The dagger of royal blood

It was an unusually warm autumn night in Regalis. The moonlight and the flickering glow from the streetlights cast their reflections on the wet cobblestones. Although it was past midnight, the city was far from quiet. Laughter and chatter echoed from the city’s multitude of inns, accompanied by the noise of patrons making their way home after a night of drinking. In the shadows of the alleys, black market dealers whispered as they exchanged their goods. The dark alleys also concealed thieves, hoping someone would get lost or be foolish enough to walk home alone. Many careless citizens had lost their possessions, or even their lives, in the darkness of the night.

One robber, a slender man in ragged clothes with long, dirty hair, thought he saw a chance, thought he saw his prey. He quietly made his way onto the streets, his footsteps silently closing in on the woman. He was about to reveal himself when loud footsteps and voices approached. Quickly, he slipped back into the shadows as two royal guards appeared. Had they paid better attention, they might have seen him, but both walked unsteadily, talking loudly and occasionally bursting into loud fits of laughter. One was young, almost still a boy, his face clear of any facial hair. The other was slightly older, perhaps in his thirties, with a mustache. Both wore their uniforms: a white woolen shirt, a bright blue tunic embroidered with a golden lion, the king’s seal, as well as black woolen trousers, warm boots, and a helmet. They also carried swords as part of their standard uniform, even when off duty. Their helmets were a bit wonky, and their shirts were unbuttoned at the top.

“Can you imagine?” The youngest chuckled.

“I can hear his voice now, “that is not the appropriate way to-“” He was cut off by the other guard, who elbowed him in the side and gestured toward a figure ahead of them. A young, pretty woman was walking alone. She wore a simple dress with a corset that accentuated her features. The underside of her dress was muddy, and her shoes appeared worn. Her hair had probably been styled very beautifully earlier in the evening, but now several loose strands fell onto her shoulders. As she walked under a streetlight, it became clear that she was unsteady on her feet. The guards exchanged glances, quickly reached an unspoken agreement, and approached the young woman.

“Good evening, miss,” one of them said politely. He was the younger of the two guards and often had good luck with the ladies, especially when wearing his uniform.

The woman turned around, and he saw that she was even more beautiful up close. Her brown hair framed her face innocently and elegantly, and her blue eyes shone with an excitement and joy of life rarely seen among the common folk of Regalis. She smiled broadly at them.

“Good evening, gentlemen!” she giggled. Clearly, she had enjoyed herself at the inn tonight, just like them. Her cheeks were red from the drink, but it only made her look prettier.

“What’s your name, miss, and what are you doing all alone at this hour? You shouldn’t be walking home by yourself, miss, it isn’t safe,” the older guard said.

“I know,” the woman sighed, “but my friend wanted to go home early tonight. She is so boring!” She dragged out the ‘o’ in boring and started laughing. The laughter made her stumble and almost fall. The younger guard caught her arm. Her dress was sleeveless and only covered her shoulders, but she didn’t seem to mind or even notice the way his hand rested on her bare arm.

“I’m Rose,” she smiled. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Like the flower, a pretty name for a pretty girl. Well, let us escort you home, Rose. A pretty little thing like you could get hurt out here,” the young guard said gently and persuasively.

“My name is Thomas, and this is Dalton.”

“Where do you live, Rose?” Dalton asked.

“Well, that’s just it,” she said. “It seems I’m lost.” The guards exchanged glances again, silently agreeing.

“You should come with us, Miss. We will keep you safe.” The young guard, Thomas, smiled at her, and she smiled back. He was still holding her arm.

“You won’t be boring?” She pouted at them. The guards both smiled at her.

“No, Miss, I promise you we won’t be boring.”

The barracks of the royal guards were nearly identical to those of the city guards, small and simple. However, the royal guards stayed within the palace, while the city guards were housed in barracks outside the palace gates. The main difference, and the reason most guardsmen preferred serving as royal guards rather than common city guards, was the privacy. Whereas the city guards’ barracks were crowded with five bunk beds per room, the royal guards had only two bunk beds in each bedroom. Since most guards spent little time in their barracks, this arrangement meant they typically shared their room only with their partner, affording them considerably more privacy than the city guards. This privacy made it possible to arrange occasional romantic night visits. The two guardsmen sharing their room were very grateful for this privacy as they led the pretty, young woman back to their quarters. They grinned sheepishly at the guards at the gates, who winked at them and looked on with envy. They might have to share a bottle of wine with them later to make up for it, but it would definitely be worth it. Rose looked around, taking in as much of the castle as she could. She had probably never been inside the palace before.

