The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 35: A Drop of Red II

The old woman paled tremendously, but to her credit, she gathered enough courage — or perhaps it was more desperation of a cornered animal — to spit at Ralph’s feet. Ralph merely raised an eyebrow and shifted Soleia out of the way as that little bit of spit landed on his boots.

"Very rude of you," Ralph scolded. He curled his fingers to form manacles around the old woman’s ankles, the very same type she imprisoned Soleia in.

However, he knew better than anyone that nothing short of death would allow her to emerge from the restraints. Sensing the fear in her eyes, he decided to restrain her neck and hands as well, all while humming a cheerful tune.

It wouldn’t do for her to do something foolish like throwing herself on a particularly sharp piece of crystal to end her life, not when she was priceless alive. After all, the business of precious gems was one that lent its vendors to a short shelf life. For such an old woman to keep maintaining her business without being sent to the guillotine meant that she had to have friends in high places.

"Let me go― I’ll give you half of everything I own!" the old woman declared, her pupils darting around, desperately looking for an escape route that wasn’t there.

Her store, that was once her pride and joy, had turned into a battleground littered with corpses. Smashed crystals lay on the ground, their fragments bringing bright spots of color against the dull grayish floors.

More guards entered the store, cutting off any route for escape.

"Your Highness, how do you want to deal with her?" one of the guards asked, and Ralph sighed.

"Oliver, how often must I tell you that we must be discreet about my identity? What if Soleia had heard you?" Ralph scolded with a sigh.

He gently touched Soleia’s cheek, checking for any signs of consciousness.

Thankfully, Princess Soleia was out like a light. He carefully tucked her hair behind her ear and cradled her closer to him, feeling her weakened huff of her breath on his neck.

She would recover soon. He’d make sure of that.

"You might as well yell my name from the rooftops," Ralph shook his head and tutted. "Look, this woman might be old, but she’s in no way deaf!"

"You... You―" The old woman choked as her eyes widened. She tried to lift up her hand to point an angry finger at Ralph, but the blood cuffs kept her imprisoned. Instead, her mouth fell open as she wheezed. She realized that she had stumbled upon a deadly secret.

She was not making it out of this mess alive.

"Who are you?" She wheezed.

"Since you’re not going anywhere else, I might as well let you know."

A wicked grin grew on his face, and he would have bowed if not for Soleia’s weight in his arms. Simply being around her invigorated his very being, and made every bit of suffering he endured worth the struggle.

"Prince Rafael Biroumand, at your service," Ralph― Rafael said, with sadistic glee at the way the old woman shook like a leaf at the revelation. "I’m just visiting, so you don’t have to look so worried. Also, I see that you’ve met my future wife."

"Your future wife―" The old woman repeated, stunned with disbelief. "That’s impossible! She’s already married!"

Rafael smiled coldly. "Oliver, it’s time to show our newest guest Raxuvia’s famed hospitality. Clean up this mess."

"Yes, Your Highness!" As one, the guards surrounded that old woman, blocking her from Rafael’s view. But that didn’t matter; as long as Rafael had his blood on her, he could sense her.

Now, he had to get Soleia to safety.

***

"Princess...? Princess? Can you hear me?"

There was a voice echoing in Soleia’s ears, but her head was pounding so harshly that it was hard for her to form a coherent reply. She could only let out a tiny groan of complaint, and nuzzle closer to her soft pillow. She wanted to rest for just a while longer.

Then she realized something wasn’t quite right. Her pillow had never felt so warm or broad, nor had there ever been a faint, coppery tinge of blood wafting off her silks. In fact, it wasn’t silk that greeted the skin of her cheeks. The fabric was rough, almost leathery... as though she was lying on a man’s coat.

Soleia jolted awake immediately, and found herself falling backward― or she would have, if not for the way the body in front of her suddenly tilted forward, causing her to fall in front... right on someone’s body!

Her hands instinctively came up to grab at his shoulders.

"Hey! Put me down!" Soleia shrieked in surprise, her face coloring when she realized the position she was in. She was on Sir Ralph’s back, with her arms slung in front of his body, while her legs were wrapped around his waist. Sir Ralph’s own arms were gripping her thighs through the fabric.

Soleia swallowed. Her dress wasn’t thick enough to camouflage the strength in his fingers. She might have imagined it, but he seemed to have tightened his grip at her words, pressing her body closer to his. Warmth spread through her, and she wanted to crawl into a hole to hide.

"My apologies, Princess. Did I scare you?" Sir Ralph asked, sounding concerned.

He turned his head slightly so he could look at her from the corner of his eyes. Soleia’s eyes widened when she caught sight of the blood splatter on his face, and she hurriedly tried to dab it clean with her sleeve.

"Ah, fret not, it’s not my blood," Ralph said reassuringly.

"What happened?" Soleia asked, the awkwardness of her position forgotten as she tried to make sense of things. She twisted herself to take in her surroundings― they were no longer in the store, but she could only see trees and snow in her vicinity. "Where are we?"

"How much do you remember?" Ralph asked cautiously.