The Forgotten Field - Chapter 52

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 52
Wrapped in an indescribable, peculiar emotion, I gazed at the Castle Gate drawing steadily closer.
Soon, I would be freed from this excruciating pain.
Not some quack healer constantly watching Gareth’s expression, but the elite Mages of the Empress Palace would restore me to my former, flawless self.
Moistening my parched lips, I carefully lowered my gaze to examine my own body.
The flesh wrapped in a cream-colored, gossamer dress was in a state that could not be called beautiful by any stretch of the imagination.
The crude outline of thick bandages wound from thigh to ankle protruded hideously above the thin skirt, and while the burn marks on my palms had been cleanly healed by magic, my nails remained discolored a dark crimson with bruising.
The fact that I had practically fasted throughout the journey left me looking pitifully gaunt, adding another layer to my wretched appearance.
Suddenly, anxiety flooded through me.
Seeing me like this, wouldn’t everyone mock me?
The image of the Handmaidens giggling about divine retribution sent cold sweat trickling down my spine.
I quickly drew the curtain over the window. If someone were to see me and snicker about heavenly punishment, I feared I would lose my mind entirely.
I pulled the thin linen blanket tangled on the floor up over my head.
Moments later, the sound of the carriage passing through the Castle Gate reached my ears.
Poking my head through a gap in the blanket, I listened intently to the cacophony from outside. The clatter of hooves and the resounding commands of the infantry echoed all around, while the already mournful melody of the funeral march grew even more somber.
The murmur of the crowd mingled within it—like thousands of insects chirping all at once. Feeling my nerves grow increasingly sharp and taut, I pulled the blanket up over my head again.
How long I remained that way, I cannot say, but the carriage, which had been moving slowly along the gravel path, came to a halt, and the commotion around us intensified. It seemed the Imperial Palace servants had all rushed out.
I huddled in the corner of the carriage, waiting for the chaos to subside. I intended to remain locked away here until Gareth and Aila completed the formal procedures to meet with the Emperor. I had no desire to expose my wretched appearance to their attendants.
I rubbed my tingling legs and held my breath in silence.
Then, without warning, the door burst open and a dark shadow invaded the carriage.
Lifting my head, I widened my eyes at the familiar silhouette backlit by sunlight. The Nursemaid, clambering awkwardly onto the carriage, wrapped me in her plump arms and pulled me close.
“Oh my poor dear. What has become of you?”
With her large hands, she cradled my face and examined me from every angle, tears streaming down like chicken droppings.
“How have you become so thin? As if the injuries weren’t enough, your face has wasted away to nothing….”
Staring blankly up at her, I soon contorted my face and threw my arms around her neck.
Like a young creature burrowing into its mother’s embrace, I nestled against her ample bosom as she stroked my back up and down.
At her touch, gentle as if soothing a newborn, tears suddenly burst forth. I buried my face in her cinnamon-scented, curling hair and sobbed uncontrollably.
“Nursemaid, I… hurt so much. I feel as though I might die from the pain.”
“Don’t worry. Senevir will set you right.”
The Nursemaid wiped the tears from my cheeks and gestured toward the carriage entrance. I noticed a strange man standing in the doorway and shrank my shoulders.
A man with his head covered in pristine white cloth regarded me methodically with gray eyes rimmed in gold.
At his gaze, as though appraising merchandise, I instinctively clung to the Nursemaid. She gently patted my back and spoke in a soothing tone.
“The moment Senevir heard you were injured, she summoned the Mages of the Taren Family. They will restore you to your former self.”
With that, she firmly withdrew her hand from mine and stepped aside to allow the Mages to enter.
Watching the shadow approach me, I retreated awkwardly. My habitual wariness reared its head.
“I can walk on my own. Step back.”
“On those legs?”
The lean man bending toward me tilted his head. I flushed with indignation.
“There’s no problem reaching the Empress Palace!”
Above the veil, the man’s eyes narrowed. I was seized by an inexplicable unease.
The man, who had been pensively stroking his chin, suddenly seized her leg with a vicious grip.
White-hot pain exploded across Talia’s vision as she screamed. He squeezed the wound so brutally that blood seeped through the bandages.
“If you insist on walking on a leg like this and the wound ruptures, it is we who will suffer the consequences. Do not indulge in such pointless stubbornness.”
Talia stared up at him with eyes wide in shock.
The man withdrew his hand from her leg and gestured to another figure standing across from them.
“You carry her.”
The man immediately bent at the waist and thrust his arms beneath her back. Goosebumps erupted across her entire body as though a serpent had touched her.
Talia twisted away from his touch, flailing her arms as she contorted her upper body.
“Do not lay your hands on me!”
The man who had taken a blow to his jaw muttered something unintelligible in a harsh, metallic voice. The moment Talia recognized it as the language of the Elves, her body went rigid.
Beneath the hood, she glimpsed abnormally elongated ears, skin like plaster, and hair that shimmered with an ethereal blue tint. There was no doubt—this was a pure-blooded Elf, not a half or quarter.
Knowing all too well how inhuman such creatures were, Talia was seized by terror.
The two men conferred in their own tongue before pressing down hard on both her arms. Talia opened her mouth to scream.
In that instant, a cold, damp hand covered her eyes, and all strength drained from her body. It was as though every bone and muscle had melted away.
“How troublesome, wasting magical energy like this.”
The man withdrew his hand from her face and muttered softly. Talia stared up at him, her pupils dilated.
She wanted to cry out in protest, but only a rasping wheeze escaped her throat.
The man straightened and issued a command to the figure seated across from him.
“She cannot move now. Come, take her to the Treatment Room.”
The man who had been struck in the jaw immediately obeyed.
Lifted like a sack of grain, Talia cast a desperate, pleading gaze toward her Nursemaid. But as always, the Nursemaid remained unmoved by her terror.
“Just endure a little longer, Miss. Everything will be well.”
The Nursemaid wiped her eyes with her sleeve and leaped down from the carriage. The man carrying Talia followed her outside.
As intense sunlight flooded her retinas, Talia squinted against the glare.
After blinking several times, the sight of soldiers from the Empress Palace surrounding the carriage came into focus.
As she scanned them with anxious eyes, she glimpsed a Guard Knight fidgeting nervously beyond the wall of soldiers.
When he attempted to push through the Empress Palace soldiers and approach her, the Taren Family’s Mage firmly blocked his path.
“Your duty is finished. The Princess will be in our care, so stand aside.”
“But I am her Guard Knight. I must attend to her….”
“Given the Princess’s current condition, your qualifications have already been forfeited, have they not?”
The Knight fell silent, unable to respond. The Mage clicked his tongue lightly, pushed him aside with one hand, and strode across the chaotic courtyard lined with supply wagons.
Talia glanced around frantically. Soon, among the Knights waiting at the entrance to the Main Palace, she spotted a faint shimmer of lavender hair. She almost called out his name before catching herself and biting her tongue.
Barcas would never come to her aid.
In truth, she could not even understand why she felt the urge to ask for his help.
These Mages had been sent by Senevir. They would do nothing to harm her.
Repeating this to herself, she tried to suppress her anxiety, but the man carrying her turned toward Barcas and took a step forward.
As Barcas’s face drew closer, Talia tensed her body.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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