Stolen by the Rebel King-Chapter 555: Man Who Escaped Death

"What did you find?" Cordelia asked once they found a safe corner, folding her arms across her chest as she waited for Arne to reply. Everyone was back in the ballroom and other than Cordelia, Arne, and the quickly approaching Jonah, not another soul was in sight.

"This was found in the corridors by the contestants’ wing just an hour ago, Your Highness," Arne reported, holding out a tiny red ruby.

Cordelia took hold of it, her eyebrows knitting tightly together as she examined the small jewel. It was oddly familiar, and it took her a second before she connected the dots. When she spun it around, she could see an odd mark at the butt of it, but with the naked eye, it was impossible to make out the pattern. Nevertheless, she already had a feeling about what it was.

"Jonah," she calmly said once he arrived at her side, handing him the ruby. "Have a look at this."

Carefully, he did as told, taking hold of the small gem before squinting his eyes at it.

"Look any familiar?" she prompted.

Slowly, Jonah nodded, his eyes still trained on the red stone. "The dagger," he said, "from the washed-up shipment of Santok’s wares."

"Seems like at least one of the daggers made its way into Nedour’s palace," Cordelia said, nodding. She turned to Arne and asked, "Was this found near any of the participants’ rooms?"

"Not at all, Your Highness," Arne replied. It was found in the common area but at a corner next to the door. The owner must have dropped it on their way out and wasn’t able to find it afterward."

"A Santok blade was used in the palace," Cordelia said, a short cold laughter leaving her lips. "Remind me again, Jonah, if we have any Santok imports in our arsenal?"

"None, Your Highness," Jonah replied. "Other than the black market, the only place where we might find authentic Santok weapons would be from the crates on the beach."

Cordelia eyed the small ruby, sneering. "Check for the Santok royal family insignia on that gem," she said. "If I am not mistaken, that small scratch at the back is most likely where it is carved. You will need a proper magnifying glass for that to validate its authenticity."

"If it is a ruby from the dagger..." Jonah trailed off, eyeing the small stone as though it weighed the world.

"Then we would’ve found our first good reason to arrest the suspect," Cordelia said, her gaze turning cold.

***

"Thank you for keeping me company, Queen Daphne," Nikun said, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck. "I suppose that standing out during the events might not have been the best play. The other contestants seem to absolutely despise me."

Nikun was right. The other contestants avoided them like the plague. Daphne could see their wary eyes silently observing Nikun even whilst they seemed otherwise occupied, careful not to let him out of their gaze. Nikun had done well in both events and right now, he was their strongest competitor. These men, Daphne had learned, did not have the kindness to befriend someone who could snatch the throne from under their noses.

Nothing wrong with that. It was perfectly understandable why they felt this way, though Daphne wondered if it was truly wise to put people that had such crazed ambition in Cordelia’s inner circle that would eventually help govern the kingdom for her.

"You’ve traveled far from home," Daphne said, smiling kindly. While she was wary, she still wanted to be as sincere as she could. Her bad experiences with Eugene shouldn’t make her hardened against every and any stranger, and Nikun was a mere suspect, not yet a convict.

Besides, it would be much easier to weasel information out of him when she has managed to get his guard down.

"I have," Nikun said with a nod. "Santok is beautiful, but it is nothing compared to Nedour with regards to freedom."

"Freedom?" Daphne echoed. "How so?"

"Have you heard of the internal politics currently raging in Santok?" Nikun asked. He kept his voice down, and there was no need to be extra wary because everyone made sure to keep their distance. That made it easier for him to speak freely without worry of eavesdroppers.

"I have, just a little," Daphne replied.

"Well," Nikun said, scratching the back of his neck, "that has made Santok a difficult place to stay in at the moment. The raging politics, the impending civil war, everything is a mess. That was partly why I decided to come here."

Daphne’s eyebrows shot up her forehead no matter how hard she tried to stamp it down. She hadn’t expected him to confess so quickly.

"Is it the fight for the throne?" she asked. "It usually is. I’ve seen personally how it gets very messy."

Her thoughts temporarily flitted to her dead brother. It had been a while since she returned to Reaweth. Perhaps after this, it would be time to visit.

"Fight for the throne?" Nikun said with a laugh, "There is no fight for the throne for me. I am a bastard prince― I am not anywhere near eligible to fight for the right to rule against my brothers. Half of the civilian population have not even a clue that I exist, and I am sure there are many others like me who are yet to be found."

Nikun’s face then darkened. "Or killed," he added.

With a softer voice, barely even above a murmur, he continued, "Eiko was the only reason why I made it out alive."

"Eiko?" Daphne echoed. The name was familiar, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

"My older sister," Nikun explained. "Or half-sister, to be exact. She is the seventh princess of Santok, the royal family’s true daughter. She suggested I leave Santok for my safety after having personally witnessed my eldest brother murder someone else in cold blood."

Nikun’s eyes were filled with exhaustion, his expression weary when he gazed upon Daphne. He looked like someone who had barely just managed to escape death― and he was a man who did.

"We eventually found out that the man he killed was another one of our half-brothers that my father left roaming out on the streets."