The two men exchanged glances again, this time with more hesitation in their eyes. Eldric’s words sounded like a ploy; clever, too clever but General Robert’s suspicions still lingered in their minds. He believed Eldric was the key to the princess. And if there was even a chance the man was telling the truth...
"If she’s really in Wiwell, this might be our only chance to get to her first," the masked man muttered.
"Where exactly?" he pressed, his voice sharp. "We will need to send someone to confirm what you’ve said." This was to warm Eldric to tell the truth.
"Near the farmhouse where we lodged before setting sail," Eldric rasped. Blood was still dried at the corners of his mouth. "Let me tell you a secret; the princess was never on the ship. She was injured the night before, too weak to travel. We realized two separate groups were attacking us that night. So we found a decoy; a woman to play the part of the princess. When one group took ’her,’ we made noise. Enough to spark a clash between both sides while our group slipped away quietly."
His voice cracked, but his expression was unreadable beneath the swelling and bruises. There was just enough detail in his story to sound plausible. Just enough truth to anchor the lie.
There had been a wounded man left behind in Wiwell, and Eldric had arranged for a nearby physician to tend to him. That much was real. Why had he talked about his voice and face from beginning, it was so that even if they went to investigate his words in Wiwell, they would not dare ask to clearly in other not to be discovered. So they would indeed find an injured man in the physician’s house and concluded she was the princess.
So, he spun that truth into a threadbare deception, praying it would hold.
From their accent and careless conversation, Eldric had already guessed these men were from Gube. So he mentioned the two groups to plant seeds of doubt. He needed them uncertain. Anything to buy time. Anything to stop the pain.
"Send the message," the scarred man said after a tense silence.
The masked man gave a brief nod, scribbled instructions in tight, urgent strokes, then stepped out of the cave. A sharp whistle pierced the night. Moments later, a messenger bird swooped down from the dark sky.
He tied the note to its leg, fed it a few crumbs, and launched it into the air. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on ⓝovelFire.net
Back inside, his eyes gleamed with resolve. "We are heading for Wiwell."
"Are you mad?" the Scarred man snapped. "There are checkpoints everywhere!" He felt that his partner was becoming forgetful.
The masked man’s voice dropped, low and menacing. "We have him, don’t we? I hat already ordered our men to find his family. If he tries anything..." His smile was thin and cold. "They’ll pay the price."
Eldric remained still. The threat barely touched him. His family was in the capital, where Gube’s hand couldn’t reach at least not yet. The king was dead. The court was in chaos. His loved ones were safer now than they ever had been.
"What about his face?" the scarred man asked. "He’s been beaten to a pulp. The checkpoint guards aren’t fools; they will smell something wrong."
"I will say I am a dying soldier, returning home to see my family one last time," Eldric said, his voice hoarse. "You can pose as the hired coachman. He can be a fellow traveler. That will pass." Eldric answered before the masked man could speak.
He had no idea where they had taken him. He didn’t know how many days had passed. But the plan was all he had and if it got him closer to open ground, to a chance to escape, then he will sell the lie as if it were true.
The men hesitated, then slowly nodded. It was just plausible enough to work.
"Give me a ink and paper," Eldric said. "I’ll write the permit."
As a commander, forging such a document was nothing. His fingers trembled from exhaustion, but his penmanship was still sharp. When he finished, the men leaned in.
They were worried he will play tricks. "It looked real enough," the mask man said after looking at it.
Without warning, the Scarred man struck Eldric, hard enough to knock him out cold.
Then masked man disappeared once more.
Outside, the man who had been silently watching from the shadows crept closer. He hadn’t heard everything, but he’d heard enough. The name Wiwell. The plan to move. The mention of the princess.
Wiwell? That didn’t make sense. General Robert had already searched every building, every field in that village. The princess wasn’t there. Could Eldric be lying? Or did he know something no one else did?
The watcher didn’t wait. He sent another message, hands steady despite the cold. There was no way he will let the people of Gube get to Anastasia first.
It was deep in the night when the masked man returned, breathless.
"The roads are crawling with patrols. It took everything to find a carriage," he muttered. "They say no one moves now unless it’s for the war effort."
The news of the king’s death remains unknown in this part, so this two men were also unaware, as their subordinate has not sent the news.
"They’re holding the front. Gube’s just waiting for a crack to strike."the mask man said in delight.
"There’s a battle tomorrow," the Scarred man said grimly.
"Right..." the masked man’s gaze darkened. "Gube plans to breach Lowe’s walls and take the surrounding towns."
"If we fail again, we’ll lose more than we gain." The masked man added after a pause.
The scarred man didn’t reply, but the silence between them said enough. They had their orders. Their opinions no longer mattered.
Eldric stirred faintly in the corner, still unconscious. Even so, he sensed the shift in the air. The time was coming.
He would lead them far from Lowe. Far from the princess. Even if it cost him everything.
Just before dawn, they left the cave. The masked man knocked Eldric out once more; they wouldn’t risk revealing their hideout.
From the shadows, the silent watcher observed, unmoving.
Only once they disappeared into the forest did he step inside the cave. His eyes swept the dim interior, scanning every corner. If they were from Gube, if this was part of something larger, he needed proof.