The Hidden King's Stolen Wife
Chapter 85: Strange Instinct II

Chapter 85: Strange Instinct II

Prince Florian, Prince Reitan, and the two guards’ eyes widened in a mixture of horror, awe, and disbelief. Snow fell from the sky as the surrounding temperature dropped by several degrees, creating a bone-chilling cold to surround everyone even with their thick furs and clothing.

In the shape of a crescent, a semi-circle of ice spikes had sprouted from the ground, its sharp and jagged rips pointed straight for the guard and Florian. The layer of ice glistened, a thin layer of mist surrounding it.

Soleia’s shoulder lifted and dropped as she breathed heavily, staring at the scene before her. She was equally shocked, but she didn’t spare a single second, not when she could still feel magic dancing at her fingertips.

While she wasn’t sure what happened and how it happened, Soleia knew she didn’t have the time to study that now. What she needed was to get Reitan out of there.

She lurched forward, making use of the time the guards and Florian were trapped in a stunned stupor, and grabbed the guard’s hand. Ice quickly burst forth from her palm, encasing the man’s wrist in ice as he let go of Reitan, the chill nipping through his skin as he yelped in pain.

Soleia caught Reitan, bent down, and hoisted him into her arms in one swift movement.

"Hold onto me," Soleia instructed, and her brother obeyed. He fought through the pain and looped his good arm around Soleia’s neck, his eyes glued onto the three men as Soleia turned on her heel and darted out of the alleyway.

"What the fuck are you guys doing?!" Florian’s voice could faintly still be heard, bouncing off the walls of the buildings. "Get her!"

That was the last Soleia heard from him, her feet thudding against the ground as she sprinted out into the open market. She twisted and turned, weaving her and Reitan through the sea of bodies as her eyes scanned the crowd for Sir Ralph.

He wasn’t with Reitan, and she didn’t know where he could be. But he should be near.

Soleia turned back, her face paling as she noticed the men approaching from behind. They hadn’t spotted her yet, but she wasn’t going to let them. Turning, Soleia ducked, using the crowd as her shield as she tried her best to proceed forward.

’Ralph,’ she thought desperately in her head. ’Where are you?’

***

"I have no clue what you are talking about, Prince Rafael," Eloywn said, her chin tilted up defiantly. But her confidence and stubbornness merely caused Rafael to scoff.

He clicked his tongue in dismay. The coppery scent of blood was chokingly strong, filling the entire room with its nauseating scent. But Rafael didn’t flinch. After all, this wasn’t even a fraction of the amount of bloodshed he was used to.

On the other hand, Elowyn’s nose wrinkled when the blood blade was pointed straight at her. She tried her hardest to maintain a straight face, but her nose still wrinkled at the awful smell. Rafael could even spot the slight tremble of her lips.

"You may be good, but even the best have their shortcomings," Rafael said. He held up the urn, the crest of the Wynsler family clearly visible. Then, he gestured to the crest on the sword. "Have you finally agreed to accept my brother’s marriage proposal?"

Elowyn sneered. That was all Rafael needed to know. He laughed, shaking his head as he recognized that signature expression.

How could he have missed this? The signs were so clear. Either she was a better actress than he thought, or Rafael was seriously losing his touch.

Rafael would’ve loved to play with his food a little more, but a sudden ache in his body caused his eyebrows to furrow. Then, he felt it again. This time, the pain was a little stronger― nothing debilitating, but it was ever-present.

The problem? He was nowhere near injured, and Elowyn was nowhere capable of injuring him physically. That could only mean...

Rafael’s eyes widened with realization as he turned on his heel and darted out of the building. The moment he left, every bit of blood that had solidified before returned to its original liquid form, splashing to the floor and staining Elowyn’s dress and coat with blood.

However, he didn’t bother even as he heard the yells that came from the woman he had left behind. Instead, Rafael’s feet merely moved faster, taking off in a sprint as he headed straight for the marketplace.

Soleia. That pain could only come from Soleia, no one else. The blood bangle was working as it should.

He quickly found his way back into the busy market street, and his eyes scanned through the crowd, easily finding Soleia. She ducked low, looking over her shoulder every once in a while before adjusting the object in her hands― no, person. Prince Reitan was in her arms.

Rafael followed her line of sight, quickly finding the two men that she was watching and running from. Without a second thought, he crossed the sea of bodies to reach her side.

"Princess," he called out once he was close enough, careful not to raise his voice too loud in fear of catching the attention of her pursuers. "Princess, what happened?"

Soleia looked up at the sound of the familiar voice. When Sir Ralph appeared before her right as she had uttered words of prayer in her chest, she thought he was an angel that had descended from the heavens above. A choked sob escaped her lips as the nerves that had been tensed up since she started her search for Reitan finally relaxed, and she leaned into Ralph’s open and awaiting arms.

"Ralph..." she choked out, her voice shaky and breathless. "It’s Reitan. His arm―"

"Let’s find somewhere safe," Ralph said, and Soleia nodded.

When she turned her attention away, allowing Ralph to lead her to safety, the latter looked up at the roof closest to where he had last seen those two men. His eyes met with Oliver’s, and Rafael nodded at the two men who were still searching for Soleia.

Oliver, who was no more than a speck that blended in with the building, made a sign. Rafael turned away and looked at Soleia.

They quickly left the marketplace and stopped by the road, away from the hustle and bustle. There was no one in sight, other than a few woodland creatures that had ventured too far from the forest and onto the road that led back to the palace.

Once they were safe, Soleia put Reitan down, helping him to sit on the stone fence at the side of the road. Rafael frowned when the boy grunted weakly in pain. He looked at Soleia, his expression stern.

"Tell me what happened," Rafael said.

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