Whether it be her body language or disposition, it was seemingly perfect with not even a single flaw to be found. This on the contrary was very frightening as there was no way of knowing what she was actually thinking.
"I see in that case, we shall go forward with the plan we made" Cynthia could only believe in the demon and that he meant every word he said. In any case, she who has formed a soul contract with the demon, it was already too late for her to turn around.
.
.
Dukedom of Montford, Castledor city...
Inside the Castle Montford, Alstin Elrand Ellesmere, the first prince of the Kingdom of Ellesmere could be seen sitting around a table discussing matters of importance with his retainers.
The once handsome prince who could make all the girls in the kingdom smitten to him with just his looks, at this moment looked extremely haggard and weary.
There were dark circles around his eyes, indicating that he was sleep deprived, his face looked sunken causing his cheekbones to pop out and his once long hair had thinned out to the point where one could see his hairline receding.
The contrast was so much that, if one hadn't seen the first prince for a while, they would have difficulty believing that it was him.
The contrast was so much that, if one hadn't seen the first prince for a while, they would have difficulty believing that it was him.
In just a couple of months, he had changed drastically. However, his change wasn't the result of him being ill or anything, it was because of all the pressure and stress that he looked the way he did right now.
"Alright everyone, dismiss. Keep an eye on the movement of the enemies and notify me as soon as the spies send their reports".
At his command, the people got up and left the room.
"Dammit, each and every one of them is useless. They can't even do a single fucking thing I tell them to" Alstin cursed violently scratching his head.
"Ahh noo!! My hair they are falling again. This is all because of him, if only he hadn't brought foreign aid with him, our kingdom wouldn't have fallen in their hands"
The one he was cussing and swearing at, was none other than his brother, the second prince of the kingdom. If not for his brother fighting him over the throne and bringing those foreign invaders, he would have already become the king and their country wouldn't have fallen so easily.
"Dammit, why can't anything go the way I want"
BANG... He kicked a chair that smashed onto the nearby wall.
"I see... you are right. Both of us cannot panic, one of us has to stay composed to respond to the worsening situation.."
As Alstin was muttering that, he suddenly noticed the book Lucas was reading starting to glow and disappear into thin air.
"Huh?!! Where did that book of yours go? Did it just disappear into light particles?".
"Haha, don't worry too much about it, it's just a trick book" Brushing aside the question, Lucas now free from his activity, walked out to the balcony and picked up a different topic.
"By the way Your Highness, while your subordinates were giving their reports, I couldn't help but overhear an interesting matter"..
"What do you mean?"...
"You know, how there are reports coming in regarding Princess Cytnhia and how she may be still alive"...
"What?!" The expression on Alstin's face changed for a second but he quickly covered that before it could be noticed.
"Hmph, those are all nonsense. Don't tell me Lucas you believe those reports? I told you she died in an accident when the army of Blackthorn invaded our capital. How can she still be alive much less be in that remote region of a place?".
Lucas was silent, his clear eyes observed Alstin and although there was a smile on his face, it by no means a smile that gave others a sense of ease.
"It's not that I don't believe you your highness, it just that I wonder if you still remember the agreement we had"...
"I know, my sister the princess of the kingdom was supposed be bethroed to you in return for your and the Duke's aid. However, how is it my fault that she died in that incident?"
"I tried to do everything in my power to bring you two together. Trust me, nothing else would have made me happier to see my sister with a genius with a great future like you"
While outwardly Alstin said all that with a clear conscience on his face, he was inwardly making an extremely ugly expression. It was a lie that his sister died in the incident where the capital was invaded.
The truth was that his sister was against this political marriage and fiercely resisted his decision.
To make things worse, that foolish father of his even tried to make Cynthia his heir. He already had his hands full fighting the faction of second brother as such, he couldn't be lenient to her even if she was his sister.
Therefore to keep his promise to Lucas and make Cynthia bow out from the power struggle, he tried to capture her by sending people after her.
Who would have known that stupid sister of his would rather dive inside the dungeon than surrender. His plan to build a solid relationship with Lucas and Duke Montford was ruined because of her.