Page 111 of I Ran Away to Evil
I considered activating one of my [Etiquette] perks like [Calming Voice] to help ease the situation, but thought better of it. She was a duke’s daughter and potentially had a higher level [Etiquette] than I. As I knew from my own experiences, attributes didn’t define a person. I myself had Intelligence seventeen, an incredibly high level for anyone not learning [Magic] … but my patience for memorizing was nonexistent.
What I was trying to say was that Lady Amy could shove her foot in her mouth and come off as an excited puppy, but I had no doubt she would turn around and put on a mask and act properly if required of her. There was no telling how high her skills actually were—and she’d already admitted to soloing a dungeon.
Lady Amy looked hurt by my apology; like she was trying not to pout but failing. She glanced between Keith, her king, and I, her hero, and her shoulders slumped.
“I’m sorry for interrupting.” She politely curtsied from the open doorway flap of the tent. “Perhaps I could accompany you in a dungeon delve tomorrow?”
I heard the hidden words of immeasurable disappointment at being left behind that remained unspoken in her address—or maybe that was me feeling alittlebit guilty about choosing a date with Keith over my new friend. Still, we hadn’t made any plans.
And as of now, my dungeon escapades were probably best left behind us. “I’m sorry—”
“THERE SHE IS!” a new voice called out, and Lady Amy visibly panicked. She jumped nearly a foot in the air, turning around ready to make a break for it. It was too late, however, as the entrance was surrounded by people, their shadows falling against the canopy.
“Saintess Amaryllis, I’m so happy we found you.”
Keith mumbled, “About time …” and I turned to him in shock. He grinned, showing all his teeth. “What? I justcasuallylet her father know that we’d met while traveling. Who could have known she was on the run?”
“You didnot! When?”
“After you went to bed,” Keith replied innocently. “I was sending out routine paperwork, of course.”
“Duke Briarthorn is eagerly awaiting your return.” The elven paladin whom I’d met on the road the day before stepped into view. “If you’ll just come with us, my lady—You!”
He saw me standing in the tent slightly behind Amaryllis and frowned, righteous fury in his tone. “I did not think that you had deliberately misled us, but now I see you were aiding the saintess. By your pathetic appearance, are you one of those foolish Drendil soldiers? You might try to influence our saintess with your corrupt ways, but we will not have it!”
“Wait, no—” Lady Amy tried to explain, but the older elf cut her off.
“Guards, arrest this human!”
CHAPTER 66
Death by Mana Burn
Keith
[You have 00:17:33 until Death byMana Burn.]
The effects of [Mana Burn] were hitting him harder now. His hands had a light tremor, his head hurt, and exhaustion was eating away at his senses. As it got closer to zero, he’d be fighting harder to stay conscious.
In a way, Keith had brought this upon himself. Sir Vainbark was a stern force to be reckoned with; he would pursue a matter to the ends of the earth if tasked to do so. The elf was standing just out of site behind a tent flap, but his anger was apparent.
“We shall see what nefarious ploy Drendil has when Lady Hazelglade gets through with you,” the elvish paladin told Henrietta.
Amaryllis was doing her best to dissuade him, but her “You’re making a mistake!” went completely ignored.
Of course, Keith would not allow Sir Vainbark to mess with his princess.
Ahem,theprincess.
Keith stood, towering behind Henrietta, and placed one shaking hand on her shoulder protectively. “Tell me, why are you arresting Princess Henrietta Doryn of Drendil?”
Everyone stopped. As expected, none of the older elves bothered to bow. They nodded politely while the young ranger in the back only bowed halfway before getting elbowed by his neighbor. The elves were the original inhabitants of the forest, and while they called him king, they did so only as a formality.
Sir Vainbark looked between Henrietta and Keith. He raised an eyebrow and demanded, “If this is the Henrietta you announced to the Dark EnchantedForest last month, then I have to question your love life. This woman led us astray in our quest to locate Lady Amaryllis and return her to the safety of the Hollow Sanctuary.”
“Actually”—Henrietta put up her hand and waved for everyone’s attention—“I told you nothing but the truth. Ididsee Amy walking toward the castle. I just forgot to mention it was the day before.”
“A likely story,” the paladin scoffed.
