Chapter 6: Unconscious Maiden
"Oh, screw this!"
Screeching owls only worsened the emotions that are building up in Thana. She flicks her middle finger around her, unsure who she's targeting, but it may be the owls and uses it to wipe the tear that slipped from her eyes. She's only to focus on one goal; to getaway.
"Screw that man! I don't care if he's gorgeous," she hissed loudly.
Another sound added to the spooky-themed music of the woods. But as she glanced to the side, she only spotted a group of deers with glowing yellow eyes, looking at her with their head held high. Chills went through Thana's spine, but she kept running without looking back.
"I'm so unfortunate- ah!"
Thana did not mind where she was stepping that she tripped over a large, fallen log. She stumbles forward, hitting the ground full of dead leaves and a damp soil face first. That fall made the atmosphere go silent for just a split second.
It's as if nature makes a mockery out of her because she decided to give it her middle finger.
She could only cry in misery and bitterness, hitting the soil with her fist, feeling the stinging sensation on the edge of her foot. If it weren't for her sharp hearing that she heard leaves crushing beneath the sound of boots, she would have allowed herself to lie down and die in peace.
But Thana is paranoid. She's afraid to die under that man's sword or any blade, for that matter. So she took off, bolted with an injured foot and an unclear vision that she doesn't see the fall ahead of her.
Once she realizes it, it's too late.
The poor beaten girl could not even spot the giant stone she's approaching that she crashes onto, making her stumble to the side of the cliff. She comes rolling down the soil, which wasn't a steep fall, as it only lasted a few seconds.
However, the stress and pain Thana felt were enough to get her unconscious. She only looked up, seeing the brilliance of the full moon becoming hazy every second. Even as her mind told her to get up, she couldn't.
Thana could only think of one thing, 'maybe this is the end.'
Alone, unconscious, and bleeding. The poor girl was left vulnerable for the entire night. Despite everything terrible and frightening she had encountered on one night, she's still breathing—slow and deep breaths.
She refuses to die.
When the sun rose, it came to be that Thana isn't as unlucky as she thought she would be. A woman approached her still unconscious body, checking worriedly whether the young maiden she found in the middle of the woods is still breathing.
She didn't know that Thana was already consciously awake. Her body's soreness and her throbbing head make it impossible for her to open her eyes. Thana could vaguely listen at the silent discussion between a woman and a man.
"-beats me, I wasn't there, mother."
"The white-haired girl headed this way last night. This has to be her, but they don't have the same hair. It doesn't make sense," the woman is clearly thinking hard on the matter as she tries to study Thana's dirt-covered face.
The man groaned frustratedly and spoke in a hushed tone, "mother, I must report this. The fact that she's in here with no one knowing is dangerous; the next thing we know, she'll infiltrate the palace. You know how tight the security is on the wall; how do you think she got inside here undetected."
This time the man went closer to his mother, whispering in her ear, "what if she's one of the runaway mages."
"Nonsense! It looked like she was heading toward the wall. This poor girl wanted to leave. Look, I do not know how she got in here, but I believe she was scared and alone," the woman waved her arms and slapped her son on the shoulder at his absurd conclusion.
"Mother-"
The woman went down to her knees despite her son's warning and touched Thana's face making Thana move her head away with a groan. Both the woman and the man scurried away from the fright but only sees the girl still unconscious.
"She's hurt; we're bringing her back to my chamber and get her treated."
The man could only pull on his hair out of the frustration he felt. He wanted to snap at his stubborn mother for wanting to do something risky, but he knows he would never win anything against this woman. The thought of anyone or the superiors catching them haunts his mind.
They both already have a good name in this palace. The king knows of their existence because of what his mother did; people would always praise them. He doesn't plan on losing their special status and be downgraded anytime soon.
"What are you waiting for? Pick her up, Elias," the woman demanded with crossed arms, frowning at her son, "you're the captain of your unit, yet you're always lagging on my orders."
"Your orders will get us caught and possibly killed. This is the reason why I'm the captain," her son snapped back at her bitterly but moved forward to scoop the girl. The woman huffs impatiently, placing both her hands on her hips, lifting her boot to kick the soldier's butt.
Elias was taken aback and lost his balance, falling forward. His face landed on Thana's toned stomach. He tries to hold the horror he felt, but his terrible shriek went through his lips when Elias felt her bare stomach; he hurried away from her in an instant.
"What is she even wearing! Could she be a man, but what kind of man wears a top so short that it barely covers your stomach," Elias pointed shakily at Thana's cropped turtleneck top. His eyes wandered sinfully down that he flinches when he sees the tight black leggings she also wore.
Elias gasped, wincing in pain as he rubs the back of his head after earning a hard smack from his mother. The woman grumbled at his disrespectful son, "you're an idiot."
"She's holding her coat; go grab it and wrap it around her. Hurry before the morning patrol catches us here!"
The poor man did not have any choice but to obey his mother's wishes with the same fear of getting caught. He snatched away the girl's coat to find the fabric relatively thick and luxurious.
He's never seen anyone ordinary wear a coat like this, and he wonders why this girl would wear such dense clothing in the middle of the summer. Nevertheless, he proceeds to wrap it around her body before lifting her up in bridal style.
Elias keeps his face away from the girl with the mud-covered face and frowns as he stares at his mother's look of delight. She looks left and right before nodding at her son, "let's get her inside the palace."
"I hate you for making me do this," Elias groaned as they walked while his mother could only scowl at him and responded, "I hate you for letting me have the worse nine months of my life carrying you in my womb."
Her son snorts, "Yeah, I knew you regretted having me."
The woman freezes, groaning in frustration and turning to her lovely son, "Elias, that's not it-"
"Ugh, shut up!" the young lady groaned at the noise.
Thana tries to wriggle out of Elias's arms, shooting her right hand up past his chest and slapping Elias across the face with her backhand. She still had her eyes closed, but her eyebrows knitted terribly.
The terror on Elias's face made the woman raise her finger, warning him with a stern voice, "don't you dare drop her!"
"B-but," Elias widened his eyes at his mother. He wanted to drop her and give up on this silly rescue mission his mother decided to achieve. The girl was nothing but a stranger; why would his mother want to waste her time on her. But before he could attempt to say anything-
"Who goes there!"
Both mother and son stared at each other, horrified.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone