As I stared at the shadowy figure atop the branch, I cautiously grabbed the dagger on my waist; I couldn't see the person, but given the blood leaking from him, Alex must've injured him before he managed to escape, which means he should have been weakened. While the thought of killing him was scary, given I've never fought a day in my life, I knew I'd most likely have to fight him if I wanted to make it to my Kingdom and save Alex.
'Y-You've got this, Jasmine; j-just stay calm.' Thought Jasmine softly as she tightly clenched her dagger and eyed the shadowy figure while calmly breathing.
After waiting a bit longer, the shadowy figure leaped away, heading further into the distance in the same direction I needed to go, causing me to bite my lip as I slowly followed after him, though I did so cautiously while watching my every step, ensuring I didn't accidentally step on a branch and reveal my position.
The minutes ticked by, and I didn't see the shadowy figure again; I probably wouldn't see it again, as the only way I had previously seen it was thanks to the tree branch shaking.
I wanted to try and run, as this was simply taking too long, but I knew that the assassin was somewhere around here, and I had a feeling that the moment I did that, he would suddenly appear and attack.
'This… This is taking too long!' Thought Jasmine in frustration as she observed her surroundings, searching for the shadowy figure, only to end up empty-handed.
After a few more minutes of slowly walking, covering the same distance I could've traversed in less than a tenth of the time if I were running, I finally bit the bullet and sprinted. As I ran through the forest, I held Alex's space pouch close, ready to use his potions at a moment's notice; however, despite sprinting through the forest for multiple minutes, I saw no sign of the shadowy figure anywhere.
'I-Is he gone?' Thought Jasmine with a skeptical gaze as she glanced at her sides, only to sigh in relief while subconsciously dropping her guard.
Just as I heaved a sigh of relief, I came to a sudden halt as a sharp pain hit my stomach, followed by agonizing pain as I was lifted into the air.
"Found you." Said the shadowy figure as he stared at Jasmine, having stabbed her stomach with his shortsword before lifting her into the air.
The pain was too much for me to register as I screamed in pain while dropping the dagger and space pouch; I clutched the blade, cutting my hands as I tried to lift myself, yet before I could, I was thrown into a nearby tree, staining it with my blood as I plopped onto the ground while the cloak concealing me was ripped off my body.
"What an annoying princess." Muttered the assassin as he stood over Jasmine before thrusting his sword toward her heart, only to suddenly stumble to one knee while grabbing his chest.
Although the pain was overwhelming, and just breathing made me want to cry, as I looked at the assassin, I knew this was my only chance, so with a few whimpers, I plopped onto my stomach, causing me to suppress a grunt, before slowly crawling towards the space pouch and dagger.
'I-If I can just drink that p-potion.' Thought Jasmine weakly as she slowly crawled to the items, nearly reaching them, only for her eyes to suddenly widen as a sword stabbed her in the back.
As the shadowy figure retracted his blade from my back, my head fell to the ground as I lifelessly gazed at the shadowy figure, who stood over my body, seemingly waiting for me to die. With the last of my strength fading, I cast [Saintess's Vigor] on myself, increasing my life force and naturally regenerative properties; though it wouldn't save me from my current state, it would help prolong my life.
After doing that, I slowly outstretched my hand towards the assassin, who violently stepped on it, causing me to grunt, yet I faintly smiled as I cast a negative status effect, and my most powerful one that required direct contact.
Casting [Saintess's Abhorrence], significantly reducing his physical, spiritual, and mental status at the cost of nearly three times the mana cost compared to casting [Saintess's Love], leaving me roughly empty of mana; I watched as the assassin, who was already weakened and injured, collapsed to the ground, having been further weakened by my spell.
Without hesitation, I moved swiftly and grabbed the space pouch, dumping the three potions onto the ground, prompting me to consume all of them, and almost immediately, I began to feel rejuvenated. Wasting no time, I grabbed the dagger and violently stabbed it into the assassin's head, causing the shadowy veil that surrounded him to suddenly disperse while he lifelessly collapsed onto the ground.
"I-I d-did it?" Muttered Jasmine weakly in disbelief as she glanced at the corpse before looking down at herself, only to shake her head.
Grabbing Alex's pouch, I stood up with a few grunts and ran as hard as I could, yet although the potions and my spell filled me with vigor, I wasn't fully healed; I still had two wounds leaking blood.
"Y-You can't fail now; y-you've come too far!" Said Jasmine softly as she ran through the forest with a limp and a listless gaze while staring into the distance.
___
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"Captain Justina, King Crestfallen requires your presence." Stated an older man donned in armor as he approached a small woman with a brown furry tail and two furry ears atop her head.
Nodding to the soldier, I gave one final look at the training royal guards before turning and approaching the palace; entering inside, I walked through the halls, mainly passing maids, butlers, and the occasional guard, with the latter saluting me. Once I neared the Throne room, I removed my helmet and held it in my arms before entering; when I got close, I glanced at the disheveled and tired King before kneeling while lowering my head.
"Your Majesties." Said Justina softly, her feminine voice carrying a slight rumble that ever-so faintly shook the room.
"Prepare 100 searching parties consisting of 24 guards each." Stated Crestfallen lightly as he glanced at Justina, who raised an eyebrow before furrowing her brows.
"Excuse my words, Your Majesty, but doing so will leave you and the Queen vulnerable to attacks. Whoever attacked Princess Jasmine's carriage may take advantage of the Palace's weak-" Remarked Justina softly as she raised her head and looked between Crestfallen and the Queen, only for him to suddenly slam his fist on his throne, silencing her.
"I don't care!" Stated Crestfallen viciously as he glared at Justina, who quickly lowered her head, prompting the Queen to gently squeeze his hand.
"You will do as I say, and that's an Imperial order!" Added Crestfallen sternly as he stared at Justina, who reluctantly nodded, prompting him to open his mouth, only for her to suddenly stand.
"Silence!" Declared Justina solemnly as she forcefully silenced everyone within the room, including the King and Queen, causing their eyes to widen.
Closing my eyes, I focused intensely on my nose and deeply sniffed the air, taking my time to register the numerous different scents as I searched for the one I had faintly smelled. After a few moments, I snapped my head west, my pupils dilating while allowing everyone to speak once more.
"Princess Jasmine… She's entered the territory." Muttered Justina softly, her words shocking Crestfallen as he swiftly stood up.
"GO GET HER!" Yelled Crestfallen loudly as he looked at Justina, who left before he finished speaking.
Dashing through the walls of the Palace, I stepped onto the ground before leaping into the air, soaring over the entire city as I crash-landed just outside the city walls. Now that I was outside, I held nothing back as I pushed against the ground, utilizing every skill and spell in my arsenal to increase my speed as I sprinted across the kingdom, leaving a wake of destruction in my path as I rearranged the surroundings of wherever I passed.
Although I managed to cover nearly half the kingdom in just a few minutes, it felt painstakingly slow; however, when I finally reached the very edge of our territory, I spotted Princess Jasmine collapsed against a tree and bleeding out from two different injuries.
'Fuck! I left too quickly; I didn't bring any potion!' Thought Justina with an ugly expression as she swiftly came to a halt near Jasmine before picking her up.
"Princess Jasmine! Stay awake! I will get you to the Palace!" Stated Justina quickly as she began to run, only to be stopped by Jasmine holding onto the branch.
"S-Save Alex first." Said Jasmine weakly as she looked at Justina, who tilted her head in confusion before refusing.
"No, your life is more important, Princess." Said Justina as she ripped the tree branch off the tree before preparing to run back to the Palace.
"J-Justina, h-he can s-save me." Said Jasmine as she glanced at Justina, who stopped with an ugly expression before turning around again.
"Where is he?" "D-D-own there." Remarked Justina and Jasmine, respectively, as the former glanced at the latter, who pointed further west.