What was this person searching for?

The question emerged into her mind, yet she had no answer for it. To begin with, Snowflake had no idea what she was exactly searching for, but she needed clues to find the culprit. Sheets and sheets of papers scattered in front of her, and what was she to do with them? Stormy orbs glided over the lines engraved on the brittle sheet, the letters written with precision and grace, as if the write spent a good ounce of their time to outline the message. Albeit, none of these mattered to her, or related to the case that they were trying to solve.

It was a situation that required focus and concentration, yet, Snowflake would find her thoughts wandering immediately and she couldn’t help but imagine herself being on some kind of detective work. She was never interested in such acts, although after having it done in practice, it was quite fascinating. While Snowflake was distracted with the papers, it seemed that Alice discovered something else.

”What is it?”

The Ice wizard walked over to Alice, who reached out into the fire with her bare hands. Astonished by the sight, her lips slightly parted in surprise until she finally took notice of what appeared to be a burnt piece of paper. No doubt, the culprit had attempted to erase the evidence – more so, this piece of paper. Yet, what was so special about this? Whilst Alice was busy finding out what was on the paper, the Pegasus master continued to observe the place, in case there was an additional secret location hidden in the room.

”That is very likely,” she agreed, after listening to Alice’s assumption of the case. There could be no way that the lord would have destroyed his own will, and it was more than likely of the person of whom they have been searching for. ”Could it be that he forged an artificial will of his own name?” If the culprit had already burnt the original will, he or she must have the copy of the it, but how were they suppose to find it? Her eyes shifted over Alice's wounded hand and she was immediately brought out of her own reverie, "Is your hand alright? Do you need a bandage?"

She had not realized the pain in the first instance but now that she had time to read what she held in her hands, she realized that it did sting, "Right, not one of my smartest moves." she muttered more to herself than to anyone else for that matter. But she explained quickly to Snow what she thought she had found and the idea that had sprew in her mind, she looked up with her golden eyes to her friend. "We should hurry, if this was the last step, the lord can be the next.", to which she walked out of the little study and heard Snow ask her if the culprit might have forged one, "I think so, it clearly isn't here I mean as a knight I would take every paper that was here into consideration of being forced. He must had placed it in the actual study or any other room that reach people have." she said while walking into the door and taking the door knob in her hand, and while she was trying to open the door while walk, she bumped into it. "Huh?"

She couldn't help but be surprised. She had heard Snow vaguely about her hand, but she turned around, she looked at the floor before looking back up to the Blue Pegasus mage. "The door, it won't open." She held her hand who held on to the diary and the will, she had the proof but they couldn't get out! "Shit. It must be a trap." If she could get Hecate and Jupiter here, could them to get one of the knights. She turned to the door and tried again but it didn't budge. She slammed on it with the wrong hand and cursed, "Great. So much for being careful." didn't she suppose to be the lieutenant? Great job.

Without any hesitation, Snowflake grabbed a piece of cloth nearest to her side, which she assumed was a small handkerchief of the lord’s, and wrapped it around Alice’s injured hand. Somewhat, she was relieved that they were able to find some clues about the culprit and thus, decided that they should proceed back to the lord next. Who knows when the criminal might decide to harm the lord? Snowflake had thought their job was already half-way finished, until Alice mentioned that the door wouldn’t budge.

”What?”

Her brows creased into the middle of her forehead, as she rushed towards the door and grabbed the knob. Twist. Lock. She repeated. Twist. Lock. The Ice wizard retreated a few steps back and ran right into the door, slamming the side of her figure against the structure, only to release a painful groan. ”Ow.” The snowy sculptress rubbed her arm in an attempt to ease the pain. As expected of the lord’s room, even the door should be the most sturdiest to prevent burglars from breaking in. Confusion dawned upon her as she wondered why they would be locked inside when they were the ones trying to keep the lord safe.

”A trap by whom? I don’t understand.”

The young woman leaned against the door and folded her arms across her chest, a jumble of thoughts entering her mind as she attempted to sort things out. ”How do we get out now? Should we just wait?” As much as she hated to be idle and sit around doing nothing, there wasn’t any way to get out of the room – unless they try to force their way out of this place, but how?

It seemed that Snow was just as surprised as Alice was, the door wouldn't open. What kind of game were they playing without them knowing it was a game? To which she answered Snow her surprised question by mentioning that it wouldn't open and that it might be a trap. She let Snow try by stepping aside and watch the white haired beauty try to slam her shoulder into the door to try and get it open, but even that didn't work. Alice wouldn't dare to try at the moment besides she wasn't sure if she was stronger as Snow so it wouldn't have any effect anyways.

