The Grand Duke's Soulmate
Chapter 417: A Suspicious Locket

Chapter 417: A Suspicious Locket

A blow landed on Noah’s hand, which gripped Elis’s arm, causing him to stumble backwards and fall to the ground. Kiev swiftly pulled the frightened Elis into his embrace, his expression fierce as he glared at Noah.

"How dare you touch her!" the Mederian Prince exclaimed. "You are such an ungrateful brat! Is this how you repay me after all I’ve done to help you?"

Anxious from the commotion, Emily rushed to her husband and knelt to hold him.

"Why did you do that, Noah? Are you out of your mind?" she scolded.

Noah looked up with a severe expression. Ignoring his wife and the Mederian Prince, he opened his balled fist to reveal the locket he had confiscated.

"How come you have this, Miss Canton?! Tell me!" he shouted at Elis.

The woman fumbled at her neck, realising her necklace was no longer there.

"Give it back to me! That’s mine!" she cried.

"You tell me first how you obtained it! I need to know! I swear if you don’t—" he said, rising to his feet furiously.

"What are you going to do to her, huh? Do you want to hurt her? I’ll break your neck if you come any closer!" Kiev warned.

Elis held onto the Mederian Prince’s chest, her eyes filled with anxiety.

"I want the locket back, Kiev! Please! It’s the last thing my sister gave me! Please!" she begged.

"Are you saying your sister gave this to you?" Noah’s eyes widened in surprise.

"You heard her! Give it back to us right now!" Kiev yelled.

Suddenly, Luke emerged at the scene, followed by Garin. The noise from the sudden commotion had attracted them from another path.

"Your Highness! Sir Brooks! What the h*ll is going on here?" he asked, puzzled.

Kiev turned to the knights.

"This ungrateful comrade of yours dared to put his hands on my woman! What an insolent behaviour! I regret taking pity on him!"

"I am not being insolent! I was on my way to thank you for your help when I saw Miss Canton alone. Then I noticed this wooden locket she wore and snatched it!" Noah countered, holding it up for Luke and Garin to see.

The two knights furrowed their brows, puzzled by Noah’s investment in the item. Then, a thought crossed Garin’s mind as the locket looked familiar.

"Give it back to us! That locket belongs to my Elis!" Kiev yelled furiously in the meantime.

"Your Highness, hold on for a moment, please!" Garin suddenly interjected. "May I have a proper look at it first? I think I’ve seen it before somewhere."

Elis, Kiev, and Emily were taken aback by the statement and glanced at each other. Without wasting time, the knight approached Noah, with Luke wearing a perplexed expression following him. Garin took the necklace from Noah and carefully observed the locket.

"This..." he raised a brow. "It’s kind of similar to that one..." he said quietly, pondering. "How did you get this, Miss Canton?"

"My sister gave it to me back when we stayed in Glandon!" she replied.

"How come I never noticed?" Garin asked again.

"I always wear it beneath my clothes to prevent it from getting in the way while working," she explained.

Kiev interjected, "No one would have noticed in that case. Elis always wore modest, high-neck attire. But I can assure you that the item has always been with her. I can attest to that!"

Garin thought momentarily and then said to Noah, "It could be a locket purchased from anywhere that looks the same. You might’ve been mistaken."

"It can’t be! I remember it well!" Noah pressed.

"It can’t be bought anywhere! That’s a unique item! My sister carved it herself for me and her! I never took it from anyone else!" exclaimed Elis, fearing they might accuse her of stealing. "Please let me have it back!"

Garin turned to Elis.

"So this is yours?" he asked to affirm.

"Yes! It’s handmade!" she insisted.

"It’s the same, Sir Skyler! How can I forget?" Noah emphasised, trying to convince Garin.

The third-in-command knight leaned towards trusting Elis, but doubts began to rise in his mind as he observed Noah’s earnestness.

"What are you implying? Are you saying my woman is a thief?!" Kiev glared as he saw the third-in-command knight’s hesitation.

