Page 85 of I Destroyed the Elf Prince's Harem

“Thanks for the warning,” I muttered.

We were silent the rest of the way to the room. By the time Nylian had me stretched out on our bed, there were three healers anxiously hovering nearby, ready to descend on me. With minimal fuss, they closed up wounds—of which only two needed stitches—applied that magical goo that was good for more than just lube, and applied bandages. The entire time, Nylian stood next to the bed, his arms folded over his chest, glaring at the healers as if daring them to cause me a single moment of pain as they worked.

When the door closed and we were alone at last, I held out my hand to him. “Stop scowling. Your face is going to get stuck like that.”

He took my hand in both of his and pressed his lips to my knuckles as he sat on the edge of the bed. For a long time, he simply held my hand with his eyes closed. My heart broke for him. I’d never wanted to scare him like that or have him suffer such pain at the hands of his own family. Coming to Blackscar had dealt him too much pain for a tiny glimmer of hope.

But I didn’t want him dwelling on what could have happened or the betrayal he was likely feeling thanks to Thallan. I was alive, and that was all that mattered.

“Were you able to avoid the glass when you got dressed?” I inquired.

Nylian’s eyes flicked open, and I thought he was going to strangle me. “That’s all you have to say to me? You’re worried about the glass on the floor?”

I licked my lips and swallowed against the growing tightness in my throat. “Did you mean what you said to your uncle?”

Nylian’s fingers tightened around mine, and his voice dropped to a harsh whisper. “I meant every word.”

“Do you really love me?” I choked out, blinking away stupid tears that were blurring my view of his perfect face.

Finally, he smiled. “I love you with everything that I am.”

“I love you too. So much,” I sobbed. With the smallest pull, Nylian crashed into me, the all-consuming kiss wiping all the pains in my body so that there was only this man who’d claimed my heart. He lifted his lips from mine to kiss away the tears that escaped and along my jaw.

“Don’t worry, precious one. No one is going to steal me away from you.”

And I believed him.

Chapter 26

We’re All Gonna Die

After that fiasco, we got the fuck out of Dodge.

Nylian didn’t speak to his uncle before our departure, and the duke didn’t attempt to approach any of us. I didn’t know whether he was still pissed or if he was giving his nephew some space. Even as we rode out of Blackscar, Nylian was still a simmering cauldron of rage that wouldn’t cool for a long, long time.

Thankfully, Captain Elion stepped up to make sure we had all the supplies we needed for our journey to Ashbourne. Or rather, a small, secluded manor that sat on Lake Mallomar. Apparently, I was hungry that day when I was naming things. Gods, I was such an asshole.

The Duchess Helena Covington’s private manor was called Stonewill Chateau and sat beside the lake because it was the home of the black-winged cobra—a creature I was not looking forward to facing in person.

Traveling south didn’t take as long as I’d hoped it would. The route was over flat plains and farmlands that had flourished after centuries of peace between Lockeheim and Wolfrest. Seeing the people tending to their fields and bringing in their harvest made me even more eager to keep this trek as private as possible. If the government of Lockeheim was interested in going to war with Wolfrest, so be it. It was the lives of their people they were throwing away.

But if this was one power-hungry bastard out for themselves, there was no reason to ruin the lives of thousands by escalating this disaster even further.

While on the road, we caught Adeline, Jasper, and Master Binx up on the news that Orian was still clinging to life and that we needed to get an antidote to the poison coursing through his blood. Adeline had at least spent some time in Ashbourne and had used the road that cut through the Hissing Marsh. While the black-winged cobra preferred to stay at Lake Mallomar, there were plenty of other snakes and aggressive plant life that called the Hissing Marsh home. The lake and marsh were the leading reasons Lockeheim had become renowned for its poison. There were countless venomous creatures living within its borders that could be raised and harvested for their toxins.

Not to mention, the Hissing Marsh provided an excellent border to keep out would-be invaders. There was no point in attacking a kingdom if you were going to lose most of your soldiers in a swamp.

To my relief, the path to Stonewill Chateau didn’t require us to spend much time in the marsh. On a hill overlooking the home, we stopped our horses and tied them to a nearby tree. Adeline and I took care of removing the gears, rubbing them down, and feeding them. I caught her glancing over her shoulder at Jasper several times as he sat with his head bowed next to Nylian while talking about the Widow’s Spite poison and the black-winged cobra.

“We can leave him here at camp,” I said, breaking the silence.

“What?” Adeline’s head snapped up, and she blinked at me, as if her brain were still trying to comprehend my words. After a second, she frowned and resumed brushing Jasper’s horse. “No. He has to go with us. I mean, I’d love to knock him out, tie him up, and leave him here, but he’s the only one out of the four of us who knows squat about poisons and those damn snakes.”

I couldn’t argue with that. I might have been the idiot who’d created them, but Jasper was the one who knew all the rules that had developed without me.

“Well, if things go sideways on us and you see an opening to get Jasper out of there, I want you to take it. Nylian and I can look out for ourselves.”

A harsh bark of laughter jumped from her throat, and the horse startled, stomping a hoof in the dirt. She cooed at it and rubbed its neck, calming it before turning her attention to me. “You really are an idiot sometimes.”

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