In a well-decorated room surrounded by etiquette decorations, a man sat on a chair. His gaze was deep as he caressed a bow. It was emerald in color and exquisitely crafted, shimmering and sparkling. As he caressed it, he muttered, "Everything seems to be in place… just a little more…" He glanced at his side as a shadow manifested and bowed, saying, "That variable went to Puppet Bazaar today…"
The man nodded and continued to caress the bow.
........
Veer looked at Eleana in a trance as he recalled the scenes. Eleana touched his forehead and said, "It seems you are good now. What actually happened?"
Veer spoke in a grave voice, his eyes furrowed. "Someone met me here… it was a lady, uttering something…"
Eleana noticed the abnormality in Veer's speech and said, "I understand. Let's get out of here. When you are okay, we can look more for clues."
Veer nodded and stood up. He asked, "Which way should we go?"
Eleana said, "Let's go south. I heard there are a few restaurants some distance away after this alley. Maybe you can freshen up there."
Veer nodded and followed Eleana. She glanced at him from time to time, her brows furrowed.
They crossed the alley and entered an open square with strange music floating in the air, puppets dancing, and shops scattered around. Veer walked, gazing at a puppet seller who smiled at him with its puppet eyes, making him shiver. Veer was beginning to feel afraid.
He saw the seller's face twist strangely, curling upwards—but Eleana called out, "Veer, what happened?"
She seemed a bit annoyed and said, "Let's stop this altogether and go back."
Veer nodded and was about to ask her something when he again felt a pull. To the east, a puppet was dancing on a rolling wheel, with a smaller puppet beside it shaped like a child. It raised one hand, seemingly beckoning him.
Veer felt a call he could not resist. Ignoring Eleana, he ran after the puppet. The puppet suddenly turned and ran into an alley. Eleana was dumbfounded but ran after him, shouting, "Stop, Veer! I said stop!"
As they entered the alley, the puppets in the square raised their hands and clapped. "Hurrah! The show's about to begin!"
Veer continued chasing the puppet until it tripped and fell. He went to it and lifted it up. Eleana arrived, slightly out of breath, her expression emotionless but tinged with anger. "Where are you running?" she asked.
Veer's gaze remained fixed on the puppet as he found a spring and key and turned it. He looked at Eleana and said, "I was after this…"
Before he could explain further, the spring moved in the reverse direction, followed by a crashing sound. The road beneath them collapsed, and Veer and Eleana fell. The road then closed as if nothing had happened.
The puppets in the square continued to celebrate, shouting, "Lady Noelle! Lady Noelle! Lady Noelle!"
A gust of wind blew by, and a figure landed lightly. All the puppets, both in the shops and performing, erupted. The few humans present scrambled away unharmed, panicked. The figure then entered the alley. Eleana muttered, "The princess sure has choices, hm."
.......
Veer and Noelle fell to the floor as Eleana grunted. They stood up, and she helped Veer. They looked around.
They were in a room where a strange beeping sound emanated continuously from a red light on a metallic door.
As Veer and Eleana struggled to understand, Eleana suddenly leaned close to Veer's ear. Surprised, he heard her whisper something that made his pupils contract.
Just then, the gate opened, and the strange lights—never before seen in the kingdom of Drudar or recorded in any records—turned emerald green.
A figure sat on a very strange chair adorned with artifacts Veer and Eleana had never seen. The room was filled with instruments emitting different lights. The figure, with striking red hair and wearing a long yellow dress, had rows of golden knights—or rather puppets—stored behind her, easily numbering in the dozens.
Veer and Eleana's faces grew grave as they recognized the figure. It was none other than the person who had controlled Veer using her signature on the mysterious puppet cloth.
It was Noelle. She smiled and said, "Welcome, Veer and Lady Eleana."
Veer's pupils constricted as rage filled him. Eleana tried to warn him, but he had already unsheathed his sword and charged at Noelle. He thrust his sword so fast that even Noelle's expression twisted in surprise as a golden knight crashed into it. The sword pierced the puppet's body, and Noelle quickly created a gap and moved to the back.
Veer launched three rapid attacks, completely separating the golden knight's head and arms. They broke and fell to the ground.
Noelle's face went ashen. "You! When did you gain so much power?" she exclaimed, then her expression twisted. "Whatever! Everyone, attack!"