The King's Guard

Chapter 54

The morning haze still clung to the palace courtyards when Reyna and Kael were summoned. By the time the squad reached the eastern hall, the announcement had already rippled through the Academy: the Veridale Princess was taking the Stormhaven Princess into the city market.

Darius waited for them at the foot of the marble steps. His arms folded, expression unreadable.

“You’ve been chosen for escort duty for Princess Vashti—the Crown Princess of Veridale, and Princess Alana—the Crown Princess of Stormhaven,” he said. “Not parade duty. Escort. Understand the difference?”

Reyna nodded. “Keep them safe, bring them back.”

“Exactly. Crowds hide more than cheers.” His gaze swept over Kael. “Especially for you…keep your eyes ahead, not inwards.”

Kael tightened his jaw. “Yes, Commander.”

Jared gave a short laugh under his breath. “So we play watchdogs while royalty haggles for ribbons and fruit. Surely the height of our training.”

Reyna shot him a look. “Hold your tongue, mister. Better ribbons and fruit than a knife at their backs.”

“Knives are easier to spot,” Jared said lazily. “Poison in a cup, whisper in the wrong ear…markets are full of those too. But if you’d like me to glare at fishmongers all morning, I’ll do my best.”

Kyna crossed her arms. “You could try for once to keep your mouth shut.”

“Then how would you all know what I’m thinking?” Jared smirked.

Kael muttered, “We’d survive.”

Darius’s tone cut. “You’ll take it seriously. All of you. Because if you don’t, it won’t just be you answering for it.” He motioned to the gates. “They’re waiting.”

The royal carriages stood gleaming, wheels polished, banners draped. Princess Vashti, slight and sharp-eyed, descended first. Behind her came Princess Alana: taller, cloaked lightly in blue, posture regal but voice gentle.

Reyna bowed. “Highnesses.”

Princess Vashti waved the formality away. “No need. Today, I want to walk as a citizen. The market isn’t a battlefield.”

Kael’s gaze flicked over the courtyard. “Markets can turn quickly,” he murmured.

Princess Alana caught it. “He’s right. In Stormhaven, the stalls are crowded enough to smother. I’ll stay close.”

Princess Vashti tilted her head, amused. “You’re always cautious, aren’t you? Does it exhaust you, living with your guard raised?”

Kael’s jaw tightened. “Caution keeps people alive.”

Reyna smoothed the edge. “It also keeps the wrong kind of attention from finding us, Highness.”

“Attention is inevitable,” Princess Vashti said, adjusting her cloak. “The trick is in choosing how to meet it.”

Jared flourished his hand. “We’ll keep shadows off your heels. You won’t even notice us.”

Reyna’s eyes cut across him. “They’re supposed to notice us. We’re guards, not phantoms.”

“Details,” Jared muttered, but he straightened all the same.

The city market was already alive by the time they arrived. Colour spilled from fabric stalls, smoke curled from food braziers, and the cries of traders tangled into a constant hum. The smell of spiced meat mixed with the tang of wet stone.

Kael scanned rooftops, alleyways, the rhythm of the crowd. Every sound weighed.

Princess Vashti turned to Reyna. “Tell me, do you always walk armed? Even here?”

Reyna kept her eyes forward. “I don’t walk anywhere unarmed. Habit.”

Princess Alana smiled faintly. “In Stormhaven, my guards never let me see their weapons. They think it unsettles people.”

“Does it?” Kael asked.

“Not me,” she said. “I prefer knowing steel’s close.”

Princess Vashti leaned toward Reyna. “See? Someone understands.”

They stopped at a spice stall. Princess Alana lifted a jar, tilting it under her nose. “Coriander?”

“Star-anise,” the trader corrected. “Imported.”

Jared leaned casually against the stall’s frame. “Exotic enough to be worth twice the coin.”

“Your opinion wasn’t asked,” Reyna said sharply.

Jared only grinned, unbothered.

Kael drifted to the stall’s edge, eyes on the flow of people. A man lingered longer than most, hands folded under his cloak, gaze cutting too often toward the royals. Kael stepped slightly closer, angling himself to intercept if needed.

The man noticed…and moved on.

Princess Vashti tugged Reyna’s arm suddenly. “Come look at these ribbons.”

