Exiled Prince: I'm the Unexpected Extra in the Novel-Chapter 170: Lemon

The War for The North [57]

Chapter 170: Lemon

A/N:

I couldn’t come up with a title for this Chapter, so I’ll just call it lemon...

When the morning sun filtered through the frozen windows and struck Cassian’s face, he woke from a peaceful sleep.

He opened his eyes and stared blankly at the dark wooden beams covering the ceiling for a while. His mind slowly cleared under the weight of what happened last night.

His hand involuntarily went to his temple, amongst his hair. His fingertips touched a thin, hard texture there. A small braid.

That hair braid Cecilia had woven last night with trembling hands and flushed cheeks. A declaration of love according to an old tradition of the North, a silent seal.

Cassian sighed deeply. Normally he would undo such things instantly and return to his old messy state. But his hand hung in the air. He didn’t undo it.

He slowly got out of bed.

He changed his clothes, put on his comfortable black outfit, and placed his eyepatch over his left eye.

As he left the room, he looked in the mirror one last time. The small braid amidst his white hair formed a strange contrast with the black eyepatch.

Leaving the castle, he inhaled the cold morning air into his lungs.

Cassian headed towards the eastern part of the walls. Since arriving here, he hadn’t had a proper opportunity to meet with the group of witches he dragged along or with Cordelia.

Cordelia was at the back of his mind. He was trying to keep his distance from her because he feared that if he got a little closer, he would give the girl hope and eventually shatter that little heart. But leaving them completely unsupervised was also an invitation to disaster.

In the eastern part of the walls, a bit further from the refugee camps, there was an inn in better condition.

The moment he entered the inn’s door, the warm air and the smell of fresh bread hit his face.

His eyes immediately searched for familiar faces. Elina and Roxy were sitting at a large table with a few other witches, having a heated breakfast.

Roxy, as usual, was trying to feed both her soul and her stomach with a fork in one hand and a thick book in the other.

Just then, thundering footsteps were heard from the upper floor. Ivy appeared at the top of the stairs. Her green hair was messy, her eyes sleepy but her energy was intact. Her eyes sparkled the moment she saw Cassian.

"My Prince!"

Ivy ran, skipping the last steps of the stairs, and threw herself onto Cassian like a cannonball.

Cassian’s first reflex was to step aside and dodge. But he didn’t. He stood his ground and allowed Ivy to wrap her arms around his neck and show her exaggerated affection.

"Good morning, Ivy," said Cassian, smiling slightly.

Ivy pulled back and looked him over. "We thought you forgot about us."

Cassian approached the other witches’ table.

"You seem to be enjoying yourselves," he said, gesturing to the rich breakfast on the table.

Without lifting her head from her book, Roxy said, "It counts as better compared to our life in the mountains. At least the tea isn’t bitter."

Cassian looked around.

"Where are Cordelia and Lilith? Are they still sleeping?"

Elina swallowed the morsel in her mouth and answered. "Lilith is upstairs, still sleeping. As for Cordelia..." Elina paused, a worried expression settling on her face. "She hasn’t been around since last night."

Cassian frowned. "She isn’t here?"

"No," said Ivy, intervening. "We asked where she was going, but she just gave us one of her creepy looks and walked out. She didn’t care about us at all."

Ivy whined. "Seriously, what is that girl’s problem? I offered to be friends with her, even to braid her hair, but all she did was hiss at me. She is a total brat!"

A sheepish expression settled on Cassian’s face. He knew Cordelia would have a hard time adjusting.

"She..." said Cassian, trying to choose the right words. "Has a bit of a bad past. It’s not about you, she acts the same towards everyone."

As if wanting to change the subject, Elina asked, "My Prince, have you had breakfast? Should we set a place for you too?"

"I haven’t yet," said Cassian, suppressing the growl of his stomach. "Actually, I was planning to eat with you, but you’re already halfway through."

Ivy jumped in immediately, grabbed Cassian by the shoulders, sat him in an empty chair, and sat right next to him.

"Don’t be ridiculous! Wait here, I’ll bring you fresh tea and hot buns right away!"

As Ivy rushed to the kitchen, Cassian glanced around the inn. There was no one serving around.

"Doesn’t the inn have an owner or employees?" he asked. "Why are you serving?"

Roxy closed her book. "Actually, it did. But Duchess Cecilia... She bought this place completely."

Roxy adjusted her glasses. "We haven’t seen her personally, but the soldiers at the door said so. A generous person."

Cassian was surprised. "Hmm... I wouldn’t expect this from her," he mumbled. Cecilia being so thoughtful had surprised him.

"Did you say something?" asked Elina.

"No, nothing," said Cassian, taking the tea Ivy brought.

After having his breakfast accompanied by the cheerful chatter of the witches, Cassian headed upstairs to check on Lilith. He came to the room at the end of the corridor and opened the door without knocking.

