Episode 11

Eliza launched herself at the men, igniting the brutal fray.

She moved with a swiftness that the men could not match, and her small, nimble physique allowed her to dodge their cumbersome swings easily. With precise movements, her blade targeted their vital points, dispatching each with a solitary, lethal blow.

"Damned wretch!" a man bellowed, as he lunged at her with his sword. Eliza narrowly evaded the strike, strands of her hair snipped in the process – a trivial loss. With catlike agility, she clasped the man's arm, then made a swift move for his neck, slicing it open.

"Let go of me!"

Eliza's ears caught Cristopher's cry, and turning in his direction, she saw a man attempting to abduct him.

"Quiet!" the captor snapped, delivering a hefty blow to Cristopher's face to silence him.

Flames of fury ignited within Eliza and, without hesitation, she hurled her knife. It buried itself up to the hilt in the skull of Cristopher's captor.

In that instance, another adversary seized the opportunity to plunge his sword into Eliza's arm, eliciting a scream of anguish from her.

"Eliza!" Cristopher's voice pierced the air amidst her outcry, and he attempted to rush to her side, only for another man to intercept him and render him unconscious with a blow to the neck.

Struggling to pull the embedded sword from her arm, Eliza was met with merciless resistance as her attacker drove the blade deeper, while another assailed her from behind, slamming her to the ground, pinning her.

"Release me, scum!" Eliza yelled, straining against her binders, to no avail.

"Be silent, cur. You'll rue the day for all the suffering you've inflicted upon us in our efforts to catch you," one man sneered, viciously yanking her hair backward.

"I will kill you, bastards..."

"The only one who will long for death is you, once you learn of the fate that awaits you," the swordsman taunted, twisting the blade within her arm, provoking another cry of pain from Eliza.

"Bastards..."

"Just shut up, little mongrel," he derided, striking Eliza's neck and plunging her into darkness.

Eliza abruptly awoke to the sensation of frigid water cascading over her body, the cold sharpening the pain of her wounds.

"Damnation!" she cursed, the agony biting at her flesh.

"Ah, finally awake, I see," one man mocked, and Eliza, gazing up, realized she was dangling from chains with shackles encircling her wrists.

Bound feet denied her any leverage, and the cumulative pain of her wounds sapped her strength, especially in her hands which bore the brunt of her weight, throbbing infernally.

"How long have I been hanging here..."

"I thought you’d never come to. You've been out a whole day. I worried you'd die before I got to relish torturing you, but lucky for me, you're awake now," the man said, his grin widening as he selected a whip from a table laden with instruments of torment.

Laughter surrounded her, and Eliza beheld the horde within an immense cage, leering men who eyed her mockingly as though she were an exhibition, some recognizable from the confrontation prior to her losing consciousness.

"Damn, I have to get out of here before these sick fiends do someth-ugh!" Eliza's thoughts were shattered by an excruciating lash across her back.

A cacophony of derisive laughter filled the space, and the man in the cage with Eliza unleashed another strike on her back.

"Shit! That hurts!" she screamed, her body contorting from the pain while the man cackled, mercilessly whipping her over and over without pause.

"This is what you deserve for killing ours, bitch!" the man roared, as others joined in, hurling insults at Eliza who could only gasp in pain as each lash fell.

"I will kill all you damn bastards!"

Meanwhile, in a lodging within the imperial capital, a boy about fifteen years of age, with gleaming blond hair and striking blue eyes, stood before a window overlooking a bustling street teeming with passersby.

At that moment, another youth entered the room and bowed respectfully.

"Your Highness, everything is prepared for the assault," he reported, his brown hair and black eyes betraying his own nerves.

"Excellent. Tonight, I will capture those miscreants who dare to kidnap and traffic children from our empire," the blond declared, his eyes alight with determination.

"Let's go," he commanded, exiting the room with his companion in tow.

Descending the inn's stairs, they joined a group of more than two dozen cloaked men, their identities concealed beneath tunics.

"Listen well!" the blond exclaimed, garnering the immediate attention and formation of the assembled men.

"Tonight, we strike at the heart of an organization ensnared in human trafficking within our empire. After months of investigation, the moment to breach their stronghold has arrived. Tonight, we eradicate these human scourges from our imperium!" The blond's declaration elicited a battle cry from his men as they placed their hands upon their chests.

"In the name of the imperial family, let us fight for the safety and peace of our empire!" With those words, the young leader drew his sword from beneath his tunic, pointing it skyward.

"For the empire!" the men echoed, their own blades unsheathed and raised in solidarity.

With renewed resolve, they donned their hoods and departed through the inn's rear, the operation unfolding.

They split into three contingents; one scaled rooftops, moving stealthily across them, while the remaining two advanced along divergent paths below.

As dusk gave way to the enveloping dark, they converged upon a stately manor nestled within the noble quarter.

"This is the place, Your Highness," the brown-haired youth indicated, and his companion nodded, scrutinizing the mansion's heavy security which belied the owner's status or known history.

"It's time to enter- what?!" The blond was abruptly jolted by a mysterious surge coursing within him.

"This sensation – it's an awakening!"

"This is a sorcerer's awakening!" The sudden upheaval within the mansion became impossible to ignore, screams and detonations throwing the estate into utter turmoil.

"How is this possible? Only His Majesty the Emperor and you are existing sorcerers," the confounded companion exclaimed.

"Neron, consider this – my missing sister!" the blond cried out as realization dawned. "We enter now!"

With the guards preoccupied by the internal chaos, the blond led his men as they penetrated the mansion through its various points of entry.

Inside, the passageways stood eerily empty, even as the relentless, thunderous detonations rang below.

"What are those noises?" the brunet wondered aloud.

"Below us, Your Highness," Neron pointed out.

"A subterranean chamber. Notify the other groups to secure the exits on this level; we shall delve into the catacombs," instructed the blond, and Neron promptly relayed the orders.

Advancing rapidly, the group uncovered the subterranean entrance and descended.

Nearing the source, the sensation within the blond intensified irresistibly, compelling him to dash toward the origin of the peculiar and unfamiliar sounds.

"Your Highness!" Neron called out, the rest of the men trailing in pursuit.

Upon arrival, the scene that unfolded before the blond left him astounded – no doubt remained about the unfolding horror.

A massacre of heap bodies punctured with holes, their blood painting the floor and walls.

And at the center, a young girl, her blonde hair cascading and eyes of an arresting blue – voids threatening to swallow whole any who dared meet them.

An ethereal gold aura surrounded the girl, and in each hand, she wielded weapons the likes of which the blond had never encountered.

Joining his astonishment, Neron gazed upon the girl, his expression mirroring the blond's shock.

"Your Highness..."

"There can be no mistake, Neron... It's her... My sister, the lost princess, and moreover, she has just awakened as a sorceress..."

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