Charlotte

It is amazing how suddenly someone can believe that they are going to die.

Lady Charlotte had been having the time of her life just half an hour before. The party was in full swing, and she'd had flocks of people surrounding her in the ballroom, all desiring to be included in her social circle. Her best friends had been among them, hanging onto her every word. A beautiful man had offered her a drink. All had been going well.

She would never admit it to anyone, but she had always harboured silly feelings for the man. So when he had given her a glass of wine and talked to her, she'd felt a warm glow inside. It was mixture of pleasure from being in the spotlight and a sense of rebellion. Her father would rarely let her drink, even though she was certainly old enough, and he would definitely frown upon any close relations between her and this man. She was twenty, but he was so protective of her.

But now the warm feeling had departed along with the safe environment. She was tearing down the street, barely able to stay standing on the road as it slid sideways into the sky. It was pitch black except for the occasional lantern, and she just wanted to go home. But home was behind her, in the direction of the pursuer she was trying to outrun. She had no choice but to move further and further away from it.

Her head was pounding, and her vision was turning fuzzy. What a time for the gods to pick to deal her a bad hand in life. If these symptoms had presented themselves just half an hour ago, she would have been safely tucked up in bed. Instead, she was trying to save herself. All she wanted to do was fall to her knees and be sick.

She forced the bile down her throat and kept on running. Her foot slipped on the cobblestones that were slick from recent rain, and the heel of her shoe caught the back of her dress. The sound of the silk tearing rung in her ears as she toppled forwards, but for once, she didn't worry about the state of such an expensive garment. Instead, as her knees hit the floor and someone grabbed her by the waist, she worried about herself.

❤ ❤ ❤

Robin

Sir Amias' Day is a celebration that originates from the legend of Sir Amias, a man who married Ylissean soldiers together during an ancient war hundreds of years ago. Wedding ceremonies were far from the minds of many priests during that period, but Sir Amias was adamant that couples should be united under the name of the divine dragon during such hard times. It is said that these strong ties he allowed the soldiers to create were the key reason for their victory. – A History of Sir Amias' Day, Kaius Mullaney.

Usually, if there was a book about tactics on my desk, I could never help but read it. Whether I was holding a novel, a spell book, or even a report, I would always drop it and reach towards the more strategic text. However, with less than a week to go until Sir Amias' Day, the book on tactics I had been reading was lying to one side. In its place was a book that I had read many times before over the past month but felt as if I needed to read again.

On the eve of Sir Amias' Day, the annual Ball of Amias was to be held at Castle Ylisse, and I wanted to make certain that I had my facts on the holiday just right. It wouldn't do for the princess-to-be to make a mistake on the night. I'd been just as fanatic in my research about Divine Day a few months ago, and though Chrom had thought it unnecessary both times, it was just my way.

Another thing that was troubling me was Sumia. She had insisted the royal dressmakers should sew me a gown especially for the event. Now that the engagement between Chrom and me was official, we would be watched carefully at the ball. Apparently, a cast-off frock of the Shepherds' wouldn't do for the ruler's fiancé.

Sumia had drawn up the designs for my exquisite evening wear herself and forbidden me from seeing them. I just hoped that my best friend knew me well enough by now to understand that I hated wearing anything too fancy. She should have done. She had recently been training to become my bodyguard for the day I turned into a princess. She'd practiced hard and tried to make sure that she was always the one running errands for me or bringing messages, as if she was my assistant already.

Which was probably why she was falling through the library doors right now.

"Are you all right, Sumia?" I asked as the butterscotch-haired pegasus knight picked herself up off the ground.

"I just tripped over my boots," she muttered, blushing. "Earl Mathis and his lieutenant, Viscount Luther, are here. Captain Chrom was quite surprised, but they must have had something interesting to say because he requires your presence in the Great Hall at once."

Ah, Earl Mathis. I'd been expecting to meet him and quite a few other nobles for the first time in just a few nights. All I knew about him was that he worked under the command of the Duke of Themis. Apparently, I was going to find out a lot more now.

I left my books as they were, intending to come back to them later, and walked to the Great Hall. Sumia trotted alongside me, thankfully managing not to stumble for the entire journey. I couldn't imagine how embarrassed she would be if she tripped in front of our guests – she was almost as worried about being the perfect bodyguard as I was about being the perfect princess. Between us, our stress levels about being good enough under the watchful eyes of the Ylisseans were sky high.

Chrom was waiting for us at the head of table situated near the rear end of the Great Hall. Two regal men were sitting on his left-hand side. The first was clearly the older of the two, with silvering hair and frown lines set deep into his skin. The other was a much younger brunette, handsome and hard-jawed. Frederick, Calla, and Merton were sitting on Chrom's right-hand side. Sumia sat down next to her husband, while I continued to the seat by mine.