Her mind went on full speed to consider it, "Of course it's a guess but considering the mess the person made, it was only logical that someone would find it and inform someone. Either the lord or us.." which meant if the person didn't know of them, they might do something to this room if it was the idea to lock up the lord. Suddenly she prayed that the culprit went to look for the lord in the ballroom first, if he or she had not seen them enter the room. "That means that the person expected this and locked the person up and.." Wait.. she forgot one crucial thing, no matter if they noticed them go in, instead of the lord, they would have proof. She looked at the ground, "We need to get out. Now. The culprit looked us up, knows we are here and have proof. This room will be destroyed in a matter of minutes!" She looked left and right, she couldn't imagine that a person who needed high security only had one exit only to get out of this room. "There must be a hidden door, somewhere behind tapestry, bookcase anything you read in novels. If this lord is so important, they can't only have this door as an exit. We have to hurry!"

And she had to calm down else she wouldn't find anything! She quickly moved her way back to the bedroom part where she had been first, there was a tapestry clearly on the left side and she would try to find a way to get behind it and hopefully find a door.

Heels clacked hard against the wooden floorboards as Snowflake paced back and forth in the room, trying to think of a way to escape, but to no avail. Her acquaintance seemed to be processing everything as well and somehow, she came to a conclusion. Slowly, the pieces was beginning to fall together and she was starting to understand the reason behind all this mess. In spite of all the panic and rush, Snowflake tried to calm herself down since the task required her full concentration. She nodded at Alice, acknowledging her suggestion as she began searching around the room. Her knuckles rapped against every surface of the room, walls and floors, to find any difference within the sounds reverberated from the structures.

They couldn’t waste any more time, since there was a possibility of risking their lives as well as the removal of every trace of evidence that they’d discovered. It wasn’t until she noticed the hollow sounds on a particular wall, where a large painting of the lord was suspended, indicating that there was some sort of empty space behind the surface. The sounds grew louder as she approached the painting and Snowflake didn’t hesitate to push the painting away, hoping that she would find something – a door, maybe.

She wasn’t wrong.

It wasn’t technically a door – more so, a blocked pathway – since it didn’t have a knob, nor a keyhole to unlock. The Pegasus wizard absently pressed her hand against the wall and surprisingly, it moved an inch further before sliding away and revealed an empty path in front of her. ”I found something,” she turned to face Alice. Snowflake wasn’t sure where this would lead them, yet, at the very least, they were able to find a passage to their exit.

She tried the same approach as Snow had done but had not found anything in the mean time. Normally she had not much difficulty with staying calm but suddenly she couldn't. Trying her very best to do so, pushing her hair away from her eyes the whole time and trying to count her breathing rhythm while hitting the wall with her fist. Thank god at some point she heard Snow call out to her that she had found something because she definitely needed that. She hurried towards where Snow was and started at the dark passage, "Well it's better than waiting on a fire?" she said with a small smile.

She looked one more time before suggesting to go first, moving up her hand to make a small orb of solar magic and show the sides of the wall, who were covered in a bit of cobwebs and little water drops but nothing extremely close, "Let's go quickly." She said with one look over her shoulder again and take the first step into the tunnels. This was probably going to be a long way around, they would probably end up somewhere in the garden. She tried to look at the floor but that was all a flat sort of marble so Snow her heels wouldn't be that big of a problem. "This was a whole different adventure than I thought." she said with a short laugh, which reminded her that she wanted to invite Snow to her wedding but she had not thought about it before as she had been freaking out that Snow had immediately noticed her baby bump. She could always ask it at the end of this adventure, she had no idea how the tunnels would go. The door had closed behind them and thank god her magic casted enough light.

She wouldn't go and run, that had no use, if she was correct, the culprit would first have to get rid of them and the rest of the evidence, something she was holding on to far too tight.

”Indeed.”

Snowflake agreed, before nodding at her suggestion and led the way inside the hidden pathway. Thankfully, their way towards the exit was lit up using Alice’s magic, which she had just learnt at that moment – it was a useful ability, especially in these situations. The entire place reeked of old and vintage, the corners entirely covered in webs and being a person who loathed filthy places, it was the worst place for her to be around, albeit, her facial expressions remained the same with a hint of slight distaste. For a moment, her mind went returned to the reason why they were in the room and she hoped that Alice had brought the evidence, because she certainly didn’t.

