Before I met her, fighting in the ring was my life. I didn’t care who my opponent was. All I had to do was win. When we die, the money doesn’t matter, but name and glory does. If I kept winning, I would be remembered for a long time—perhaps forever.

One day, the king of the arena challenged me. He was twice my size, and had at least three times more experience. Irrelevant. All I had to do was win. The fight lasted for hours but his yearning for winning must surely be lesser than mine, because he tired out earlier, and then it took one simple slash. I had beaten the king. I was the king. I looked up at the crowd, to bathe in glory and praise from the spectating nobles, but instead, I saw her. Everyone began to run away or fight her, which did not end up well for them. She turned the entire crowd stands red in only a few minutes, and then approached me.

She said that I was one of the pieces that could help her. She asked whether I wanted to change the world. I said no, all I wanted to do was win. ‘Come fight with me, then’, she said. 'Take a week to rest. Same place, same time.' I took my rest, and arrived as she had instructed. She crushed me in the fight. ‘Come with me. I can put your skills to use,’ she said. ‘And don’t you dare leave until you win against me.’

—Account by Lynx Present in The Red Witch Vol.1, Ch.7, by Sharron Gains

October 13, Sunday, Year of 1842. Veradis Candor.

“It’s been far too long since we’ve done something,” Lily grumbles, “And this thing tastes like piss. What is this thing called again?” Regardless of her complaints, she takes a sip. Veradis has only taken a taste of it. It smells like medicine, but tastes somewhat like whiskey and is smoky grey with yellowish orange swirls. She glares at the glass, as if doing so would help her remember the drink.

“One would think that the poor drink was your eternal enemy,” Veradis finally says, after one minute of him staring at Lily and Lily glaring at the drink.

“I don’t remember!” Lily shouts, and then sloops down to the table. “I’m so bored. I’m bored of practicing, too. And Gala’s too hot. And I really have no idea what we’re supposed to do now.”

“Waiting is all we can do, really.”

“I’ve already waited! What an awful time for the new country to be formed,” She groans, then takes a sip, pauses and then drinks it all in one go. She then lays her head on the table, sighing.

The new country has forced Cyra to reconsider their options. Even though the new country was rejected instantly by Gathering of Crowns, they continue to grow at a frightening pace, and the Cyrans do not have orders from their crown to attack New Galans.

Lily speaks, her voice muffled because she lays head down on the table, “If only it was found before we declared war, we wouldn’t be suffering in this stupid place...and I had just came to terms to the fact that Galans would be happier under Cyrans!”

Veradis just gives a wry smile. In truth, he doesn’t mind staying in Ragdow too much. They have nothing to do—nothing except spend time with each other.

Chase appears from behind Lily, and grins. He’s too young to drink, but he eyes Lily’s drink as he says, “Are you coming for a night walk? The curfew has started for Galans. I heard there’s a lake in the east of the city.”

“No,” Veradis says, glancing at Lily. “She’ll drop on the street if we go now.”

Lily glares at Veradis, then says, “Listen, now, Veradis. You know a lot about me…but I rarely drink and I believe you have not seen me drink... You should know that I can hold drinks very well.”

Chase looks at them awkwardly, then says, “Well…we could go tomorrow. I just thought it would be nice for all of us to go as a group. Everyone seems to extremely bored.”

“Better go while you can,” Lily speaks, her voice muffled yet again, “I think we’ll be asked to get back soon.”

Chase frowns. “Why?”

Lily points at Veradis, and says, “Ask him. I can’t be bothered to explain.”

Chase’s frown deepens, but he turns to Veradis nonetheless.

“We’ve done a lot of thinking on why we attacked Gala,” Veradis says, lightly tapping the wooden table, “We didn’t like it when we attacked Gala, so we thought for the longest time about why we decided to attack this country and not any other one.”

Lily then sits upright, serious, and pours the drink into her glass.

“One more?” Veradis says. “I’m not sure whether that’s a good idea.”

“I’ll be…fine,” Lily shrugs, “I think.”

