Chapter 44: Chapter 43: A Poisonous Woman (8)

The corners of Aurora’s mouth lifted into a smirk.

One was becoming irritated just as she hoped.

“As you know, Elran City has four Gates.”

"The North Gate leads to the back forest, which is the path towards the Corrupted Region."

"The South and East Gates are the ones most citizens and traders use, as it leads to other towns/villages. And the West Gate..."

"I already know this." One interrupted her. "The West Gate follows a long path towards the mountains. So, what about it?"

Aurora raised her eyebrows.

He was obviously trying to avoid bringing up what lays beyond the mountains.

"Right. The Etern mountain range is a border territory. When you take the path down the mountains, you'll eventually come upon a fort where soldiers are stationed. Once you present your pass and leave the fort, you'll gain entrance to the Blaise Dukedom."

How did she know all this? From one of the many books she read after finding out that she was somehow sent one thousand years later in the future. That book contained information about how Elran City was established and what visitors could find.

“The gate we left through is the West Gate. Half the citizens there were hired by either you or the Captain Guard to cause a disturbance."

“...What made you come to that conclusion?" One asked, disturbed by this girl’s ability to discern even the smallest details.

“For one, only soldiers, traders, and people seeking medicine in the mountains or to enter the Blaise Dukedom use that Gate. The terrain itself isn't dangerous and there are barely any wild animals due to the cold environment. You can say the only danger is the 'coldness', but as long as one is prepared, it isn't a problem. From what I saw, there were no soldiers, or people and traders carrying any baggage. Then that will only leave people looking for medicine. But there's no way all those people were there for just that at the same time."

One's left eyebrow twitched in disbelief at being found out by a little girl. “Maybe there was an emergency.”

“And the largest City in Rizar doesn’t have enough medicine?” She saw One’s doubtful expression. "The herbs that grow in Mount Etern are very rare, due to being able to survive the high altitude and snow all year long. It can only be used for making special medicines for critical patients or for poison. It can't be used for common medicine. So, not many people need to come here, and those that do must be strong enough to protect themselves from the harsh weather or have a rune that can. But the people at the gate...didn't look strong enough to even tussle with a chicken."

"Hah. Is that so?"

Aurora lifted her index finger. "To make it easier for you to understand how I figured it out, I also overheard two Guards talking about how it was rare for so many people wanting to use the West Gate."

One stood there in silence for a few seconds. He suddenly threw his head back and burst out laughing. “Hahahaha! Amazing!”

“That’s not all.” Aurora interrupted his joyful laughter.

One held back his tears of laughter and refocused on Aurora. "Oh? What else is there?” He asked between laughs.

“Seeing as how we’ve stopped here for a while means something went wrong and your plan backfired on you. I'm guessing the soldier who was supposed to give you safe passage through the fort didn't come through, right?"

Aurora shrugged her shoulders when he refused to answer her. "Since your destination is the Blaise Dukedom, it can only mean as a Shadow Knight, your Master can only be the Duke of Blaise.”

“…You’re smart, I’ll give you that. But have you ever heard of this saying?” One walked towards her, pursuing his prey once again. “It's better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you are a fool lest you cause your own death.”

“I let my guard down before, but I won’t let it happen again.” One reached out to her, intending to pull her towards him once again, but before he could, the pain in his back doubled, making him fall to his knees.

Aurora burst into a small laugh. Although it was low, her laugh echoed throughout the cave. It was enough to make anyone who heard it step back in fear. “You’re wrong. You didn’t just let your guard down, you completely underestimated me.”

He lifted his head and looked at her in horror. Sweat poured down his face as he started to boil from inside out. “You…what did you do?!”

When she walked towards that knife on the ground, One followed her every movement. Aurora picked up the knife she stabbed into his back and showed it to him. The trace of blood left on the weapon from stabbing him had already turned black.

“P-poison...the fleshrender poison...” His chest rose and fell again as he seethed in anger. “When? How?”

"Huh? Is that what's called?"

Aurora thought back to their first day in the cave.

You are reading story Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch at novel35.com

Yes, she was in a deep sleep.

But a voice called out for her to wake up.

It was a voice she hadn’t heard since that day she learned the truth about her so-called first love.

Hey! Wake up!

Aurora grumbled in her sleep. "Who...?" She was annoyed at that voice for interrupting her dreams. Her eyelids felt heavy, and she wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep.

NO! WAKE UP!

"Shut up...I can't..." She really couldn't. Aurora felt something try to pull her back into the darkness. She wanted to try and break through what was keeping her from waking up, but it felt as though her whole body was refusing to listen.

You'll regret it if you don't!

"Mhmm…"

He's looking for you!

Looking for her? Who was looking for her?

A handsome young man with red hair and blue eyes that made one's heart tremble flashed through her thoughts.

Lucius Rizar.

He was looking for her.

Why would he come? Why would he save her?

She didn't understand why'd he bother, but she knew. He was coming for her.

Aurora put all her strength in fighting off whatever was keeping her from waking up. Her eyes fluttered open only to find herself staring at her kidnapper sleeping on the opposite side.

She started to panic but quickly pulled herself together, afraid she'd wake him up.

Should she escape? But she didn’t know the way back. And who was to say she’d find her way back to Lucius without her kidnapper finding her first? How far would she be able to get? If she escaped and didn’t make it out, she’d only end up making him angry.

...The poison.

Right, he should have more of that poison he used to hit Lucius.

"Lucius..." Aurora whispered as she thought of him.

That arrow hit his shoulder. Right before being dragged away she already saw his skin turning black. Did he die?

Aurora shook her head.

No. That voice told her he was searching for her. She didn't know how it knew, but it helped her before and this time again. 'Okay, now isn't the time to be distracted.' Aurora thought to herself. Before anything else, she needed to find a way out of this predicament.

Aurora stood up carefully. She looked around her kidnapper and found that his coat was lying next to his arrows a few feet away from him.

She took a few steps towards him and stopped to see if he showed any reaction.

The man slightly moved.

Aurora tensed and held her breath.

You can find story with these keywords: Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch, Read Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch, Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch novel, Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch book, Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch story, Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch full, Fallen Princess: The Duke’s Familiar is A Witch Latest Chapter