Page 60 of Plaything of the Dark Elf

Etheron

I’m sitting with my back against the wall. The reports coming back from my soldiers say they don’t know where she is. And I’m scared. What if something happened to her? What if she’s hurt somewhere and I have no way to reach her?

What if in her dying moments, she thinks that I don’t love her anymore?

“Etheron.”

Izrul comes back with the healer close behind him. He kneels down and lifts up my chin, observing my eyes.

“Leave me alone, Aducu. I feel fine.”

“That is not true. You do not look ready to leave the mansion, so why are you fighting against our advice?”

“My soldiers can’t find her.” Aducu sighs through his nostrils. “I can’t stay here, knowing that she’s out there alone. Someone might hurt her!”

“Etheron, do you realize what will happen to you if your wound gets infected again?”

“Yes, I do. And I don’t care.”

“Why do you have that attitude? You have an important position to maintain. If you die, we are all going to be in peril!”

“You all can live without me, but I can’t live without her.” Using the wall, I push myself to my feet.

Aducu frowns, while Izrul covers his face with his hand. I know that they’re just trying to look out for me, but that’s not what I need right now. I don’t care about my wellbeing. Nothing matters!

“I need to look for her myself. None of these soldiers are helping me.”

Izrul mumbles something and walks away. Aducu claps his hand over my shoulder.

“Do you realize the consequences of your actions, General Etheron?”

“Completely.”

“Then, I cannot stop you from doing what you want.” Aducu releases his hold on me, backing away. “It’s what you have always done, after all.”

Damn right. I do what I want, and right now, I want to find Dalia. I don’t care if it kills me.

I rush out of the mansion’s gates as quickly as I can. This stupid fucking injury is doing everything it can to deter me, but it’s not working. I push forward, alert and ready for anything that will come my way.

In the distance, there’s heavy foliage that could work in obscuring someone for long periods of time. I trudge towards it, knowing that this might be my opportunity to find Dalia. I really hope that she didn’t trek too far away from my mansion.

To my surprise, I’m right.

Underneath a tree, there’s a small pond that is hidden by the shade. It’s difficult to see clearly, but I see a shadow moving underneath the tree’s branches, pouring water over their arms and hands.

“Dalia?”

The figure freezes. Then, it disappears behind the trunk.

“Dalia!”

It’s bad for my health, but I’m pushing myself to the limit. I sprint towards the pond and swing around the tree trunk.

Dalia screams and tries to run away, but I tackle her to the ground.

“No! No, no, please! Please, don’t!” Dalia cries, fighting against my embrace. “Let me go!”

“What?” I ask, pulling away just enough to see her face. “What are you talking about? I’m not going to let you go.”

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