Outside, Hiroki's eyes widened at seeing Bella emerge from the carriage. "Your Highness! Get behind me!" he shouted urgently while deflecting blows from two opponents who converged on her position.
Bella skidded to a halt amidst the swirling melee of guards and attackers. Bloodied bodies lay scattered across the dirt path, and horses neighed nervously nearby.
One of Hiroki's men cried out as a sword pierced his leg before another guard quickly finished off his attacker.
My chest heaved up and down as I look around for where to run to . Before I could move I felt a heavy kick on my back. I fell to the ground on my stomach, the dagger clattering on the leaves away from.me .
Large hands grabs my ankles and start to drag me back towards the carriage. I turned my head around to see the slave trader grunting in obvious anger. " I am going to enjoy killing you" he declared.
The slave trader's heavy boots scraped against the dirt path as he dragged Bella backward toward the carriage, his grip on her ankles tightening with each step. The masked figure loomed over her prone form, his injured chest bleeding steadily onto the ground.
"Look at you now," he sneered, kicking her hip lightly to emphasize his control. "All that palace arrogance gone, reduced to nothing more than dirt under my boots."
Hiroki saw the attack unfold. He broke from his current engagement with two attackers, carving a path straight toward Bella's captor. "Leave her alone, you dog!" Was all the trader could hear before a sword sliced through his stomach.
"Damn it," he muttered under his breath before falling dead beside Bella.
After he fell , Hiroki stretches his hand to help me up. " Your highness, are you okay?" He asked with worries as he examined me for injuries with his eyes. "I am fine" I muttered. He held me wrist and tries to lead me to somewhere, anyway that felt a bit safe.
As we were running , we hear heavy boots running behind us and that's when we noticed two men rushing towards us. He stops and places me behind a small boulder, "Hide. I will be back" was all he says before rushing back to them with a determined roar.
The two men pursuing Bella and Hiroki were masked, their blades polished to a deadly gleam under the afternoon sun. They moved with practiced efficiency, as they closed the distance across the uneven terrain.
"Stop fighting and surrender her to us!" one of them barked at Hiroki as he charged. "We have direct orders - kill the girl and bring back proof of her death."
Hiroki's face hardened with resolve as he met their charge head-on, his sword flashing with professional skill. Steel clashed violently as he engaged both opponents simultaneously, his movements fluid despite the adrenaline pumping through him.
"She's too important to lose!" Hiroki grunted between parries and thrusts. " You won't get to her"
Back behind the rock, Bella's heart hammered against her ribs as she peered anxiously through a crack in the stone.One of the men almost spotted me and I moved from the cracked spot and pressed my back to the boulder. The fight went on for a few moments , before falling into silence.
I hear something rolling towards my direction. When it stopped, I almost let out a scream, when I see Hiroki 's lifeless dismembered head on beside me . I can't stay there . I can't was what I told me self before getting up . I didn't look back I ran deeper into the forest, ignoring the sounds of flesh slicing from the distance behind me. Even though no one still chased me, I still ran.
The forest swallowed Bella whole, its dense canopy filtering the light into dappled green patterns across the forest floor.
Branches whipped at her face as she crashed through undergrowth, lungs burning with each stride. Behind her, the sounds of pursuit faded into the distant rustling of leaves and chirping birds.