Eve had been avoiding Alaric for two weeks. She rarely talked to him. She only entertained Gideon and others.
They had just reached Averion’s border. They were now traversing the shortest route going to Kingdom Zephyra. They had to pass through a mountain and two wild forests.
As they continued their journey, Alaric was troubled by Eve’s cold treatnt. To vent his frustrations, he decided to hunt in the wild forest for their food. Alaric was alone in the forest.
Deep into the woods, he found a cave. Without hesitation, he charged forward to see what creature was hiding inside. The cave was dark and cold.
He lit a torch. All of a sudden, he was attacked by a colony of bats. They were bigger than ordinary bats.
The bats sward in his direction, flying erratically. Using their sharp teeth and claws, they attacked Alaric simultaneously.
Alaric fought them, swinging his swords. He slashed a few more bats until he was able to clear his path. He got a few scratches on his face and arms.
Alaric put down his torch and sat down on the ground, panting heavily. He stayed there for a few minutes, trying to clear his mind.
"Why? Why is she treating like a stranger now? What have I done wrong?" Alaric began questioning himself, covering his face using both hands.
He was confused and feeling helpless. His wife suddenly changed.
"I thought communication was the key. But she avoids talking to . How will I know what she is thinking?" Alaric punched the ground. He repeated his actions several tis until he got tired.
He felt so miserable right now. But he didn’t want his comrades to see him like this. They had an important mission. Showing his vulnerability to them might affect their performance. So he chose to be alone while everyone was resting in the carriage.
"General Alaric?! Are you there?" Caleb’s voice was heard at the entrance of the cave.
Alaric didn’t respond. However, he heard footsteps coming his way. Caleb had found him.
"Alaric!" He called out worriedly as he ran toward him. "Are you hurt? What happened here?"
He thought Alaric was injured because he was just sitting on the ground. His fist was covered with blood. His face also had a few scratches.
"I’m fine," Alaric simply responded.
Caleb heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing that.
"Everyone is waiting for you. We are having lunch. Miles and Randolf caught fish in the river. They grilled them." Caleb inford him.
"Go ahead. Eat with them. I’m just going to stay here for a while. I don’t have an appetite. I’m not hungry," Alaric replied, closing his eyes as though he was taking a nap.
Caleb took a deep sigh. "Is Princess Eve still avoiding you?"
There was a mont of silence between them.
Caleb sat down next to him and wrapped his arm around Alaric’s shoulders. "If you need soone to talk to, I’m just here. I’m your best friend, rember?"
"I don’t know what I did wrong. She doesn’t want to talk to ," Alaric spoke up, tugging his hair tightly.
"I’m getting jealous too. She beca closer to Gideon while she appeared so distant from ," he added, confiding his feelings.
"Hmm. I think Princess Eve is also having a hard ti. I caught her staring at you when you were not looking. She still cares about you," Caleb said, consoling her troubled friend.
Alaric just fell silent. He didn’t know what to do.
"I have an idea! We can check if my assumption is right or wrong." Caleb snapped his fingers as an idea popped up in his mind.
Alaric just looked at him puzzledly. Then Caleb leaned closer and whispered sothing to Alaric.
anwhile, Randolf and others had prepared their lunch. They called everyone including Princess Eve and Gideon. Only Alaric and Caleb were not around.
"We can start eating. We will keep so food for our General and Commander. They might be busy hunting in the forest," Randolf said.
Eve instinctively glanced in the direction of the forest. Alaric had been gone for an hour. Caleb followed him to bring Alaric back. However, until now, the two of them hadn’t returned yet.
Noticing the worried look in her eyes, Gideon approached Eve. "Don’t worry. They will be fine. Both of them are excellent fighters."
Eve didn’t say a word. She just focused her attention on the food. Everyone began eating, filling their hungry stomachs.
The team had finished their als but there was still no sign of Alaric and Caleb coming back.
