Stolen by the Rebel King
Chapter 171: Malevolent Hysteria I

Chapter 171: Malevolent Hysteria I

Daphne’s blood chilled in her veins.

"What do you mean by ’not human’?"

"Exactly what it means," Cordelia said grimly. She took a cautious look behind them, as though she was expecting eavesdroppers. She lowered her head to whisper into Daphne’s ear. "I highly suspect he’s some dark creature masquerading as a human."

"How could that be?" Daphne exclaimed. "And if so, why didn’t you say anything back there?"

"Are you insane? I am highly skilled, but I might not be able to fight him off. Any creature that can actually mimic human mannerisms and behavior is not one we should cross without making preparations. The one we saw... he was clearly more intelligent than most."

"What’s more..." Cordelia shook her head, "You were already on the ground like you were dying. I couldn’t risk it."

Daphne’s heart warmed and she beamed at Cordelia, squeezing her hands in delight. "So you do care about me! I’m very delighted."

"Can we focus on the part where I said there’s a dark creature masquerading as a human?" Cordelia retorted, her cheeks pinking in the face of Daphne’s joy and gratitude.

"But it helped me, though," Daphne said, feeling the strangest urge to defend Nereus, the man-creature she just met. "I don’t think it meant any harm."

"Daphne, I’m not joking about this," Cordelia said grimly, grabbing her shoulders so she could stare straight into Daphne’s eyes. "Stay away from him. I felt his skin and his magic. The magic that surrounds him isn’t normal."

"And you can somehow sense magic now?" Daphne asked, wrinkling her nose in doubt. If Princess Cordelia couldn’t even tell that she had awakened her fire magic, Daphne sincerely doubted that she could tell the difference between auras, if there was even such a thing. It sounded like complete nonsense to Daphne.

"He doesn’t feel like a human," Cordelia insisted. "It’s like... even people without powers will still have an aura that proves their humanity. But that man... he feels more like a creature than a man. And when he touched me just now, his skin..." Cordelia shivered even under the heat of the sun. "It was too cold and slimy for a healthy human. It felt like a wet leaf."

"A wet leaf," Daphne repeated blankly. Unbidden, she once again recalled the same pair of luminous eyes. She sucked in a deep breath, trying to keep herself from panicking. "Oh. Oh. No."

"Oh no what?" Cordelia asked, her eyes widening as she saw Daphne’s breath come out in tiny gasps. Crap, the same thing was happening once again, and just like before, Cordelia was entirely helpless. "Daphne, can you hear me?"

Daphne let out a wordless gurgle. Just as Cordelia was this close to flinging Daphne over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes to haul her to a healer, she spotted Prince Nathaniel flanked by two guards. He was walking through the gardens, a stack of documents in his hands as he gestured to his surroundings.

"Prince Nathaniel!" Cordelia called in relief. "Hurry over here! Daphne needs help!"

Prince Nathaniel stuffed his papers in his robes and ran over worriedly. "What is the matter? Queen Daphne, can you hear me?"

"I... I’m... fine..." Daphne said weakly, but the very thought of the kelpie following her had her stomach in twists, and she heaved. It was getting harder to breathe. Seeing that Daphne had difficulty speaking, Nathaniel questioned Cordelia instead.

"What happened, Princess Cordelia?"

"I don’t know! We saw a strange puddle on the ground and Daphne collapsed," Cordelia said, then her eyes flashed. "I bet that dark creature did it! It looked like a human, but it didn’t feel anything like one when it touched me!"

"Dark creature?" Prince Nathaniel blinked in shock, but he recollected himself. Daphne’s earlier kelpie sighting. A strange puddle of water on a summer’s day. A dark creature that looked human.

They were in trouble.

"Guards, alert the men to step up patrols. There’s a dark creature on our grounds. If there are any guests that do not have identification, have them chained in iron."

"Yes Sir!" The guards ran off.

He looked down at Queen Daphne, who was pale and shaking. He understood what must have happened― that creature must have followed her all the way back from the lake, somehow avoiding everyone’s notice. But it used its powers to harass Daphne, causing fear and panic in her heart.

"Queen Daphne, you are perfectly safe here," Prince Nathaniel said as he crouched on the floor next to her, his hands glowing a gentle red as he gently touched her temples. "Follow the sound of my voice. Breathe in... breathe out..."

To Cordelia’s surprise, Daphne’s breaths slowly deepened and they began to even out. Color began to return to Daphne’s face, and her eyes soon regained their focus.

"Prince Nathaniel...!" She squeaked in surprise, hastily getting up from the ground. She stumbled a little, her knees still weak, but it was nothing too difficult with Cordelia’s assistance. Prince Nathaniel followed more sedately. "I’m sorry for the trouble!"

"It is no trouble at all; I was simply passing by," Prince Nathaniel said simply. He nodded politely at Cordelia. "You should thank Princess Cordelia for her quick thinking. She had also provided vital information."

"It was nothing," Cordelia waved off his praise, scrutinizing Daphne with narrowed eyes. "Are you sure you’re alright now? This happened again."

"Queen Daphne, perhaps you might allow me to look over you," Prince Nathaniel said, pursing his lips. "I suspect you might have developed malevolent hysteria."

"What?" Both Cordelia and Daphne asked in unison, shooting each other confused looks.

"I’ll explain later," Prince Nathaniel said. "If you’re alright with walking, I’ll lead you to the healers."

Daphne nodded, and soon the three of them arrived at the healers’ room. The healers milling around in their dark green robes immediately stood at attention the moment they watched their prince enter.

"Your Highness!"

"This is a private consultation," Prince Nathaniel said politely.

To both women’s surprise, the healers nodded and left in a neat file, and Prince Nathaniel brought them to the furthest corner that had been cordoned off with an elaborate screen.

"This is my office. Please, both of you take a seat." He gestured to the plush chairs in front of the long table as he sat on the other side.

"You’re a healer?" Daphne exclaimed wonderingly, gazing around the room.

There were plants hanging from the ceiling, and herbs were lining the walls. Even on his desk, she could see drawings of herbs and barely legible scrawls, most likely his notes, at the side. To her amusement, there were a few tiny stuffed toys sitting on his table and a bigger box of them on the floor.

"I suppose you can consider me as one. It’s not as impressive as being a war general though," Prince Nathaniel said, feeling slightly self-conscious.

He spotted where she was looking and coughed slightly.

"They’re for distracting the children," he explained. "They don’t like the taste of medicine, but unfortunately, I have not been able to find a way to make it taste better. Now, let’s discuss what happened earlier," he said, clearing his throat.

"What did you say Daphne got again? Malevolent hysteria? What is that?"

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