Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]-Chapter 338: Finding Electra

Third-person POV

Jella was furious.

For days she’d been waiting—no, fuming—as royal guards scoured every corner of Elmeria for Electra, and yet, not one of them had returned with even a rumor of her whereabouts. Every report that came back to the palace sounded the same: no trace, no sightings, and absolutely no leads. It made Jella want to burn the entire place to the ground.

She stood in her private room, pacing before the wide windows that overlooked the palace courtyard. The morning sun made everything look calm, peaceful even, but the calmness made her skin crawl. The kingdom was rotting from within, and she could feel it.

"Useless men," she muttered, her jeweled hand clenching around the rail. "They can’t even find one foolish girl."

The reflection in the window glared back at her. Her hair, perfectly styled and flawless as always, did nothing to hide the anger in her expression. Her face was pale from all the sleepless nights that she had been having over the last few days, but her eyes were still very much stern and alive with hatred.

She knew Vale was behind keeping Electra out of the public eye, and if she didn’t hate him so much, she would actually respect how much effort he was putting in to protect his precious daughter. Unfortunately, he had the power to hide that thing from her reach, despite how hard she was trying and how many men she had put on the lookout for Electra, and only he would have the nerve to protect that filthy little secret of his and the living proof of his betrayal to the kingdom.

Jella’s lips curled.

Vale was clinging to that throne because he knew the moment he stepped down, he’d lose everything, starting from his guards and his authority, as well as his ability to keep Electra safe. Once his crown was gone, his power would crumble like dust, and when that happened, Jella would be waiting.

She’d already played her part well. The public believed her—believed that she was the poor queen forced to raise an abomination as her own and that she’d been deceived by her husband. She had even made them believe that she had no idea what Electra was from the beginning, and by the time she ended up finding out, it was too late for her to reject the idea of raising her.

The sympathy that poured in from the nobles and the people had almost been intoxicating. She’d gone from being pitied to being worshipped for being kind enough to even stomach having someone like Electra, who the entire Kingdom knew was a brat, as her daughter. So once Vale’s crown fell, she’d be the one in charge, at least until a new king was appointed.

A king she could control.

Her puppet.

Her lips curved into a thin smile as the thought crossed her mind. She didn’t even have to say his name; she could already feel his presence.

"Your Majesty?"

The sound of his voice came from behind her, low and cautious.

She turned to face him, and there he was, Hunter, standing in the doorway with his head bowed respectfully. The sight of him would have pleased her under different circumstances, since so far, so good, he had been loyal, obedient, and easy to manipulate, but right now, her patience was too thin to enjoy anything.

"Hunter," she said sharply. "I hope you’re not here to waste my time. I’m not in the mood for empty talk unless you’re about to tell me that we finally have Electra."

He hesitated, then took a slow step forward. "Unfortunately, not yet, Your Majesty."

Jella’s eyes narrowed. "Then why are you here?"

Hunter let out a small sigh, his gaze flicking briefly toward the floor before meeting hers again. "Because I think I might have found someone who can help us track her down."

Jella straightened slightly, curiosity slipping through the irritation on her face. "Someone?" she repeated. "Who could possibly be of more use than the men I already sent?"

He hesitated. "It’s... complicated."

"Then uncomplicate it," she snapped, folding her arms. "Who are you talking about?"

Hunter exhaled slowly. "I just hope you won’t be angry that I didn’t bring this up sooner."

She lifted a brow, clearly unimpressed. "That depends on what you’re about to say."

"The incident at the Revernyn tournament," he began carefully, "the one where the student named Seraphina was stabbed... that was me."

The room went completely silent.

Jella blinked once, as if she hadn’t heard him right. Then her face darkened. "What?" she said slowly, the word leaving her mouth like venom.

Hunter’s jaw tightened. "I arranged it."

Her eyes widened in disbelief before narrowing sharply. "You had that girl stabbed? Have you lost your mind?"

He didn’t move. "It wasn’t random," he said. "I was approached by someone. General Aurelian’s daughter, Iris."

At that name, Jella frowned. "That arrogant brat approached you personally?"

"Yes," Hunter replied. "She came to me a few weeks before the tournament and said she had information about Electra and what we can truly do if wanted to cause her any real damage. She told me that if we wanted to expose her, then Seraphina had to die."

Jella’s brows furrowed, her confusion deepening. "What does one student’s death have to do with Electra’s true nature?"

"She said they were connected," Hunter explained quietly. "Not just emotionally, but I’m guessing magically. She said Electra’s being alive and in control depended on that girl being alive, and if Seraphina died, Electra’s real form would come out."

"And you believed that nonsense?"

"I didn’t," he said, voice steady. "Not until it happened."

Jella’s lips parted slightly, but she didn’t speak.

"The moment Seraphina was stabbed," Hunter continued, "Electra collapsed right there, in front of me and the entire arena, and she transformed just like Iris said she would."

Jella let out a dry chuckle. She wasn’t sure how to react to what Hunter had just said to her. The daughter of one of her allies from another kingdom, General Aurelian, who had sent his daughter to Elysium on her request, was the same person who came up with the plan that finally exposed Electra to the whole world. The irony of it all almost made her laugh harder.

Still, she folded her arms and asked, "Did she happen to mention where Electra might be?"

Hunter shook his head. "No, I haven’t seen her since the tournament, but I plan to find her. I’m sure she knows more than she lets on, and I’d like to think that if anyone knows how to track a phoenix, it’s her."

Jella’s expression changed slightly, a flicker of thought passing through her eyes. Iris had always been an unusual girl—too bold and too proud. Jella had never liked her arrogance, though she couldn’t deny that there was something about her that stood out.

"She’s always been difficult," Jella muttered under her breath, mostly to herself. "But I’ll give her credit for this much; she’s clever."

Then her tone turned firm again. "If you believe she knows how to track Electra, then find her. Quickly."

Hunter bowed his head. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Jella continued. "We can’t afford to waste time. The people’s hatred for Electra is strong now, but that kind of emotion fades fast, and if too much time passes, they’ll start to lose interest, and we can’t have that. The more they hate her, the easier it will be to convince them that her death is what the kingdom needs."

Hunter gave a short nod. "I understand."

"Good."

Jella turned away and walked toward her desk. "Use whatever means you have to. I don’t care how long it takes, but I want her here before the week ends. If she’s smart enough to expose Electra once, she’s smart enough to lead us to her again."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Hunter replied quietly.

Jella didn’t look at him again. She waved her hand slightly in dismissal. "You may go."

Hunter bowed deeply, then turned and left the room.