14. The Return of The Witch

"My goodness, Adro, you're so stubborn!" Damian hurried to catch up with his wide-striding older brother.

With those steps, they reached the palace's entrance in no time. Then, Adro approached one of the guards stationed there.

"Your Highness," the guard immediately bowed, recognizing the arrival of their princess.

"Get me a horse and five men. It seems there's a disturbance at the edge of the forest," Adro ordered.

"Yes, Your Highness." The guard ran to carry out the eldest prince's command.

"Adro, are you sure about doing this yourself? If father and mother find out, you will be done," Damian said, pulling his brother's shoulder again. He stared at him with wide eyes and panting breath.

However, Adro chuckled while lightly patting his twenty-two-year-old brother's shoulder. "I'm mature enough to judge how I should handle myself, Damian. I'm no longer at an age to worry about scolding from my parents."

Damian snorted with a sardonic look at his older brother. "How arrogant,"

Before long, what Adro had requested arrived: His dark black horse named Azer and five soldiers, each with their own horses.

"If so, let me come along!" Damian said as his brother mounted the large horse.

"No," Adro responded sharply. "If you want to be helpful, help me oversee the wedding preparations and look after Jocelyn, in case she asks for my whereabouts. I'll be back soon."

"Adro!"

"Hyah!" Adro snapped the reins of his horse.

The large warhorse raised its front legs before galloping off, followed by the soldiers' horses.

Damian watched the group leave as its trail of dust flew behind. He could only sigh at his brother's nature.

"You may be mature now, Adro, but your tendency to act as if you are the best man hasn't changed," Damian muttered before walking away.

***

The horseback group rode into the forest bordering the palace garden. The prince rode his black horse, leading at the front. He kept glancing at the sky at a twinkling light orb.

The news of the appearance of a male witch was first heard from a group of children who often played in the forest like children typically do in the Groendez a Lend kingdom.

At first, the parents doubted their claims, considering that it was they who had frightened their children with the story of witches, who could kidnap them and transform them into various rodents. However, not long after, some woodcutters and elderly hunters also claimed to have seen the witch.

The presence of a witch was no longer just a rumor. It prompted the king to form a team of soldiers to investigate the forest. However, they found nothing.

Nevertheless, in recent months, the king continued to seek the truth of the rumor to maintain peace for his increasingly panicked people. The return of the witch was said to bring back dreadful monsters to human civilization. Among all types of witches, it was the male door witch who could open the door to the underground realm, allowing terrifying monsters to re-emerge.

That's why, even though witches were rare to be seen, the knowledge of magical warfare and defense was passed down and taught to sorcerers, and every king from every kingdom ensured that they had a sufficient number of sorcerers, even though sorcerers were currently rarely employed due to the scarcity of monsters.

At first, Adro dismissed the story about deadly monsters as he grew older. Moreover, as he matured, his days were preoccupied with war and long journeys. During that time, he never encountered a witch and only witnessed a bit of magic practiced by sorcerers. And for monsters, he only encountered a few that were relatively foolish and easily defeated.

Like other parents, the queen also emphasized to her children that they must always remember the dark history so that they could appreciate their current comfortable life and be prepared for the worst that might come someday. But in reality, just like Adro, many people of his age began to underestimate the historical stories. To them, witches had been paralyzed and deadly monsters had been banished to the monster realm by their ancestors. However, it seemed that this had prompted the hidden witches to reveal their existence.

As the crown prince of his kingdom, Adro would not allow that to happen. Furthermore, that witch was acting on his wedding day. He vowed to personally destroy him with both of his hands.

On the journey through the forest, a soldier behind Adro suddenly caught sight of a tall figure that resembled a giant. Then he yelled, "Your Highness!"

Adro turned around, stopping his horse. "What's happening?"

"I think I've seen something that looks like an ogre," the soldier explained.

Adro frowned. They were still in the palace forest area. Defensive spells should still be surrounding them, making it impossible for monsters to enter. "Are you sure?"

The soldier nodded tensely. "I am sure, Your Highness. It was a four-meter-tall giant. It was moving among the trees."

"Then do not lose your guard. Shoot anything that approaches us if it doesn't look like a human!" Adro ordered before snapping his reins to continue their ride.

The group of horses galloped deeper into the forest. Adro kept an eye on the twinkling orb in the sky, which had been moving since he first noticed it, as if it was guiding him somewhere.

Suddenly, the horses stopped. They turned panicky and stood around with no reason, causing the journey to come to a standstill.

"What's happening?" Adro muttered, trying to control his horse. "Azer, calm down!" he said, before scanning his surroundings, realizing the horses were in a panic because something odd was coming.

"Watch out!" a soldier yelled as he saw a huge rock flying toward them.

Adro reflectively leaped off his horse because the rock was moving extremely fast, and his horse's movement was blocked by the other horses.

The rock struck the group of horses and some of the riders, who didn't have time to escape due to being blocked by others. The tragedy claimed the lives of several of Adro's men, including his beloved horse, Azer.

Adro shot his eyes in the direction where the rock came from. He squinted to sharpen his vision, but he saw nothing but an empty forest and a few birds flying around.

"That rock ... It obviously came from that direction. Something threw it. It must be the work of the witch," Adro muttered as his eagle eyes continually scanned the dense woods.