The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 219: Stolen From Him

"You’re lying," Rafael spat out, shaking his head furiously, ignoring the way his head throbbed harder at the action. "Soleia would never leave me."

Elinora smirked and made a great show of looking around the empty infirmary.

"I do not see head or hair of her. If she loves you, she should be right beside your bed right now, holding your hand and cooing over your injury. Instead, she’s nowhere to be found."

"Orion took her away. She would never have left me otherwise," Rafael growled.

He was very sure that Soleia must have been blackmailed into leaving him― Orion came from Nedour, the very same place Reitan was currently residing in. Nedour’s Princess Nessa must have sent Orion over to drag Soleia back because they knew about her powers, and they knew she would not leave her brother behind.

This was all a plot by Nedour to separate them! They simply wanted to use Soleia to further their own goals. The very thought made him gnash his teeth, nearly biting his own tongue. Spittle was almost coming out of his mouth in sheer rage.

Elinora took a wary step back, but she cleared her throat and still shot him a pitying glance.

"The faster you admit it, the faster you can move on. Soleia’s heart has long been gone from your side. She has been playing you like a fiddle the entire time since she arrived in the palace, but you’re too lovesick to see it."

"And I suppose I should believe you over her?" Rafael pointed out. "No, I’m not wasting my time arguing with you."

He headed straight for the door, intending to get his men to search every nook and cranny of the city until Soleia was found. He couldn’t have been out for long― the sun was still in the sky. As long as the ports were bordered shut, there was no way Orion could take Soleia out of the country.

"Where are you going?" Elinora called out, grabbing his arm before he could leave.

"None of your business!" Rafael retorted, prying his hand away. But Elinora gave a delicate sniff in response.

"As your fiancée, you’ll find that your business is my business," she said. "Besides, before you run around like a headless chicken, you need to pay your father a visit. He’s not too happy with you at the moment."

Rafael snorted. "That’s nothing new. He can wait a while longer." Soleia was his priority. He needed to inform everyone to keep an eye out for a woman with long blonde hair traveling with a red-haired man.

"No, he can’t," Elinora said firmly. "If you don’t show up, Raziel might get the title of Crown Prince."

Rafael’s footsteps stopped. "What?"

"I said what I said." Elinora shrugged delicately. "If you don’t believe me, go out and waste your time looking for Soleia. I’m sure your father will be delighted to know that he plays second fiddle to a foreign woman."

Rafael headed straight for the throne room.

The moment he entered, the atmosphere grew colder. King Recaldo shot him a stony glare, but Rafael wasn’t cowed in the least. Instead, his eyes were drawn to his brothers, who were already present and on their knees, waiting for their father’s directive.

He narrowed his eyes at Raziel in particular as he recalled Soleia’s words, prior to her abduction. The prisoners had been set loose, and they had attacked Soleia. Raziel was in charge of said prisoners― his brother was such an anal-retentive perfectionist that it was nearly impossible for anyone to break in and out without his knowing.

He must have set the prisoners loose on purpose, knowing that Rafael was supposed to be out on his mission. If Soleia had not been wearing his blood ring, he would have left none the wiser and returned to find her decomposing body.

That very thought made his blood burn, and he stormed towards Raziel and hauled him up by the collar, completely ignoring his father on the throne.

"Why did you set the prisoners loose?" Rafael snarled, shaking him furiously.

"I did no such thing. I have no reason, nor do I have the motive," Raziel said placidly in response. "Brother, you’re letting emotions cloud your reasoning abilities."

"That’s not behavior a crown prince should be exhibiting," Ricard chimed in from beside him.

"Shut your trap. I’ll deal with you later," Rafael said darkly, not taking his eyes off Raziel. He wanted to rip his brother from limb to limb.

Raziel’s green eyes glittered with wry amusement, as though Rafael’s anger was nothing more than a fun little joke to him.

A loud bang reverberated through the throne room, attracting their attention. King Recaldo had stood up and flung his cane on the ground, his face nearly purple with anger.

"Do you have any respect for me as your king?!" King Recaldo bellowed heavily. "You utter ingrate of a son, you are a failure as a prince. You have lost Raxuvia our greatest military asset!"

Rafael glared back at his father. "I did not lose her. She was stolen from me. Orion Elsher had infiltrated our palace and taken Princess Soleia away just as I was leaving the borders. I do not believe he could accomplish such a feat alone, without outside help. My mission was not common knowledge, and neither is the layout of our palace."

He turned his eyes on his brothers, vitriol in his voice. "After all, there are plenty of people who do not want me to keep my position as Crown Prince."

Prince Ricard cleared his throat. "With all due respect, you are the most suspicious person here. With your skills, you should be able to handle Orion Elsher easily. Or did you simply let your guard down on account of your old friendship, allowing him to snatch Princess Soleia away from you?"

"Portioning blame is worthless," King Recaldo declared coldly, interrupting the argument.

Of course he knew his two other sons must have had a hand in pulling the strings, but that sort of sabotage ought to be expected. It was Rafael’s own lack of wisdom and cunning that led to today’s events.

Losing Princess Soleia was not an option they could live with. If she wasn’t on Raxuvia’s side, she was better off dead.

"Get the troops to search the town for Princess Soleia and Orion Elsher. Bring her back at all costs," King Recaldo ordered.

Rafael nodded and knelt down, finally hopeful that he could look for Soleia. "Yes, Your Majesty. I will do so right away―"

"Not you," King Recaldo scoffed. "I’m sending Ricard. You are supposed to be at the Northern border, quelling a rebellion. You will leave the palace at once."