied.

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  “Which means?...” Yemna questioned.

  The road warden sighed then added. “As far as I know, the only way to bring balance back to the world is helping you, it means we’re on the same side.”

  She let out a sigh of relief, though it was short lived once her anxiety returned, it was difficult for her to distinguish between northerners intentions but she could not let that show, she was given enough stares as it is and she was certain it would’ve been also words or worse if it was not for the presence of the bastard prince Tiberius, clearing her throat she whispered to the road warden. “I’m almost certain they’re hiding something in the battlements but I'm not sure what, only that it’s important enough that even the bastard prince would lie about it… I want to investigate it, perhaps it is relevant to the Gahrak issue.”

  “And if it is not and you’re caught red handed in a place where you’re not supposed to be?” He tested her.

  With a firm resolve, she answered. “If it comes down to that, I'll take responsibility.”

  Lucas eyes gazed into hers for a few seconds until he was satisfied by her answer, he shrugged his shoulders and spoke. “I hear the walls whisper something about the war council being in two days… Which means Gaius Maximus most likely arrives on that day, I wonder if the security would loosen up on the inside on account of their love of charades and big welcomes… Perhaps even a road warden may put in a word or two to drag it longer.”

  Grasping each of his words, she was grateful for both his help and advice, Yemen nodded curtly and smiled as she thanked him. “Thank you… I’ll be sure not to cause a mess.”

  “You better.” He replied.

  The road warden instincts proved to be wise again as in a few days, he did indeed arrive with a small host at his back, Gaius Maximus, he who was one of the few true born and pure blooded sons of Julius Maximus the fifth, broad shoulders, a square jaw and short trimmed dark hair on his head, he towered at the same height of Tiberius mountain though he was a tad ill looking than his half brother due to what she assumed to be old scars from the pox across his face and despite being a supposed true born, he did not have the crimson hair of house Maximus or the minor houses who arrived alongside Julius the first from the lands beyond the mist at the time of his conquest.

  As he was being welcomed inside the castle yard, she took it upon herself to take her leave, one less Asarothian to spoil their day, she thought to herself with a grin as she walked in the empty hallways who were not only no longer patrolled but also unvisited by passing laborers or servants, she made her way up to the battlements and her heart skipped a beat as she glimpsed the sight of sentinel legionnaires still at their posts, she sighed, of course they were here, the bastard prince told her they were the same as her silent Tatar, they would not abandon their duty for something as feeble and unnecessary as welcoming their prince, thus it ended up taking her longer than she expected, evading their eyesight and hiding behind corners and crates, letting them pass by her without drawing their attention as she scouted the area for anything out of the ordinary up until she noticed a singular room blocked with chains and locks with one guard standing watch next to it.

  She had to be quick, Yemna realized, she already wasted enough time sneaking around and seeing a glimmer of hope that she might be correct in her assumptions about a secret being hidden in here, she decided to gamble, moving alongside the battlement wall until she reached the unsuspecting legionnaire and hit him across the head with the hilt of her sword, knocking him down to the ground, unmoving.

  “I hope he’s not dead…” She wished under her breath as she searched his pockets and retrieved what she was looking for, a key, she inserted it into the lock and with a rattle and a click, it came undone and she pulled the chains apart and pushed the doors open, the room was mostly dark except for the small stream of light through an arrow slit, as her eyes adjusted she heard a whine and she gasped.

  Red coyotes locked in cages, restless and starving, for a moment she stood motionless as he did not know what to make of the scene, this creature was native to imperial lands but practically useless and near impossible to tame, considered to be an invasive specie, yet it was not something important enough to hide, it served no purpose and made no sense to her.

  “You’re not supposed to be here.” A voice coldly reminded her from behind, she turned to see who it was only to realize she was drowning in the person’s shadow, she had to look up to meet their gaze far more than what she was comfortable with until their eyes met, Gaius Maximus himself. “That legionnaire is supposed to be awake and on duty, care to explain Asarothian?”

  “Uh… Uhm.” Yemna almost swallowed her tongue as he took a few steps forward whilst she mustered up any possible reasonable explanation that came to her mind but it left her lips a jumbled mess. “He was like that when I arrived… I was walking around, getting to know the battlements better, found him like that and the door wide open… Why do you have red coyotes locked up in there?”

  “We imperials enjoy the company of pets, the more exotic, the better.” He responded as he held a sack by his side, the gaze he directed towards her as he spoke left her uncomfortable.

  “Ah… I see, well good for you.”

  Gaius Maximus raised an eyebrow then shook his head as he huffed and walked past her. “The war council will commence shortly, Princess, you should go and find your seat.”

  As she left, she turned one last time to glance at his back only to find him feeding the red coyotes from the sack, however what he was feeding them left her in disgust and rage, out of all the meats he could have picked, out of all the foods he could have chosen, he was feeding them the most sacred and prized animal across the Tatarian lands, the head of a dead Hyena, his message was well delivered as he looked her in the eye when he noticed her stare, Eldest princess of Asaroth Yemna shall not forget the sheer humiliation of the moment and the further humiliation she endured during the war council as they did not seek out her input, not even once as Gaius went as far as commanding her to do nothing but hold a castle north of the green mile and refrain from getting in the way of their legionnaires, whatever sympathy she gathered for the red marshes locals, it withdrew her mind at once, feeling like a child in the first time in years.