Exiled Prince: I'm the Unexpected Extra in the Novel-Chapter 133: The Secret of the Ice Butterfly

The War for the North [21]

With the sudden arrival of Cryomara and Cecilia, the soldiers were kneeling, their heads bowed.

Cryomara walked over the snow as if floating and stopped right next to the log Cassian was sitting on.

Right behind her was Cecilia, wrapped in white furs, her bluish-white hair dancing in the wind.

General Hareth went down on one knee to show his respect.

"Duchess Cecilia... Lady Cryomara... Good morning, my lady."

Cryomara gestured for them to rise with an elegant hand movement. "Good morning, Hareth."

Then she turned her gaze to Cassian, who was trying to take refuge in the soup bowl in his hand.

A sly smile appeared on her lips.

"May we join you?" she asked in a tone that implied she already knew the answer.

Just as Cassian was opening his mouth to make up an excuse, General Hareth jumped in excitedly:

"Of course! It is an honor for us!"

Soldiers rushed to bring two clean wooden chairs.

However, Cryomara refused the chair. Instead, she gathered her dress slightly and sat on the empty part of the log Cassian was sitting on, close enough that their shoulders touched.

Cecilia settled into the wooden chair brought for her, right on Cassian’s other side. Cassian was trapped between two powerful women.

"Why did you come?" Cassian asked in a whisper only they could hear. His voice came out through gritted teeth.

Cryomara giggled slightly. "Why? You stone-hearted lizard... You are leaving in a few hours, weren’t you going to say goodbye to us?"

"Why should I?" Cassian said, not taking his eyes off the fire. "You already knew I was leaving at sunset. It wasn’t a secret."

"Look, even though we just met, our fates are linked," Cryomara said, placing her hand on Cassian’s shoulder.

Her fingernails dug slightly into his cloak. "Besides... You won’t deny there is a bit of intimacy, a ’warmth’ between us, right?"

These suggestive words made the hairs on the back of Cassian’s neck stand up. Arguing while there were so many eyes around was equivalent to suicide. He chose to remain silent.

Cryomara turned to General Hareth with a triumphant air. "How are preparations going, General?"

"Everything is proceeding smoothly, my lady. The troops are ready, morale is high."

"Good to hear."

Cecilia suddenly leaned forward from the wooden chair she was sitting on and wrapped the scarf she was holding around Cassian’s neck.

When Cassian looked at her in surprise, Cecilia simply said,

"It’s cold."

The soldiers watching them from afar couldn’t help but wonder what kind of relationship existed between this stranger and the Duchess.

Cassian glanced at the warm scarf wrapped around his neck. It really was very warm, and the blue butterfly patterns on it made it look cute, creating a strange contrast with

Cassian’s depressive personality.

Still, he felt embarrassed, involuntarily, for wearing it in front of so many people.

And there was Cecilia, looking at him and smiling with gentle affection.

He couldn’t take the scarf off, nor could he say anything.

So he accepted this strange warmth and remained silent.

Cassian found the presence of Cecilia and Cryomara beside him annoying.

Cecilia’s gaze fixed on his face and Cryomara’s chat with the soldiers...

Cassian couldn’t take it anymore. He downed the soup in his bowl in one gulp, the hot liquid burning its way down his throat. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and stood up quickly.

"I’m going to walk a bit," he said to General Hareth. "My legs are numb. I’ll catch up with you before sunset."

Without waiting for an answer, he slipped through the crowd and began walking quickly toward the path behind the tents.

But he wasn’t alone.

He could hear those light, crunchy footsteps on the snow. He didn’t look back, but he knew he was being followed.

After a few minutes of walking, when the noise of the camp had faded, Cassian stopped suddenly and turned around.

Cecilia was standing a few steps behind him. She had an innocent but stubborn expression on her face.

"What do you want?" Cassian asked with exasperation.

"I’m walking," Cecilia said simply.

"You can take your walk somewhere else. The other side of the camp is quite spacious."

"This is my land," Cecilia said, straightening her chin. "And I want to walk in this direction. If you happen to be going the same way by coincidence, that is not my fault."

Cassian let out a deep breath. He had learned that arguing with this girl was no different than talking to a wall.

He said nothing, turned his back, and continued walking.

When he passed between two large supply tents, he realized they were out of everyone’s line of sight. This was his chance.

He released his form. His body turned into black smoke, shrank, and transformed into a large crow with pitch-black feathers.

WHOOSH!

He opened his wings and made a powerful lunge toward the sky.

However, he had only risen two meters from the ground when he felt a sudden weight on his wings.

His feathers crackled. The humidity in the air froze in an instant, trapping his wings in a mold of ice.

His flight ended before it began.

"CAW!"

Unable to stay suspended in the air with his stiffened wings, Cassian fell to the ground like a stone.

THUD!

He was buried in the snow. In his desperation, his concentration broke, and he reverted to his human form, that young man with black hair. The ice on his wings shattered and scattered around.

