The Grand Duke's Soulmate
Chapter 117: The Stubborn Princess

Chapter 117: The Stubborn Princess

The teenager trudged through the rain-soaked path, his clothes drenched and clinging to his shivering frame.

The autumn downpour had caught him by surprise, adding to his already frustrated and despondent state. His brown hair was plastered to his forehead, and raindrops trickled down his face, mixing with his tears.

In his sling bag sat Rhen, the small white puppy who had been his companion. The little canine looked up at the teenager with sympathetic eyes, seemingly sensing his distress.

An hour ago, before the rain, Armel had been the victim of a robbery on his way to another city. It had been days since he left Gerhard. The experience had left him feeling violated and helpless. He longed to return to the safety of Mistdale, regretting his decision to venture out alone against his brother’s warnings.

Armel’s steps became heavier as time passed by. His soaked shoes sloshing through puddles. The gloomy skies mirrored the storm within his heart.

"I guess I’m terrible at this adventure. I can’t even meet the lady again. Let’s go home, Rhen!" Armel exclaimed in frustration.

In response, Rhen let out a series of barks. At first, Armel believed the puppy was acknowledging him, offering some form of solace in his moment of despair.

However, to his surprise, Rhen suddenly leapt out of the sling bag and darted away.

"Rhen! What are you doing? Stop! Stop running!" Armel called out urgently.

Without a second thought, he chased after the white puppy, his heart racing with worry.

***

"Honestly, that tour guide was terrible! We paid him a fortune, and all he did was take us to the border! Just the border! It’s infuriating... I feel like yanking his hair!" Callis ranted, expressing her deep dissatisfaction with the hired tour guide’s services.

Their carriages came to a halt before the rain started. They found themselves stranded in a vast meadow surrounded by dense forest trees. With no nearby accommodations in sight, their only choice was to set up tents to shield themselves from the incoming downpour.

"I can’t entirely blame him," Kiev responded calmly, trying to bring a sense of perspective to the situation. "We only mentioned that we were heading to Cassian without specifying the exact location. So, technically, he’s not entirely at fault."

"Couldn’t he have at least taken us to the nearest city instead of abandoning us right after reaching the border? We’ve been wandering around cluelessly, not knowing the way!" she said.

"That man was only after our money. Before we hired him, he boasted about knowing this kingdom like the back of his hand. But when we arrived here, he admitted he had never been to any cities and had only made it to the border. How foolish!" Callis nagged further, showing her frustration.

"Callis, mind your language! A princess should refrain from using such curse words. It’s not proper etiquette," the prince warned her.

The princess was about to respond, but Jessy quickly stepped in, offering her opinion.

"His Highness is correct. The tour guide fulfilled his duty and brought us safely here. He even suggested that we find a local guide with better knowledge of the area," the nanny pointed out, attempting to diffuse the tension.

Callis grumbled, feeling unsupported. She swiftly changed the subject, trying to redirect the conversation.

"Can we use the search magic again to pinpoint the princess’s location? We don’t even know where she exactly is!" she asked, hoping for a solution to their predicament.

"We’ll have to wait until the sky brightens again," Kiev replied, considering the timing of their subsequent actions. "However, since her scent is fading, there’s no guarantee we could get the right spot. As of now, we only know she’s in the west."

"Let me give it a try this time," the princess requested eagerly, hoping to contribute with her magical abilities.

"No! Search magic may appear simple but far more intricate than you think. It requires not just enchantment but also your mana. It’s not like the mind magic you’ve used before," Kiev countered firmly, adamantly disapproving of her request.

"But I’ve learned search magic too! I can do it!" Callis insisted.

"I said no! It’s too dangerous," Kiev reiterated, concerned for the princess’s well-being.

Callis grunted in protest, her lips pouting in frustration.

"The rain has finally stopped, and darkness is setting in. Let’s set up a fire and rest for the day," the prince suggested, shifting their focus to immediate needs.

He then commanded the four escorts accompanying them to gather wet branches and wood. As they piled up the damp materials, Kiev raised his hand, palm facing the pile, and cast a spell.

The wet branches and wood rapidly dried, along with the ground beneath them. With a flick of his fingers, he ignited a flame, providing warmth and light.

The escorts set off to hunt for food, leaving the prince and the nanny to rest inside the tent. Still sulking due to her brother’s earlier refusal, Callis moved a little farther away from the camp. Jessy felt the urge to coax her, but the prince intervened.

"Let her be. Sometimes, she can be quite stubborn when she’s angry. She’ll calm down soon," the prince advised, understanding his sister’s temperament.

