Chapter 8
The strong winds had enlarged the scale of the forest fire and worsened the situation, but that was precisely why things had worked out in their favor.
If there had not been even a breeze, her ability would have been severely limited.
There were limits to the power of a mere human to control the immense forces of nature.
The stronger the wind, the more Lea’s abilities were amplified, but the harder it became to control them precisely.
The power of spirits was like that of a capricious child.
It could not simply be commanded or forced. It had to be gently soothed and guided.
‘Not that way. Move a little farther.’
Lea changed the direction of the wind around the smaller flames spreading near the strongest blaze.
She intended to create a backfire so that the fires would consume one another.
Gripping the railing of the watchtower tightly, she concentrated.
The flames rushing toward the encampment faltered when the wind was taken away from them.
The flames that had been writhing grotesquely like a demon’s tongue suddenly shot straight up into the sky.
While the powerful blaze slowed down, the smaller fires around it burned through the forest first.
The flames converging from all directions on the wind gradually surrounded the massive fire.
‘Got it.’
Feeling that she had completely controlled the wind, she relaxed.
Unless there was some major variable, the wind imbued with the spirits’ power would not change direction again.
As she caught her breath, she spotted a small fire still moving through the forest some distance away from where her backfire strategy had succeeded.
‘I told you, not that way. You have to go in the opposite direction.’
Lea concentrated again and frowned.
No matter how many times she tried, the wind would not reach it.
The wind approached the flames, only to bounce away.
‘This has never happened before….’
A thought suddenly flashed through her mind.
‘Could it be?’
Lea jumped straight down from the watchtower and ran outside the residence.
She merely waved at the group gathered in front of the building before continuing to run.
“Where are you going?!”
“Wait here!”
She answered Penny’s shout before grabbing people she passed at random and asking,
“Where is His Highness? The Crown Prince?”
After passing by several people who could not give her a proper answer, she spotted Cedric directing the soldiers.
“Sir Milo! Where is His Highness?”
“It’s dangerous. Please move somewhere safe!”
“I’m asking where His Highness is. Did he perhaps go into the forest?”
Seeing the answer on Cedric’s face, Lea immediately turned and ran.
Cedric could not stop her as she disappeared among the soldiers in an instant.
He pressed his lips together before turning back to the soldiers and continuing to give orders.
For now, focusing on the mission was more important than the princess’s safety.
While running, Lea encountered soldiers moving the horses from the stables.
She picked one of them and nimbly jumped onto its back.
“Hyah!”
“Who is that?! She’s stealing a horse!”
“Go after her!”
The soldiers shouted, pointing in the direction where she had disappeared.
But they could not immediately pursue her and were left flustered.
They had been moving the horses that had been resting without reins or saddles, so they needed time to prepare.
“You’re a good runner, aren’t you? Let’s go that way!”
Lea grabbed the horse’s mane and skillfully rode the unsaddled horse.
People from the Kingdom of Zephyrus had been riding horses without reins or saddles for fun since childhood.
Moreover, after awakening the power of the spirits, she had found it easy to form deep bonds with animals.
‘Show me the way.’
She recalled the place she had seen from the watchtower earlier.
Following the direction indicated by the wind, Lea urged the horse onward.
Karion rode toward the village in the forest with ten elite royal guards.
The deeper they went, the denser the forest became, and there was no proper path, making it impossible to ride the horses any farther.
“One person stay behind and watch the horses.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Karion and the remaining soldiers continued deeper into the forest.
Even though it was late at night and they could barely see in front of them, they searched for the path without hesitation.
Karion was at the very front.
His ability to find his way was so exceptional that even professional guides would have marveled at it.
If he had visited a place even once, he could find his way there accurately even in the middle of a moonless night deep in the forest.
He himself found his ability mysterious.
It was as though an invisible guide lived inside his head and showed him the way.
He would probably never get lost for the rest of his life.
Ironically, however, he felt that while he could always find his way through the world, he himself was wandering because he could not find the path his own life should take.
When they reached the entrance to the village, it was shrouded in silent darkness.
