Escape from the evil lady (GL)
Chapter 97 - 5. Protect no matter what

Chapter 97: Chapter 5. Protect no matter what

It was only with God’s help that we were able to get out of this river.

On the nearest shore of the reservoir, Yufil and I got out onto dry land, squeezing at least several liters of water out of our clothes. My breathing was ragged, and my heart was pounding loudly from the adrenaline and fear I had just experienced. There was silence all around, broken only by the rustle of leaves and the murmur of water.

Well, consider ourselves really lucky this time.

Since we had just literally been on the verge of certain death twice, it took us both some time to come to our senses. Finally, Yufil, with disheveled wet hair and trembling hands, was the first to break the silence:

— You idiot! You could at least think before you jump! Couldn’t we have found another way?!

The Duke’s eldest son was still mad at me for dragging him into the river without his permission. Although, to be fair, at that moment I really did everything possible in the name of our salvation. After all, if it wasn’t for me, would that jerk still be alive?

In other words, this guy should at least learn to be grateful!

— And wait until they catch us? You do realize that we had no other choice, right?

Brushing off the dirt and sand, I stared at the guy with bewilderment and anger.

— You almost got me drowned! — Yufil shouted.

— But he didn’t drown...

— Yeah! Is that your excuse...?!

The ducal heir continued to shout at the entire forest, and even my ears hurt from his shrill tone. Yufil, as he stated at the very beginning, did not know how to swim at all. For this reason, while we were trying to cross the river, the guy was grabbing onto everything around him, including me too. In other words, it wasn’t without my help that the guy managed to get out of the river safely. But now that he kept yelling at me, I seriously wondered if I had made a mistake...

Should I push him into the river again?

As if in response to the quarrel between us, the wind blew harder, making the trees rustle as if they were also witnessing this conflict. Finally, when my patience finally ran out and I was tired of taking his attacks unilaterally, I decided it was time to put an end to it. Yufil even shuddered when I suddenly got up from the wet sand.

— Instead of fighting with each other, wouldn’t it be better to think about what we should do next?! Being here, we have neither food nor water. Not to mention that the Empress’s people might still be around.

Since Yufil was acting more like an immature teenager in this situation, I had to do my best to remain patient. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself:

— We have to act fast, otherwise they’ll catch up with us!

— Do you think I don’t understand it myself?

Yufil also started shouting at me in response.

— Then, since you’re so smart, use your brain properly for once and figure out what we should do next!

— .....

Since it was the first time I had said something so rude to him, Yufil was taken aback for a while and even stopped arguing with me. Finding myself in this situation, I didn’t mention once again who we were here for in the first place. I didn’t want to continue this pointless conflict. In the end, there was no turning back anyway.

«...»

Silence fell between us, and only the sound of the river’s current reminded us that time did not stand still. For a while, each of us was lost in our own thoughts, but eventually we both came to the conclusion that now was not the best time to disagree. Although there were more than enough of them, but first of all, the main task at the moment was to survive.

When the tense atmosphere eased a little, I sighed. Since it was still night outside and we were both soaking wet, the first thing we had to do was find a way to keep warm. Otherwise, we’d both get colds, or worse.

— Come on.

At that moment, I turned around and headed towards the forest.

— Where to?

Yufil frowned, not immediately understanding what I was going to do.

— You can stay here if you want. I’ll go find some firewood.

«.....»

In the end, although he didn’t want to do it at all, Euphil de Walt still got up from the shore and followed his younger sister.

***

There was a menacing atmosphere in the luxurious chambers of the imperial palace, which belonged to the most senior woman in this empire. The Empress abruptly stood up from her seat, and her face was red with anger.

Valencia de Ronan’s eyes burned with rage when she learned of the failure of her plan. The woman sent mercenaries to capture the duke’s daughter, and imagine her disappointment when they returned empty-handed.

— How could this happen? — The Empress exclaimed, and her voice echoed through the room. — I ordered you to capture just one girl alive, and you couldn’t even handle that?!

The mercenary who was kneeling in front of her was trembling with fear:

— I’m sorry, Your Majesty. We did everything we could, but at one point everything didn’t go as planned...

— What are you talking about...?

— The heir of the Duchy of de Walt, with whom you made a deal, betrayed us! He... He took the opportunity to take Lady de Walt with him and escape.

The Empress smiled coldly.

— Do I understand correctly that in the end you lost to this immature boy? — she asked.

— Th-this... — The mercenary hesitated, as it really sounded extremely shameful.

— Useless trash!

The Empress did not let him finish, and her hand clenched into a fist.

At this moment, she was really extremely disappointed and annoyed. The woman’s plan was to lure Duke de Walt’s daughter out of the Crown Princess’ residence with the help of her older brother. Then she was going to take advantage of this girl to use her as a hostage and thus force Kaena de Ronan to surrender. But in the end... Not only did her people fail to capture her, but she and the bastard also managed to escape!

It really was a complete failure.

— Find them immediately! Dead or alive, bring them both to me immediately!— the Empress cried.

— Y-yes, Your Majesty!

«...»

At this time, outside the door, the second princess happened to overhear this conversation. She stood pressed against the door, her heart pounding with shock. Jerica de Ronan, who felt some guilt towards her mother after their last conversation, was going to visit her today to apologize. And, of course, she couldn’t have expected to hear something like that...

The Princess involuntarily clenched her fists tighter.

«So that’s what happened back then...?»

The previous night, when they were finally about to carry out their plan and neutralize the Crown Princess, they suddenly had to cancel the operation. And all because there was no signal from the duke’s daughter, from which it could be concluded that Kaena had successfully taken sleeping pills and everything was going according to plan.

Hesitating due to the fact that there might be some unforeseen changes, the second princess’s squad still did not dare to engage in battle and returned back to wait for further instructions.

And, as it now turns out, the reason for the unexpected disruption of their plan was her own mother.

Jerica thought of the Duke’s daughter, whose life was now in grave danger. The princess knew she had to do something. She couldn’t just stand by and watch her mother ruin an innocent girl.

«Lady de Walt, please... Hold on a little longer.»

With determination in her heart, the second princess reasoned that she had to find and save this girl. After all, she had made a promise to Lady de Walt that she would protect her no matter what. Jerica quietly left the door and went to her office to think about what to do next.

Jerica de Ronan knew she didn’t have much time, and she had to act quickly if she wanted to save Camille from her mother’s hands.