The scene he saw formed a mocking smile on Cassian’s lips.

Lilith was sleeping messily on the wide bed, her arms and legs spread out. And in her arms was poor Olivia. Lilith was hugging Olivia like a giant plush toy, her leg thrown over the girl.

Seeing Cassian at the door, Olivia opened her eyes wide and silently moved her lips to ask for help.

’My Prince... Save me! I’m suffocating!’

Cassian approached the bed, formed a ball of ice-cold water in his palm, and threw it at Lilith’s face without any mercy.

SPLASH!

Lilith jumped up with the shock of the cold water. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Olivia rolled to the other side of the bed and escaped.

"What the hell is happening?!" shouted Lilith, pulling her wet hair from her face. Her eyes were flashing fire, but seeing Cassian in front of her, the anger evaporated instantly.

"Honey?"

A seductive smile spread across her face. She got out of bed, hugging Cassian regardless of her wet nightgown.

"Good morning, witch," said Cassian, pushing her slightly. "I see you’re in a good mood. Have you made Olivia your new toy?"

Lilith giggled, winking at Olivia. "Haha, what can I do? She is like a copy of you. Hugging her when you’re not around makes me feel like I’m hugging you."

Olivia shook her head, trembling in the corner.

Cassian sat on the edge of the bed, his face growing serious.

"I expected you to keep an eye on Cordelia," he said. "She’s been missing since last night."

Lilith’s face fell. She shrugged.

"Do you think that psychopath listens to anyone other than you?" she said defensively.

Then she added with a sly smile. "But don’t worry, I can guess where she went. She must be with Rose."

"Rose?" Cassian was surprised. "Why would she be with her? They hated each other."

"I don’t know, they must have gotten close in a strange way."

Cassian didn’t prolong the subject. "Anyway," he said, standing up. "I’m going to put on a big show tonight. Be ready."

"A show?" Lilith raised her eyebrows curiously.

"Yes," said Cassian, his eyes shining with determination. "I will completely purge the plague from the North tonight."

Lilith became serious. She knew how big a burden this was.

"Will you be able to do it?"

Cassian walked to the window, looking at the gray sky outside.

"Do I have any choice but to do it?" he said.

Lilith didn’t answer. She just watched him silently.

"Anyway," said Cassian, heading for the door. "Find a good spot to watch tonight. It will be a beautiful view. Don’t miss it."

Just as he was about to leave, Lilith’s voice stopped him.

"By the way..." Lilith’s eyes were fixed on the small, silvery braid behind Cassian’s ear. "Why did you braid your hair? You wouldn’t do such things."

Cassian paused. His hand went involuntarily to the braid. He scratched his cheek.

"I’m trying a new style," he lied. "I thought it would match my eyepatch."

Lilith narrowed her eyes. She didn’t believe it, but she didn’t insist.

"Hmm... If you say so."

"By the way—" Just as Cassian was about to ask something else, he suddenly felt a familiar, sharp wave of mana. Cordelia. She was close.

"Anyway, never mind, I’ll tell you later!" he said hurriedly. "Don’t forget to watch the show tonight!"

He opened the window, turned into a crow amidst black smoke, and let himself into the void.

On the roof of a high tower, a small silhouette was sitting. Cordelia dangled her legs from the tower, watching the snow-covered city below with empty eyes.

A black crow glided down next to her and turned into human form amidst smoke.

Cassian called out to her, finding his balance on the sloped surface of the roof.

"You shouldn’t climb to high places," he said softly. "You could get hurt if you fall."

Cordelia didn’t even turn her head.

"What difference does it make?" she said, her voice so weak it was almost lost in the howling of the wind. "You don’t care about me anyway."

Cassian was surprised. He sat next to her.

"Where did you get that idea?"

Cordelia turned her teary eyes to him. The accumulated anger and resentment inside her exploded.

"You left Veythral without saying anything!" she shouted. "You left me among those strangers. And when I found you... you abandoned me again! You left me with the witches and went to the castle alone. You are always busy. You always spend time with others."

Sheepishly, Cassian approached her and without hesitation wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Cordelia resisted at first, but then rested her head on Cassian’s chest and started crying.

"I’m sorry, Cordelia," said Cassian, stroking her hair. "My intention wasn’t to upset you... Just... I was trying to protect you. I didn’t want to drag you into dangerous places."

He took a deep breath.

"I know what I say will sound like excuses, but I promise... When this war ends, when everything settles down, we will be like before."

Cordelia sniffled. She didn’t really trust what Cassian said. But still, she didn’t say anything.

She held Cassian’s hand and stood up. A growl from her stomach ruined the dramatic moment.

"I’m hungry!" she said, sulking.

Cassian laughed. "Okay, okay... Come on, let’s go get something to eat."