"Big Bro, should we look for them? What if sothing happened during their hunts?" Miles asked Michael.
"This is a wild forest. Maybe they encountered strong wild beasts!" he added with concern.
Eve frowned when she heard that. It was so rare for Alaric and Caleb to be gone for so long. Did sothing happen to them?
Eve instinctively clenched her fists.
"Aside from wild beasts, they said a strong rcenary group is hiding here. What if they were captured by those n?" Miles couldn’t help but express his concern for their General and Commander.
"Hey, kid! You are overthinking!" Gideon butted in. "Alaric can eliminate an entire army alone. There is no way he is going to be defeated by a rcenary group." He said those words so that Eve would not worry too much.
"Yes, he can easily defeat his enemies if he is in good condition. However, lately, I noticed that General Alaric was troubled by sothing. He couldn’t fight if he was distracted. He is prone to make mistakes!" Miles retorted.
Everyone fell silent upon hearing Mile’s statent. They had to admit that Alaric had not doing good for the past few days. He looked tired and stressed. They knew that Princess Eve was one of the reasons.
"Damn it! We should find them!" Randolf blurted out with urgency.
For the first ti, Alaric’s comrades were not confident about their general’s fighting condition. They began worrying about his safety. They knew that their mighty general also had his weakness.
Eve suddenly felt uneasy hearing their words. She imdiately summoned Aerin, the mystical white fox.
"Aerin, go with them. Assist them in finding Alaric and Caleb," Eve gave her command to her mystical fox.
Even though Aerin hated Alaric, she couldn’t defy Eve’s command.
’I understand, my Queen. I’ll support them.’ Aerin responded through their mind link.
Randolf, Michael, and Dillon entered the forest with Aerin.
Miles, Lambert, and Franco were left behind to guard their carriages. anwhile, Gideon stayed by Eve’s side. As much as he wanted to help them, his main task was to keep Eve safe.
"Are you okay?" Gideon asked Eve who was staring at the forest.
Eve simply nodded, concealing her emotions.
"I’ll just take a nap inside the carriage. Just let know if they are back."
Eve sounded like she didn’t care. However, Gideon could tell that she was worried about Alaric. It’s just that she didn’t want to acknowledge her true feelings.
"Our princess is acting strange. Does she hate our general? Why is it that she doesn’t look worried at all?" Franco asked his comrades.
Lambert elbowed Franco to shut his mouth. Princess Eve might hear him.
"It’s natural for a married couple to argue and fight. They will eventually reconcile and make up," Lambert said.
Miles nodded in agreent. "It’s true. As long as they love each other, they will conquer it all, fixing their problems."
Franco and Lambert chuckled.
"Where did you learn that, kid? Don’t tell us you are already in love!" Franco and Lambert teased their youngest knight.
An hour had passed, Randolf’s group returned. They were running as they shouted. "We need help! General is injured! Take the dicine kit!"
Eve hastily stepped out of the carriage upon hearing those words. Her heart instantly sank when she saw Caleb carrying the unconscious Alaric on his back. Everyone was running toward the carriage.
’What happened to him?’ Eve’s heart began beating so fast. She felt anxious and scared.
Unable to restrain herself, Eve found herself making her way to Alaric.
Everyone was so worried about him. They were supposed to be in a hundred percent fighting condition to accomplish their mission. Who would have thought that their general would get hurt in the middle of their journey?
"How is he? How did he get injured?" Eve asked Caleb.
Caleb gently put Alaric down on the ground.
"We found a cave. It was filled with wild beasts. We fought hard to escape. General Alaric seed distracted while fighting. Before I knew it, he had already collapsed on the ground."
Eve’s heart constricted upon seeing Alaric’s wounds. He is not wearing his protective armor. His clothes were soaked by his own blood.
’No! Alaric... you can’t die on ! You can’t!’ Eve’s body trembled in fear. She was supposed to treat his wound but she couldn’t move her body. She was so scared.
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