It was sunrise when a Sorenian convoy entered the Kingdom of Dainia and headed straight for the palace. Eliezer and his companions had a rather uneventful journey back, presumably because any enemies they had did not want to provoke Sorene by attacking a convoy protected by the kingdom's soldiers. Upon reaching the palace, the Sorenian guards were given accommodations so that they could rest before returning to their state, while the Night Owl was offered a carriage by the crown prince to take him wherever he wished to go within Dainia. Eliezer and Hildebrand then entered the palace to be promptly greeted by Robynne.

"Your Highness, Sir Hildebrand," she began with a curtsy before walking down the corridor with the two men as she continued to speak, addressing Eliezer. "Welcome back, Your Highness, it is a relief that you have returned safely. The king and queen shall be available to speak with you this evening, as will Prince Mathazar. Your brother has insisted that you rest while he takes over your duties for today."

"So be it. Were there any significant occurrences within the state during my absence?" Eliezer inquired.

"There was an attempted attack on the village orphanage by a group of Lunarian assassins from Gloomvale, Your Highness. The situation was well handled by Prince Mathazar and our soldiers. The perpetrators have been apprehended and no civilians were harmed."

"Lunarian assassins?" Hildebrand repeated, shocked.

Eliezer was more worried by another part of the report. "The village orphanage? For what reason was this attack attempted?"

"Unfortunately, there has not yet been any available staff to investigate this, Your Highness," she responded.

Hildebrand immediately turned to Eliezer and spoke. "If I may, Your Highness, I wish to be the one to investigate this."

"I am aware of how personal this matter is for you, Sir Hildebrand. I would therefore advise against it," Eliezer pointed out.

"I am certain that I am capable of keeping myself together, Your Highness, I promise this."

Eliezer paused for a second to consider. "Very well, I shall grant you this and trust you to perform this duty. All the best, Sir Hildebrand."

"Thank you, Your Highness."
[hr]
Later that morning, a small carriage from the palace made its way down to the village orphanage, just as it did before the crown prince left for Sorene. Eliezer was again greeted by the surrounding villagers, who were now more curious with his connection to the orphanage. A few who had spotted Raven hugging the prince the last time he had come had a rather clear idea of what was going on, but as they only knew her as the woman who ran the orphanage and not some deadly assassin, they assumed that all was fine, albeit finding the relationship the prince had with Raven to be interesting itself.

Things were less elaborate this time, with the purpose of Eliezer's trip to the orphanage this time being to ensure that everything was alright. After being told that the orphanage had been targeted, he was mainly concerned about Raven and how she was doing. Had the assassins from Gloomvale found out that this village woman was his lady and wanted to attack her home just to spite him? Or even worse, did they already know that she was the one who had been protecting him? Perhaps he could get some answers if he spoke to Raven right now.

He alighted from his carriage with two guards, returned the greetings of several villagers and made his way to the front door of the orphanage. He nodded to one of the guards, who stepped forward and knocked on the door.
[hr]
Hildebrand walked down the stairs to the row of cells where Raven's attackers were kept, glaring daggers at each one of them. The one in the closest cell saw that he bore a knight's crest, and smirked before speaking.

"To what do we owe this visit from a respected knight of Dainia?"

Hildebrand turned his focus to the man who had spoken and narrowed his eyes. "If you must know, to the murder of my brother. Is it not sufficient that we leave you people be down at Gloomvale? You plan an attack in the village, on an establishment housing children. For what cause did you commit this dishonorable act? Answer me this!"

The man nodded. "It's about time somebody asked this. Do feel free to travel down to the orphanage yourself, Sir, you shall find that there are no children there, not anymore. That village woman who runs the orphanage, the one Prince Eliezer is currently seeing, are you aware of who she really is? Why don't you ask your beloved crown prince if he knows? Ask him all about her, and think about what his true intentions are."

"Who do [i]you[/i] say she is?" Hildebrand asked cautiously.

"Only one of the most dangerous killers to hail from Lunar. Yes, a lowlife assassin, just like the rest of us."

Hildebrand stared at him in stunned silence as he recalled Eliezer's words just after their convoy was attacked on the way to Sorene.

[i]"She is... an ally."[/i]

It could not be... The prince could not be so reckless and irresponsible, could he? It was true that she wanted to keep him alive, but what if it was only until they were married? Was it her plan to then stage an 'accident' and take Dainia for herself? He had to find out what was really going on between Eliezer and this 'Moon Raven', for the sake of Dainia. Without another word, the knight marched back upstairs and waited anxiously for the prince to return.