“Not very convincing,” Veradis smiles, and Lily raises an eyebrow, taking a sip, as if taunting him. “Have I ever been wrong, Veradis?” She asks.

“Anyway,” Veradis ignores her, “The people here wanted a change. They were sick of living in the same shithole for decades now. Cyra would provide an alternative—something that wasn’t so bad. We would take over their land and take away their power, but treat them well, like how Galans are now treated in Goldg—”

“You should take a seat,” Lily says, pointing to the chair next to Veradis. Chase quickly sits on it, and Veradis continues, giving a brief annoyed glance to Lily, “Anyway, they aren’t treated like Cyrans, but they’re treated OK, and have been provided many facilities in return. Cyra added more buildings in Goldgate in a month than the Galans did in a year. New schools, new hospitals, better market, and what not.

“A country is, at its core, is its people. If you conquer a country, the people of that country will generally react angrily and there will be riots and rebels for years. But say, if you conquer a country that was already unhappy, and if you make them happier than before, their people will be quite glad to integrate with you. We take away all the power away from them, but we let them live their life in a decent way. Something like a dog that you would own. You feed them, you shelter them, but you take away their freedom.”

“And Galans would be fine with it?” Chase asks.

“Oh, they would be more than fine. Bandits scourging over the country, corrupted nobles, a government that would do everything in its power to please the nobles but let the people suffer and then finally a rebel group led by an infamous sadistic red witch that threatens further instability. I think His Majesty understands that what these people want is not freedom, but peace and stability. A decent life.”

Chase looks blankly at Veradis, then asks, “I don’t understand. How is this related to us retreating?”

“This new country of rebels is a real problem because we were providing an alternative to Gala but now New Gala is also an alternative that Galans can choose. And they’re New Galans, so they’d attract Galans despite having worse resources than us,” Veradis says.

“I…I still don’t understand,” Chase says.

Lily snaps before Veradis can say anything, “What we’re saying is, if Cyra does not withdraw, there will be another civil war amongst Galans, and this one won’t be as one-sided as the current war between Gala and New Gala. This one is more like a…mutiny. It’s not full on fight between citizens…only between rebels and Galan soldiers. No innocents. Now, the one between Cyran-sided Galans or whatever you want to call them and New Galans won’t be so pretty.”

Chase breathes, then nods slowly, finally understanding.

Lily is about to pour another glass when they hear hooves outside their modest inn. The soldiers inside raise their guard, and only open the door when the password is correct. A messenger strolls in, and hands a letter to Veradis, the current squad leader. Lily smiles, looking at Chase, who stares at the letter. “Isn’t…isn’t this it? You were correct!” Chase whispers to Veradis, excited.

“Veradis is a great man,” Lily says, “He takes some stupid risks sometimes but he’s still quite an amazing man...actually the best I’ve known…but you know, even he can’t read the letter without opening the seal.”

Veradis laughs for a good ten seconds as others stand in uncomfortable stillness, anxious. Then, finally realizing that no one seems to be laughing with him, he unseals the letter. “It’s from the Cyran crown,” he says then goes through it quickly and smiles. “Good news everyone!” He shouts, “Pack your bags! We’re retreating the first thing tomorrow!”

October 22, Tuesday, Year of 1842. Veradis Candor.

Veradis has missed Sophia—tall buildings, comfortable even streets, and plenty of greenery. The Cyran capital is indeed just as majestic and beautiful as ever. The air feels fresh and cool. If Veradis was to choose his heaven, it would be Sophia, and he guesses it would be true for most of people that have been to Sophia at least once.

“Are you sure about this?” Lily asks, standing in front of a four-story building.

“Of course,” Veradis says confidently, and they walk in the clothing shop

for the rich—or more specifically, for parties. They quickly navigate towards the women’s sections and Lily looks at all the dresses. “They’re all fancy, and look uncomfortable. This,” she points at one, “Is more of frills and less of a dress…and the colours…Rudis, they’re the worst.”

