Chapter 24: Request
The castle dungeon was cold, its stone walls covered in moss, lit only by sparsely placed torches. Ethan sat on a stone bench, hands resting on his knees, as if it were just another pause in his day. He didn’t even seem to notice the light chains on his wrists, which he considered nothing more than a formality.
The guards who had brought him there murmured among themselves, casting curious glances his way. "Do you think he was with the assassins?" one asked in a low voice. "Doesn’t look like it," the other replied, uneasy. "But it sure is suspicious, him showing up at the exact moment."
Ethan kept his gaze fixed on the ground, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
The sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor. The rhythm was steady, controlled, almost graceful. The guards straightened immediately. Ethan looked up, curious, when she appeared.
The princess seemed to have changed into a more ornate dress, and looked like she had put on more make-up. Up close, there was something strange about the way she kept her face neutral, like someone who had memorized human expressions but didn’t truly feel them.
She stopped in front of the cell, her gaze fixed on Ethan, as if she were examining something curious. The silence stretched on longer than most people could stand. Ethan, however, stayed seated, staring back with his usual calm smile.
"You don’t look nervous," she said, her voice low and firm. It wasn’t a question. "Not at all," he replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Should I be?"
The corners of her lips almost moved but didn’t form a real smile. "It’s unusual," she remarked, tilting her head slightly. "You’re in chains. And no one in the castle seems to know who you are."
"Maybe that’s for the best," Ethan replied. "Mysterious men tend to be more interesting, don’t you think?"
A short silence. Her gaze seemed to glint, not with emotion, but with assessment, as if she were mentally noting something she found useful.
"Interesting..." She turned to the guards. "Open the cell."