A Pet for the Dragons

107.

ZORGE

After sneaking around for a while, I managed to find a way to get inside the Empress' chambers. It was a highly guarded place, and I risked a lot by sneaking around there, but I needed to do this.

I needed to ensure that Arika was alright. I had felt her terror when the Cardinal Guard took her away. I didn't want her to go, but I didn't have a choice at that moment.

However, after getting inside the Empress' cambers, I was somewhat lost and had to spend a lot of time ensuring I didn't get caught and figure my way around the place. With each second that passed, my trepidation grew.

I couldn't help but wonder what the Empress might be doing to Arika, which made my nervousness worse. I wanted to get to her faster, but I feared this restlessness might get me caught.

After sneaking around the Empress' chambers for a while, I found a faint trail of Arika's scent. It was unmistakable. I followed it quickly. First, it led to what appeared to be the Empress's study, and from there, it led to somewhere outside the Empress's wing.

My heart was pounding in my chest as I followed Arika's faint scent, which seemed to be fading increasingly with each second. I was at a race with time. Ariak's scent trails heading outside the Empress' wing puzzled me.

Wasn't she meeting with the Empress? Or maybe Arika escaped. The thought of Arika escaping was more disturbing than the thought of her being alone with the Empress. This made me speed up.

My suspicion and nervousness grew when Arika's scent trail led through a dark hallway and stairways. It led me straight to the belly of the castle, more particularly to one of the towers that seemed to be assigned to the princes.

What was she doing here? I couldn't help but wonder as I raced through these stairs. There were fewer guards here, and the ones posted here weren't the Cardinal guards, so it was easier for me to deceive them and sneak away.

However, I soon lost her scent trail, making me panic. I decided to intuitively follow a path that led me to one of the towers in the western part of the castle. It belonged to one of the princes, but I didn't know which one it was.

I managed to unlock the door and sneak in. My heart started racing even more when I got the faint whiff of Arika's scent. I ran up the stairs immediately, not caring if I was out of breath.

Finally, I reached the top of the tower and the final door behind which Arika might be. I tried to open the door, but I couldn't. I pressed my ear to the door and tried to listen but got nothing. So I tried to feel if she was behind the door.

At first, I got nothing, but after waiting a little while, I could finally catch Arika's feelings. It brought some relief to me, but it made me anxious because she was feeling uneasy.

She was in danger!

I banged on the door without thinking much.

"Arika, are you there!" I called out for her and instantly regretted it. What if this worked against her? I should've thought it through, but I'd lost my calm already. "I know you're in there. Open the door," I demanded quickly.

I heard some commotion inside before the door was opened. I expected to see Arika but was met with the Golden Prince. The sight of him stunned me. I'd never seen him before, but I knew exactly who he was when I laid eyes on him.

Not to mention that I was inside his tower. I'd crept inside, and he could use it against me. But that wasn't my main concern at the moment. Instead, I pushed the door open and stepped inside, looking for Arika until I spotted her not far away. She seemed to be in shock. I scanned her from head to toe and used my powers to sense if she had been hurt but found no harm on her.

"We need to leave now," I told her as I reached for her, ignoring the Prince completely. I'd have Ivret deal with him later, but my main priority was to get Arika out of there as soon as possible.

"Wait! You cannot do that! I was talking to her!" The Golden Prince tried to intervene, but I hissed at him.

"We'll meet later," Arika promised him. "I need to go now. I've important stuff..." Arika tried to tell him, but we were already out the door and halfway down the stairs. Arika was lagging, so I lifted her and draped her over my shoulder to move faster.

"What the fuck! Put me down! I can walk!" She protested as I raced back to our wing. I didn't listen to her one bit, even when she tried to kick and punch me and pull my hair until it hurt. I didn't care.

I stopped only when we were back in our wing. She cursed me as soon as I put her on her feet.

"What was that? I was talking to him!" She hissed at me. This confused me even more. Come to think of it, everything about this while situation confused me.

"You were summoned to meet the Empress. How did you end up with that cursed Prince in his cursed tower?" I asked her. Even though I knew the possibility of her manipulating the station was slim, I decided not to dismiss it entirely. She'd played us not so while ago and almost escaped. This human was capable of doing anything.

"I met the Empress," Arika told me, "But after I left her study, Yvune took me to his room to show me something." I could sense Arika's feelings completely. She wasn't lying, but...

"And you went with him?" I asked her. "You went with him despite being warned? He was here yesterday, wasn't he? You should've gotten the clue then," I reminded her. I still couldn't believe she had gone to his tower with him. What if the Prince hurt her?

"He... I..." Arika was speechless for a moment. "He just took me. I didn't have time to say anything. He was already waiting for me outside the Empress' study. I couldn't evade him," She told me after gathering her thoughts.

"You shouldn't have gone with him," I told her. Arika narrowed her eyes at me, crossing her arms on her chest.

"What do you suggest I should've done to make him stop?" She asked.

"Why? Use your wits the same way you used them to fool us," I reminded her. Her eyes widened, and her face reddened with anger.

"You know what? Fuck you and your damned brother! I'm out," Arika cursed.

"What did you just say?" Radrox asked, standing at the door.

~

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