Prince Felix stared at the young man who was sitting on the couch. The Sergeant seemed to be nervous yet he tried his best to not make it too obvious.
The Prince had already told his guards not to let anyone in. So, he prepared a cup of coffee himself and placed it on the table. "You should calm down first." He said to the man and took a seat opposite him.
Sergeant Korin glanced at the Crown Prince. "You take me here right away. Do you know me, Your Highness?"
Felix nodded once. "I heard about you last night. Yelena is still looking for you and... so is Lt. Gen. Haric."
The Sergeant raised a brow. "She already knows about the Lt. General?"
"Yes but she needs evidence. Evidence to prove that her brother was killed by the Lt. General." The Prince stated.
Sergeant Korin lifted the cup of coffee but he ended up squeezing it out of nervousness and the Prince didn't fail to notice this.
"You can rest assured. As long as you are in this country, nothing will happen to you. I can promise you that." Felix firmly uttered.
Sergeant Korin puts down the cup and turned to the Prince. "Your Highness, I'm not that scared for my life. I'm an orphan with no family to worry about me. I'm only scared that I would die before I finish the task that Colonel Maverick couldn't finish. It's my final duty."
Felix slightly smiled. "You are smart, Sergeant. You know to come to me. How did you end up here?"
"Colonel Maverick was well prepared. The night he died, he told me to take all the evidence he collected and leave if he didn't return after two hours. He told me not to give the evidence to anyone but Captain Yelena Arista." Sergeant Korin explained.
"I can't approach her because I know that Lt. General Haric knows about her. It's too risky and one wrong decision would ruin everything. When I heard that she is in Edeladon, I seek my friend's help to make a fake passport. I thought that I would be able to meet her here. That's how I ended up here but... Captain Yelena returned the day I arrived." He added.
"So you came to seek my help?" Felix asked.
"Yes. I can't return on my own and I'm short of cash now. Besides, I only have a fake identity for now." Sergeant Korin replied. "I heard and read about you two, Your Highness. What's more, Captain Yelena trust you enough and even told you about me. So, I think I can trust you."
"Then you come to the right place, Sergeant Korin. I really wanted to help her and you open a way for me." Prince Felix said with a little smile. "Let's call Yelena and inform her about you. She will be very glad to hear the news."
When he noticed the anxiety on the Sergeant's face, Felix promptly said, "Don't worry. Just in case, she gets a new phone and number. We can contact her through that." He assured him.
"Alright." Sergeant Korin finally said with a nod.
Then Felix takes out his phone and called Yelena's another number. The Captain was pretty quick to answer the call.
"Hello."
"Yelena, I got some news for you."
"News? What is this about?"
"It's about Sergeant Korin."
Yelena who was about to leave Colonel Arias office, instantly halted at the Prince's words. "Sergeant Korin? How come?!"
When he heard the name, Colonel Arias darted his eyes to her with curiosity.
"Talk with him," Felix said and offered the phone to the Sergeant.
Sergeant Korin glanced at the phone and finally took it from the Prince's hand while Yelena was confusedly waiting at the other line.
"I'm Sergeant Korin Clive, Captain." He introduced himself.
Rooted where she was standing, Yelena's eyes grew wide. "Sergeant Korin? Is this true?"
"Yes, Captain. I went to Edeladon to meet you but... you return before I could see you."
"You're meeting the Prince? You're still there?" The Captain promptly asked.
"Yes, I'm in his office now."
Yelena finally heaved a sigh of relief. "That's great! I'm so glad to know that you are safe." She turned to Colonel Arias with a smile and retreated to the couch.
"Captain, we don't have much time. I will send you all the evidence which are in my possession. Please start taking actions right away before Lt. Gen. Haric makes a move." Sergeant Korin pleaded.
"Alright. Let's do that and you don't have to worry. As long as you're under the Prince's protection, you will be safe." A relief smile never leaves the Captain's face.