Seconds plodded by, each separated by an eternity and though it had been brief in reality, the journey to their exit seemed to have stretched on for eons to her, as if time was thinned out into a linear form that made her steps a tad bit slower, if not from sheer uneasiness. The place had many twists and turns, almost as if they were in a maze, although fortunately, their way out was in a single linear direction, which made it easier for them to find the final doorway.

”I know, but, I guess it somehow makes our encounter interesting.”

The encounter that was worth to be remembered, and she certainly wouldn’t forget this one. Shortly after, a light entered the path and it would grow brighter and larger as they approached. Snowflake lifted a hand over her face, shielding herself from the illuminating light that blinded her eyes. Was this exit? She hoped so.

It didn't feel like a nice walk but considering they could be burned to crisps, Alice wasn't complaining. Her mind was going on in circles again and again to the same things that she still needed to figure out what she needed to do and how they would find the culprit and to still invite Snow to her wedding. Which was strange, she had not known Snow her name until now but it felt like something she really wanted to do, she just didn't want a rejection. But she would invite Chelvaric as well and that would mean; bring a plus 1 which would be Snow, so why not invite her herself.. Okay these thoughts were annoying, "So something completely different, since I forgot before. I'm getting married in March, and I wanted to invite you and Chelvaric, of course I still send invitations but now I can tell you in person." she looked over her shoulder, "Would you mind to come?" Which made her sound like a teenager asking someone for a birthday party instead of her wedding.

Which made her say not much later that this was definitely a different adventure than she had in mind but she couldn't help but chuckle about Snow her response, "I might say it's better than finding a peeping tom." But sometimes, she wouldn't mind to sit down and not having to run around every other second. But the fact was that they survived, she narrowed her eyes to the bright light that was coming as they came to the end. She even felt a breeze. She noticed a few vines and they immediately stood outdoors next to the castle, the bright light came from the street lamps. So much for hiding a secret entrance. But there was no one outside at the moment, "Let's quickly finish this-." She wanted to say that they should capture the culprit when people came running outside, still the extravagant dresses, the masks and footwear. She heard someone scream fire, "Well there it is. We need to find the lord and quickly." and she hurried through the people to the door to get back inside, in the hallway she spotted Jupiter and Hecate. "Hecate go ahead." to which her companion left her side and went to the room that was on fire, it was nice to have an ice companion.

There was silence between the females for a brief moment, and certainly, there were things that occupied their minds, especially after figuring out that they were almost burnt to crisp. The coral haired woman broke the tranquillity by raising a question that took her by surprise. ”Oh, lovely!” The two weren’t close friends, though they were good acquaintances and she could see them bond even further in the near future. ”Most definitely,” she promised, ending her sentence with a small smile, guaranteeing her newly attained comrade that she would show up at the event, along with her beau. Despite being merely a guest, she was already excited to inform Chelvaric about the wedding and she was positive that he would be more than thrilled to tag along with her.

Speaking of which, the peeping tom was the reason how Alice and herself had met for the second time. It was quite the encounter, though not one too easily forgettable and she began to realise how their meetings were rather adventurous than she had expected. The first was at a burning cathedral, the next in a bath house where the girls were being ogled at and now – the most interesting of all – trapped in the lord’s room.

Sunlight peeped into the pathway and soon enough, they would find themselves at their mutual connection; the exit. Finally relieved to be out of a crampy and filthy place, the woman heaved out a sigh, however, something caught her attention instead. Screams echoed within the area and she would see the guests escaping out into the open, still in their fancy outfits and women running in heels. Someone announced ‘Fire!’ and it was when she realised that they were that close to being burned alive, if they hadn’t found the hidden pathway behind the painting on time. Having no time to waste, they were finally back in action to continue the rest of the task – to protect the lord. Snowflake nodded at Alice, acknowledging her plan and weaved through the crowds, edging through the dense flow of people.

They had to hurry, with the fire and the people that run out, it would be a perfect strategy to kill the Lord now. He might be considered dead thanks to the fire as the Rune Knights later would figure out it had started in his room. How could she not see the bigger picture. She would have to just be careful, looking at everybody their face and expression. No matter how good people could act and use masks, you could always be surprised when the people you considered dead show up. And if Hecate would do her job well, perhaps with some other fire mages, she had no idea what the knights could do, the fire might not even get too bad.

It was a strange way to go inside while everyone went out, "Where would he be?" she called out to Snow, because she didn't know the man. Would he see the damage for himself, would he see everyone out before being the last? Would he be that kind of a gentleman? She looked at the last of the will that she held in her hand, which actually gave her the answer. He was a generous man, if his estate would survive and he would die, he would give it as an orphanage. She looked up, "He must be in the ballroom." Overseeing that everyone was save. She hoped she was right.

