Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

"I hate this kind of situation… how the fuck that bastard is so cunning?" Rain thought.

Rain couldn't shake the troubling thought that the King might be the masterminds behind this situation. Without the royal family present, it appeared that the cunning monarch had intentionally left his daughter behind, likely planning to craft a narrative of her kidnapping, with the royal guards serving as witnesses.

This unsettling notion implied that those who should have been protecting Princess Esmeralda were now part of a complex scheme. If this was indeed true, its purpose seemed to be manipulating the entire kingdom into believing that the princess had been abducted. Such a fabrication could elicit sympathy and rally support for the king and Joanis' agenda.

As Rain contemplated this disconcerting possibility, he felt the weight of the intricate web of deceit that had entangled not only the royal family but the entire realm. Joanis had turned his own daughter into a pawn in his perilous quest for power, and the future of the kingdom hung in the balance.

"I should have killed both of them when I had the chance… making the entire country my enemy would be less annoying than this," Rain thought.

In any case, Rain dashed to where Branden and Esmeralda were and soon he realized that something was off… they weren't moving at all, even though they were alive. That was weird and concerning…

When Rain reached the room, Rain found Branden holding Esmeralda's hand while she was in her bed… she was unconscious. Branden was by her side trembling a fair bit… Soon, Rain understood why. Her condition looked bad… and Rain had seen that before… It was when Roswall and Melody had been poisoned.

"Why… why would he go to such lengths?" Branden asked. "She is his daughter!"

"... Let me check her for a bit," Rain said.

It was in moments like this that Rain thought that he should have used his healing skills more. Still, he could tell that she was being poisoned a few days ago and she remained unconscious since then.

Even though the king was a retard, Rain couldn't imagine that he would poison his daughter… he could only assume that he either did that but also gave her the antidote to keep her out of the equation for a while, or Joanis did that to make the king even more ruthless and agree with his plans, he probably did that when they left the castle or he made one of his guards do that.

Either way, Rain's healing skills weren't powerful enough for him to tell if Esmeralda was given some antidote for the poison as well. Terra was better than him in that regard, and they had to return as fast as possible.

"Let's return," Rain declared. "Keep using healing magic on her, it should have some effect, right now, we need to buy as much time as possible."

Branden couldn't think things through in that situation and no one could blame him for it, so he just nodded and followed Rain's orders.

It was a pity, but the golden and silver throne will have to stay behind in order for them to return home as soon as possible. In the end, Rain broke a new record and returned home after just five hours of traveling… the trip had been quite turbulent, but time was of the essence.

The others who stayed behind wanted to know why Rain and Branden returned so soon, but they knew that they didn't have time for chat when they saw the unconscious princess. Terra immediately followed them to the room that they took her to and began to check her body.

"... What kind of poison is this?" Terra asked while blinking several times after she checked Esmeralda's condition.

"It is a very rare one… it is also slow, but the mortality rate is almost one hundred percent," Branden replied while he was still holding Esmeralda's hands.

The poison that had been used on Princess Esmeralda was a devious concoction with a slow and deadly action. It commenced its malicious action by plunging the victim into a deep and unconscious slumber, leaving them completely oblivious to the impending danger lurking within their own body.

During this initial phase, the poison subtly infiltrated their system, gradually sapping the strength of their immune defenses.

As time passed and the victim's immune system weakened, the poison remained dormant, patiently awaiting the right moment to strike. Once the immune system had been sufficiently compromised, the poison would activate with ruthless precision, swiftly progressing to deliver a fatal outcome.

Surviving such a poison was a rare feat, achievable by only a select few. Throughout history, those remarkable individuals who had managed to emerge unscathed from its clutches became celebrated legends of their era. It was widely believed that only those blessed with extraordinary vitality and unwavering health could hope to withstand the relentless assault of this deadly toxin.

These survivors served as living testaments to the unyielding human spirit and the extraordinary power of exceptional well-being.

"I will need a bunch of your potions, Rain," Terra declared.

"No problem," Rain said. "I am a bit pissed, so I am going to steal a bunch from the kingdom to relieve some stress."

"Lord Branden, I will have to ask you to leave for a while," Terra said. "This might not be pretty and we don't want you to get emotional and we also need to avoid future problems…"

"Okay…" Branden said and then closed his eyes before letting out a long sigh.

"Please, call your sisters, they probably can help me with that," Terra said. "Asche, Liss and Reca are too clumsy for this."

That was weird, while they could use healing magic, it wasn't their speciality. Rain also felt a bit bad for letting his sisters seeing a person slowly dying like that, but perhaps such a thing would make them more eager to develop their healing skills than the fighting ones.