Forbidden Desires: Conquering Kingdoms And Women In a Fantasy World!
Chapter 24: A Princess?!

Chapter 24: A Princess?!

After Lisa’s careful explanation finally convinced them that we were indeed not with their kidnappers, she seamlessly transitioned into providing more context about our circumstances.

"We’re from Millbrook Village, just a few hours’ walk through the forest," she explained, settling into a more comfortable position on the ground near them. "It’s a small place, but the people are good. Our village chief, Aldan, has been taking care of our community for decades. We were out hunting for winter supplies when we stumbled into this mess."

I watched her work her magic, noting how she instinctively chose details that would make us seem more human, more trustworthy. She had always possessed this gift – an innate ability to read people’s fears and address them without seeming to try.

While she continued building bridges with our unexpected charges, I turned my attention to the considerably more grim task at hand. The battlefield around us looked like something from a nightmare, and I couldn’t in good conscience leave it that way. Not when it might bring unwanted attention to our village, and certainly not when there were young people present who had already seen far too much violence for one day.

I moved carefully away from the group, each step sending fresh waves of pain through my wound. The wound wasn’t deep enough to be immediately life-threatening, but it was deep enough to make every movement a conscious effort.

Damn it, I thought grimly, this is really going to hurt for a while.

Taking a deep breath and centering myself, I placed both hands flat against the forest floor and reached for my Earth Magic.

With careful precision, I began excavating a pit several feet deep and wide enough to accommodate what needed to be done. The earth moved obediently under my guidance, parting like water and piling itself neatly to one side. The process was slow and methodical – partly because I wanted to be thorough, and partly because each use of magic sent sympathetic aches through my injured torso.

Once the pit was ready, I began the unpleasant task of disposal. Using controlled bursts of earth magic, I lifted each corpse without having to touch them directly – a small mercy for which I was grateful. The bandits’ bodies rose from the blood-soaked ground like grotesque marionettes, soil and leaves falling away as they floated through the air and settled into their final resting place.

By the way I had killed more people in a single afternoon than in my entire previous life.

Did I feel guilt? Remorse? The crushing weight of moral culpability that should accompany such actions?

The answer came to me with startling clarity: Not at all.

These men had made their choice when they decided to prey on the innocent. I had simply made mine in response.

When the last body had been consigned to its earthen grave, I called upon a different aspect of my magical abilities. Fire magic came less naturally to me than earth, but it served its purpose well enough. Flames erupted in the pit with a controlled ferocity, burning hot enough to reduce flesh and bone to ash with ruthless efficiency.

I had asked Lisa to take our three charges further away before beginning this process, ostensibly to give them space to collect themselves but really because I wasn’t sure how they would react to watching me systematically erase all evidence of the afternoon’s violence. Some things were better handled without an audience, especially when that audience had already endured enough trauma for one day.

The fire burned and within minutes, the evidence of my work was being reduced to component elements that would fertilize the forest floor for seasons to come. There was a certain poetic justice in that, I supposed.

When the flames had done their work and only clean ash remained, I placed my hands on the earth once more and carefully sealed the pit. The soil flowed back into place like water finding its level, leaving only slightly disturbed ground that would be completely unnoticeable within a few days as new growth emerged.

But I wasn’t finished yet. Using water magic I began systematically cleaning away every trace of blood that stained the forest floor. The crimson evidence of our battle dissolved under carefully directed streams of conjured water, the liquid carrying away all signs of violence before soaking harmlessly into the ground.

Within five minutes, the entire clearing looked untouched and clean. If I hadn’t known better, I would have sworn nothing more dramatic than a pleasant afternoon picnic had ever taken place here.

But I couldn’t afford to take any chances. I had no desire for some curious traveler or hunting party to stumble across evidence of what had transpired here and start asking questions that might lead back to our village. Millbrook had enough problems without becoming associated with bandit activity, however justified our actions had been.

Satisfied with my work but exhausted from the combination of magical exertion and physical injury, I made my way to the cart and settled myself on its edge. My breathing was still labored, and the wound in my side throbbed with each heartbeat, but the immediate crisis had passed.

