CHAPTER 20

The sun could no longer be seen as clouds started to cover the sky hiding the only light that warms the kingdom. Edric went to a town located at the end of the Vand dukedom.

He disguised himself using a drop earring and wore a cloak that covered almost half of his face. As Edric strolled through the town, he saw something that shimmered at a distance. He swiftly approached the light as if it was calling to him. Edric arrived at the market and saw a petite woman casually ambling. Her earrings seemed to shine like his.

The prince started to follow her as the woman left the market and entered into a dark alley. As he was about to take a turn, Edric lost track of her. He was bewildered as the woman disappeared in a dead-end alleyway. He continued to stare for a few minutes before continuing on his journey.

Edric walked inconspicuously and arrived at the Forest of Rever. He walked leisurely as if he already knew the place. He stopped momentarily and took out his dagger covering with a potent mana. Edric took a deep breath and closed his eyes while he increased his hearing senses. He suddenly turned around as he threw the dagger irrepressibly towards the path he passed by. The dagger flew within a few meters and pierced a man that hid within the shadows leaving a hole in his chest. Blood gushed out as the man fell on the ground. Beast began to growl as the scent of the blood diffused through the forest.

“Well, well! A rat was able to follow me even when I’m in disguise. Such a clever little pest. But did you actually think that I didn’t know from the start? Hmp. I killed you here to feed the starving beasts. Be thankful!”, Edric smiled mischievously as he continued to walk down the path. The crown prince arrived at a small hut that appeared as he went deeper.

“Aurora?”, Edric knocked at the door and entered the place. He wandered his gaze from shelf to shelf before arriving at the desk. Aurora raised her head as she saw the man approaching her.

“Eeeeeedric, you’re back. It’s been awhile”, Aurora smiled.

"How did you know it was me? My face is different you know", Edric sat across Aurora.

"Even if I become blind my friend, I will still know who's who. I basically look at the aura people emit", Aurora grinned.

“Forgive me for not visiting you, Aurora. I have alot of things in my hand”, Edric smiled back to the oracle.

“What brings you here? Have you given the ring to her?”, Aurora teased the man. The prince averted his gaze and covered half his face as he blushingly smiled.

“No, I wasn’t able to. She’s gone”, Edric answered her question.

“What? She’s dead?”, Aurora stood up with her eyes wide open.

“No! She left”, Edric said.

“What? She left you with someone else?”, Aurora furrowed her brows as she got angry at the lady who hurt her friend.

“NO! Stop jumping to conclusions Aurora. Just let me explain completely”, Edric tried calming the angry woman. Aurora sat down ready to listen to the story.

“She left without actually explaining to me anything. I know she will not do that for no reason, Aurora. She’s not like that”, Edric sat down as he began to think of Elin.

“Are you sure, Edric? How well do you know her? Is the personality she shows you the real one or are you just seeing some parts that you want to see? Are you sure you’re not blind, Edric?”, Aurora stared at Edric seriously.

“If she lies to me about who she is, I will believe her. If she won’t tell me her secrets, I will let her be. I want her to feel comfortable around me until the time comes when she will share some part of herself. No matter how long it takes for me to wait, then I will be willing to do so until death silences me. She is the only woman that make me risk everything for a future worth having. I would rather die trying to look for the woman I love than live forever without her. That’s how much I love her, Aurora. No one is perfect, I know that. Everyone has something that they don’t want anyone to know. But because I yearn for her, the imperfections she has seems to make me love her even more”, Edric told Aurora his resolution. She looked at his eyes. He seemed to be very serious of what he said.

“Fine! What do you want me to do?”, Aurora just sighed as she gave up on convincing the man.

“Do you have an item that can help me locate her?”, Edric was hopeful that he could narrow down his search for Elin. Aurora just sighed at his request.

“I’m sorry, Edric. Such an item doesn’t exist in this hut. I still cannot fathom the idea of locating a person specifically. What I have is this”, Aurora stood up and searched the shelves. She took out a monocle and gave it to Edric.

“What’s this?”, Edric was confused.

“A monocle”, Aurora said sarcastically.

“Well, I know this is a monocle, Aurora. How should this help me with my search?”, the prince sighed.

“Calm down, Edric. I still haven't explain its use. Do you have any picture of her?”, Aurora chuckled as the sight of the hopeless crown prince.

“Well, yes! What are you going to do about it?”, Edric was hesitant.

“Is it alright for you to sacrifice that picture in search of your beloved?”, Aurora waited for Edric’s response. He paused for awhile contemplating since it was the only picture he had. Edric pulled out his pocket locket. He took out the the only picture inside and gave it to her. Aurora’s eyes were wide open as she saw the image of a woman shyly smiling.

“So this is her?”, Aurora smiled excitedly. She placed the monocle on the table. The picture was then presented at the top and she began chanting. The glass glowed as the picture burned slowly until everything was gone.

“Here. Use it whenever you search for her”, Aurora handed the monocle back to the prince.

“How unfashionable!”, Edric smirked.

“Oh! Shut it. You have no choice. Forgive me if I can't help you narrow down your search of her but I'm sure you will find her soon”, Aurora half smiled.

“Thank you, Aurora. This is actually more than enough. What do you want in return?”, Edric asked seriously.

“Well, I want YOU to bring your woman to me”, Aurora smiled slyly.

“You want her? Why? Are you going to curse her? Please don’t!”, Edric was bewildered by Aurora’s request.

“Calm down, Edric. I’m an oracle, not a Witch. I just want to chat with her for a long period of time”, Aurora grinned.