“Are you fine, dear?” Queen Niobe asked.

“Yes, Mother. If I were in my room, I would have been hurt by now,” Miera replied as she pointedly looked around the empty room, which had no glass or porcelain things around. “Mother, you knew this would happen; that’s why you brought me here, right?”

Queen Niobe nodded. 

“How?” Miera asked.

“You don’t need to know, dear. Once your room is clean, you can go back. Make sure to put on some bandages here and there,” the Queen instructed before standing up to go out. 

“Where are you going, Mother?” Meira asked worriedly. “I am afraid, Mother. Can’t we stay here until everything is alright?”

Queen Niobe smirked lightly. “The queen is the mother of the kingdom. She can’t sit in hiding when her subjects are hurt.”

The Queen stepped out of that empty room and followed the light at the end of the dark passage, where she turned on a special mechanism on the wall which opened the hidden door leading inside the Queen’s royal chamber.

During the night, Queen Niobe and her daughter sought refuge in advance inside the hidden passage connected to her chamber, which was a safety precaution meant for the royal family to use when assassins or enemies besiege the palace. 

Just as the Queen had stepped out, she saw her lady-in-waiting, who was covered in scrapes and cuts, standing guard all by herself inside her chamber with a thick but slightly torn outer robe and a roll of clean bandages in her hand. 

“Your Majesty,” the old lady-in-waiting bowed to the Queen and asked worriedly, “Are you hurt, Your Majesty?”

As it was raining outside, water had pooled below the broken windows. Looking at the broken mess inside her chamber, the Queen didn’t answer and simply instructed, “Let the maids enter. Make sure to clear everything faster.”

The lady-in-waiting nodded before giving the Queen the outer robe to cover her clean nightgown. Queen Niobe stepped out of her chamber after getting bandages wrapped on her uninjured hand and neck, basically just for show. After instructing the maids, the old lady-in-waiting followed her Queen with a parasol in hand. 

While passing through the corridors, the Queen observed everything in interest. The guards and servants whining in pain and cursing the witch turned quiet as soon as they saw the beautiful Queen making her rounds. The royals who came out of their rooms were hurt, worried and angry, but they too were stunned when they saw the bandaged Queen approaching.

Smiling lightly at their expressions, Queen Niobe thought, ‘It’s better than what I had thought. Didn’t know that which is this powerful.’

The ladies of the royal family who saw the Queen came to her immediately. 

“Your Majesty! Did you see what that witch has done?” one of her nieces spoke as she showed the cuts on her bare hands and face. 

“Don’t worry about it. This time, His Majesty will take care of it to not let it happen again,” the Queen assured. She turned to her lady-in-waiting. “Call the physicians both inside and outside the palace and have them tend to the injured.”

Though the Queen hated the King’s evil daughter, she was always careful about her status as queen and was always careful and respectful with her words towards King Armen. In everyone’s eyes, she was a powerful and kind queen who supported her king and wholeheartedly cared for the kingdom’s welfare, and it was an undeniable truth. Queen Niobe was the daughter of the powerful King of Othinia, and ever since she joined King Armen’s royal harem twenty-five years ago, she had done everything to aid her husband’s success.

After appeasing the royals, despite the rain, Queen Niobe went towards the tower where she was sure her husband would be. She wished to see what condition his daughter was in. 

Just as she reached near the tower’s premises, a knight stopped her from proceeding further. 

Her lady-in-waiting, who was holding a parasol to shield her from the rain, immediately stepped out. “Impudence! How dare you block Her Majesty’s way?”

The knight bowed. “We are merely following the King’s orders. Your Majesty, please do not take offense!”

The Queen looked around and saw a brigade of royal knights guarding the gate of the tower. 

“What’s going on?” the Queen asked, her voice cold and full of authority.

“His Majesty King Armen is inside the Third Princess’s residence, and we have been ordered not to let anyone inside.”

She gave him a questioning look. “Anyone? I do not see Lord Eudes here. Is he not inside with the King?”

“Apologies, Your Majesty,” the knight bowed apologetically as a royal knight; he only followed the King; he couldn’t permit the Queen to enter. “His Majesty King Armen had given Lord Briggs permission to enter.”

The Queen did not insist on going inside as she knew how strict the King’s order was about the security of this tower.

“Is that witch out?” the Queen asked.

The knight continued to lower his head. “Apologies. I cannot answer you, Your Majesty.” 

“Inform His Majesty the Queen seeks an audience,” she ordered. 

The knight bowed and informed the captain, who had just stepped out of the tower gate and was busy instructing other knights about what to do regarding the two dead bodies hanging on the tree. 

The captain of the brigade and the two knights entered the gate, and soon, Lord Eudes came out to meet the Queen.

“Your Majesty,” he bowed to the Queen.

“How is King Armen?” the Queen asked.

“His Majesty is trying to get the Third Princess out,” Lord Eudes informed her.

“What about her?” The Queen was more interested in Seren.

“There is no sign of Her Highness.”

Queen Niobe did not let her true emotions show on her face as she instructed, “Don’t let the King stay here for long. I am sure she is fine after causing this disaster.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Lord Eudes could only agree with her.

The Queen returned, knowing that the next morning would be the day when she would manage to get rid of that witch, once and for all.