The commotion at the encampment would not have reached this far, and everyone seemed to be sleeping soundly, unaware of the world around them.
By the time they noticed signs of the forest fire, it would already have been too late. In their confusion, the entire village would have been wiped out.
“Everyone, wake up!”
“There’s a forest fire! Everyone, wake up!”
The soldiers shouted as they ran through the village.
Soon, startled villagers came rushing out of the small huts here and there.
“Everyone must evacuate. The forest fire will spread this far! Don’t take anything with you! Hurry!”
There were only about fifty villagers, and half of them were children.
“It’s a forest path in the middle of the night. Stay close enough to see the person in front of you so that you don’t get lost!”
Karion led the villagers from the front, finding the path for them.
Their pace was slow because there were so many children, but they safely reached the place where the horses had been left.
As the village chief was checking the headcount, he suddenly shouted.
“What? Lara is missing?”
“I can’t see my sister. Lara! Lara!”
The children began to cry, and the people grew restless.
“Lara!”
“Lara! Where are you? Answer me!”
Despite everyone calling out to her repeatedly, there was no response.
Karion asked the village chief what had happened.
“She’s an eight-year-old girl. We definitely counted everyone before we left.”
A soldier spoke up.
“I was at the rear of the group, so there’s no way she left somewhere along the way. It seems she never joined us right before we departed.”
Karion stared into the darkness of the forest for a moment before speaking.
“You take the villagers to the encampment. I’ll return to the village.”
“Your Highness, it’s dangerous. I’ll go instead.”
“Can you find your way better than I can? It would be faster if I went. Head to the encampment.”
The soldiers could not stop Karion as he vanished into the darkness of the forest.
They exchanged glances and nodded.
They trusted that, with the abilities of the commander-in-chief they served, he would be able to find a single child and bring her back in no time.
On his way into the village, Karion caught the acrid smell of smoke.
‘The fire has already spread this close!’
He quickened his pace.
By the time he was nearly at the village, thick smoke had filled the area around him.
“Lara!”
Karion called the child’s name as he searched every corner of the village.
But he could find no trace of the girl, nor could he sense any sign of her presence.
Thinking the frightened child might be hiding, he entered every house he could see and checked them one by one.
Just as he emerged from the last house, a burning ember landed on the roof.
The roof, covered with dry branches and leaves, instantly burst into flames.
The moment Karion saw the bright red flames blazing before his eyes, he heard a pounding sound that shook his entire body.
“Ugh….”
Clutching his chest, he dropped to one knee.
‘Of all times….’
His cursed chronic illness had been triggered.
His breath instantly became labored, and a terrible pain, as though a massive ball of fire were burning through his stomach, surged through him.
And today’s attack was far worse than usual.
His vision grew hazy, and a low groan escaped his throat involuntarily.
He wanted nothing more than to collapse onto the ground and scream.
“Hnnng.”
Karion clenched his teeth and forced his trembling body to remain upright.
Even though he knew he would die if he stayed here, his body would not obey him.
He crawled away from the burning house as best he could, barely making it to a tree some distance away before leaning against it and sitting down.
“Your Highness!”
The voice was clear, pure, and desperate.
Breathing heavily, he thought that perhaps he was even beginning to hear hallucinations.
“Your Highness! Please wake up. Your Highness! Karion!”
His brow twitched as his eyes began to close.
⌜Karion!⌟
Was his mother the last person to call his name?
He could not remember when that had been.
Something gently brushed against his face.
It was not a physical touch.
It was something without form, something like the wind.
‘The wind?’
And this time, someone’s hand touched his face.
“Haa….”
Karion felt as though his blocked airways had suddenly opened wide.
“Are you all right?”
The flames burning inside his body subsided in an instant, and a refreshing energy swept through his entire body.
Perhaps this was what the miraculous touch of a savior felt like to someone thrown into a fire and left to burn to death.
Save me.
Desperately, he reached out with both hands.
Without thinking, he pulled the savior he managed to grasp into his arms.