Reyna frowned but followed. “Highness, stay where we can…”

“Relax. It’s just ribbons.” She picked one up, held it against Reyna’s wrist. “It suits you.”

Reyna blinked, caught off guard. “I’m not…”

“Don’t argue.” Princess Vashti turned to Princess Alana. “Doesn’t it?”

Princess Alana smiled. “It softens her. Just a little.”

Reyna coloured slightly and cleared her throat. “We should keep moving.”

Jared leaned toward Kael, voice low. “Imagine her blushing over ribbon. Saints, this is comedy.”

Kael didn’t answer. His focus stayed on the street’s edges, the shadows behind moving carts, the flicker of faces.

They wound deeper through the market. Children darted between legs, merchants shouted above one another. Princess Alana slowed at a jeweller’s stand, fingers brushing a silver chain.

“It’s fine work,” she said. “Our smiths craft heavier pieces. Yours are more delicate.”

Kael asked quietly, “Would you wear it back home?”

She tilted her head. “If I wore it there, they’d ask what message I meant to send. Sometimes jewellery speaks louder than words.”

Princess Vashti laughed. “Here too. That’s why I never wear any.”

Reyna sighed. “You wear a crown.”

“A tiara mostly. That doesn’t count.”

Near the baker’s row, Princess Alana paused again, studying a tray of glazed pastries. Jared leaned over. “Careful. Too many of those and your guards won’t be the only ones huffing uphill.”

Reyna’s voice snapped. “Enough.”

Princess Alana laughed lightly. “He’s bold.”

“Too bold,” Reyna muttered.

Kael’s eyes caught movement again. This time, a pair of men shadowed them from opposite sides of the lane. Not exactly close but too steady. He shifted nearer Reyna, murmured low. “We’re being tracked.”

Her gaze flicked quick. “Where?”

“Left, near the cloth banners. And right, by the pottery stand.”

She didn’t turn. “I see the cloth. Kyna?”

Kyna slid smoothly through the crowd, feigning interest in a rack of scarves. She returned a moment later, whispering, “Both armed.”

Reyna tightened her jaw. “Stay sharp. Don’t spook the royals.”

Princess Vashti turned then, oblivious. “Can we visit the fountain square? I want the Stormhaven Princess to see it.”

Reyna’s answer was crisp. “Briefly.”

They reached the fountain, its spray catching the light. Princess Alana lingered near the water’s edge, eyes widening. “It’s beautiful.”

Kael scanned the perimeter. The men were still there: one now closer, weaving through the press of people.

He muttered, “Too close.”

Reyna angled her body subtly. “Jared. Position.”

Jared sighed. “Finally.” He moved toward the rear flank, hand brushing his hilt.

The men didn’t move further yet.

Princess Alana turned toward Kael suddenly. “You’re too tense.”

Kael blinked. “It’s my role.”

“Your shoulders give you away. You look ready to strike anyone who looks twice.”

“That’s the point.”

She studied him. “Then I pity whoever stands too near.”

Princess Vashti grinned. “I’m sure he always looks like that. Don’t mind him.”

Reyna cut in firmly. “It’s time we return.”

“But we’ve only just…”

“Return,” Reyna repeated.

The walk back toward the carriages was slower. The men were gone, vanished into the crowd. Kael’s pulse didn’t ease. Too clean. Too sudden.

When they reached the palace gates, Princess Vashti pouted. “You cut it short.”

Reyna bowed her head. “Safety dictated it.”

“Safety, safety, always safety.” She turned to the Stormhaven Princess. “Did you enjoy any of it?”

“I did,” she said softly. Then her eyes flicked toward Kael. “Even with the weight of eyes everywhere.”

Kael didn’t respond.

In the barracks later, the squad sat stripped of armour. Jared tossed his gloves onto the bench. “So that’s our life now. Chasing ribbons and pastries.”

Reyna’s glare cut him down. “Two armed men followed us.”

“Yet nothing happened. Which means we jumped shadows.”

Kael said quietly, “Or they were testing us.”

“Testing what?” Jared demanded.

“How close they could get.”

Silence sat for a long moment.

Kyna finally spoke. “They’ll try again.”

Reyna exhaled. “And next time, it won’t be ribbons.”

Kael looked at the floor, jaw set. He could still see the men’s faces fading into the crowd, and the way they hadn’t needed to strike to make their point.