Winter Affliction

Part 27

Cale Henituse disappeared.

No one was quite sure exactly when or where he was last seen, no one knew what happened to him or whether he'd just wandered off on his own.

Alver's grip on composure was very much at its limit.

As soon as he was made aware of the disappearance, Alver redirected as much as his guards and attendants to the search as could be afforded without hindering the other rescue operations. Alver himself participated in the search and despite combing over the entire plaza and searching for any clue there was still no sign of Cale.

He was gone. As though he'd never been there to begin with.

If one were to go about describing the razor sharp tension in the crown prince's presence that day, it would wind up sounding a lot more like the experience of having a knife held to one's throat. His closest attendants wisely had no comment or issues with the stifling tension.

However there were some unwise individuals who thought that their criticism was helpful at this juncture. Those fools were among those who learned precisely how short the otherwise amiable prince's temper could be.

Cale was missing and there wasn't a single person who had any answers for him.

"The crazy idiot probably just wandered off to drink. Haha, what's the use in worrying about trash like that? Irresponsible enough to act so recklessly even in an emergency like this. It's really lucky for your highness that you were able to get out of that wretched engagement."

Some people really just could not read a room.

Han's wide eyes rested on the stiff form of his liege as the toxic words permeated in the air around them. The old general really seemed to believe that he was saying the right things to cozy up to the prince and establish himself as the crown prince's ally.

It was more apparent than ever after this horrible tragedy who was best fit for the throne. The second and third prince hadn't been able to do very much at all and the king hadn't even made the attempt. Alver had been the one who personally oversaw everything. He was the one who arranged for the few terrorists that had been captured to be imprisoned and questioned. He was the one who ensured that this devastating tragedy wasn't even more diasterious due to mismanagement of those in power.

In a sick and twisted way, the horrible events had been a catalyst to solidify Alver's power in a way that he never wanted.

This also meant that those drunk on greed for power felt quite comfortable in approaching Alver without the slightest clue about what the crown prince valued.

Alver's smile was as sharp as a knife.

"Young master Cale was last seen pulling survivors from the rubble." Alver began, his voice deceptively calm as every part of his existence simply radiated with wrath. "May I ask, General, what were you doing at that time?"

Alver knew the answer already.

He knew the answer to where just about everyone had been in those all important moments. Careful inquiry had painted a picture of the scene that allowed him to memorize the movements of hundreds of people across a plaza.

Everyone was present in that picture except for the only one he needed to find.

Alver's blood boiled underneath the surface. This was what these fools believed. That Cale was trash. That Alver wanted to be rid of him. That he broke the engagement because there was some horrible flaw about Cale.

The sheer irony that it had nothing to do with how he felt. It was all about how Cale felt. If Cale wanted him–

Alver's thoughts came to a startling halt right there and he dismissed the stuttering general who was attempting to make excuses for his behavior. He'd deal with him later. He didn't have the time to waste on idiots like that when Cale was gone.