The two came back to the throne room and sat down, frowns plastered on their faces.
They'd secured the Blue team's flag and tossed it into a nearby cabin.
And yet, they had understood the true meaning behind the rules too late.
Capturing the flag was only a way to stir the pot, and what happened after was the real deal.
My guess is... the Blue team also understood it.
Raelis sighed.
"Lesson learned."
"Agreed." Clea nodded. "So what now? Should I, as the Queen, send them an alliance proposal?"
"Do you want to defuse the situation?" Raelis asked. "That could work if we put on the right act, but there's one small problem."
She seemed to get it too.
"While we were gone, someone might've disobeyed orders and seen that we were gone," Clea commented, leaning back. "If that's the case, they've likely informed their friends. And if we were to ask around, then they'd definitely know we left."
If someone knew they left, and the alliance proposal went through, someone from Raelis's team could let it slip that the two were gone, drawing suspicion to the Blue team and ruining the alliance entirely.
Raelis placed a hand over his forehead.
If we take over by force and capture their King and Queen, then we'd be eliminating an entire valuable team off the board, he thought. Also... my team can't handle the Blue team's castle alone. We'd be separating our members for no reason.
So the conclusion that Clea and Raelis had come to was simple: they had made a mistake.
"Should I... return it?" Clea suggested. "If I can get there in time and plant it, then someone might think it was some sort of prank."
Raelis chuckled.
"Honestly? I'd say we do something else instead."
A faint grin appeared on his face.
"Let's focus everything we have on tracking. Scouts. Everyone," he stated. "Let's see who'll be the first ones to approach the Blue team for an alliance, and then we use that knowledge to plant the flag in the opposite team's castle."
Clea tilted her head. "And if they rationally talk it out?"
"We've already gone down the wrong rabbit hole," Raelis said and slowly stood up. "Betting on their rationality is the least of my concerns. I just want us to avoid the immediate backlash."
Clea remained silent for a few moments before letting out a sigh.
"Alright, I'll call everyone in..."
.
.
.
A few hours had gone by, and the idea was set in stone.
The blacksmiths had repaired a few armor sets, and the alchemists made a couple dozen healing potions, which were handed off to the scouts.
Out of the 53 people who could fight, 33 were sent out as scouts, and the others remained inside the castle.
Clea had also gone along with them, but she disguised herself as a soldier since it seemed like the ring that the headmaster had given them had the capabilities to alter their appearance.
Since most wore helmets, it was hard to identify her, so with that, Raelis waited for good news.
But in the meantime, he wanted to deal with a few troublemakers.
He rose from the throne and stepped toward a group of six people.
They were chatting amongst themselves, and when they noticed Raelis approaching, they all burst out laughing.
Raelis didn't pay it any mind as he stopped in front of them, evaluating them.
One was a snake, the others were sheep.
"What's your name?" Raelis asked the one he considered a snake.
"Liam," he replied with a slight smirk. "Is there anything we can do for you? 'Your Majesty?'"
"Indeed." Raelis nodded. "I'm curious, why are you all lazing around here? Do you not want to pass the exam?"
Liam tilted his head. "Lazing around? We're just talking."
As the others snickered, Liam gave an exaggerated bow. "Apologies, Your Majesty... from this moment forth, we shall... pfft.... k-keep quiet..."
The group burst out laughing again, louder this time.
Raelis stared at them for a few moments, then rolled up his sleeves.
And before any of them could react, Liam was sent hurtling toward the nearby wall, crashing into it.
"Hey! What do you think you're—"
The candidate's words were cut off by a fist to the face, then another, and another, until eventually, all six of the candidates remained groaning on the ground, trying to gather their bearings.
Raelis silently walked past them and crouched down beside Liam, grabbing him by the hair.
"If this were not an exam, and I were an actual King, you'd all be dead."
He slowly stood up, still holding Liam by the hair.
"Cooperation is the one thing I require from you, and yet, you go around acting as if you own the place," Raelis said. "What if someone got in and tried stealing the flag while the six of you were busy chatting with each other? Do you even realize what you're doing?"
The moment he finished his words, Liam coughed out a mouthful of blood, then shot Raelis a glare.
"You son of a bitch. Who the hell do you think you are? You're nothing but a bastard. Why the hell should I follow your orders?" Liam yelled, his lips curling into a grin.
"Yeah, I asked around. Someone knew you, said you were the black sheep of the Varekan family. Something about your parents… or what's left of them."
He let out a chuckle.
"You should be grateful just to sit on a throne for once. Bastards like you were never meant to lead nobles like us. That's why, out of everyone here, you're the only one I'll never take orders from."
"I see..." Raelis replied plainly, his expression not changing in the slightest. "In that case, you're of no use to me."
Liam raised a brow. "What? Are you going to kill me? You know the rules forbid that, right?"
"I don't need to kill you to get rid of you," Raelis said as he tossed Liam to the floor and crouched beside him.
He placed both hands around Liam's neck and drove his thumbs into precise pressure points.
Liam's eyes widened, then fluttered shut, his body going limp.
But before he fully lost consciousness, he was met with a wave from Raelis.
"Sleep tight."
And like that, Liam passed out cold.
Because of the pressure points Raelis had pressed, it would take him a while to wake up, even with help from the healers.
But aside from that...
He turned his head to the five remaining candidates, all trembling in fear.
What should I do with the sheep?