Escape from the evil lady (GL)
Chapter 161 - 22. The chance of salvation

Chapter 161: Chapter 22. The chance of salvation

The revelation of the commander of the enemy army eventually came as a real shock to all of us.

As it turned out, even before holding peace talks with the Crown Princess, Gael Hanston had already concluded an agreement with the Empress of the Ruthven Empire. The essence of which was almost the same as what the Crown Princess herself had suggested to the commander. However, the Empress promised the man not only the throne, but also a beneficial alliance between their empires, which was supposed to benefit both sides.

Since this offer sounded too attractive, Gael Hanston could not refuse it and eventually agreed to fulfill the only condition of this deal — assistance in the murder of the Crown Princess. In particular, the task of Hunston and his men was to lure Kaena de Ronan into the Misty Forest, where the Empress’ plan would later be put into action.

«What?! But if that’s really the case, then it means that we have very little time left...!»

As soon as we found out about all this, we immediately went to this place.

When I faced the Misty Forest, which even at first glance seemed dangerous and mysterious, I did not hesitate to rush there. However... At that moment, the northern Duchess suddenly stopped me.

— Wait a minute.

— what? — I froze in surprise.

Meanwhile, the woman frowned as she looked at the dark forest in front of her.

— An ordinary person can’t feel it, but I definitely feel the fumes of poisonous substances in that place. — She said slowly. — It can be deadly for you to go there just like that.

This warning made me fall into a stupor.

«But then what should we do...?» I stopped, confused.

«Well... I have an idea.»

In the end, Selina de Loon created a magical barrier around us, inside which we had to be safe. Thus, we managed to enter the forest, and we immediately started searching for the Crown Princess. It didn’t take long before we finally managed to do it.

«!!!»

The sight that we accidentally caught in the middle of a forest clearing really stunned me.

The bloody body of Kaena de Ronan lay on the grass, and the main character of the novel bent over her. The Crown Princess of the empire, in turn, was unconscious and in a terrible state.

«It can’t be...! Did we really miss it after all?!»

My heart skipped a beat at the sight. I immediately rushed there in the same second.

«Your Highness!»

When my voice suddenly rang out in the middle of the forest, Jerica de Ronan seemed to come to her senses and raised her head in surprise.

«Lady de Walt...? What are you doing here?» she asked, stunned.

However, I was so scared that at that moment I could only think of one thing. I continued to call out to the Crown Princess, leaning over her lifeless body.

«Your Highness, please wake up...!»

«.....»

— ...I’m so sorry for everything that happened! Please forgive me!

At this time, while Camilla was a little out of her mind and only continued to call the Crown Princess, the northern Duchess, in turn, was the first to turn to Jericho.

«Your Highness, may I know what happened here?» Selina asked.

Jerica de Ronan looked up at her, confused.

— I... I do not know how it happened... — The girl muttered absently.

«What do you mean?»

The second princess faltered.

— The last thing I remember is watching Kaena at the military camp. And then... At some point, everything suddenly became so blurry that I couldn’t understand what was going on.

«Really? Do you really not remember anything at all?» she asked.

— I... — Jerica hesitated, — I remember that in my head there were some memories related to my sister. But as soon as I came to my senses, they immediately disappeared.

After listening to her, Selina de Loon only took a deep breath.

«It’s very similar to a control spell,» she finally stated.

«A control spell?» The princess asked.

— This is a special kind of magic that allows another person to influence the feelings and emotions of another. It can also affect a person’s memory and create false memories.

Jerica de Ronan was taken aback by what she heard.

«But how is that possible?» She exclaimed, «I would definitely feel if someone cast a spell on me!»

However, the northern Duchess objected:

— You can cast this spell in much less obvious ways than just direct contact. This can be done even in a dream. Have you been letting your guard down in front of anyone lately?

— me...

The second Princess involuntarily faltered, as only one person came to her mind at that moment. Her mother.

Shortly before leaving the Imperial Palace for the Ruwen Empire military camp, Jerica visited her mother at her request. They were drinking tea and spending time together as usual, and at some point the girl felt sleepy. Then she attributed it to the usual fatigue from the workload in connection with state affairs and the stress she had experienced recently. Then Jerica also took a break in the Empress’ chambers.

Since this was the only such case, it is obvious that it should have happened at that time.

«Mother... I can’t believe she actually went for it.»

When this terrible realization came to the second princess’s mind, she did not even know how to react to it, and only continued to remain in complete abstraction.

Meanwhile, for Celine de Loon, everything fell into place at that moment.

«Probably, using this spell, the Empress deliberately confused your memories and forced you to go to the murder of the Crown Princess,» she said.

«As for the poisonous smoke... Well, it seems like it was a necessary measure to weaken the Crown Princess, and Her second Highness was able to injure her,» the woman concluded in her thoughts.

Meanwhile, Camilla, who had only continued to sob over the princess’ body all this time, raised her head for the first time and asked:

«I don’t believe it... Is there really nothing we can do right now?!»

«.......»

At this time, while the Duchess and the second princess looked at each other gloomily, and Jeremy patted me sympathetically on the shoulder, I was worried about only one thing.

Right now, Kaena de Ronan’s life was hanging by a thread and could end at any moment. Perhaps this time the situation was even worse than when I first found her injured. After all, this time, apparently, the woman deliberately allowed herself to be wounded in a vulnerable place. And what’s worse, unlike last time, she doesn’t have any will left to keep clinging to this life.

At this time, while I continued to lament my own feelings and endless remorse, a solution was found quite unexpectedly.

«I... can do this.»

When Selina de Loon suddenly said that, the three of us looked at her in shock at the same time.

Then the woman continued seriously:

«I think I know how to save her.»