Chapter 9

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Luana walked into the salon and saw Azusa sitting on a chair by the window. The latter was dressed in a pretty mauve, long-sleeved dress with a pair of black pumps. Her hair was styled in a braid.

She turned her head to look at Luana and gave her a very big smile.

"Good morning, Lulu," she greeted, standing up to hug her.

"Good morning, Azu. It's been a while since we've seen each other," the princess replied.

"Yeah, that's right. I missed you so much."

"Me too. I hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long."

"No, not at all. I just arrived."

"That's good."

"I heard the news of the death of that bastard Slater. Dad told me what happened yesterday."

"Yeah. He died from a suicide spell."

"A suicide spell ?! That's horrible !" said Azusa, horrified.

"You can't imagine how bad it is. Especially when viewed up from close."

"Did he reveal anything ?" she asked, hopeful.

"He confessed that he putted the deadly potion in the drink he gave my parents as a wedding present. He also gave us the name of the antidote and where to find it."

"That's wonderful ! That means we can save your father !" Azusa exclaimed with joy.

"It's not that simple. The antidote is actually a very rare plant that only grows in the center of the Neldor Forest."

"The Neldor Forest ? I've never heard of a forest named like that."

"Neither do I. We think that it's a very secret place that only a few people can access to. That's why I went to the library this morning with Lucas to look up some details about it in books."

"Lucas ? Are you talking about Captain Koraxos ?" Azusa asked, surprised.

"Yeah ? Why ?" replied the young princess, puzzled.

"Since when do you call him by his first name ?"

"I don't know ? Since the time he asked me to ?" she answered nonchalantly.

"He asked you to ?! And you didn't tell me ?! When did he do ?!"

"It's not really that important for me to tell you. And he asked me after my birthday ball, I think..."

"Of course it's important ! Besides, are you sure there's nothing going on between you two ?~" she asked, teasing her.

"W-what ?! W-what are you talking about ?!" asked the princess, blushing slightly.

"It's just that you seem to be very close to each other~ Especially these last days~"

"N-no... There's really nothing between us. You're just imagining things..." she whispered.

Suddenly she remembered when Lucas saved her from falling off the ladder, earlier. Her cheeks, which were initially pink, turned red like tomatoes.

'Why am I thinking about this now ?! It's not like there's anything going on between us... He just saved me... It's his duty after all... But... Why is my heart beating so fast when I'm just thinking about it ?'

"Lulu ?"

The princess stayed silent.

"Lulu ?"

No answer.

"Luana ?!" Azu called out loud.

"Y-yes ?!" she jumped, surprised.

"Are you okay ? I called you a few times, but you didn't answer me. Besides, you suddenly turned all red. Are you sure you're okay ?" she asked, puzzled.

"N-no, it's nothing. I'm alright. Maybe it's just fatigue," Luana replied nervously.

"Are you sure ?" Azusa asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about me."

"If you say so."

A little silence settled between the two young girls.

"And what else did Rufus say ?" Asked Azusa.

"He confessed that he was just a pawn and that there were so many others like him. They all work for the same person that they call Grand Master."

"Grandmaster ? And who is this person ?"

"We don't know yet. Rufus died just before telling us his name."

"Damn !" she growled.

"Unfortunately."

Azusa took her cup of tea and drank the contents.

"Azu... There's something I have to tell you," Luana began.

"Yeah, of course. You know you can tell me anything," Azusa replied, smiling.

"Well... I don't know where to start... Well... I just realized... that I have powers that are a little bit special..."

"Special powers ?"

"Yeah."

"What do you mean by that ?"

She told her what happened with Abras's diary. Then, about the necklace that Mina gave her.

"So, if I understood correctly, you can decipher any magical writing, right ? And that, without using any objects or formulas ?"

"Yeah, that's it. But there's also the fact that I was, and still am, unaffected by the potion that was administered to my parents. I should have been born dead. That's what Slater said..."

"That bastard really had no dignity at all, apparently !" Azusa growled loudly.

"That's not what worries me the most... I wonder what these powers mean... And why am I the only one that have them ?"

"Don't think too much about it, Lulu. What matters now is to find this remedy and give it to your father before it's too late."

"Yeah, you're right..."

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Meanwhile, Lucas was staying in the library, leafing through the book that Luana suggested to him.

"Good morning, Captain."

Lucas lifted his head to meet Angus' eyes, who was smiling at him.

"Good morning, Your Grace," he replied, smiling back slightly.

"I hope I'm not bothering you."

"No, not at all. Do you need me for something ?" he asked.

"You can say that, yeah."

Lucas closed the book in his hands and put it on the table.

"I'm listening to you."

Angus stayed silent for a little while.

"Lucas, I have a favor to ask of you. Not as a duke, but as a friend."

Lucas looked at him for a moment, surprised.

"Sure. If it's something I can do, I will surely help you."

"Actually, you're the only person I can count on to do it. I know it's going to be hard to accept given your own goals. But I really hope that you will help me."

"I see..."

"It's about Luana."

Lucas froze.

"Her Highness ?" he asked, puzzled.

"Yeah."

"What do you want me to do ?"

"If His Majesty dies, which is something that I really don't want to happen, I want you to take Luana away from here. Far away. To a place where no one can find her."

"Why should I do that ?"

"We both know that the Grand Master's next target is Luana. Slater even said she must have been born dead. So, Luana is an obstacle for them to remove in order to achieve their goals."

"So, that's why you want to hide her."

