16. Unreal World

Adro glanced back and realized the wolves were far behind, out of his sight. Yet their howls still sounded close.

As the situation remained unsafe, Adro proceeded with his intention to hide in the house. Emerging from the forest, he found himself in the yard of a rather large and nice-looking house.

He hurried towards the door and tried to open it, only to find that it was locked. However, Adro could see through the window that the lights inside were still on. Then he knocked on the door as hard as he could.

"Excuse me! Is anyone inside? Please open the door!"

Adro's brow furrowed. His hands clenched harder. He continued knocking on the door faster and harder, but no one was answering, and the wolf howls drew nearer as if encircling him.

Suddenly, his eyes opened, revealing a pair of crystal blue irises with pupils rapidly constricting as they were exposed to the light from the room's lamp. Adro raised his head only to meet a pair of brown eyes staring at him.

Grace observed the man, who had been sleeping with his head resting on the edge of her bed. Adro's odd, small noises had kept her awake. At the same time, several nurses entered the room to prepare her for surgery.

His eyes blinked, as if asking Grace what was happening, though it should have been her question.

"Are you okay?" Grace asked hesitantly.

Adro straightened his back, running his slender fingers through his hair from his forehead back. His breath was heavy, not because he had slept in an uncomfortable position but because the dream seemed to pull him back to the event that had brought him to this strange place.

"Good evening, Miss Grace. The surgery will be performed soon. Are you ready?" A male nurse asked.

Grace nodded. "I'm ready," then turned to Adro, who seemed a little confused. "Adro, I will be in surgery for a few hours. Will you be okay waiting here alone?"

Adro nodded while rubbing his tense forehead. "Of course. It's not a problem."

Grace smiled faintly with restraint. She wasn't entirely certain about leaving Adro alone, but she couldn't disrupt her surgery schedule, which might have negative consequences for her health if she did.

"All right. Please wait here. You can go back to sleep if you want. I'll be back to you. Don't worry," Grace assured.

"I understand. Thank you," Adro replied.

Then Grace was transferred onto a gurney. She was escorted out of the fairly large room by two nurses, leaving Adro, who was silently watching the only person he knew in this world leave him.

Adro didn't know what this feeling was. Could a great knight like him feel afraid over something so trivial? He just had to wait for Grace to return, but why did he sense this strange sensation within him?

Was this what his mother felt every time he left for battle?

Throughout his life, Adro had lived like a male eagle, soaring freely above steep cliffs. He spread his wings as wide as possible, challenged the wind, and focused his sharp eyes on whatever lay ahead as if he were the ruler of the sky.

He had never truly cared about anything in his life. He knew he was the crown prince, the future king of Groendez a Lend Kingdom, but as long as he remained a prince, he would face death without fear. He had never cared or even thought about how the people who watched him walk out of the castle gates into the dangerous world outside felt.

Grace was someone Adro had met just for a day. Yet he was worried when she left, despite her promise to return. Now Adro understood the feelings of those who had high hopes for him but had to see him go without knowing if he would return or not.

Wide awake, Adro chose to kill time by observing the surroundings. He stood by the window, gazing at the cityscape that still looked strange to him.

Their room was on the twelfth floor. From that height, the usually bustling city of Tobern looked bewildering. In this world, the sky was devoid of stars, but the twinkling lights in the sky seemed to have swapped places with those on the ground. All the flickering and moving lights looked amazing.

How could Adro return to his world? What was Joselyn doing right now? How was she? She must have been devastated, thinking her groom was missing in the forest on the day of their wedding.

Adro had never cared about his status as the crown prince. Although he had never declined to become king and would fulfill his duties as well as the current king, he always tried to make the most of his time as a prince because there was Damian, who could serve as the crown prince if he died in battle or for any other reason.

Not caring about his status didn't mean Adro wasn't concerned about what was happening in his kingdom. Besides his family, who were undoubtedly frantically searching for him, Adro had seen for himself that his kingdom was in peril.

The pack of monstrous wolves that had chased him might have been the result of a witch's magic or even monsters summoned from the underworld. Adro should not have been so impulsive in chasing the orb, which may have been a witch's lure to lead him into the heart of the forest and kill him.

"This place is unbelievable. Is this even real?" Adro muttered.

Then he approached the door, opened it, and glanced around to find the hospital corridor to be empty and quiet. Everything was white and bright, unlike the castle's corridors, which were dimly lit at night with lanterns or torches. Here, the lanterns were called lamps. Although they were small in size, the light they emitted was intense and white.

Now Adro no longer had his sword as his weapon. His sword might still be lodged in the throat of the wolf he had slain yesterday. Nevertheless, Adro was unafraid as he surveyed the surroundings, which, after all, didn't seem dangerous at all.