171 General's Rivary

CHAPTER 171

Lady Lorelei let out an exasperated sigh at the thought of Bayard's nagging.

'For now, I should get this potion set and prepare to venture into the wild. Perhaps I would catch the news from the soldiers or I would visit that Elf Princess again.'

Her eyes suddenly lit up when it locked with what she was looking for. "There you are," she said to the vial and picked it up.

"Plan in motion my little friend. Let us get to work."

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~ELVEN FOREST~

On and on, with boots thundering on the forest floor, and bodies swiftly breezing past the trees and leaves, the soldiers that took Princess Avery hurried away.

They needed to run at their fastest speed and limit so as to get the Elven Princess and the injured soldier to the infirmary at once.

Princess Avery face paled a little bit, her eyes dizzy from the lack of rest and the poison. Although the antidote did its best to keep the poison from spreading, it was still in their bodies and needed to be extracted quickly.

It was Lieutenant Callum who carried her. He carried her bridal style and held her close to his chest, using his body to shield her from the leaves and dust as they ran on.

Halfway through the forest, they came in contact with the soldiers King Regin dispatched. Everyone halted when they saw the few soldiers running at an alarming speed.

"Halt in the name of the King!" One of the soldiers in the lead shouted with his right hand raised slightly above his head.

Everyone stopped in their tracks as the moment they got to where the soldiers stood. Lieutenant Callum was ready to yell at them to make way when General Cleon took a step forward.

"General Ivaran Valxidor and General Lyklor Sylkrana, what brings you to the forest?"

"General Cleon Roven, I believe it is the same mission as yours," another soldier in front, General Lyklor said, taking a step forward. "I believe that is the Princess," he added on.

His gaze left General Cleon and went straight to Avery in Lieutenant Callum's arms.

Upon noticing all eyes were on him and Avery he bowed his head in respect to the Generals. "Lieutenant Callum, Generals," he quickly introduced himself.

General Ivaran gave a nod at him and returned his gaze back to Cleon. He arched his brows up at Cleon, awaiting an explanation why the princess was being carried by a Lieutenant.

"We must reach the palace at once. The princess is gravely injured."

"And the hybrid?" General Ivaran asked.

"She escaped. We have men searching for the whole forest for her. General Aelfdene is leading the team."

"You had a mission, get the Princess back to the palace and keep her safe. How do you explain this to His Majesty?"

"You failed in your res…"

Before he could complete his sentence, Callum cut in, interrupting their conversation.

"Generals, need I remind you that the princess is poisoned and in need of immediate treatment. Now is not the time to be accusing blames. Her life comes first."

His face gave away his irritation and anger. He was worried for the Princess. HEe didn't know why, but he felt hurt seeing her in such situation and not being able to do anything about it.

He knew he spoke out of turn and may be punished, but right now he didn't care. He was tired of their banter.

It was common between the Generals to point fingers and call out one's fault but now was not the time to do so. They had a bigger problem to worry about.

If the king was here, he would surely have told them, since they have enough time to accustom blame at each other, then they should work more.

"Lieutenant, you speak out of turn. Know your place."

"Know your place? Know my place when her life is at stake here? I would accept all due punishment, but first, my mission is to ensure her safety. I am strictly following orders," Lieutenant Callum countered.

General Lyklor was about speaking, but Ivaran put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head. " The Lieutenant is right. Keep your differences aside, the princess comes first."

"Fine. Hand her over, we would handle the rest and see to it that she is safely escorted back."

"I am sorry, that would not happen. General Aelfdene instructed we take her back. You can offer your assistance in capturing the hybrid since that is also a matter of utmost concern," General Cleon said.

Cleon's gaze was sharp and fierce as he looked at the other general. He was not ready to let him cheat him this time around.

Himself and Ivaran had been rivals since they first joined the Elven army. Ivaran took the glory of completing a mission that Cleon did because the latter fainted when they were done.

As a result, Ivaran got a bigger share of the reward and got promoted first as a Lieutenant before Cleon did.

Unfortunately, both still rose in ranks together as they put in their best efforts and were equally skilled. Since then, the two had always been at each other's throat.

"Fine! General Cleon and I, with a few soldiers would escort Her Highness back to the palace. While General Ivaran and the others would proceed as planned but this time, join in with the others and capture the hybrid."

This was the best solution General Lyklor could think of, as he knew these two couldn't journey together in peace.

Besides as a General higher in rank than them, he couldn't let their differences ruin the mission. He would be held responsible if any harm was to befall the Princess more than this.

They had no choice but to obey General Lyklor's decision. It was what was best.

"You must be tired, Lieutenant, you have done well. Let me carry her highness."

Callum hesitated a bit and looked at Cleon for a go-ahead. Cleon nodded at him when he noticed the slight hesitation from Callum.

He trusted General Lyklor, he wasn't like Ivaran. He was much more honest and better than the former. He didn't have any intention of taking the glory for himself.

Needless to say, no one could take the glory for themselves as the Princess was involved in everything and witnessed what happened.

With the confirmation from Cleon, Callum handed Avery over to the other General and stepped back.

All through their bickering, Avery didn't open her eyes. She kept still like one who was unconscious to watch their attitude.

With everything settled, General Lyklor turned to face Ivaran and the other soldiers and addressed them.

"You all would proceed under General Ivaran's lead and join with the other soldiers in search of the hybrid."

"Yes, General," everyone chorused.

"Myself, General Cleon, Lieutenant Callum, the soldiers with them and twenty of you would accompany Her Highness back to the palace," he added.

"Yes, General," they said in unison.

His gaze moved to the faces of the soldiers as he finished speaking. Satisfied with their obedience his eyes darted back to Ivaran.

"General Ivaran, I leave the rest in your care. Corporate with Aelfdene and ensure the hybrid is captured."

"Rest assured, General Lyklor. I would do my best," General Ivaran said with a neutral face.

"Good. The first twenty men come with me. General Cleon, we leave now."

"Yes, sir!"

Leaving the others behind, they continued their journey out of the forest.

General Ivaran's gaze followed their silhouette form and watched on from where he stood till they were out of sight.

He clenched his fits so tight that his knuckles turned white. His eyes held a wave of untold anger as he stared blankly ahead.

All the soldiers stood at attention, no one dared to make a move or cough in front of the General. They were all aware of his attitude as well as his rivalry with General Cleon.

Of course, no one knew the real reason behind their quarrel but it was clear as day that they weren't on good terms with each other.

"General!" One of the soldiers called out.

Who dared to disturb his thinking?

His eyes darted to his side and he glared at the soldiers. Right now, he exuded a cold and deadly aura and the air seemed to be denser and suffocating around them. Shivers ran down their smile at the deathly glare they were getting.

Finally, the one who spoke stepped forward. It was none other than his Assistant General, Borak Daemaris. General Ivaran arched a brow at him, awaiting his reason for interrupting his train of thoughts.

"This had better be good," he said with a cold voice.

"We should continue," his Assistant General said calmly as though he was not affected by the deathly glare Ivaran gave him.

Without uttering a word of response, Ivaran turned and started running forward.

'If only he would channel all this anger into capturing the hybrid, wouldn't that be a better achievement than sending the princess back to palace.' Borak said inwardly and followed after him.

"Phew!"

Most of the soldiers sighed, thankful for the saving interruption from their assistant General and chased after their general.