A few of days has gone by. Although Asena is given food and taken to a bathroom in mana restricting chains a few times a day, she's chained standing in the middle of the room for the rest of the time. Apparently there are more ways out of that room, without the correct chants, which the masked men always whisper quiet enough for her never to hear, she can not exit the room even if she somehow managed to rid herself of the chains.

She had learned a few things, as they had stated they're in Xylius, a city close to the capital of the Phoenix Empire. The group of men keeping her prisoner is called the Moonlight Society, a group of likeminded, lunatics, who's aim is to reclaim their ancestral line as the royal family. Apparently a few millennium ago the founder of the society was the Emperor of the Phoenix Empire, who lost his rule during a coup from a noble family. He was stricken mad with grief, and with a few of his retainers tried to reclaim the throne, but found it useless as the one instigating the coup had managed to purge almost everyone who could aid him in reclaiming his throne. 

Asena had learned a few other things, although it's called an empire, there are ducal houses and a hierarchical nobility, the bottom being Barons, then Counts, Marquess and then Duke. The current leader, and the man she spoke to who calls himself Brother Isaac, is one of the four dukes of the empire, called Duke Vermillion. How a lost line of nobility became dukes, she does not know, and neither is any of this information helpful towards her current situation.

Oh, they're removing the roof again. Guessing it's nighttime then, that makes this...day 5 of captivity? 

As Asena was absentmindedly thinking about anything to starve off boredom, a few of the men in the room were whispering to each other, and then a few left the room.

That's not their usual pattern, guard shift isn't supposed to happen until the middle of the night. Did something happen?

After a few minutes she could hear sounds of what she could only assume to be battle, and another man leaving the room, leaving only 5 people here to "keep her safe". The sounds of battle slowly grew louder and louder, until she assumed it was right outside the room.
An explosion blew apart one of the walls in the room, covering it with a cloud of dust, and a drop of temperature. Ice crept across the floor of the room, and in walked what can only be described as a Goddess of Ice. If Asena was supposed to be a Goddess, then this woman truly was one. Silver hair with light blue highlights, a battle dress in black with intricate patterns of what looks like lotus flowers woven in blue thread across the hem, and a pair of swords made of ice, she truly fit the part of Asena's first impression.

The woman scanned around the room, and her icy blue eyes locked with Asena's. The depth and cold tones of her eyes took the breath right out of Asena, and for a few moments she forgot everything about her circumstances, and everyone in the room. In Asena's mind, there was only this unknown lady and herself.

"She's beautiful..."

The lady's eyes widened as though she heard Asena's whisper. When she realized the lady had heard her mindless muttering, Asena's cheeks grew a little bit hotter in the endless expanse of ice that covered the room.
As the moment was over, the lady walked over to the equally stunned "protectors", and lunged at the one closest. What ensued was only what could be called a dance of blades. She evaded and ducked under the swords and spears that slashed and pierced at her, only to hit the empty air as she had already danced her way past the weapons. As Asena watched her dance and weave across while slitting the throats of her "protectors", she yet again felt her attention pulled towards this woman with magnetic force. It was as if the laws of the universe mandated her eyes to be drawn towards her probable saviour.

After only a handful of seconds had passed, the only two living people in the room were Asena and this unknown lady. As she scanned the room for more assailants, her eyes eventually ended upon herself, looking at her from the tip of her toes to the top of her head. The lady gave herself a satisfied nod, and slowly moved towards Asena.

"Um. Hi?"

The woman stopped and looked at her, before nodding to herself once again. Manifesting her blades of ice, she cut the chains binding Asena to the floor, then she turned around and left the room, leaving a confused girl fallen to her knees in the middle.
She sat on the floor blinking as her state of confusion and her mind slowly caught up to what just happened, she realized the "hidden" exit, wasn't that hidden anymore. Slowly getting to her feet, Asena walked towards the hole in the wall, with one last look behind her, she left.

----

Having walked for what feels like an hour or two after she left her place of captivity. Asena was a bit confused as to why she was in such a vast forest, when she should have been in Xylius, a city, and one close to the capital. 

Maybe they lied to me about where we were? Considering the safety measures of that room I wouldn't be surprised.

After tasting her newfound freedom, she suddenly remembered something she had forgotten due to how real her situation had felt, and how fast paced everything had been until she was captured. 

Time to send a bug report, because no way could that start have been a plan, that was way too extreme.

**Ding!**

** Although the situation was a bit surprising, no, it was not a bug. That was a typical trope, something you with your, peculiar novels into fantasy romance should have known was a bad situation, and you didn't handle it correctly. Welcome to ASCENSION. - Alacant **

Asena read and re-read the message multiple times to make sure she didn't misread the sassy tone of the so called "administrator AI", and sadly it was quite real.

Wait, how did she know about my penchant for fantasy romance?!