Heart Over Sword-Chapter 178: Politics: Part Two

Evanna stared back at Conrad, waiting for the Prince to burst into laughter at such an outrageous comment. But he did not; instead, he held her gaze, and the weight of her words hit her all at once. Evanna shot up instantly and backed away from him, her eyes wide in panic.

"Do not tell me you are planning a coup.." She trailed off as Conrad straightened to his full height. His large, muscular form now appeared more threatening towards her. Though she knew the Demon Prince was no threat to her, it was more to do with the dangerous conversation they were speaking.

Conrad smirked and started to undo the top of his fur collard cloak and walked towards her. Evanna stood still, holding her breath for his answer. "Why are you acting so surprised?" He asked and flung the cloak around her, tying it before she could smack his hands away. The weight of the fabric pushed her shoulders down, and the Princess thought her height shrunk in the process.

But none of that bothered her as she looked at Conrad incredulously.

"Why are you not denying it to me!?" Evanna exclaimed and tried to slap his hands away from the strings that had just been tightened. Instead, Conrad grabbed her hands, his grip tightening when she tried to pull away. They stared at each other, his eyes burning into hers with an intensity that made her stomach tighten and her gift instinctively flaring to life. Evanna didn’t know what she was doing, but she could feel her power rippling through her and towards the ground.

Conrad tilted his head to the side, his brows furrowing. "Because you asked me. You complained that I did not tell you of Arvid’s threats, and now you complain because I have told you what you wanted to hear. You are quite the difficult woman to please." He grinned annoyingly. His grip tightened again when Evanna tried to pull free from him, but it started to hurt to the point a bruise would form. That was when he relaxed his hold, and his thumbs brushed over the skin as though to soothe it, apologetically.

Evanna tried and failed to yank her wrists free from Conrad again and then narrowed her eyes at him. "You cannot just blurt these things out!" She complained, her eyes flicking to their surroundings.

Conrad barked out in laughter and released her, raising his palms up and looking around. "No one else is here. And I was not the one to blurt anything out." He put his hands on his hips, looking down at her with a raised brow.

"Baldwin will be returning soon with-"

"I told them to wait at my tent," Conrad interrupted her. "We are alone and free to speak of such things. So, calm down." The last sentence he said mockingly and it made Evanna bite her tongue before her hand rested on her dagger again. She wished to speak with Ronan away from Conrad and any who might overhear. But of course, the Prince knew exactly what he was doing.

It made the Princess wonder just how long Conrad had been planning to overthrow the throne. Plans like that didn’t just happen overnight. But even with her curiosity burning over a subject so dangerous, Evanna had no intention of learning more about it. While Conrad had his family drama, the Princess had her own.

Evanna’s gaze flicked to the trees behind Conrad again. "We are not alone. There are eyes and ears everywhere in these forests," Evanna replied warily.

"My hearing has not picked up on anyone nearby. And unless the elves use the trees as spies.." Conrad trailed off mid jest after watching the Princess look nervously at their surroundings again.

"The trees whisper to each other, and there are beings that can speak their language. Myself included in this statement," Evanna replied slowly, then turned away from the Prince. Although it was a secret, she knew many of Conrad’s though she would not reveal everything about herself. He lost that privilege.

Raising her hand to her head, Evanna sighed. "I cannot believe you are involving me in your plans for high treason!" She raised her voice and then covered her mouth, her eyes darting around again.

She shook her head and then looked back at the Demon Prince, waiting for him to say something, but he was watching her in amusement. "Of course. You are to be my wife. I trust you with this knowledge. Evanna, you would be untouchable.." Conrad frowned after he tried to walk towards her and almost tripped and fell forwards. Evanna lowered her gaze to his feet, and the corners of her lips tugged up as she refrained from laughing. Roots had grown from the ground and wrapped around the Prince’s ankles and covered the ends of his boots, keeping him from moving.

Clearing her throat, Evanna put her hands behind her back and muttered to herself, "You are so sure I will be your wife." Then raised her voice although she knew Conrad had heard her before. "Do not tell me any more, Conrad. I, for one, do not want to know the details, and I do not want to think about what would happen to you if you were to fail."

