The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 212: All For Science III

"A pity," Raziel said as he let out a sigh, staring down at the decapitated head at Soleia’s feet. He took out a handkerchief from his pocket and began to wipe the blood off his rapier carefully. "She had so much potential."

"Was that truly necessary?!" Rafael scolded Raziel.

He couldn’t care less about the life of a captured spy, but he drew the line at Raziel killing her in front of Soleia without any warning. He cradled Soleia’s face carefully, looking back down at her with concerned eyes.

"Soleia, don’t look down, look at me―"

At Rafael’s words, Soleia’s eyes instinctively darted down to spot the lone head lying by her feet. She let out a little shriek and stumbled, accidentally kicking away the decapitated head and causing it to roll. The stench of coppery blood thickened, and Soleia felt her stomach lurch.

"It’s okay, I’m here," Rafael said reassuringly. With a firm yet gentle hand, he tilted Soleia’s chin back so that she was back to looking at him. "Breathe... breathe..."

"The smell..." Soleia choked out.

Taking slow breaths was the right tactic to calm her down, but under these circumstances, inhaling more mouthfuls of blood-scented air was doing more harm than good. She didn’t know how to explain this to Rafael, but somehow, he looked like he understood. In one quick motion, he easily picked her up in his arms and rushed towards the exit of the dungeons.

Raziel sighed and followed more behind at a more sedate pace. He might as well get some fresh air and check on the cleanliness of his rapier.

"You can breathe more easily here," Rafael said, as he carefully put Soleia back down on the floor, purposely choosing a spot where a lot of plants were so as to better refresh Soleia’s mind. He offered her a hand to hold, gazing at her with a worried expression. "How are you feeling?"

Soleia leaned over and puked out the contents of her breakfast. Rafael immediately panicked, his carnelian glowing, ready to heal her, but he was quickly stopped when Soleia raised her hand.

"I am fine," she said. "I just need some time. Maybe some water."

He could only rub slow circles around her back and offer her a handkerchief.

Soon, the churning in her gut stopped. Soleia raised her head and saw the warm afternoon sun shining down through the canopy of the trees, chasing away the gloom of the dungeons. She sucked in a deep breath, and was rewarded with fresh, clean air.

"We should go to the infirmary," Rafael said, still concerned, but Soleia shook her head.

"There’s no need. I just need to rest here, breathe in some fresh air," Soleia said. Besides, she couldn’t help but wonder if Raziel actually worked in the infirmary. He had done miracles on Anastasia, giving her a second chance at life before heartlessly ripping it out of her.

That thought upset her for more reasons than one. Soleia shuddered, recalling the expression of furious grief that was fixed on Anastasia’s head, as though said head had not recognized it wasn’t attached to her body any longer. She had so much potential. Soleia felt Anastasia’s pyromancy abilities settle in her gut, warming her from within.

"I cannot believe he simply decapitated her like that," Soleia said quietly. "Raziel didn’t need to do so. She was priceless when she was kept alive. That woman posed no threat against him without her powers. How did he even do it? I thought you said his powers weren’t offensive?"

Raziel had moved so quickly that she wasn’t sure what had even happened. Anastasia was killed in less than a blink of an eye.

Before Rafael could explain, a new voice entered their conversation.

"I didn’t use my powers," Raziel explained. "I merely used this."

He held up his rapier for all to see. The blade was sharp, glinting ominously in the sun. There was a faint reddish stain on the blade, and Soleia could guess its cause.

"Ah, I missed a spot," Raziel mused, a mild frown on his face. "I apologize for the mess, Princess Soleia."

Soleia let out a tiny wheeze. "Are you referring to the dungeons or this tiny stain right here?"

"Both, I suppose," Raziel said, his eyes furrowing at the paleness of Soleia’s face. "I must say, I did not expect you to be so affected by bloodshed." frёewebηovel.cѳm

Soleia spluttered, and Rafael shot Raziel a disapproving glance. "Soleia is a princess. Do you expect her to be lopping off heads left and right? Don’t lump her in with the lights of you and me!"

Raziel nodded. "You are right. That was my mistake. I was simply too enthused to meet a kindred spirit in my research that I went overboard. I hope it hasn’t put you off permanently from working with me."

Working with him was the last thing Soleia wanted, but she knew better than to know she had a choice. Without Raziel healing the magical practitioners, she would have no people to practice on, which meant that she would be useless in the eyes of King Recaldo, and that would lead her on a one-way route back to Vramid, back into her father’s loving arms.

Over her dead body.

"Of course not." Soleia pasted a smile on her face and replied to Raziel. "But I do hope you think twice about killing magical practitioners so easily. They are in too short supply for you to simply snuff out their lives as though you are putting out a candle."

Raziel nodded obligingly. "I understand your concerns. Rest assured, I had my men clean up the dungeons, and I will be making sure the prisoners are at least... healthy the next time you visit."

"It’ll be a few days from now, at the very least," Rafael interrupted the conversation in a tone that brooked no argument. "Soleia needs time to recover from the shock you just gave her. We’re going back to our room."

"That works fine for me," Raziel said, his gaze strangely intent. "But before I leave, I have a question to ask. Princess Soleia, do you feel any different after nullifying Anastasia’s pyromancy? Do you feel... like you have her powers inside of you?"

He couldn’t forget Princess Soleia using cyromancy against the howlers in the forest. If she had somehow managed to absorb Anastasia’s pyromancy into her body, this meant that her body was specially built to house magic. Soleia could be the key to unravelling the mysteries that come with magic use.

Meanwhile, Soleia tried to keep her breath steady. Raziel sounded as though he knew what she was truly capable of, and that boded ill for her well-being.

"That sounds ridiculous," Soleia said, shaking her head after a pause. "I don’t feel any different... Maybe a bit giddy, but that could have been due to stress. Everything happened so fast. I couldn’t tell."

There was a quiet flame burning in Soleia’s gut, but of course, she wasn’t going to tell Raziel that. Who knew if he might ’accidentally’ dissect her in an attempt to further his research?

"That’s a pity," Raziel said, and he honestly meant it. "This means that powers cannot be transferred in the event of the host’s death. How fascinating."

Soleia’s blood grew cold, but she made herself remain calm. "Perhaps those abilities are in our souls, more than they are in our bodies."

"Perhaps," Raziel echoed. "I shall see you around soon enough."

With that last ominous parting, Raziel finally left them alone.