He followed through the tunnels, finally glad his father had taken the time to show them to him. At first, when he'd been so young, a boy of merely ten, his father had told him they might save his life one day. He'd been so bored that day, desiring nothing more than to play with the other noble children. Now, he thought with a sense of amusement, they had done far more than save his life. They'd help him save the life of his beloved, if he was fast enough.

He was lucky, then, that they were streamlined. Straight under the castle, there was no winding passage, no traffic to get in his way, no guards or locked doors, or otherwise barred paths. No, this was a path that had been intended to get royalty out of the castle as quickly as possible, should the need arise. It had certainly arisen.

Soon enough, a faint light began to shine through. It led to a small supply shed, one that held a variety of tools for the work of a stable boy. The tunnel ended abruptly, replaced by a ladder to the source of the light, a piece of the wooden flooring that could be pushed up. On he went, climbing up, shoving the wooden flooring out of the way for him to climb on up. He replaced the flooring, afterall, no one needed to know how he'd arrived.

Slipping out of the shed, he noticed Ella and Ariana approaching. Perfect... He had arrived before them. He could take the assassin by surprise! Her demands for a horse were heard, but he was behind them. Out he charged. He'd given away his position before, leading to Ella being hurt and his help being neglected, by shouting for Ella. He wouldn't do that again. His aim was simple, he was going to charge straight into Ariana, force her to pay attention to him. Then the other guards could react. Simple.