The Hero's Forsaken Princess
Chapter 176: Another Traitor

Chapter 176: Another Traitor

Gideon’s lips curled up into a satisfied smile upon hearing Princess Eve’s declaration.

’She follows no king, no kingdom. She creates her own path! Indeed, she is worthy to be a ruler of her own,’ he thought, feeling proud of Eve.

"So what are we going to do next, Princess?" Gideon asked her, the smile on his face never left.

Eve glanced at Gideon meaningfully. "Come with me. I’ll go and visit the slum."

"How about the pack of dire wolves and Zephyr?"

After hearing that question, Eve shifted her gaze back to General Ravenmoor.

"You and your knights must not leave your post. Stay here in the border and do nothing. If you make a move or approach the stone knights, the dire wolves and the dragon will attack you right away," she warned him.

"What! You petrified the army of our enemy kingdom. And now, you are ordering me to do nothing. What are you up to, Princess Eve? " General Ravenmoor questioned her.

Eve narrowed her eyes at him. "I changed my mind. You are coming with us! Grab him, Gideon."

Before General Ravenmoor could react, Gideon swiftly moved, knocking him down.

"There is something I need to ask him. We should bring him with us to the slum area. The members of the 5th Battalion are waiting for us."

"I understand, Princess Eve."

Gideon carried General Ravenmoor over his shoulder. As they were about to enter the border gate, they were blocked by several knights.

"Princess Eve, what are you going to do with our general? Please put him down." A knight tried to talk to them.

"Let us pass. This is an order. I am still your princess. If you dare stop me, you will meet the same fate as them." Princess Eve pointed her finger at the petrified army.

The fear was evident in their eyes. The knights stepped back, giving way to Eve and Gideon.

"Let me borrow your carriage," she requested the knights.

Eve stepped into the carriage with Gideon and the unconscious general. Aerin, the mystifcal fox, and four dire wolves followed and escorted their carriage as they left the border gate.

Since General Ravenmoor was taken by Princess Eve and Gideon, the Averion Knights had no choice but to obey her command. They couldn’t afford to offend the third princess, who was controlling dire wolves and a mighty dragon.

"Gideon, I think... the fastest way to reach the slum area is to ride Zephyr. Is it okay if I summon him here and let him carry our carriage?" Eve consulted Gideon first.

"If you are in a hurry to meet Caleb and the others, then we should ask for Zephyr’s help." Gideon always considered Eve’s decision and obeyed her.

"Yes. I need to see them as soon as possible. Besides, Captain Alucard and others will be arriving at the palace in just a few days. We can easily catch up with them through Zephyr."

"Okay. Princess. I understand."

Getting Gideon’s permission, Eve immediately summoned Zephyr.

"Zephyr, please give us a ride. We have to go somewhere." She talked to him through their mind link.

"Master, I’m on my way!"

It didn’t take long before Zephyr reached them. He carefully lifted the carriage with his paws and flew in the direction of the slum area. Within an hour, they landed near the outskirts of the slum.

They made sure to conceal Zephyr’s presence in order not to scare the people living in the slum.

"Zephyr, please go back to the border. I’ll summon you back once we are done here." Eve gave him another command.

"Alright, Master. I shall leave now. I’ll keep watching our army."

As Zephyr flew away, Gideon and Eve entered the slum area. The village had improved a lot. The residents maintained the cleanliness. It was now a peaceful village.

Eve couldn’t help but feel happy as she observed her surroundings. The people learned how to do farming. Some of them started their own business as merchants. The children were given formal education for free. They also had intelligent people studying herbal medicines.

"It’s been three months since we left this village. I’m so happy to see the improvement in their way of living. The crime rate and number of diseases have decreased. The Village Chief is doing a great job managing the villagers, and the members of the 5th Battalion did their best to renovate and reconstruct the houses."

Eve became more emotional as she looked at her surroundings. "Alaric will be happy once he sees this. I hope he is here with us."

She couldn’t hide her sadness when she mentioned Alaric’s name. She already missed him. It would’ve been nice if he were there with her.

"The hero’s wife is back! The hero’s wife is back!" Little Leon shouted as soon as he spotted Eve.

