Chapter 64: Chapter 14. Long-awaited relief

The forest where the hunt took place with the participation of the Northern Duchess and the Crown Princess of the Ruven Empire was turned upside down.

The search for the Duke’s youngest daughter had been going on for several hours, and so far had yielded no results. The situation, which was not developing in the best way, was escalating more and more.

— My fiancee has disappeared on your territory, — Kaena de Ronan said through gritted teeth, — Duchess, how are you going to take responsibility for this?

Serious sparks flared between the two dignitaries. Nevertheless, Celina de Loon, keeping her face impassive, calmly replied to her:

— Your Highness, there is no doubt that I am to blame for what happened... My people failed to take proper care of security. I will do everything in my power to help you in your search.

— Really? — The Crown Princess smiled evilly, — You should know that if even a single hair falls from Camilla’s head, I’m afraid I won’t be able to resist grabbing your dear hubby’s neck and wringing it.

— .....

Kaena’s gaze resembled a beast stalking its prey. She slowly looked at the Prince of the north, who was standing to the side, as if to say, "I’m letting you go now, but I’ll come to finish you off." Under that look, Jeremy, who had only narrowly escaped mortal danger not so long ago, almost had his heart stop.

— Your Highness, are you threatening my husband again? — Selina intervened sharply, — Didn’t we agree to refrain from making any accusations until the end of the trial?

The Crown Princess snorted in annoyance.

— Duchess, that’s what you decided. In turn, I have the right to sentence to death anyone whose place of residence falls under the jurisdiction of this Empire.

— I also told you that I’m not going to stay away!

Because of these two, the temperature in the already cold forest dropped by another ten degrees.

At this rate, the joint hunt, which was originally supposed to be a pleasant entertainment, threatened to turn into a declaration of war between the North and the Heilos residence.

In this oppressive atmosphere, Jeremy’s body tensed until it turned into a frozen statue. It was so quiet that you could hear the north wind blowing. Of course, he blamed himself for the incident in the first place.

"Camilla protected me from that arrow, but I couldn’t protect her..." this thought painfully reproached the northern prince. If only he had been the first to notice and prevent this, then everything would have turned out differently.

Jeremy de Loon couldn’t figure out who that arrow could belong to. And perhaps more importantly, who was her ultimate target. Surely it couldn’t be that one of the angry servants of the ice castle was so unhappy with the fact that he was the duchess’ husband that he even decided to make an attempt? The guy bit his lip nervously at the thought.

However, that wasn’t the most important thing right now. First of all, it was necessary to find Camille. Jeremy hoped with all his heart that nothing serious had happened to his girlfriend.

It’s different...

The rage of Kaena de Ronan, who was like a beast that had broken loose, would simply destroy them all. This threatened to have disastrous consequences not only for those present here, but also for the entire northern region. It seemed that the declaration of war between the Heilos Residence and the Duchy of de Lune was just around the corner. And Jeremy sincerely hoped that they would all be able to avoid the most deplorable outcome.

If this woman had really wanted to take his life, the baron’s son would have been mutilated, and his entire body, from head to toe, would have been thrown into the icy river in small pieces.

And it wasn’t a metaphor, it could be his immediate future!

While Jeremy was trembling all over and at the same time desperately praying, salvation came suddenly, when he was not expected at all.

«!!!»

Camille de Walt suddenly came out of the woods as if nothing had happened, and perhaps it was Jeremy de Loon who breathed a sigh of relief at that moment more than anyone else.

"Are we all saved?!"

— Camille!

The Crown Princess’s golden eyes widened in surprise.

In less than a split second, Kaena jumped up and wrapped the girl in her arms. She hugged her tightly. Embracing her so tightly that she could have broken, Camilla almost suffocated from lack of oxygen at that moment.

Everyone present froze, holding their breath.

— What happened? Where have you been? — The princess immediately began to question her, finally pulling away.

Kaena stared intently at her face. Perhaps because she had been out in the cold for a long time, the girl’s body was trembling and her face was pale.

The duke’s youngest daughter hesitated and couldn’t formulate her answer for a long time.

— Oh, me... I briefly lost consciousness after falling off my horse. But, fortunately, nothing serious happened, — she mumbled, realizing.

— Lost consciousness? — Jeremy was somewhat surprised to hear this version.

If that were the case, he would definitely have been able to find the girl, because he himself carefully searched the area before reporting the incident to the others. And although these words seemed strange to him, he wasn’t the one who was most worried right now.

— Are you sure you’re okay? — Kaena couldn’t stop asking her about it. She carefully examined the girl from head to toe, looking for any scratches.

— Yes, everything is fine... I’m just a little dizzy, — Camille stammered.

Kaena frowned and looked at the forest in front of her with a murderous gaze, as if she wanted to burn it to ashes. But still, she had to suppress her anger now. In the end, there was something more important than that.

— Don’t move.

Suddenly, everything swayed in front of the duke’s daughter’s eyes.

When Camilla discovered that the villainess of the novel had picked her up like a princess, she was embarrassed and exhaled sharply.

— Uh... n-not necessary. I can walk on my own.

The girl was terribly embarrassed to be in this position in front of many people, so she began to stutter. But Kaena ignored her words.

Instead of answering, the Crown Princess hurried off somewhere, carrying the duke’s daughter in her arms.

— We’ll get into the carriage now.

Piercing eyes the color of molten gold and a tense face. It seems that she was really very angry.

— But where... — Camille asked, stammering.

— We’re going back to the Heilos Residence, — the princess said sharply.

When I heard that we were leaving the northern residence so suddenly, I looked at her in surprise. However, from the tone in which the woman said it, it was clear that this decision was not up for discussion.

I looked guiltily at Jeremy, who seemed to want to say something to me, but couldn’t. He and the rest of the audience remained standing behind, while the Crown Princess swiftly carried me away.

Before the forest thicket finally disappeared from my field of vision, I looked back at it one last time.

The duke’s daughter’s face showed excitement.

"Her Second Highness... I hope she keeps her promise."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read