Jessy abandoned her intention to approach Callis. She knew the princess well enough to recognise that she needed some space. Respecting Kiev’s insight, she decided to follow his suggestions.

Callis clicked her tongue in annoyance, frustrated by the perceived lack of trust in her abilities. She genuinely wanted to help. After all, the success of their mission to bring back the prince’s betrothed to Semeta relied on their ability to locate the princess.

Her brother’s dismissive words made her refuse to be underestimated.

"What? Does he think he’s the only one capable of doing it? I can do it too!" Callis muttered with dissatisfaction.

However, her enthusiasm was quickly dampened when she realised she had nothing to use as a ceremonial object for her search ritual. She cursed under her breath, feeling a wave of disappointment.

Suddenly, a memory sparked in her mind—an alternative type of search magic she had learned in the past. A glimmer of hope lit up her face.

"I can use the earth-bounded search magic!" she exclaimed, excited by the possibility.

Checking her surroundings to ensure Kiev and the others were out of earshot, Callis bent down and knelt on the ground, placing her palm firmly against it.

She recited the incantation, "Mer gain ettar Khasif Majesté," and a soft light emanated from her hand, spreading across the earth like a web.

Closing her eyes, she focused on her search, channelling her mana into the ground.

Initially, her efforts yielded no results. Determined not to give up, the princess intensified her concentration, pouring more mana into the earth to expand the web and enhance her search. Just as a glimmer of sense appeared on the horizon, a rough voice suddenly yelled at her, abruptly interrupting the process.

"Callis! What are you doing?" the prince shouted, interrupting the ritual.

The princess’s shoulders jolted in surprise. She quickly withdrew her mana, stood up and turned around with an anxious face.

"I... I was just..." Callis stammered, her voice filled with trepidation, fearful of her brother’s reaction.

The princess’s vision was filled with the wrathful face of her brother, Kiev. His expression radiated anger as his red-ruby eyes glared fiercely at her. The atmosphere grew tense as the weight of his disapproval bore down upon her.

"Don’t tell me you performed the earth-bounded search magic!" Kiev’s voice boomed, his tone laced with frustration and concern. He had caught sight of the faint glimmer of light emanating from the princess’s palm as she knelt on the ground.

Callis spoke up in her own defence. "I swear, I was just trying to help!" she pleaded, hoping to convey her intentions.

"I explicitly told you it’s dangerous! Why can’t you listen to me?" the prince’s voice raised in anger, his frustration boiling to the surface.

Callis’s resolve remained unyielding as she asserted her position. "But I did it, brother! I sensed something," she insisted. Her instincts had guided her, and she firmly believed in the validity of her actions.

"Nonsense!" Kiev dismissed her words with a wave of his hand. His face contorted with exasperation.

The princess, undeterred, held her ground. Her voice was defiant as she continued, "But it’s true! I felt it. There is something nearby that she had touched."

Growing impatient and frustrated, Kiev’s voice turned stern as he tried to end the discussion. "Stop it now, Callis! Your stubbornness is annoying!"

Kiev’s words cut through the air, leaving little room for argument. Just as Callis was about to counter his remark, the sound of barking reached their ears. They both turned their attention to the noise source, where they saw a puppy running towards them.

Another sound, a soft and urgent call for the little dog, resonated through the air, capturing their attention again.

"Rhen... wait for me!" the voice called out, drawing their attention further.

Turning their heads, the siblings noticed a figure emerging from the distance, a teenager racing towards them with determined strides. The urgency in the teenager’s voice grew sharper, echoing through the surroundings.

"Rhen! Wait! Don’t run!" the unfamiliar voice called out again, laced with a touch of worry and a hint of desperation. The teenager’s words carried the weight of a plea as he chased after the elusive puppy, hoping to prevent it from escaping further.

The tiny white puppy darted towards Callis and finally came to a halt right before her.

"Oh, look... it’s a..." she began to say, her voice filled with wonder and intrigue.

However, her words trailed off abruptly as a sudden, intense, bright light washed over her, temporarily blinding her vision. In an instant, her body was overcome by a wave of fatigue and weakness, sapping her strength until she could no longer utter another word or even move.

As swiftly as it had arrived, the overwhelming brightness dissipated, leaving behind an eerie silence. The once radiant surroundings were replaced quickly by an all-encompassing darkness, shrouding everything in its depths.

Overwhelmed by the ordeal, her body could no longer withstand the strain. Collapsing to the ground, Callis slipped into unconsciousness.

"Callis!" Kiev’s voice rang out in alarm as his agile hands moved with precision, deftly capturing her flailing and unconscious body from falling to the ground.