She entered the ballroom, she felt that the pressure of the flames also came here and she really crossed her fingers hoping Hecate would do fine. Jupiter at her side she stared at the Lord, still up on the higher platform overlooking the ballroom. There was a younger man standing next to him and he looked at them, looked away but quickly looked back. "It's the man next to him. His cousin or so?" She whispered to Snow because he shouldn't know that they knew immediately, he could hide behind that mask. It was a wild guess but her instinct told her she was right.

"I'm probably going to regret this." She moved her hand as if she was throwing something, "My lord.. jump." Was all she said and the man stared, the other still in the surprise of seeing them, and turning around to run away, that wouldn't work with her spell. The lord decided to follow her idea and run towards the spell but missing it by jumping of the sort of balcony. "Check the lord, will you please. I will get the culprit." Who got the full hit of her Solaria spell, idiot for running away.

She made her way around the ballroom and found the man with quite a burn on his stomach. She simply looked down at him, heard more footsteps and turned to look at the knights, "Take this man to our headquarters. We have some questions for him. How's the fire?" But they told her it was as good as gone and that her companion was making a final round to see they got everything. This was enough for Alice to walk to the lord and Snow if she had gone to him. He thanked them and offered the clothes that they were wearing and a great sum of money.

It almost appeared as if people were ready to run over each other to get out of the place alive. In situations like these, one could truly see how selfish people were, but, it was normal – humans are selfish, no matter how much they deny it. Snowflake wandered around swirls and eddies of people, her being pushed by those that filtered through the spaces around her figure, that she could hardly even walk in a straight line towards her destination. Plumes of smoke rose higher into the air, dispersing into invisibility and turning the clouds a shade darker. With all the guests running around like mice, it was almost impossible to search for the lord or to know his whereabouts.

”The ballroom, right.”

That was the last place where the two had met him, and if the lord was still trapped inside the ballroom, it could even mean more danger for him. The frosty woman rushed inside the building once again and she could see the flames growing stronger, spreading faster than they could imagine. ”We’re running out of time,” she spoke to no one in particular, though she was aware that they couldn’t stay inside any longer than a couple of minutes. Her eyes involuntarily shifted over the platform above and there he was, the lord watching below. ”What in the world is he doing there?” Snowflake was filled with wonder and surprise as to how the lord could remain so calm despite of what was happening around him. Shouldn’t he be running from the beginning?

The woman shook her head and it wasn’t until Alice pointed out that their suspect could be the man standing beside the lord. Perhaps he was being threatened? Whatever it was, they needed the lord outside the building right at this moment.

”My lord.. jump.”

It was one hell of a crazy idea – no doubt – yet, that was the only option in their hands. The lord appeared hesitant at first, but thankfully, he seemed to be aware that he was in danger, obviously. Alice threw some kind of spell, though it barely missed the target and instead, landed on the culprit. With a responsive, Snowflake immediately headed towards the lord to tend his injuries while Alice chased down the culprit. More knights began to flood into the area as some surrounded the lord for his safety and the rest dealt with the target. His wounds would be examined by the castle’s nurses and doctors as he rewarded them a hefty amount of jewels in gratitude for their work.

The fire was finally gone, thankfully and Snowflake decided to change her clothes since she didn’t want to walk through the streets with some extravagant dress. Despite how the dress was tainted with a bit of ash and dust, it would cause no problem to her to send it to the dry cleaners and she was more than glad that the king had granted the girls those dresses – one that she definitely loved.

”That was quite a day.”

The whole thing of not having the need to change clothing and be able to storm out of here was a great idea but well she needed to pick up her own stuff, hopefully that was still arlight and she needed to get Hecate back, but while she turned to follow Snow out of the ballroom, her faithful companion showed up again with the other one by her side, as Jupiter had waited at the door. "Oh there you two are." she turned back to Snow, she nodded, "That was surely one. I wonder if we would ever meet on a calm day both ordering coffee or so." she couldn't help but laugh. "It was pleasant working with you. I can send the invitation for you and Chelvaric to Blue Pegasus I assume?" The guild would know where to find them when it was the right time, "The wedding will be in the end of March, I hope to see you before that but if I don't. I look forward to seeing you again." The two ways would split where she picked up her leather jacket, checked out her reflection to make sure the bump still was hidden and she headed out, back to the hotel to get a shower because even if she had not been close to fire, she felt dirty by it because the ash and smoke did hit her.

Exit.