Chapter 149: The House At the End Of The Alley
For the next two days after the snake attack, Lara remained in her room, recuperating in silence. The pain from her injuries had dulled, but bruises lingered beneath her skin, a reminder of the battle she had narrowly escaped. Each evening, she soaked in a medicinal bath infused with healing herbs, its warmth seeping into her battered body. The ointment Alaric had given her worked wonders, hastening the fading of the deep purple scattered across her skin.
On the third day, when she recovered her strength, though her body still ached, she could no longer afford to wait. She wanted to leave the plateau to reunite with her master, Reya, and Sandoz.
Alaric wanted her to stay for another day, but Lara, equally stubborn, refused. The prince sighed, recognizing the futility of arguing with her, and conceded.
"If you must go, then we go together," he said.
Thus, exactly one week after she turned seventeen, Lara descended Mount Ourea, accompanied by Prince Alaric and his twenty-four elite soldiers.
They passed by the village entrusted to take care of their horses. Agilus paid the village chief generously before leading the group to retrieve their mounts.
Twenty-five horses stood waiting.
Aramis glanced at Kane, who stood without a mount of his own. With a smirk, he was about to offer Kane a ride with him, but the moment Alaric’s icy stare landed on him, he immediately reconsidered. Aramis shrank back, swallowing his words.
In the end, it was Lara who rode with Alaric. Seated behind him, she hesitated only for a moment before wrapping her arms around his waist for balance. As Alaric spurred his horse forward, they left behind a swirling cloud of dust, the wind carrying the whispers of the soldiers left in their wake.
Agilus and Aramis exchanged a look.
The rest of the soldiers remained expressionless, but within their ranks, silent thoughts swirled—each man recognizing the prince’s uncharacteristic attentiveness to the young soldier, Kane.