16 Prince and Lady

***

Calden Castle

Lanercoast

In the morning, the situation in Calden City was already tense. The people were not allowed to leave their homes.

The soldiers were on full alert at every crossroads, preventing the people from leaving their homes. The southern district of Calden City was completely deserted and suspenseful.

"Is Lady Sera not awake yet?" asked Edgar.

The middle-aged man named Lord of Helferich sat on a horse with full equipment: iron armour, a longsword at the waist, and a red furry coat with a white eagle crest in the centre.

"This morning, I checked her chambers. She's not awake yet," Quentin replied.

Prince Quentin also wore the same plate armour and equipment as Edgar. The men and soldiers would head south, while the women would stay at Calden Castle for cover.

"She must be devastated to realize her marriage to Edmund failed, let alone knowing that Prince Alexander disappeared as well," Edgar replied.

"Lady Sera must be suffering from all this trouble; Prince Edmund must be responsible," Quentin explained firmly.

One of the hussars came into the castle, clearly telling Lord Edgar and Prince Quentin that Helferich's soldiers were already on alert on the north side of the Avarde river.

Edgar nodded. The fallout from Lady Sera coming to Lanercoast illegally had made House Lorelei and Helferich's relationship very tense.

That was why all the people in the southern district of Calden city were instructed to stay home. Edgar promised them that this matter would be resolved quickly.

"Alright. We're leaving," Edgar stated.

As the two were about to horse out of Calden Castle, someone from the fourth floor called Edgar and Quentin.

The two men spontaneously stopped their riding, turning their faces back to stare at the woman who had called out to them.

"Lady Sera! She's awake," Lady Arabelle stated.

Edgar nodded, looking to the left side precisely at Quentin. The look indirectly told Quentin to go meet Lady Arabelle while Edgar would go to the southern outpost of Lanercoast.

The man with a dashing body quickly left Calden Castle, accompanied by several soldiers. Ten cavalry soldiers rode with Edgar.

Quentin dismounted, gave the horse's saddle rope to one of the soldiers and then walked quickly inside the castle.

Lady Sera still looked terrified. She threw several items in the chamber at those who tried to approach her.

People in Avolire or Redfair often said that the people in Lanercoast were typical of the wicked, rapist, slave traders, and other negative terms they addressed to Helferich.

There were Arabelle, Marcela, and Princess Mary. The three girls were trying to calm Lady Sera, who was now injured from falling off the horse, her cheek bruised and her hand bleeding.

"Get away from me!" shouted Lady Sera.

The sound of the yell rang out from the room where Lady Sera was being treated. Quentin could hear it.

The chamber door opened, revealing a handsome man in a suit of plate armour and a red furry coat with a white eagle crest.

Lady Sera was wide-eyed, having no idea Princess Mary and Prince Quentin were still alive.

"S-So, you are both still alive?" asked Lady Sera, pointing at Quentin standing tall and healthy.

Quentin quickly glanced at Lady Sera, then turned his face to the right side, looking at Lady Arabelle.

"How is she?" asked Quentin.

"She's recovering, but we couldn't check on her this morning right after she woke up," stated Arabelle, annoyed that Lady Sera continued to rebel.

"How did you end up with this wicked person?" asked Lady Sera.

"Did the people in Avolire tell you that, Lady Sera?" asked Quentin, Lady Sera nodding firmly.

Quentin smiled, walking closer to Lady Sera. The closer Quentin walked to her, Lady Sera showed her fear until she was backed into the corner of the chamber.

"Those vile people you mentioned, they saved your life and took care of you here. Is this how Lady Lorelei thanks?" asked Quentin.

Lady Sera rounded her eyes. The cautious demeanour she had always displayed began to fade at the facial expressions shown by Arabelle and the others.

"But Castlebourne said you were dead," Lady Sera replied.

"They're just trying to throw us off the throne. That was Prince Edmund's command," Quentin insisted.

The lady was shocked to hear that, never having thought Prince Edmund would plan such a cunning thing.

Lady Sera stared intently at Quentin, walking over to her bed again and sitting right on it. Quentin nodded, ordering the servants to treat the wounds on Lady Sera's body.

"Last night, you really surprised every one of us. The consequence of you breaking into Lanercoast's borders is a potential war," revealed Quentin.

"War?" asked Lady Sera, startled.

"Currently, two army camps are gathering near the Avarde River: House Lorelei and House Helferich. There are certainly 30,000 soldiers there," stated Quentin.