I closed my eyes and tilted my face toward the patches of sunlight filtering through the forest canopy, letting the warmth soak into my skin while I waited for Lisa to return with our unexpected companions.

After what felt like an eternity but was probably only a few minutes, I heard the soft sound of footsteps approaching through the underbrush. Lisa emerged first.

She took in the transformed clearing with a quick, appreciative glance before settling herself beside me on the cart’s edge.

"Well?" I asked, genuinely curious about what she had managed to learn during their extended conversation.

Lisa’s expression grew thoughtful, and I could see her organizing her thoughts before speaking. "The two redheads – Riley and Zoey – they were bystanders who got caught up in this mess when they tried to intervene in the kidnapping." She paused, clearly still processing the information herself. "They saw what was happening and tried to help, but they were overwhelmed and captured alongside."

"And the girl?" I prompted, though something in Lisa’s expression warned me that the answer might be more complicated than I wanted to hear.

"Her Highness." Lisa said much to my shock. "The other girl is Princess Judith of Briaran, heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Briaran."

What in the nine hells was a foreign princess doing wandering around the forests of Lorendia? And had that idiot Arlos truly believed he could kidnap royalty and somehow escape the inevitable consequences? The man’s ambition had apparently far exceeded his common sense.

But more immediately concerning was what this meant for us. We had gone from being simple hunters defending ourselves against bandits to being the people responsible for the safety of a neighboring kingdom’s crown princess. The political implications alone were staggering.

"What was she even doing in Lorendia?" I asked, though I suspected the answer would only make things more complicated.

"She mentioned something about diplomatic meetings, but didn’t go into details," Lisa replied. "She’s... well, she’s obviously been trained in not revealing sensitive information to strangers, even friendly ones."

Smart girl, I had to admit. Even in her current circumstances, she was maintaining enough operational security to avoid potentially compromising state secrets.

"She’s asked us to provide shelter in our village until her mother can locate her," Lisa continued, and I noticed she was carefully avoiding my eyes as she delivered this particular piece of news.

"Her mother. You mean Queen Briaran herself." It wasn’t really a question.

Lisa nodded. "Princess Judith says they traveled with a full escort of royal knights, so it shouldn’t be long before search parties are dispatched to find her."

Of course, the princess couldn’t simply wait here in the wilderness for rescue – that would be far too dangerous, especially with other bandit groups potentially operating in the area. And she certainly couldn’t travel alone through unfamiliar territory. Taking her to our village was really the only sensible option, regardless of the complications it might create.

"I also invited Riley and Zoey to come with us." The words came out in a rush, as if she was trying to get them out before she lost her nerve.

I stared at her for a long moment, processing this additional complication. "Lisa?"

"They have nowhere else to go," she said defensively, finally meeting my eyes. " They’ve been traveling ever since, trying to find somewhere safe to settle. When they saw the princess being kidnapped, they tried to help and now they are lost."

"That Oldman isn’t going to be happy about this," I said with a sigh, already imagining the village chief Aldan’s reaction to our returning home with a foreign princess and two refugee siblings in tow.

Of course, Aldan would never dare voice his displeasure in front of a royal princess – the political ramifications of offending foreign nobility were far too severe for a simple village chief to risk. But I had no doubt that he would find the addition of two common refugees significantly less palatable than hosting royalty, regardless of their tragic circumstances.

"I—I will take them to my house," Lisa said quickly, the words tumbling out in her haste to address my concerns.

I looked at her face. When she made up her mind about something, it was hard to make her change her mind.

"I guess it’s fine then," I said with a wry smile, knowing that she would have found a way to help them regardless of my opinion on the matter.

Lisa’s expression grew more serious as she shifted quickly. "What should we tell them about what happened here?"

I understood immediately what she was really asking. Should we tell the complete truth about the violence that had transpired, about the men I had killed.

"We tell the truth, but only to the village chief," I decided after a moment of consideration. "Aldan needs to know exactly what we’re dealing with, especially with a princess involved. But for everyone else..." I paused, thinking of Isabella and Rosaluna. "For everyone else, we were attacked by bandits, we fought them off, and we rescued these three. No need to mention the specifics of what I did to clean up afterward."