Lying on his back on the snow, his chest heaving, Cassian looked at the gray sky with frustration.

"Seriously?" he muttered.

Cecilia’s face entered his field of vision. She was leaning over him, looking down from above.

"Why are you running from me?" she asked. There was a curious tone in her voice, not an accusing one.

"I’m not running from you," Cassian said, not even deigning to get up from the ground.

"Liar," Cecilia said in a flat tone. "You just turned into a crow and tried to fly away."

"I was training."

Cecilia rolled her eyes. Then her face became serious.

"Look, I don’t know what your intention is, but I don’t want to deal with you," Cassian said, trying to harden his voice. "I already have enough problems in my life."

"Do you see me as a problem?" Cecilia’s eyebrows furrowed. "You know I could have you executed just for that sentence, right?"

"And I can come back to life," Cassian replied calmly.

Cecilia paused. She either didn’t fully understand this implication of immortality or didn’t care.

"Fine," she said stubbornly. "Are you going to tell me why you’re running from me? The real reason."

Cassian didn’t look at Cecilia’s face. He fixed his eyes on the clouds drifting in the sky.

"I don’t want to get attached to you..." he whispered.

This confession hung in the cold air. Cecilia’s eyes widened slightly.

Cassian continued, his voice now more sorrowful.

"I can’t be your friend, Cecilia Frosthelm. I can be your ally, I can fight for you, I can be a bodyguard you entrust your life to. But I can’t be more than that."

"Why?" Cecilia asked. There wasn’t the slightest hesitation in her voice.

Cassian closed his eyes. He thought of that dark crown in his mind, the whispers of madness.

"One day..." he said slowly. "What would you do if I forgot all the memories I shared with you and turned into someone completely different, someone cruel? What if I didn’t know you?"

"I would become your friend again," Cecilia replied instantly. "I would introduce myself to you again."

"It’s not that simple, stupid girl..." Cassian smiled bitterly. "What if I hated you and pushed you away? What if I saw you as my enemy?"

"I would put a leash on your neck and keep you by my side," Cecilia said. Her voice was so serious it was unclear if she was joking or not. "Forever."

Cassian opened his eyes and looked at Cecilia in astonishment. In her azure eyes, he saw that wild determination resembling Cryomara.

"What if..." Cassian said, his voice trembling. "What if I tried to kill you? What if I lost control and wanted to hurt you?"

Cecilia didn’t answer. She slowly leaned down and knelt on the snow. With her gloveless hands, she cupped Cassian’s face, which was red from the cold.

She brought her face close to his. Her breath hit Cassian’s lips.

"I would hug you," she whispered. "I would trust that you would never, truly harm me."

Cassian’s black eyes trembled. All the walls inside him were shaking in the face of this simple trust.

"You’ve known me for two days..." he said, his voice hoarse. "Value your life more, idiot..."

"I trust you because I value it."

It was as if time had stopped. The cold, the war, the prophecies... None of it mattered in that moment. There was only a man lying on the snow and a girl who believed in him.

"AHEM!"

A loud and fake cough shattered the magical atmosphere between them like glass.

They both flinched. A few steps away stood a soldier with a flushed face. He had bowed his head and was looking at the ground.

"Duchess Cecilia... Please forgive my untimely arrival but... Lady Cryomara is summoning you urgently."

After delivering his message, the soldier quickly hurried away without waiting for an answer.

Cassian jumped to his feet as if he had been lying on fire.

He broke free from Cecilia’s hands. He started brushing the snow off himself furiously.

Out of shame and the panic of being caught, he couldn’t look at Cecilia’s face.

"I think... I think we’d better go back," he said, trying to keep his voice flat.

He turned his back and tried to walk away quickly.

However, Cecilia grabbed his wrist with her delicate but strong hand.

"Wait."

Cassian stopped and turned around slowly. "What?"

Cecilia took something out of her pocket. It was an elegant butterfly necklace with a silver chain, adorned with sapphire stones at the end.

Before Cassian had a chance to object, Cecilia approached.

She rose on her tiptoes and placed the necklace around Cassian’s neck. Cassian shuddered when the cold metal touched his skin.

"What is this?" Cassian asked, looking at the blue butterfly shining on his chest.

Cecilia stepped back. She tilted her head slightly to the side, and that mysterious, slightly mocking smirk appeared on her lips.

"A secret," she said.

Then she turned around and began walking toward the camp, toward Cryomara, gliding like the wind.

Cassian involuntarily brought his hand to the necklace.

He stroked the butterfly’s wings with his fingers. Then, so no one would see, he tucked the necklace inside his shirt, feeling that cold weight under the fabric as he began walking toward General Hareth, toward the war.

_ _ _

Hi everyone,

I’ve started working on a new novel.

Its theme and story structure are completely different from my current one.

If you’re into academy settings, a yandere twist, a strange main character, and a single female lead, you might enjoy this one.

[F-Rank Beast: The Heroine’s Useless Partner]