"House Lorelei is trying to retake you while we are trying to protect our land. You need to remember that Lorelei and Helferich have no diplomatic relations at all," Quentin continued.

"I have to go there to prevent a war from happening," Lorelei insisted.

Quentin held Lady Sera's body gently as she was about to leave her bed. The attitude Quentin showed made Lady Sera puzzled.

"Aren't you afraid that a war might break out?" asked Lady Sera.

"No, I'm not. There won't be a war anyway, even though we're having an unpleasant dispute right now," Quentin replied.

"The Lorelei suffered many defeats in the war with Helferich. However, it is the Lorelei who are being pressed right now," Quentin stated.

"Lord Caspian is a wise man. He wouldn't act without thinking. Risking tens of thousands of troops to save his daughter in the hard-to-conquer land of Lanercoast is a big gamble!" countered Quentin.

"Then what should I do to keep the situation in Avarde from growing tense?" asked Lady Sera.

Quentin was happy to hear Lady Sera ask such a question. It proved Lady Sera didn't know what to do and needed Quentin's advice.

The prince before Lady Sera turned his gaze to the side, telling the servants who were treating Lady Sera to leave for a moment. Not only the servants but also Arabelle, Marcela, and Princess Mary.

Quentin wanted to talk to Lady Sera in private as it concerned the safety of both sides. Arabelle nodded, understanding what Quentin wanted to do.

They began to walk out of the chamber one by one, leaving Quentin alone with Lady Sera.

"Why did you escape from Avolire?" asked Quentin, starting the conversation.

"Why do you ask that?" asked Lady Sera.

"I need information regarding your reasons for leaving Avolire. I will use it to conclude a solution I will provide you," Quentin replied.

Lady Sera was silent, then nodded after sighing softly. She made it clear that she had left Avolire because she did not want the officials in Avolire to conflict over it.

"Since Prince Edmund decided to replace his future queen, the officials in Avolire have been disputing and questioning Lorelei's status in the alliance with Reingard," Lady Sera explained.

"The chaos came to a head when news broke of Prince Alexander's disappearance," Lady Sera added.

"I fled from there, hoping they could figure out a solution to this problem together. However, it seems I created a bigger problem instead," Lady Sera replied, looking downcast.

"It's unfortunate what happened to Prince Alexander. If only we'd saved him in time, perhaps you wouldn't have suffered the current fate," Quentin replied.

"Rescued him? Who was he kidnapped by?" asked Lady Sera.

"Haven't you heard the gossip among the merchants? Prince Alexander is being held captive by House Archibald for committing a crime," replied Prince Quentin.

"What? A crime?" asked Lady Sera, shocked.

Quentin cleared his throat. He pulled up a wooden chair and poured warm tea into two wooden glasses, one for him and the other for Lady Sera.

The prince began to sip the warm green tea in one gulp, unlike Lady Sera, who was still shocked at what she was hearing from Quentin.

"There is no way Prince Alexander would do such a thing," Lady Sera replied.

"I didn't want to believe the rumour at first either, but after finding out about Alexander's bad behaviour and connecting it to this rumour, I felt that there was a bit of fact hidden in the gossip," Quentin explained.

"He does have a bad attitude, getting into fights, drinking, and even booking whores in a pleasure house," Lady Sera reveals.

"Alcohol makes a person lose their mind. When he couldn't think straight, he was probably committing those crimes," Quentin retorted.

"What crime did Alexander commit that he had to be kept in House Archibald?" asked Lady Sera.

Quentin was silent and poured the drink back into his glass. Lady Sera began to drink the green tea available in her glass.

The prince placed the teapot filled with green tea onto the wooden nightstand, then refocused his eyes on Lady Sera sitting before him.

"Do I have to explain it to you?" asked Quentin.

Lady Sera nodded, asking Quentin to explain the rumours circulating in the society in more detail, "I want to know."

"He kidnapped a girl and raped her at an inn," Quentin replied.

"Some people also say he stole some jewellery and gold from city officials. There's no detailed information on Alexander's crimes yet, but those are the only two things I've heard about," Quentin revealed.

"That bastard! His bad attitude will lead him to the brink of evil," Lady Sera growled.

"That's why you should stay here. Calden Castle will serve you as well as if you were in Avolire," Quentin retorted.

"Why?" asked Lady Sera.

"The longer you remain here, the more frustrated Lorelei will become. They will ask Castlebourne to decide immediately on Alexander's whereabouts," Quentin replied.

"Eventually, they will determine a definitive solution to this problem. Once that happens, you can return home safely," Quentin interjected.

"Very well. I will do exactly as you say."