Chrom looked up with a small smile as I sat down, the blue of his eyes brightening. "Robin! Allow me to introduce you to Earl Mathis –" he glanced at the older man "– and Viscount Luther." He looked at the younger one. "Gentlemen, I present you with Ylisse's master tactician and future princess, Lady Robin."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, milady," Earl Mathis said.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, sir, though I was expecting our first introduction to be in a few days' time."

"Earl Mathis, would you be so kind as to repeat your plight to my tactician?" Chrom asked. "She will be helping me to investigate this incident, and her strategic mind may enable her to shed some light on the matter."

"Yes, Your Grace." The earl looked at me forlornly. "My daughter, Lady Charlotte, vanished a few days ago without warning. I am fearful that she was kidnapped. We have searched all of my estate and much of Themis, but no trace of her can be found. I was hoping that Prince Chrom would give me permission to alert all the Ylissean citizens and to offer them a reward for her return."

"I said that we should see if you could also help, using your knowledge of strategy," Chrom said. "Perhaps you could work out the motive of the kidnapper, at least, or what their next move might be? Even some suggestions would be a start."

I thought about it for a moment. I'd never tried solving a crime before, and there was going to be a lot of expectation upon my shoulders if I agreed. Still, it would do my fiancé no good to show little interest in the worries of a nobleman so soon into his reign, and Chrom's problems always became mine. Besides, at the heart of this, there was a young girl who might need saving.

"I can try my best." I ran my fingertips around the rim of my engagement pendant. "Er...Earl Mathis, when was the last time you saw your daughter?"

"At my latest banquet, two days ago. It was a small Sir Amias' Day celebration for the people on my estate. Charlotte was in attendance, but by dawn she was nowhere to be found. Luther was the last to see her, but it was hours before the party ended. Who knows what might have occurred after that?"

"Is it possible that your daughter might have left by herself, sir?"

"No, milady. My Charlotte is not of the flighty or rebellious kind. She is comfortable at home, dare I say spoiled, and my only heir to the whole estate. Many suitors are interested in her, and I have forbidden none, but she has not so much as looked at them. There is nowhere, and no one, she would have wanted to go to."

"Have you questioned every party guest?"

"Yes, and we have found no reason to believe that any of them may have taken her. We searched the houses of everyone on my estate, too, but discovered nothing."

"Have you received any hostage letters?"

"No, milady."

"I see." I was stumped. I couldn't quite counteract this problem with a tactical movement. But when planning strategies, I found it was always a good idea to try and get into the opposing tactician's head. Perhaps the same technique could be applied here. Why might I, or any ordinary person, decide to kidnap a noblewoman?

For money. In which case, surely I would send a ransom note as soon as I knew she was being missed.

"Does your daughter have any enemies, Earl Mathis?" Chrom asked.

"None that I am aware of, no. Charlotte is a lovely girl. Everyone is always vying for her attention. They want to be just like her."

What if I had to wait until a search across the realm was announced before I knew that Mathis was worried? Or what if –

"Perhaps this is exactly what the kidnapper wants." I let my pendant fall back against my chest. "You don't have to be very bright at all to admit that this situation is somewhat predictable. If the kidnapper knew that Earl Mathis loves his daughter very much, they would also know that he will offer a lot of money as a reward if she's found. Why send a ransom note and put a limit on the money you might receive when it's obvious that Earl Mathis will raise the alarm, start a search, and offer a very pleasing incentive? The longer she is gone, the higher the reward may rise."

"You think that my daughter was taken to make money?" Earl Mathis frowned.

"If they knew who she was." I sighed. "Then again, they might not have done. Chrom, I think you should go ahead and announce Lady Charlotte's disappearance to our people. Earl Mathis, you should offer a reward as you suggested. Then your daughter may be mysteriously 'found' and given back to you again."

Mathis nodded slowly. "And if not?"

"Then the kidnapper obviously has a different motive. My apologies – I'm used to working against other tacticians who will always take the option that they see to be most strategic. I can only offer you what advice I have already given and promise to continue working on the case."

"Thank you." His hands curled into fists on the table. "The sooner we can find her, the better. The gods only know what she's going through."

"I am most apologetic, milord," Viscount Luther said. "It was one of our busiest events. I should have kept a closer eye on her –"

"Nonsense, Luther. I, her own father, am the one to blame for letting her slip from our grasps. I can only pray that we will find her quickly, and –" his voice cracked, "– alive."

The weight of the earl's loss felt like a tangible dark cloud. What if, one day, Chrom and I had a daughter of our own and she was taken away? I clenched my hands into fists under the table.

"We will find your daughter, Earl Mathis," I said fiercely. "I promise."