“This one? It’s black.” Veradis asks, pointing towards a black party gown with a bunch of shiny white stars. It covers half of the shoulders, flows down to a keyhole neckline and is—“Of course not,” Lily glares at Veradis. She doesn’t have to examine the dress further, probably. The shiny black and the keyhole neckline are already more than she could handle.

“It’s a party,” Veradis says, frustrated. “People are supposed to dress nicely!”

“I wasn’t even invited properly!” Lily keeps glaring. “I’m only been allowed in because of you, and I’d rather not stand out. The nobles hate me, and they’ll call us names—”

“You shouldn’t care about them,” Veradis says.

Lily picks a red dress, examines it and roughly shoves it back, clearly angry. “It’s not only about me, you know. They taint your name too, saying you’re marrying your servant and that you’ve always lacked some nobleness.”

Veradis shrugs. “It’s not true. You were never my servant.”

“Which makes it doubly worse.”

“They shouldn’t stop you from wearing pretty dresses,” Veradis says, quickly making her face him. “You can’t let them affect you, otherwise they have won.”

“The crown is going to be there!” Lily says, “And…a bunch of other countries’ crowns too, along with that insane red witch. Did you hear what she’s doing with the Galan nobles? Torturing them in front of the crowd and not letting them die by healing them continuously? New Galan government is militaristic and unnecessary cruel, and it is all because of her. Why would I want to stand out in such a place amongst such insane people?”

“You’ll stand out more if you wear plain clothes,” Veradis says. “It’s a very high profile party. The Cyran crown, the New Galan crown, and potentially more will be present. I hear some from church are also attending.”

“What?” Lily asks, “Why would the church attend?”

“They sometimes show up at important events. My father says they’re heavily invested this time.”

Lily nods, then asks, pointing towards the entire rack, “Do all the women wear flashy and fancy dresses? Would I stand out if I didn’t wear, say, monstrosities like those?”

Veradis laughs. “Monstrosities,” he repeats, and laughs again.

“Answer my question,” Lily says.

“I’m not too sure,” Veradis shrugs, “You know—I haven’t really paid too much attention to women in the parties that I’ve attended. I’m not the type to do that. Why would I look at other women? Definitely n—”

Lily almost shouts, “Don’t you dare lie to me.”

“Fine, fine,” Veradis says, “It’s a ball party so yes, they will all wear fancy dresses. The entire point of a ball party is to have men ask you for a dance, and you have to stand out for that. There’s always plenty of unmarried noble daughters, so there will be plenty of gaudy dr—I mean, monstrosities. The married women will also wear their best dresses because it’s such a high profile party.”

Lily sighs, not wanting to go to the party anymore. “I’ll…I’ll take the black dress,” she picks up the dress. “I hates this type of dress, but I would hate standing out even more. Besides, you think this one looks pretty, don’t you?”

Veradis grabs the black dress off her hands and puts it back. “No, no. We’re not going anywhere until you are satisfied. Keep looking. We have time.”

Lily gives a smile and then goes around the store, spending time shopping expensive clothes that she would wear probably once or twice in her life and does not want to wear in the first place.

At least it doesn’t last long. Twenty minutes later she finds something that she likes buried amongst so many dresses. “Thank Rudis for dark blue!” Pretty, but not too catchy. The dress is simple, comfortable, and still looks pretty. She wouldn’t overly stand out, and so that’s the one that she will wear on the party night.

October 27, Sunday, Year of 1842. Lotti Hasard.

Nina shows up a few minutes late today to their meeting, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina. She can forgive her, as long as she isn’t too tardy. Nina is very important to her.

Today’s experiment is a failure as well, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina. “Raze will take you to the town today,” Lotti says, looking at the dejected Nina.

“Why?” Nina asks, clearly taken aback. She’s very expressive, and that’s not really a good thing in Lotti’s mind, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina.

“You need to pick a dress. We’re invited to a Cyran ball party.”

“Me? Why am I coming—I mean, what use will I be there, Your Majesty?”

Your…Majesty? Lotti keeps up her smile despite wanting to frown. Nina hasn’t referred to Lotti before like that before and she looks scared. Well, she always looks scared, but today, she seems more scared and meek than usual. Did she finally hear the latest news about the nobles? Oh…well. It was going to happen sooner or later.