Sergeant Korin glanced at the Prince who was sitting opposite him. "To be honest, I debated a lot before I decide to meet him. If I make one wrong move, then everything will be over but... hearing you trust him so much, I'm glad that I make this decision though it's not easy."
"You're brave and refused to give in the superior's suppression. I really wish every soldier could be like you." Yelena remarked.
"I don't allow Colonel Maverick's sacrifice to be in vain. Though many years had passed, it's still not late to reset the wrong." Sergeant Korin said and finally smiled. Then he returned the phone to the Prince.
Putting the phone next to his ear, Felix said, "I will keep him safe here. After you prepared everything, I will bring him to Silveren. You can rest assured."
"I trust you but don't let your guard down. Lt. Gen. Haric is smarter than he appeared to be." Yelena calmly advised Felix.
"You should be more careful. Don't let them take advantage of you. I won't sit still if that happens." Felix stated with determination.
"Alright," Yelena said and ended the call.
"Sergeant Korin met the Prince?" Colonel Arias immediately asked her with a flustered face.
Yelena nodded. "He went there to meet me but I returned early. So, he decided to seek help from Felix. He said he will send me the evidence now."
Colonel Arias smiled in relief. "That's great. If I were the Lt. General, the Prince won't cross my mind. So, we might be able to fool him for a while."
"Yes but... the moment Lt. Gen. Haric shift his focus on a foreign country, the one he suspected the most will be Felix. After all, everyone knows he is my fiance now." Yelena stated.
"Then we should hurry. If we make a move now, he would have no time for a counter-attack." Arias uttered.
Just like Sergeant Korin said, Yelena received some files in her phone right away. Audios, handwritten reports and a diary in the form of a document; however, what caught Yelena's attention the most was one of the two videos. She still didn't play but... she saw her brother in it.
Video again? She recalled the last time she received a video from Colonel Maverick. The torment and pain that video caused her was more than one could imagine! Even now, she felt reluctant to open the video as that video she received still haunted her.
For the sake of her brother and everyone who suffered due to someone's so-called grand plan, she braced herself and played the video. When she first took a glimpse of the location, she recognized it right away.
How could she possibly forget? It's the mountain where her brother spent the last moments of his life!
*
In the video
The one who was pointing a gun at Marvin Arista was none other than Lt. Gen. Haric. The former was wearing his uniform with a rank of Lieutenant which was placed on both of his shoulders.
Standing behind Lt. Gen. Haric was Sergeant Kayce who was a Private at that time and Major General Richard.
"Marvin Arista, didn't you already make your choice? Why did you try to make things difficult again?" Lt. Gen Haric asked with a stern voice. "Aren't you not afraid for your sister anymore?"
"I make sure that my sister will be protected. I'm tired of living in guilt!" Marvin Arista shouted. "Giving absolute powers to the military authorities to create a better country?! That's just an excuse to satisfy your greed!"
"Shut up! You know nothing!" Lt. Gen. Haric sternly warned the Lieutenant.
"Yes, I don't know about you or your past but... I know this." Marvin Arista didn't show any hint of fear despite the gun which was pointed at him. "Once you overthrow the government, the civilians won't be still. There will be an endless protest and what will you do when that happens? Killing the people to suppress them?"
"I said shut up!"
"This uniform is to protect the people, not to kill them. I'd rather die than do that! I will never support you no matter what happened!" Marvin Arista firmly declared.
Lt. Gen. Haric finally puts down his gun and let out a breath. "Fine. If you can't accept the world I will be creating, then you can't live anymore."
Marvin Arista stood still, unfazed by the Lt. General's words. "Even if you kill me today, mark my words. Someday, someone will expose all your sins and destroy all the efforts you made for your absurd dream. You will never get what you want."
"We will see that." The Lt. General simply said and nodded. Then the three soldiers approached Marvin Arista, cornering him to the cliff and pushed him down without any hesitation.....