"Carrie!" Gavin called once more, finally reaching Princess Carrie but halted as soon as he tried to touch her. "Barriers..."
Looking around, Gavin realized there were now barriers again, separating him from Princess Carrie who was frozen in place while looking at the fox's eyes.
"Princess! Don't stare at the fox's eyes!" Gavin tried to tell her but to his disappointment, she didn't move. Or more like, she couldn't.
If Gavin knew this would happen, he wouldn't have allowed them to follow the magical beast. Now the princess was in danger once again and he couldn't do anything because of the barriers.
"Carrie! Carrie, listen to me!" Gavin tried once more, slashing through the barriers with his sword with all his might. "Carrie, look at me!"
As if it had taken an effect, Princess Carrie slowly blinked, eyes turning away from the fox as she turned to Gavin. "Second Prince..."
Relieved, Gavin halted from his attempts to destroy the barriers, "Are you okay?"
Princess Carrie looked to be still in trance as she nodded, face paling slightly.
Gavin noticed the paled face and couldn't help but tighten his grip on his sword, slashing continuously, trying to break the barriers. If his guess was right, this trick too was done by that spirit that sent out illusions to them earlier. The fox may have been true but the crystals weren't. Repeatedly, the crystals caught their attention, urging them to continue looking.
As if it wanted to distract them from something else.
And just as they began to step away from each other, the barriers appeared, separating them.
Gavin almost let out a curse under his breath. It was definitely done by someone. The annoying part was the fact he couldn't see the said person or creature himself. The creature was too calculating, too cunning to deceive them without showing itself.
As Gavin tried to assess their situation while also trying to break the barrier, he heard a familiar voice coming from the distance. When he looked at the origin, he realized it was coming from Princess Carrie herself.
"Leave me..." she said.
The barriers that had appeared obviously separated the two people. One was near the farthest wall and another, free to head back to the entrance.
Gavin frowned, chest aching horribly at the words he just heard. There was absolutely no way he would leave Princess Carrie. "Luna Veron will kill me if I do that."
"She won't," Princess Carrie said, head hanging low as if she was still in a trance. "She won't blame you if I disappear."
The frown on Gavin's face became deeper. "I don't know what that fox did to you but I'm not going anywhere. Hate me all you please, I won't go anywhere without you!"
Princess Carrie looked up, looking at Gavin and there he saw, a helpless, almost lifeless look on the princess who was full of life earlier while looking at the crystals. Suddenly wanting to attack the fox, the main culprit he could find, Gavin used his sword and thrusted it to the barrier. If there was one thing that made him different from the male royal bloods in the palace, it was his undying emotion for one person. While almost all the alphas he knew could take different and as many wives as they wanted, making one Luna and the rest their concubines, Gavin only wanted one.
For him, just one person was enough.
And losing her would be similar to death itself.
In one big thrust, Gavin used all his might and power with the sword, breaking the barrier finally. Relief washed over him as he heard the glasses of that barrier break into pieces, destroying the separation wall between him and Princess Carrie.
"Princess," he called out.
But before he could even take another step, shadows of different figures passed by quickly, faster than the wind. When he looked at them, he found two men now standing near Princess Carrie, making his blood run cold like ice.