The last thing I wanted was for my family to learn how close I had come to dying in this forest, or for the other villagers to panic about increased bandit activity in the area. Such news would spread like wildfire through our small community, and fear had a way of making people do foolish things.

Lisa nodded her understanding, but as her gaze drifted downward to where my torn shirt, toward my wound, she whispered. "I’m sorry, Harold..."

"For what?" I asked, though I already knew the answer. I could see it written plainly across her features – the weight of perceived failure, the burden of thinking herself responsible for my injury.

"Because of me, you..." She bit her lower lip, unable to finish the sentence. Her hands clenched into fists in her lap.

I reached out and grasped her hand.

"This isn’t your fault," I said, squeezing her fingers.

"But I was unable to protect you, even though I’m the eldest..." She continued as she avoided meeting my eyes. "I should have been faster, more careful. I should have—"

"Lisa." I interrupted her spiral of self-blame. "Age doesn’t matter here. What matters is that we both survived, and we saved three innocent people in the process."

"How can you say that doesn’t matter?" She asked, finally looking at me with eyes that shimmered with unshed tears.

I felt a smile tug at the corners of my mouth despite the gravity of our conversation. "Well, I would never let anything happen to my future wife," I replied with a grin.

Lisa rolled her eyes at my declaration, but I caught the way her lips twitched as she fought back a smile. Then she turned to look at me directly, and something in her expression made my breath catch.

Taking advantage of that moment of connection, I leaned forward and captured her lips with mine, catching her completely off guard.

Lisa’s eyes widened in shock – this was clearly her first real kiss, I realized with a mixture of tenderness and possessive satisfaction. For a heartbeat she remained frozen, her entire body going rigid with surprise. Then, slowly, uncertainly, her eyes fluttered closed and she allowed herself to melt into the kiss.

I could feel the rapid flutter of her pulse against my palm as I cupped her face, could sense the way her breathing quickened with nervousness and something deeper. Her cheeks grew warm beneath my touch, flushed with a combination of embarrassment and awakening desire that made something primal stir within me.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity of sweet discovery. When I finally pulled back, giving her space to breathe, she gasped softly, her chest rising and falling with quick, shallow breaths.

"Ha... ha..." Lisa’s entire face had turned a delightful shade of pink, and she immediately averted her gaze with shy confusion, as if she wasn’t quite sure what had just happened or how she should react.

"Was it good?" I asked, leaning close enough to whisper the words directly into her ear, my breath stirring the soft strands of hair that had escaped from her ponytail.

Her ear turned an even deeper shade of red at my proximity, and she gave the smallest nod of acknowledgment, still too flustered to speak.

Emboldened by her response, I pressed a gentle kiss to the shell of her ear, then another to the warm curve of her cheek, before trailing a series of soft pecks along the graceful line of her neck. Her skin was soft and warm against my lips.

"Hmm~" Lisa made a small sound of pleasure, her eyes closing as she experienced these new sensations. She shifted restlessly but made no move to pull away, her body language speaking of trust even as her inexperience made her uncertain.

Growing bolder, I let my hand drift down to rest on her thigh, fingers tracing gentle patterns through the fabric of her hunting leathers.

"Have you finished?"

The crisp voice cut through our intimate moment and I felt Lisa practically leap away from me in startled embarrassment. She quickly scrambled down from the cart, her face burning crimson as she tried to compose herself and pretend that nothing had happened.

I, on the other hand, felt a surge of intense irritation at the interruption.

Turning to look at our unexpected audience, I took in the sight of all three of our charges standing there. Despite Princess Judith’s attempt to project royal composure and authority, I could see the bright flush staining her cheeks that betrayed her own embarrassment at witnessing such an intimate scene.

Riley appeared to be in a similar state, his fair complexion making his blush particularly obvious as he stared determinedly at the ground rather than meet anyone’s eyes. Zoey, his younger sister had gone so far as to cover her face entirely with her hands, though I could see the reddened tips of her ears peeking through her fingers.