Caleb turned around and followed Leon’s line of sight. He was surprised to see Princess Eve and Gideon. Caleb was doing a routine patrol with Randolf when he heard Leon’s voice.

Sera, who was nearby, noticed the arrival of Gideon and Eve. Without further ado, she immediately approached the two.

"Princess Eve! I’m glad to see you here! Is General Alaric with you? Is he safe now? Where is our general?" Sera bombarded her with so many questions. She couldn’t hide her concern for Alaric’s well-being.

Gideon looked at Eve worriedly. He also stepped into the middle, keeping Sera away from Eve.

On the other hand, Eve couldn’t look straight into Sera’s eyes. She knew that Alaric was very important to Sera. This woman also loved Alaric.

"He is not with us. Alaric is still in Kingdom Zephyra. But don’t worry. After this, you will see him again," Eve said, consoling Sera.

Sera fell silent upon hearing that. She couldn’t understand why Eve returned without Alaric.

"Did something bad happen to our general? Why would you leave him alone?" Sera raised her voice, unable to control her emotions. She was about to grab Eve, but Gideon was quick enough to stop her.

"Princess Eve has no obligation to answer you. Show her some respect!" Gideon said in his stern, cold voice, his hand gripping her wrists tightly.

"Gideon, it’s alright. Let her go."

Gideon heaved a sigh of defeat before releasing Sera’s hand. At that moment, Caleb and Randolf joined them. Little Leon wanted to accompany them; however, Caleb told him to go back to school.

"Princess Eve, Gideon, why are here?" Caleb asked them expectantly.

"Let’s go somewhere where we can talk properly," Eve simply replied.

"Oh right, the 5th Battalion built our barracks here. We can go there." Randolf suggested.

"We brought General Ravenmoor with us. He is sleeping inside the carriage. Can you bring him to the barracks, Randolf?" Gideon requested.

Caleb, Randolf, and Sera were taken aback. General Ravenmoor was supposedly guarding the border. They wondered why Eve and Gideon brought him there.

Seeing the confusion in their eyes, Eve spoke up. "I’ll explain everything once we reach the barracks."

Everyone moved, heading to the barracks. The other members were so glad to see Princess Eve.

"Princess Eve is here!"

"Miles, tell your brothers! Princess Eve and Gideon are with Commander Sera and Commander Caleb."

The knights started to talk about Princess Eve and Gideon. They were hoping that the two had updates about their general.

Meanwhile, inside the barracks, the four people gathered around while waiting for Randolf.

"The reason I brought General Ravenmoor here is to interrogate him. While staying in Kingdom Zephyra, I discovered something. Chancellor Igrin was not the only person who disclosed our assassination plan."

"According to Crown Prince Leonard, Chancellor Gustav received a secret message. As they investigated the source, they found out that the messenger bird was from Kingdom Averion. The proof shows that the message came from a member of General Ravenmoor’s battalion."

Sera and Caleb clenched their fists upon hearing that revelation. They were not surprised if that message came from a member of General Ravenmoor’s battalion. General Ravenmoor always hated Alaric and the 5th Battalion.

"Does it mean our fellow knight betrayed us!" Caleb said through his gritted teeth.

Princess Eve nodded in response.

"So you suspect General Ravenmoor is the traitor?" Sera asked Eve.

"Yes. Only the high-ranking officials were aware of our assassination plan. I strongly believe that General Ravenmoor is the one who leaked the information to our enemies," Eve responded with certainty.

"Damn it! What are we waiting for?! We should get an answer from General Ravenmoor!" Sera blurted out, feeling impatient. She was enraged to think that a fellow knight betrayed them.

"Calm down. General Ravenmoor holds a higher military position than us. If we interrogate and blame him without evidence, we can get in trouble. He is also from a noble clan." Caleb thought of the possible consequences of their actions.

But Eve just gave them a reassuring smile. "I have a way to make him speak the truth without forcing him."

"How?" Caleb and Sera asked her in unison.

Eve picked something up and showed them a potion bottle. Gideon smirked, remembering the last potion Eve had created.

"This is a truth serum," Eve said.