"No, Your Highness!" Garin replied swiftly. "We are not accusing her of such a thing. However, there is a matter that requires clarification before we can come to a solid conclusion. For that, I need Sir Navin to verify it."

Turning to Luke, the third-in-command knight ordered, "Get Sir Navin here, right now! Tell him it’s urgent!"

"Yes, Sir Skyler!" Luke nodded and left quickly.

Clouded with confusion, Emily asked her husband, "What is this all about, Noah? You promised you wouldn’t hide anything from me! Why are you so worked up over the locket?"

Kiev and Elis turned to Noah for an answer, but Garin quickly interjected, "Let’s not make any statements before Sir Navin is here."

"You’re leaving us clueless here, Sir Skyler. Why can’t you reveal what this locket is related to?" Kiev pressed.

"I don’t wish for anyone to make premature assumptions. We’ll find out once Sir Navin arrives," Garin replied. "Also, I apologise for my comrade’s actions. I’m sure Sir Brooks didn’t intend to scare Miss Canton, as this is a sensitive issue for him."

"I don’t understand..." Emily said, looking confused.

"Emily, I—"

"Sir Brooks!" Garin interjected, shaking his head to signal the knight to stop. "We’ll wait for Sir Navin."

"But, Sir Skyler! I am sure—"

"I said we’ll wait for him!" the third-in-command knight pressed firmly, and Noah relented with a sigh.

The group stood in silence, waiting for Eric’s arrival. Not long after, the second-in-command knight appeared with a stern look on his face.

"What did you do now, Sir Brooks? You just left my office, vowing you wouldn’t disappoint me, and here you are causing a commotion again in less than an hour!" he yelled, stomping his feet as he rushed to them. Behind him, Luke followed.

"I did nothing!" Noah defended himself.

"Nothing?! I heard you acted rudely towards Miss Canton and took her possession by force! How dare you!" Eric reprimanded.

"Glad you’re not siding with him! This matter shouldn’t be taken lightly! He should be punished for what he did to my woman! This time, there will be no sparing for him!" Kiev declared.

"What?!" Noah exclaimed, feeling annoyed.

Still holding the locket, Garin raised his hand, gesturing for everyone to calm down as he approached Eric.

"Before that, let’s sort this matter out first. Sir Navin, I want you to take a look at this locket. Can you identify it?" he said as he handed the item to the second-in-command knight.

Eric raised an eyebrow, but instead of probing further, he took the locket and examined it closely. After scrutinising it for a moment, his grey eyes widened.

"Does this belong to you, Miss Canton?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes! I told them already that my sister gifted it to me! She made it herself! I have one, and she has one, too!" Elis replied.

Eric’s face turned solemn.

"Your sister... where is she right now?" he asked.

"I don’t know! The knights of Abinar... they took her with them! They said if I allowed it, they would spare her from becoming a slave! I never see her again after that!" Elis said.

"When did they take her?" asked Noah anxiously.

"Around two years ago, they said they would send her off to become a maid somewhere after helping them with a task, but they never told me where!" the woman replied. Confused, she questioned back, "Why are you asking about my sister?"

Alarmed, Noah turned to the second-in-command knight.

"Sir Navin, could it be..." he implied, but Eric abruptly stopped him.

"Before I give a definite answer, can you describe your sister? What does she look like?" asked the second-in-command knight to Elis.

"She has blonde hair, and her eyes are blue, just like mine. But we don’t look alike. She inherited my father’s features, and I resemble my mother," said Elis.

"The description matches..." Eric muttered to himself.

Garin heard him and said quietly, "It’s not enough to say they are the same person, Sir Navin. Also, about the locket... if we were to verify it, we would need to dig the victim’s grave to take it out."

The two knights were careful with their conversation, aware that the situation was becoming more sensitive.

"There’s no need for that," the second-in-command knight said in a hushed tone. "I have it with me."