"What in the.. How did my feet get stuck here.." Conrad was still grumbling while crouching down and cutting through the roots with a dagger. His eyes flicked up to hers briefly as he untangled one of his feet. "You and I both know that I will not fail."

"No, you will not. Thank you for explaining your disgusting behaviour all those years. I will forgive you, but that does not mean I trust you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to speak to someone whose company I do enjoy." Evanna spun around and started to undo the cloak around her shoulders, leaving it to fall to the ground as darkness began to crawl slowly over the forest.

She stopped just by the edges of the trees that led back to the camp and looked over her shoulder with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Oh, and you should take better care of the environment. It likes to fight back." Evanna turned her hand by her side, feeling her power surge in a golden hue bolting out of her fingertips and towards the ground at Conrad’s feet. The Prince jumped back and watched as roots shot out from the earth and wrapped around his feet and legs. His eyes widened, and he looked back at her incredulously.

"Evanna! Wait! Ugh. We are not done here!" He called to her, but she ignored him with a slight giggle and spring in her step, leaving him to cut through the thick roots and vines around his legs. Although she found the shocked and impressed expression on Conrad’s face entertaining, it didn’t completely distract her from what she had just learnt.

Evanna’s face fell as she began to traipse through the thick forest that was now dark enough to make her clumsy while weaving in and out of the trees. While her body worked on trying not to bump into the trees too much, her mind was still on the Demon Prince. Conrad was going to usurp the throne, and she knew what methods he would use without her needing to ask. She could only hope that the rest of his family, his younger brothers and sister, and his mother would be left to live.

The Princess knew that Conrad had a long and dangerous journey ahead of him. There was much for him to do. Evanna shook her head, ridding her thoughts of what she now knew, and tried to focus on herself. But that was becoming harder to do when she kept being interrupted.

Evanna swiftly grabbed a dagger from inside of her boot and threw it to her right side, in the direction her sixth sense was warning her about. Only darkness stared back at her as her blade was swallowed up. She did not know what or who it was, but it was not Conrad. He was still trying to cut through her magically grown roots. At least, this might be a warning to whatever was following her.

The elf stopped walking, grinning as he narrowly missed the dagger thrown in his direction and struck the tree by his face. That Demon Prince couldn’t tell they were there, hiding among the trees and foliage but Evanna could. At the front of the small group of elves, whose gaze was sharp and intent on the raven-haired beauty, was the Flori’s Prince. Their footsteps and breathing had been silent throughout that interesting chat between the Princess of Dunhurst and Prince of Hatherland.

Arawn quietly observed Evanna, like he had been since she first entered the human’s camp. While sticking to the high branches of the trees, he’d watched earlier as the Demon Prince of Hatherland rode his horse into the camp, his smile smug as he spoke into Evanna’s ear. Though Arawn had evidence revealing Evanna’s royal lineage, he had yet to believe it. That was until he watched her walk among the soldiers. Even without their bowing and calls of respect, Evanna looked every part the Princess, or more so a Queen; her demeanour of quiet confidence, her features guarded and trained.

He was in awe of all sides to Evanna, though his features remained composed even as he pulled the dagger out of the bark. She went from calm and collected to using her gift on Conrad and throwing a knife in his direction within minutes. He couldn’t wait to learn more about the troublesome Princess. freewēbnoveℓ.com

Evanna remained still for a moment, her hands readied on her sword’s hilts, but after staring into the silent, dark woods, she turned to continue with her brows furrowed. Arawn watched with amusement dancing in his eyes as he trailed after her, sticking to the trees as she re-emerged back into the camp.

Although Arawn wasn’t particularly thrilled that Evanna seemed to be in Conrad’s hands, he was relieved to see she was unharmed, if a little weary. He could tell Garrett, and the others wanted to comment about the dagger and what they overheard between Evanna and that Prince. Still, after it was revealed the Demon Prince did have some unknown powers, they needed to be extra vigilant and silent.

Arawn’s hand tightened on Evanna’s blade and relied on the small patience he had left to stop himself from waltzing through the camp and demanding Evanna come back with him. Demon or not, Arawn would not let Prince Conrad take his Princess away. If Evanna did agree to marry that scoundrel, Arawn would still steal her away and treat her like the Queen she was.

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