Book 16: Chapter 12
“Your Highness, that…”
I pinched Lucia’s face, beaming: “Ah, we need to look into it. However, Mom will be with me, so there’s no need to fret. It shouldn’t be anything dangerous. We’re just checking the local mana signals. It could be some species that’s undergone some weird change causing the problem. The white deer have been locked up, so there’s no danger there. Sorry, Lucia, you’ll have to stay home alone again.”
Lucia hopelessly smiled and then hugged my arm: “It’s all right. I’m used to it. I feel reassured knowing that Queen Vyvyan will be with you. You don’t bring people with you when you go out, which is what worries me most. The eastern forest isn’t a dangerous place, either, so I’m not concerned.”
I wanted to stay with Lucia for a few days before setting out, but I only planned to stay in the elven lands for two weeks. I had already spent a long time living idly with her, so I didn’t have any time left to delay the investigation. Mommy Elizabeth already sent a letter rushing me to come to Hilles City to participate in Daisy’s baptism. I needed to quickly resolve the mana issue and then rush over to Hilles City.
The white deer had been captured and detained in the palace. The main reason for that was there was nowhere else to lock them up. The white deer were recuperating at the rear of the palace. Although they weren’t enjoying the living conditions of the White Deer King, they weren’t living in terrible conditions. They, at least, didn’t need to worry about food, water or hygiene. Their mana was abnormal; however, there was nothing wrong with them. They were a little annoyed about being locked up, but that was the extent of it.
I saw the white deer. Indeed, they didn’t suffer any abuse, but neither could I discern if there was anything different about them. The mana signals from the eastern forest remained even after they were taken away from the area. In saying that, the signal significantly weakened thereafter. My suspicion was that there must’ve been some odd mana source over there. Since the white deer had left, it lost its catalyst.
Mommy Vyvyan had the most powerful mana sensing ability. She just needed to go to the area to locate the strange mana source and then deal with it. Mom originally planned to sort it out after I left; she didn’t expect the soldiers to encounter the White Deer King.
The incident left the White Deer King quite distressed even two days after the incident. She lost her appetite and refused to come out. In the past, she would boldly run and jump around on the lawn without any qualms while her home was being cleaned at noon. The gardeners might’ve been irate about it, but nobody dared to complain. It was sad to see she refused to come out after the incident; she was afraid of running into those soldiers again. Mommy Vyvyan gave the soldiers a command to not hurt the white deer, most definitely not me and ensured the command couldn’t be overwritten. Hence, the White Deer King’s safety was guaranteed. Unfortunately, the mental trauma still lingered. As such, I had to ride a horse, which was something I hadn’t done in a long time, to head to the forest.
Mommy Vyvyan didn’t bring imperial guards along. Lucia had to stay in the imperial palace to take care of the girls. Honesty, I was reassured leaving Lucia behind in the palace. The elves imperial palace was different to humanity’s royal palace. People made an attempt on my life despite Mommy Elizabeth being present there. Nobody would come after Lucia in Duargana, though. As long as the Galadriel Tribe existed, all elves would admire and respect them.