Chapter 33: Chapter Thirty-Three: To the ends of the earth.
Calithar returned back to the palace from the throne room to freshen up before going to visit the border that was expecting a new batch of iron from a neighbouring kingdom. It was already afternoon when he arrived in the carriage that stopped in front of the palace.
The weight of the day had taken a toll on him. For hours, he had listened to the complaints of the blacksmiths representatives who threatened to lay down their tools if something wasn’t done about the poor-quality iron flooding into the kingdom. The matter was more serious than most realized. Iron wasn’t just iron — it was the blood of their military, the foundation of their defenses. Weak iron meant weak weapons, and weak weapons meant vulnerability.
Calithar had sent his aides and ambassadors to neighboring kingdoms, demanding reports and answers. But it had always been the same thing. Whenever they go over to try out the iron being supplied by the kingdom, it is always in very good quality. But the moment it it is imported or shipped over, the quality drops is already weakened. This is then unknowingly transported to the smiths who have to suffer loss from buying it.
Calithar had sympathized with them and compensated them but he knew the issue had to be resolved and fast.
By the time he reached the stairway that led to his chambers, the sun was already dipping low in the sky.
He climbed the stairs feeling somewhat exhausted but as he reached the top, his eyes fell on the door opposite his chambers.
Elena’s room.
For a moment, he stiffened up.
The kiss of last night came back to him then in a flash, burning into his memory. He had told himself he would give her space, that he wouldn’t push too hard. But his heart betrayed him. He was longing for her in ways that were dangerous and consuming his patience.
Why was he fighting this at all? She was here, under his roof. His fate had already tangled with hers again.
What was the point in avoiding her when he sees her everyday? He decided not to apologize to her as that may seem like he kissed her by mistake and wasn’t genuine.
He clenched his jaw, debating whether or not to make a move then took a step forward.
He raised his hand and knocked lightly against her door. "Elena," His voice came out softer than it would be normally would.
Silence.
His brows furrowed. He tried again, knocking a little harder. "Elena, it is I. Open the door so we can talk."
Still, nothing.
Unease curled in his chest. He twisted the handle and pushed the door open.
The room was quiet and the air still.
Calithar stepped inside, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the space.
He rolled up his sleeves to his elbows as he approached the bed with a slight frown on his face.
The bed was made, but when he placed his palm against the sheets, they were still faintly warm. The scent of lilac hung gently in the air, clinging to the breeze drifting through the open windows. That alone told him that it hadn’t been long since she left. So where was she?.
He straightened slowly as tension began to seep into him. She had been here not too long ago. Which meant she had left recently. But where?
Calithar turned around sharply, striding out of the room.
The first maid he spotted carrying a basket of flowers nearly dropped it when she saw him coming.
"You," he said sharply as he walk towards her in haste.
The maid froze, bowing so quickly she almost fell to her knees. "Y-Yes, Your Majesty."
"The lady Elena. Where is she?"
The maid’s eyes flickered with fear. "T-The lady... she was seen heading to the stables this morning, my lord."
Calithar’s eyes darkened. "The stables?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. That is all I know."
"Fetch me the stable master," he commanded.
The maid bolted instantly from his presence, gripping her basket in fear.
Seconds later, the elderly stable master rushed in. His face was already pale by the time he arrived and knelt low before Calithar. His hands trembled, pressed flat to the cold stone floor.
"Speak," Calithar ordered. His voice was low, but it vibrated with restrained fury. "Where is she?"
The old man swallowed hard. "Your Majesty, I—I do not know. One of the carriages is gone, b-but I haven’t heard from the boy who drove it. I was tending to the other horses and just heard of it a few hours ago, sire."
Calithar’s jaw clenched. His hand twitched at his side as he tried his very best to remain in check. "You were entrusted with the care of this palace’s gates. And yet you claim ignorance while one under my protection leaves without notice?"
The man pressed his forehead deeper into the ground. "Forgive me, Your Majesty! I deserve death—"
"Bring me the boy this instant!," Calithar snapped angrily.
Within moments, two guards hauled the stable boy in who was pale with terror. They shoved him forward until he was flat on his stomach, pressed to the floor before the king.
"Raise your head," Calithar ordered coldly.
The boy hesitated before lifting his tear-filled eyes. He looked no older than seventeen and his lips trembled as he tried to form words.
Calithar loomed over him with his shoes just inches away from the boy’s hands on the floor. "Where. Did. You. Take. Her?"
The boy stuttered and his words tumbled out in panic. "I-I only did as milady asked, Your Majesty! She wanted a tour of the city. I told the lady I shouldn’t, that it wasn’t safe, but she insisted. She said she would inform his Highness when he returns a-a-andsaid she wouldn’t wander far. She asked me to stop at the intersection. That was where she got down. I swear to you, I wanted to follow her but she insisted I didn’t follow her! I thought she’d come back. I was a fool! Please have mercy on me!."
Calithar remained rooted to the floor as the boy spoke. The temperature of the air dropped to a chilling degree and everyone immediately fell to their knees. The was angry.
"I swear on my life, Your Majesty, I would never—"
"Silence."
The word reverberated from his mouth, and the boy instantly clamped his mouth shut, trembling.
Calithar’s hands curled into fists. Rage clawed at him, sharp and unrelenting. She had been alone. Alone, walking the streets she had never been to unguarded, vulnerable. The image of her surrounded by strangers or even in danger ignited a fire in his chest that nearly consumed him.
He turned away abruptly before thundering out orders.
"Search the kingdom," he barked in anger. "Every street, every alley, every marketplace. Search until you find her even if it kills you! Get me the princess, now!" his voice resonated through the hallways to the servants. The guards bowed to their knees sharply at his words. "Yes, Your Majesty!"
Turning to the stable boy and his master that was still shaking on the floor he commanded in the most chilling voice ever.
"If you dare return to me without her, I will have you neck and your family’s. Understood?"
"Y-y-yes, your majesty!" they stuttered out before scrambling out from his presence.
They mounted their horses immediately, galloping out of the gates in multiples each with one goal in mind: to find the princess.
But even as the orders left his lips, Calithar’s rage did not ease.
He stormed back into the palace furiously. The halls trembled faintly with his power as he entered his chambers, slamming the doors shut behind him. He walked straight to the far end of the room, to a carved chest tucked away behind the curtains.
From within, he pulled out a chest which had a small glass ball in it.
It glowed faintly the moment it was in his palm. Calithar set it down on the table, lowering himself into a chair before it. Closing his eyes, he drew in a deep breath and stretched his hands in front of him.
"I will not lose you again, my love. Never again. I will search and find you even if I go to the ends of the earth and back." he muttered to himself, determination flaring in his eyes.
Then he began to chant.
The words rolled off his tongue like thick and heavy smoke. They swirled in the air, invisible but powerful, clinging to the orb like threads of energy. His voice deepened as he began to summon his authority as a god.
The crystal pulsed with a faint light before brightening up instantly.
His eyes snapped open, glowing snow white. Ancient markings rippled faintly across his forearms, visible now as his power surged from his body.
"Acaraveth yeverin sudira," he commanded with his voice vibrating with divine authority.
The orb flared at those last words light bursting even more within it. The air shifted, trembling with energy. The walls started to shake, vibrating the pictures and sculptures that
stood near it like they were responding to his power.
Then was a sudden flash and Calithar vanished with the ball disappearing with him.