(Ferdel POV)
There were exactly three people who had a profound influence on my life.
Assisi, Silvia, and Caitel.
It was a long list when one thought of it for an extended period and short when it was thought just as fast. They were the most precious and loved people in my life, yet they were the most complex to be with too.
The last thing I mentioned regarding having a complicated relationship was my relationship with Caitel.
“The Princess has disappeared!!”
After capturing Ria, who ran away from Uprichit, Caitel only wanted to return as quickly as possible. Of course, it seemed to me like he was thinking about tormenting his daughter, who put him through hell, but I didn’t care because I knew that Ria would manage to win.
We arrived on the floating ship back to Agrigent because Caitel learned that the wagons were changed midway.
It happened precisely five hours after catching Ariadna.
Dozens of escorts and guards were placed front and back in her wagon; no one could do such a thing to Ria without Caitel’s knowledge. Why would Caitel even ask Ria to get into a wagon if he knew such plans were being conspired?
No prophet would even guess how Caitel would react when he learned the news that his daughter disappeared.
“Caitel, first…”
“Shut up, Ferdel.”
I tried to stop him before he did something, but I wasn’t of much help.
I couldn’t do it. In the end, there was nothing I could do except to stand and see what would happen.
Caitel didn’t trust the information and headed to the wagon himself. His foot stumbled at the information given to him, and after confirming her disappearance came the natural reaction.
Srrrrrng
The sound of his sword being pulled out.
He directed his sword towards the person handling the wagon.
The knight went pale at the sight of Caitel’s sword pointing at him.
With a voice devoid of any emotion, Caitel asked.
“Where is my daughter?”
“Y-Your Majesty.”
When the knight tried to say anything, the sword moved.
The blood on the sword made a red trajectory.
Most people didn’t know, but I knew about Caitel. He had no intention of sparing that man’s life.
If he did, he wouldn’t have asked.
When the tip of the sword touched the ground, the blood on the sword began to flow. Screams ruptured everywhere as the knight fell without a sound.
Another accident.
A person died in front of me, but that would be something any normal man would think. For me, the damned emperor created another problem.
Looking at that, I realized that I wasn’t normal either.
Since it was a mistake, I couldn’t even ask the Emperor to back down for killing a knight since he was unfaithful to his job. However, no one disagreed that Caitel’s act was cruel.
Caitel was too extreme.
Of course, I knew well about the massacre Caitel could do if he couldn’t control his anger. I knew that the real problem was yet to come.
“Where is my daughter? Huh?”
Caitel turned his attention to the other knights.
The next target, the knight, slowly watched the sword reaching his neck and trembled. He probably knew what was going to happen to him.
Of course, Caitel struck him without even giving the man a chance to respond. If I knew that the situation would turn so dire, I wouldn’t have let him go.
Screams from behind, people were swallowing their voices.
The situation already turned to the worst.
He killed two, yet Caitel’s anger didn’t reside. He was going crazy—the sound of harsh breath from a distance.
Caitel didn’t even care about the blood on his cheek and pointed the sword at his next victim.
“Will you tell me? Where did the princess go?”
Just my condolences to the poor lambs who were getting killed.
No knight could open their mouths because of the murders they were forced to see.
Caitel laughed; it wasn’t a real laugh. The knights were horrified at his hysterical laughter.
“Save me, Your Majesty, please spare me. I was wrong.”
“What did you do wrong?”
“I was wrong. Please, spare me…”
Ah, I couldn’t see it anymore.
I turned away, but I knew what happened based on the sound that erupted later.
The knight’s words got cut. When I turned my head back, I only saw Caitel shimmering in dark red blood.
“Terrible. Are these really my knights?”
I couldn’t bear to listen to his low voice.
He didn’t aim his words at anyone else other than the knights in the room.
Darkness.
Darkness filled my mind; I had to pay some nice amount as compensation to the knights’ family.
However, what bothered me was the fact that the bloody sword didn’t want to end.
“Enough. This is not the time to do that.”
I couldn’t stand and see the bloody situation he was creating; thus, I spoke, bringing in Caitel’s attention towards me.
The Emperor’s cold eyes were too overwhelming for me to endure.
Anger rose in his eyes.
Fortunately, although Caitel lost his cool, he didn’t lose his reason.
Caitel looked back at the knight and soldiers while holding his sword.
Such a fortunate one.
“Find her. Even if it means our death.”
His low voice was worse than a scream.
Apart from the Emperor’s infamy as a tyrant, even the most experienced knights were scared of him.
It wasn’t because Caitel was the Emperor. It was because the overwhelming rage Caitel was giving out was suffocating.
The soldiers just trembled, not knowing when Caitel’s sword could hit their necks.
It wouldn’t end with a day or two, the fear they had witnessed. It was something no one would see again; his arms would only relax when he had Ria in his arms.
I knew very well how difficult it was.
“I will spare your lives only if you bring me here safely.”
In the Emperor’s words, the soldiers moved. The soldiers who had been sent managed to live for a few days. All of them scattered to find princess Ariadna.
Thus, only a few escort knights were left with us.
The Agrigient warship was called home.
Ariadna disappeared without a trace.
The missing princess.
Princess Ariadna vanished.
No one was shocked. The difference was how one would recover from it.
In the end, it was up to me to clear this up again.
“Let’s go somewhere.”
Going back to Agrigent would be a dream come true.
But if I asked Caitel to come home, it was evident that Caitel would never agree.
Caitel would never leave unless he found any clues about Ria.
It was annoying how well I knew his character.
I was looking for overwork…
“Assisi, be next to Caitel.”
Assisi was brought back to reality. I read his confusion from his eyes, but we had to calm him.
“Are you okay?”
A question asked after a long silence.
I wanted him to say he was fine, but in the end, he didn’t answer.
“Something must have happened.”