Princess Cecilia watched as the fire Blaize had to make cackled. It was a very cold night, one they would not survive without heat. They had taken shelter somewhere inside the cave and needed the light for more than just heat. They had to know they were in a safe space. All kinds of things crept into the dark."Start talking..." Blaize said to Cecilia as she sat beside the fire. He was standing, and his eyes were on her."I do not like it when men stand over me. It makes me feel like they own me and that is something that cannot be." She said and Blaize scoffed."You have serious issues, do you know that? You are a proud maniac who thinks everything in life should just happen to you the way you want. But guess what? Life isn't that way. There are times when it fucks you up and this moment right now is one of those times." Blaize told her and she just nodded. He was done with princesses."Fine. Whatever."Then she sighed."The people that attacked us are called The Buba tribe. They are

Blaize stood close to the mouth of the cave for the rest of the night, keeping an eye out as Victoria and Cecilia slept. He had gone to check on them once and found them sleeping peacefully on the ground. The fire they made had now become a pile of ashes on the ground and the cold that had started blowing in the cave made Cecilia shiver in her sleep.Blaize gazed at her carefully. A princess out there in the woods, all alone. She never should have left her village. She should have stayed there and got married to whomever it was her father chose and that way, she would have been able to save herself from some of the pain she was going through at that moment.But still, if she had not run away, she never would have been able to take destiny by its balls and live her best life. Blaize just needed to keep her safe until they got to the Arynthians. He had a feeling that they would find that very interesting.He drew a rune on the ground, tracing it carefully so as not to miss any detail wh

The Riverside was...huge.It looked more like a city than a small village and only contradicted everything Blaize had had in mind about the place. He stood with the women at the hill and watched as people kept shouting at others, trading, and cursing.Little children ran around the square and some women could be seen preparing the nets for men to go fishing with. There were a lot of fruits and meat on display which people quickly went to buy. The sight of that food made Blaize's stomach growl.Has he really fallen so bad that years of Elderien training were wiping already? The old him would not have cared about that meal unless it was finally time to eat. But he was out of practice and outdated. And it put some relief in him to know that he was not the only one surprised by the city.Victoria was speechless! She kept gazing at the Riverside in awe and her mouth was slightly ajar."Wow... what happened here?" She asked no one in particular, but the princess shrugged her shoulders."Wel

Victoria gasped as Blaize hurried to her side, worry written all over his face. He grabbed the coat he had placed on the chair he was sitting on and glanced back toward the window."What is it? What's wrong?" Victoria asked him."We have been sold out. Ragnar sold us out to the Buba and they are on their way here." He told her and she just stood transfixed.Of course, she had her doubts about Ragnar but she did not really expect him to betray them. Why would he do that? Did he and Cecilia not claim to be in love? People in love do not sell the other out. Something was wrong."Where is she? The princess, where is she?" Blaize asked Victoria as he walked towards the table she and Ragnar had taken. She was no longer there. Her meal was not finished. Victoria stood up and joined him."I could swear she was here just two seconds ago." She said to Blaize who just cursed."We need to find her, right now..."Blaize's words were interrupted when a member of the Buba walked into the inn. The la

Victori cried as Blaize carried her through the streets, the knife still fixed to the now gory sight surrounded by blood clots. She whimper and held on to Blaize as tightly as she could, crying into his shirt with his nails digging into his back."Hold on, Victoria. Hold on. I will get you somewhere safe." Blaize said to her as she kept crying."Vector, they're following us!" The princess said to Blaize and he looked back.Hurling after them were about three Buba, all holding axes as they ran towards them."Fuck!" Blaize cursed and adjusted his grip on Victoria. Her wound had begun to bleed even more and she was becoming pale. But what could he do? He was not a healer. How could he save her? How?"Run as fast as you can. Do you hear me? Just keep following me and never stop!" He said to the princess who quickly nodded as they dashed through the streets.By that time of the day, the streets were filled with people. Traders displayed their goods, fisherman brought out their newly caught