Married To The Enemy Kingdom's Illegitimate Prince-Chapter 71 — Fire (3)

Inhaling deeply, Cynthia looked at her hands. Between her palms, an orange light flickered, its glow unstable. She hurled the large fireball into the blaze, while the commoners standing afar shrieked in fear.

"What are you doing, you witch?!"

"Have you lost your mind?!"

"Are you trying to kill us?!"

"How can you do this?!"

The screams halted once they noticed the large fireball Cynthia had thrown began to shallow the fire already on the trees, and slowly, only the fire the grand duchess had created remained, hovering in the air above the brunt trees, where a few of the trunks remained sturdy enough to keep standing although they had turned a pitch black due to the fire.

"You..." the old man, who had thrown a rock at her muttered, muttered, his eyes widening.

"It seems like the fire had been solved—" Just Cynthia said so, the fire she created rushed toward her at a high speed. She had completely forgotten to make it disappear and the side of the spell. She quickly spread her arms, closing her eyes. A large white barrier formed around her, and soon the fire rushing her way hit the barrier and began to fade away into the white barrier.

The crowd watched her movements in awe while Cynthia let out a sigh of relief though her vision blurred for a moment.

"I might have used too much mana," she muttered, gently wiping the sweat that ran down her face.

Lucian, who didn’t expect her to solve the issue, stood behind unable to speak a word. The shock from witnessing her perform such powerful spells left him wondering if she truly didn’t know that she possessed magic. After all, a person who never performed magic couldn’t possibly have grown so strong in merely a few months!

"Did she lie?" He wondered, unable to find an answer. "However, from the expression she had when she learned she had magic along with me... wasn’t one of the people who was delighted. She seemed..."

Lucian paused, his thoughts scattering as a loud cry echoed through the crowd. Instinctively, he reached for the hilt of his sword, prepared to confront any emerging threat.

Before him, a few steps away, a towering figure loomed over an elderly man who had crumpled to the ground, trembling as if he had seen a ghost. The silhouette was dark, like many others in the forest, shrouded by the thick smoke that the wildfire had produced over time.

"What happened?" Lucian demanded, striding toward the crowd, which parted to make way for the grand duke.

"Y-Your Highness! Step back!" Cynthia shouted, urgency lacing her trembling voice.

"What?" Lucian turned, just as Cynthia barreled toward him, panic in her eyes.

It was too late.

He felt a cold, sharp object graze his right arm, although Cynthia managed to push him away just in time.

"What are you all waiting for? You’re meant to protect the grand duke! How can you let him confront a demon when he hasn’t even drawn his sword?!"

Lucian, still in a daze, barely made out the words Cynthia spouted.

Demon? What is she talking about? She never saw one before! And that man...

His mind raced, however, sensing the hand on his shoulder slowly dropping, he gazed on the grass. Cynthia slumped on the ground, making him perplexed. The knights appointed by the king, who didn’t care about his well being, approached him.

"Are you alright?" One of them asked, although there was no sense of worry on his complexion. Lucian scoffed.

Did he look alright?

The answer was evident if a person looked closely; blood dripped onto the grass, staining the half-green, half-brown dress in red, seeping from his left arm through the torn fabric. Yet, Lucian still nodded. Even though he had risen in rank and had now become a grand duke, they were the same knights who used to look down on him due to his origins.

"Look for the demon who attacked His Highness!" Cynthia ordered firmly.

"Which demon?"

Hearing that question from a knight, Cynthia promptly turned only to see a dark smoke. She was certain there was a demon there!

But I saw it...

Hearing a soft groan escaping Lucian. Cynthia paused her thoughts.

"Let’s go," Barely managing to stand, she wrapped her arm around Lucian’s, walking through the forest.

As they walked, Cynthia’s violet irises traced behind. The commoners didn’t speak a word and stood still at a distance, while the old man on the ground joined his neighbors. The knights didn’t move to assist Lucian either. That wasn’t what she remembered of him.

At least his knights cared for him... So why do they seem so... careless?

Just as she pondered, she heard quick steps heading their way. She turned to face Glain, huffing and struggling to catch his breath. His wrinkled forehead among the indifferent complexions only showed how worried he was for the grand duke.

"Y-You are bleeding," he gasped.

Cynthia stared at the brown-haired man. The brief moments they met, including her past life, she only saw a composed right hand of Lucian. However, it seemed his loyalty wasnt limited to his post.

"Let’s head to the mansion first and treat him."

Glain nodded in agreement to Cynthia’s words and rushed to the carriage, followed by the grand duke and grand duchess.

"You can let go now," Lucian whispered, making sure Glain wouldn’t hear once they stood before the golden carriage.

"R-Right," she gently slid her hand. She didn’t understand her own actions either. She wanted to hurt this man desperately. She would even go as far as eating poison for him, making blows for him, however, why was her heart racing as if she was almost... worried.

She quickly shook her head, shutting its possibility.

No. I’m only doing this because I am the one who needs to ruin him. I need to keep him safe until my plan can finally begin.

Resolved, she clenched her fist, looking through the window once the carriage began moving.

This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