Mina tried to free himself from the person who had grabbed him and knocked him to the ground, but he couldn't.
"You'd better not resist, because I have no problem killing you right now."
Mina heard a sweet voice with a threatening tone, so he stopped resisting. It seemed this person wasn't joking, and in fact, appeared stronger than him.
The person helped Mina get up from the ground, holding onto him firmly so he wouldn't think of escaping. When Mina stood up, his eyes fell upon a mature woman with golden hair and a crown on her head. He stood amazed by her beauty, so much so that he didn't even feel handcuffs being placed on his hands. When he felt movement beside him, he turned his face to see and was astonished again. He found a mature woman with red hair, just as beautiful as the golden-haired lady, passing by him towards the golden-haired lady.
When Athena felt his gaze, she looked at him and said, "If you keep staring, I'll make sure your eyes are gouged out."
Mina blushed, and redness appeared on his face. He said, "Sorry," and turned his face away.
Athena approached Arethia, feeling a little sad, as Mina was her responsibility, being in charge of the army and the kingdom's security.
"I apologize, Arethia, for the negligence."
Arethia stopped Athena from speaking and said, "We'll talk another time. Now we need to
get away from here before anyone comes."
But it seemed luck wasn't on their side, as five people emerged, three of whom were the individuals who had been in the palace. They appeared from among the trees, holding their weapons, ready for a fight, and began looking around, thinking there was a monster in the forest. However, they were surprised when they found Queen Arethia and Lady Athena, but anger appeared on their faces when their eyes fell upon Mina.
One of the five said, "Well done, my Queen and Lady Athena, in apprehending the human intruder. I think this is a convincing reason that humans are the ones who kidnapped our children, isn't it, my Queen? I think now we have a strong reason to attack the human kingdom."
Richard, when the Queen and Lady Athena appeared, was silent and didn't open his mouth, but when the five appeared, he gathered his courage and said, "The human was captured two days ago and put in prison."
The five were surprised by Richard's words, and one of them asked, "Is what Richard is saying true, my Queen?"
Queen Arethia tried to answer, but Richard was faster than her: "What I'm saying is true. He was imprisoned in the tree, and there are six soldiers guarding him. If you don't believe me, go ask them."
One of the three who participated in the meeting at the palace became angry and said, "My Queen, we need an explanation."
One of the people retorted, "We don't need an explanation, isn't it obvious?"
Queen Arethia said in a sharp voice, "What do you mean?"
"You allied with humans, and helped them kidnap our children to be their slaves and to weaken the noble families."
"What would I gain from all this?"
"To keep the crown, and because you have no heir, you're afraid that one of the noble families might rebel in the future."
When Athena heard that, she became very angry and was about to act, but Arethia stopped her by placing one of her hands on her shoulder. When Athena looked at Arethia, she found her furious.
Arethia stepped past Athena and said, "It seems I've been too lenient with you, to the point that you've forgotten who I am."
A strong pressure emanated from Arethia, making the five unable to move no matter how hard they tried, and their bodies started to sweat.
"First, you started threatening me with rebellion, but I didn't punish you because of the circumstances you're going through. But now you accuse me of treason? You've crossed the line."
Mina, observing all the events unfolding before him, and the words Richard had spoken, began to connect the dots. It seemed that humans had kidnapped the elf children. His appearance at this time had exacerbated the situation, so he felt a little guilty; he didn't like being the cause of a problem. He also didn't know what would happen to him if this problem escalated further, so he said in a loud voice:
"I have an idea! What if I infiltrate the human kingdom to rescue your children?"
Silence fell...