“Beautiful, right?” Dalton said. She jumped, looking guilty for a split second before smiling sweetly at them.

“It is so big!” She exclaimed. “I’ve never been inside the palace before!”

“Yeah, I guess we get used to it since we see it every day, you know, keeping this place safe,” the guard said with a smile as he looked down at her. She frowned slightly.

“But who is keeping it safe from bandits and enemies now?”

“Oh, don’t worry. Other guards are working right now. We don’t have another shift until tomorrow afternoon,” he reassured her.

“But that is still so long! What if they get tired or hungry or, you know...” she blushed, “...nature calls.” The guards both laughed.

“They change guards tomorrow morning at dawn, then again in the afternoon, and once more at sunset.” Rose looked relieved.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart, we will keep you safe,” Thomas said as he put his arm around her shoulder. She just smiled at him and didn’t protest.

“I wonder how many guards are working here. It is such a big palace, I bet a hundred guards are on duty at all times!” She exclaimed. The guards laughed.

“Oh, honey, a hundred is a bit much!” They continued talking as they walked to the barracks. The guards weren’t really supposed to share so much information with civilians, but surely this young woman couldn’t do any harm. Besides, whenever they hesitated to tell her something, she batted her eyelashes so innocently and leaned forward so expectantly, her dress exposing even more of her. How could they not tell her everything she wanted to hear? It wasn’t often that girls listened to them like this, truly paying attention to what they had to say.

As they entered the barracks, both guards looked at her hungrily.

“Well, darling, here we are. Let’s get this party started!” Dalton said as he took off his jacket and threw it in a corner. Rose cheered and clapped her hands with excitement.

“Yes! I knew you guys wouldn’t be boring! Let’s have some more drinks, I’m almost starting to sober up!” The last thing the men wanted was for Rose to sober up and realize she would regret this night later. Rose did seem a little steadier on her feet, so they quickly brought out more wine and rum and filled some cups.

“Let’s play a game,” Thomas suggested, and pulled out a handful of dice.

“A game of dice?” Rose asked.

“Yeah, but not a normal game of dice. It wouldn’t feel right to take money from a damsel in distress, so I suggest we play by alternative rules.” He took a large sip of rum without taking his eyes off her. She looked at him expectantly.

“Alternative rules?”

“Yes, every time someone loses, they have to remove an item of clothing.” He smirked at her as he awaited her reaction.

She pulled a flask from a pocket in her dress and raised it.

“Well, I’ll drink to that!” The guards’ grins widened as they both raised their glasses. In the first round, Thomas lost and removed his helmet. In the second round, Dalton lost and took off his tunic, keeping his helmet on while sending a challenging look to Rose. Next, Thomas lost again and also removed his tunic. After that, Rose went on a losing streak. She first removed her left shoe, then her right shoe. When she lost the third time, she was left wearing only her dress, underwear, and corset. Both men held their breath as they looked at her, waiting to see if she would indeed undress in front of them or if she would chicken out.

“Well,” Rose said slowly, “if I had known it would be this kind of party, I would have brought more to drink.” She raised her hand to her corset and started pulling slowly on a string, then stopped and lowered her hand again.

“I think I need a little more encouragement before taking this off,” she said quietly, then took both Dalton’s and Thomas’s cups and emptied them in one chug.

“Sorry,” she smiled at them. “I’ll make it up to you,” and she poured the drink from her flask into their cups.

“Here, cheers,” she said, raising her cup. The two men who had been gawking at her with open mouths seemed to awaken from their trance and quickly raised their cups as well. They all took a sip of their drinks, but Rose still didn’t seem satisfied.

“I think I’m too shy to have both of you see me get undressed at the same time. Tell you what: whoever can empty their drink the fastest gets to look first.” She giggled as they both immediately emptied their cups. They looked at each other, trying to decide who was the fastest, and both frowned. They opened their mouths as if to say something, but neither could speak. They could only look on in horror as their legs gave way and everything around them went dark.