"How come?" Garin asked, surprised.

"I took it since His Highness asked me to investigate. I’ve been carrying it with me, and whenever I had a chance, I asked around to see if I could gather any information, but to no avail."

"Then... can you take it out to compare?" requested Garin.

Eric nodded and slipped his hand into the internal pocket of his frock coat. He took out a small pouch and produced another wooden locket.

"It’s the same!" Noah exclaimed, his keen eyes catching the identical features of the lockets.

Seeing another locket that resembled hers, Elis said, "Is that..."

Her forehead creased as she gulped nervously.

The lockets were indeed identical, and there was no doubt that the same person made them. Garin and Eric wore grave expressions as if they were both thinking the same thing.

"Elis, wait!" Kiev exclaimed, holding her hand to stop her as she stepped forward to look at the lockets.

"I need to see them, Kiev!" she insisted.

The Mederian Prince hesitated, fearing the worst. He had overheard the hushed conversation between the two knights and was concerned that the findings would hurt Elis. But she deserved to know...

Kiev reluctantly released her hand, allowing Elis to approach. However, Garin stood before her, blocking her view with his burly frame.

"Let me have a look, Sir Skyler! You were comparing my locket with another! Just let me see them!" she urged.

"Allow me to investigate this first, Miss Canton. I don’t want you to be disturbed by what you might see. We don’t have enough evidence to confirm our suspicions," he replied.

Elis’s heart sank upon hearing his words. She sensed that something was terribly wrong.

"Sir Skyler, please allow me!" she pleaded once more.

"Miss Canton, just hold on for a moment!"

"Brother!" Elis suddenly called out, surprising everyone. Garin, in particular, was taken aback.

"You said you wouldn’t deny my request if I ever called you my brother, didn’t you?" Elis implored. "Didn’t you say I’m like a sister to you?"

Garin sighed, torn by her request. Everyone knew they were close, as he had cared for her since she first arrived at Gerhard’s Castle.

"Let her see them for herself, Sir Skyler," Eric instructed.

Reluctantly, Garin stepped aside, allowing Elis to come forward. Eric carefully placed the two lockets in her palms. As she examined them, her eyes widened in shock.

"This... this definitely belongs to my sister!" she exclaimed, lifting her gaze to Eric in disbelief. "Why do you have it?"

Eric took a deep breath before revealing, "The other locket belonged to the slave woman whom Sir Brooks was accused of r*ping and m*rdering. I’ve kept it with me all this time."

Elis’s face turned pale, and horror glinted in her eyes. Her mouth fell open in shock as she took a few steps back, clutching the locket tightly.

"It can’t be! It can’t be!" she cried, realising they were suggesting that her sister was the victim.

Kiev swiftly hurried to hold her from behind and tried to console her.

"It might not be her! Sir Skyler and Sir Navin haven’t confirmed it yet!" he said.

Elis turned her eyes to the Mederian Prince, tears brimming as she trembled.

"The description that Miss Canton gave just now about her sister matches that of the slave woman. However, it’s too vague to say they are the same person," said Eric.

His statement brought hope to Elis.

"The victim might have taken it from someone or somewhere. She might not be your sister," Emily speculated, trying to ease her friend’s heart.

Given the circumstances, it would be even worse if the dead slave woman turned out to be Elis’s sister. Noah would be put in an awkward position.

Elis trembled, fervently praying that was the truth. Although the probability of the locket being taken from her sister was low, as it held no value for anyone except for her, it was still a possibility.

"So, how do we confirm this?" Garin broke the silence.

Eric shot a brooding gaze at the third-in-command knight. After a moment, his eyes slightly widened, indicating something had come to his mind.

"Get Sir McQuinn here!" he suddenly exclaimed.

"Sir McQuinn?" Noah furrowed his brow, wondering why the knight’s name was mentioned. "Why is he required?"

Eric’s expression turned confident.

"Because he has a skill we don’t have!"