“You will be coming with me because there will be the church and Cyran crown there,” Lotti says, and Nina freezes, somehow becoming even more scared than she already was.

“No, no, the church will—”

“Do nothing,” Lotti says, “and can only do nothing. I’ll be there with you. Besides, it’s a crown’s royal hall. Any murder or act of violence committed there will be denounced and penalized by all crowns and the church.”

“But…but what use is it to take me?” She still does not understand her role, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina, after all.

“You’re the grape, Nina.”

She frowns, staring down at herself. “Grape?” Her reaction is quite comical, and Lotti has to give a small snort of a laughter before she says, “A grape that the foxes can’t reach, and never will. I will offer them an outrageous deal for just a slight taste of grape, and they will have no choice but to accept.”

“But—but if they get a hold of me…”

“I just told you that they won’t, didn’t I? They can never do anything to you with me there.”

Nina looks down, considering. A few minutes pass. Annoying. Lotti doesn’t like repeating herself or waiting, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina.

“The church is…is evil, isn’t it?” Nina asks.

“Maybe. Does that matter? They want to experiment on you.”

“Yes…I know,” Nina says, looking down.

Lotti walks up to Nina, and holds her face in her hands, making sure Nina’s eyes are on her face. “It would help me immensely if you come. I would very likely get a very good deal just because the church wouldn’t want to piss me off, considering I have you. Really, you would be such a big help.”

Lotti can very easily guess what goes into Nina’s mind. That girl is one-dimensional. All the cripple wants to be is to be useful. All she wants is to be needed, to belong, and to be worth something.

“Really? I would be helping you…?” She asks.

Lotti broadens her smile, and Nina instantly says, “I’ll...I’ll come with you, then.” She speaks if she has a choice. She has grown quite out of her place, but that’s fine. Lotti likes Nina, after al— “No…” Lotti whispers suddenly, “No…this isn’t good.”

“What happened?” Nina asks, frightened. She almost starts to cry. So she really has heard of the public tortures….or is it because of the face that Lotti is making now? Lotti isn’t sure what kind of face is it, but she can tell that she’s not happy.

“I just feel…a little sick. Go wait in your room,” Lotti says, letting go of Nina’s face. “Walter will be there in an hour or so. He and Raze will go to the town with you to decide your dress.”

“A—are you sure? What about the—”

“Do I need to repeat myself?” Lotti asks, and Nina shakes her head, leaving the room in a rush.

If only all pieces were like her. A few sentences here and there, and Lotti has what she wants. She could probably convince Nina that the sky was green.

But there is still a problem, and it’s not with Nina. It’s with the Lotti. Give a successful king or queen a loving spouse, two innocent and adorable children, and all of the sudden you have a ruler with three weaknesses. Nina is growing up to be her weakness. She is her trainee, her student, her work. Hers. A possession that has started to mean something.

Lotti takes a red wine from her wine collection and sits down, contemplating. She has avoided close relationships for so long. They wouldn’t have lasted anyway, considering how often her relationships ended up with her partner getting killed by her, but she has to admit that she feels a small sense of regret. Maybe she’d be with someone, and they could have adopted Nina. She really does seem like a nice child who— Lotti frowns now, getting up her chair and shaking her head violently.

No, no, no, no. This won’t do. A piece. That’s all that Nina is. Nothing more than that. She has always wanted to be needed and be useful, so what is the problem with using her like a ragged cloth and then throwing her away when she’s of no use? Just think of her as another piece on the board. It can’t be so difficult. It shouldn’t be so difficult…

Lotti groans and throws the wine bottle on the floor in frustration. It breaks. It’s a good sound. She likes that sound. She grabs another one and throws it too. Another one, again. Good sound. It’s like music to her. Soothing. Breaking things is good. Breaking hearts have a good sound too, as long as it belongs to others.

But right now it’s her heart. Her ice heart is breaking and cracking. Her entire foundation is threatened by this one monster with no magic. Lotti likes Nina, and that’s not fine.