"Exactly. I want you to protect her. And during that time, I will be busy tracking down the Grandmaster and eliminating him," he said.

Lucas didn't say anything.

"Luana went through very difficult moments for her young age. I want her to be able to live peacefully, away from problems," Angus continued.

"You have a lot of affection for her, I see," Lucas remarked.

Angus gave him a small smile.

"God knows how much I love her. Since she was born. She was like a miracle that eased our sadness by losing our empress. I've always treated her like my own daughter. For me, she has the same place in my heart as Azusa and Eric."

"I admire you very much for that," Lucas replied, smiling back at him.

"Thank you."

Silence settled between the two men.

"Do you know why I chose you to do me this favor and not someone else, Lucas ?" asked the duke.

"No, but I would like to know."

"Well. I know very well that you would do anything to protect Luana... I know you could even give up your own goal for her."

"What makes you say that ?"

"Do you really think I didn't notice the way you were looking at her ? Everyone noticed it, by the way. Everyone except the concerned one herself," he laughed.

Lucas sighed heavily.

"Is it that obvious ?" Lucas asked, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

"More obvious than you think. But Luana has always been an oblivious girl when it comes to these things. She's too naive for her own good," Angus laughed.

"Yeah, that's right..." Lucas whispered, smiling slightly.

Angus looked at him, an affectionate little smile on his face.

"You told me that you know that I could give up my own goal to protect Luana," Lucas said.

"That's right."

"Did you know that I'm ready to sacrifice my life for her ? Not just my goal ?" he asked, smiling.

"I had suspicions about it. But now, they are confirmed," Angus said, chuckling slightly.

"If only Luana knew how I feel about her," Lucas whispered.

"Why don't you tell her everything ?"

"I can't for now. I have to save His Majesty first and achieve my goal. But, sometimes, I'm really afraid of failing..."

Angus patted him on the shoulder.

"I'm sure we'll find the cure, Lucas. And Arthur will be healed and everything will be back to normal. So, let's do our best in order to help him…"

"Yeah. That's right," Lucas replied, smiling sadly.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Before lunch, Luana went to the emperor's office to take care of the documents that were to be signed for that day.

She sat down on the desk chair and arranged the documents in order of importance and began to read their contents.

A few minutes later, Lucas joined her.

"Good evening, Your Highness," he greeted, bowing.

"Good evening, Lucas," she replied.

"It's very late. Isn't it better that you go and rest ? You must be very tired," he suggested, a little worried.

"I still have a lot of documents to take care of and I can't leave them for tomorrow."

"Let me help you then."

"No, it's okay. You're already helping me quite a lot like that," she replied, showing him a small smile.

Lucas felt his heartbeat quicken when he saw her angelic smile. He tried somehow to control it.

"By the way, did you take a look at the book I showed you this morning ?"

Luana's voice snapped him out of his reverie.

"Oh. Yes of course," he answered.

"Did you find anything interesting ?"

"I've finally found where the Neldor Forest is situated," he said with a smile.

"Really ?!" Luana asked, surprised.

"Yeah. It's written here," he replied, opening a page of the book and showing it to her.

┌─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┐
The Neldor Forest or Forest of Death is one of the most dangerous and difficult places to reach in the whole world.

This magical place that's full of terrifying creatures is protected by an invisible magical wall. So, it's very difficult to find it. Even less to access it.

The Neldor Forest is located in the northeastern region of the country, about 20 km away from the capital.

The only people who can go beyond the magical wall and gain access to the forest are those of royal blood, those with powerful magical powers or magical creatures.

So far, just a few people who have entered the forest have made it out alive.

└─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┘

Luana looked at Lucas straight in the eye.

"If I understood correctly, to access it, you need to either have royal blood running through your veins or have powerful magical powers," she said.

"Yeah that's right."

"So that means I can access it !"

"What ?! Do you want to go there ?!" he asked her, surprised.

"Yeah... Is there a problem with that ?" Luana asked back, confused.

"It's not possible, Your Highness ! You read what is written in the book! The forest is very dangerous !" exclaimed Lucas worriedly.

"I know... But I have to do it... For dad... No one else will be able to access it except me-" she said sadly.

"You're wrong... What makes you think I can't access it ?"

"You aren't of royal blood. And you aren't a magical creature either."

"But I have powerful magical powers," he retorted.

"Are they powerful enough that you can access that magical wall ?"

"I'm quiet confident about them," he answered with determination.

Luana sighed deeply.

"Either way, I'm not going to let you go," he said.

"You don't have the right to decide !" exclaimed Luana.

"It's for your own good that I'm doing this !"

Luana fell silent.

"Please, understand me, Your Highness," he addee gently.

Luana stayed silent.

"Your Highness ?"

"I can't just stand there and watch him suffer like that, Lucas…" she whispered.

"But-"

Lucas froze, looking at the sad expression on her face.

"Let me at least help you... My powers will be of great help to us there... No harm will happen to me..." she pleaded with an optimistic look.

Lucas sighed heavily.

"Okay, Your Highness... But you have to promise me that you won't put yourself in danger... and flee if the situation escalates..."

"Okay. I promise," she promised, smiling.

"Good," he replied, smiling back at her.

"Lucas ?"

"Yes ?"

"How are we going to explore the forest ? We can't take our horses with us since they aren't magical creatures. And we can't cross it on foot either. It will take us too long, if we do so," she asked.

"Don't worry about that, Your Highness. I have exactly what we need," he replied, smiling at her.


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